oN cPeraciyg Vatstitehere: We ses Taig Ma ada: taeda Fate bracts: 8 ts ony ag aes Sevass’ aT at ate te, 2) * = wha fanart oateneme es goatee! 1S ah a esac DPE TENS Se ‘eae Sav aaiie Sens : fete sa me ae ies Pathetic ive, BT 121 .B8 1842. Buchanan, James, 1804-1870. The office and work of the HOLY SO Dre KS 96 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT into our hearts unless he put it there. The Word is a sword—a sharp two-edged sword ; but its efficacy depends on this—that it is the sword of the Spirit. The Word is a light; but itis “in Azs light we see light.” The entrance of his Word giveth light; but it obtains entrance only when he openeth the heart. Hence the prayer of the Psalmist, “ Open thou mine eyes, that I may see wondrous things out of thy law ;” and the still more remarkable prayer of the apostle, ‘For this cause [ bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, that he would grant you, ac- cording to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man.” Here is a powerful work of the Spirit on the soul; it must be strengthened with might,—and for what end? “ That ye may be able to comprehend with all saints, what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye may be filled with all the fulness of God.” Here no new truth is said to be revealed; but what is contained in the Word is made known by the in- ward enlightening of the Holy Spirit. On the teaching of the Spirit the efficacy of all the means of grace depends, and especially the efficacy of the reading and preaching of the Word. Without the Spirit, the ministry of the Word would be utterly fruitless for all the ends of saving conversion. It might be a social blessing, as a means of keeping alive a sense of common morality in the world, but never could it be the means of spiritual life to the soul, unless it were accompanied with the enlightening IN ENLIGHTENING THE MIND. 9F grace of the Spirit. What more powerful than the ministry of the apostles? what reasoning more vigor- ous,—what appeals more overwhelming,—what elo- quence more lofty,—what zeal more urgent than those of Paul? What love so tender, what tenderness so pathetic, what pathos so touching, what unction so rich and sweet, as those of John? What sacred orator better furnished for his vocation than Apollos, of whom it is written, that “he was an eloquent man, and mighty in the Scriptures?” Yet even the ministry of inspired men, the preaching of the very apostles of Christ, depended for all its saving efficacy on the grace of the Spirit; for, says the apostle, “ Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man? I have planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth, but God that giveth the increase.” ‘* Weare labourers together with God ; but ye are God’s husbandry, ye are God’s building.” Ministers are often employed as instruments in en- lightening and converting the soul; and hence they may be said, ministerially, to be the spiritual fathers of their converts, Yet it is not by their own power, but by the power of the Holy Ghost; so that every successful minister might well say with the apostles, “ Ye men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? or why look ye so earnestly upon us, as though by our own power or holiness we had made this man to walk ?” This great truth, if it shows the weakness of the minister, will also prove the very strength of his — ie 58 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT ministry ; for never will he feel so deeply impressed either with the greatness of his work, or the dignity of his mission, as when he is most thoroughly con- yinced that the efficacy of all his preaching depends on the power of the Spirit. This will nerve him with new strength, and inspire him with new hope, when all outward appearances are most unpromising ; and in the strength of this simple faith, he will stand pre- pared to deliver his message, before any audience, savage or civilized, assured that the same Spirit who has brought the truth home to his own soul, can also bring it home, with demonstration and power, both to the obtuse and unlettered peasant, and to the refined, perhaps the sceptical, or the scornful man of science. The Word, the ministry, and other means of in- struction, are adapted to the rational nature of man, and are in their own nature fitted for the purpose for which they are employed; nay, men may, in the use of their natural faculties, be instructed, impressed, and affected by the reading and hearing of the Word ; but they cannot be savingly enlightened without the teaching of the Spirit. The Spirit’s operations are adapted to the nature of man, asa rational and intelligent being; and he works in and by the faculties of the soul. It is the same mind which is now in darkness that is translated into marvellous light; the same understanding which is now ignorant that is to be informed; the same eye which is now blind that is to be opened and enabled to see.—The Spirit usually exerts his power by the use of appropriate means. Omitting from our present ‘i IN ENLIGHTENING THE MIND. 99 consideration the case of infants, who may be sanctified ° from the womb by the secret operations of the Spirit, it is clear that, in the case of adults, the mind is en- lightened instrumentally by the truth, which is hence called “the light of the glorious Gospel,” and the “ day-star which rises on the heart.”—-The Word of God is an appropriate means of enlightening the mind; it ig an instrument which is in every respect fitted for the purpose for which it isemployed. (1 Tim. ii. 14.) If any remain in darkness with the Bible in their hands, it is not because there is no light in the Bible, but because there is no spiritual eye to discern it. All the truth which an enlightened believer ever learns under the teaching of the Spirit, is really con- tained in the Bible, although heretofore he had not seen it there; nay, much of it may have been con- tained in the articles of his professed creed; but it was not known, understood, and believed in its full spiritual meaning as it isnow. He is only brought, in many cases, to see what he formerly professed to believe in a new light,—to understand and feel its spiritual import and power, as the truth of God. Being an appropriate means, adapted to the faculties of the human mind, there can be no reason to doubt that the Bible, like any other book, may convey much instruction to an unrenewed man. Whenitisaflirm- ed that a natural man cannot know the things of the. Spirit of God, it is not implied that the Bible is unin- telligibly written, or that he cannot understand the sense and meaning of scriptural propositions, so as to be able to give a rational account of them ; for he may 100 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT investigate the literal meaning of Scripture, and, in doing:so, may attach a definite idea to many of its statements—may be able to see their mutual relations —to reason upon them, and even to expound them ; and yet, in the scriptural sense, he may be in dark- ness notwithstanding. There are truths in the Bible which admit of being recognised and even proved by natural reason, for “the things of a man may be known by the spirit of man which is in him;” and even “the things of the Spirit,” when revealed, may be so far understood as to affect and impress the mind which is nevertheless unconverted. The Pha- risees had “the form of knowledge in the law ;” they were the great theologians under the Old Testament. Yet our Lord declares, that, studious and instructed as they were, and capable of expounding the writings of Moses, they did not really AKnow God, nor under- stand the writings of Moses. Simon Magus must have had some correct notional acquaintance with the leading truths of the Gospel, and been able to put them forth in intelligible propositions, when he made that profession of faith which the apostles themselves regarded as a sufficient ground for his admission to the sacrament of baptism. Yet he had not been spiritually enlightened, for “he was still in the gall of bitterness and the bond of iniquity.” So our Lord himself speaks of some who hear the Word, and anon with joy receive it. They not only have some notion of its meaning, but some impressions of its power ; yet they have not the “ light of life.” They are like — Herod, “‘ who feared John, knowing that he was a just IN ENLIGHTENING THE MIND. | 101 man and an holy, and observed him; and when he heard him, he did many things, and heard him gladly.” There is a great difference betwixt the views even of natural men on the subject of divine truth,—a dif- ference which is strikingly exemplified by the very different language of the three Roman governors— Festus, Agrippa, and Felix, in reference to the preach- ing of Paul. Festus spoke out in the bold language of a natural man, to whom the preaching of the Gos- pel was foolishness : “ Paul, thou art beside thyself; much learning doth make thee mad.” Agrippa was impressed and moved, for he said, “ Almost thou per- suadest me to be a Christian;” and Felix was still more deeply moved, for, “as Paul reasoned of righte- ousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix trembled.” The natural man, then, may know some- thing of divine truth,—he may even be impressed and affected by it, without acquiring that saving knowledge which our Lord himself declares to be “ eternal life.” The natural man is capable of acquiring, by. the use of his rational faculties, such an acquaintance with the truths of God’s Word as is sufficient to make him responsible for his treatment of it. Not to enlarge upon other points, let us take the doctrine which affirms the darkness of the human understanding, and the necessity of the enlightening grace of the Holy Spirit, which is often supposed to destroy the grounds of human responsibility in this respect ; unless he be taught of God, he cannot have such an experimental knowledge of that doctrine as belongs to the exercised 102 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT Ps believer, and probably he will not submit to it; but it is stated, nevertheless, in plain intelligible language —he cannot read his Bible without being made aware that it contains this truth, nor can he exercise his understanding upon it, without acquiring some gene- ral knowledge of its import; and that knowledge, although neither spiritual nor saving, is amply suffi- cient as a ground of moral obligation. And farther, he may also learn from the same source, and in the same way, how it is that the enlightening grace of the Spirit is obtained, for he cannot read such passages as these: “If any man lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not, and it shall be given him;” and “if ye, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him ;”—he cannot read such passages as these without forming some notion of prayer as the means by which his natural darkness may be dispelled; and if, notwithstanding his clear natural perception of such doctrines, he either refuses to believe them, or persists in neglecting prayer for the Holy Spirit—he must be dealt with hereafter on a very different principle, and tried by a very different rule of judgment from that which alone is applicable to those who have no Bible to teach them, or no rational mind to be taught.—You cannot have sat under a Gospel ministry for years without acquiring such knowledge as is abundantly sufficient to lay you under the most weighty responsibilities. It is a solemn reflection, that this knowledge must either prove “the __IN ENLIGHTENING THE MIND. 103 savour of life unto life,” or “the savour of death unto death.” Ifit be not the means of your conversion, it will be the ground of your condemnation, “ For this is the condemnation, that light hath come into the world, and that men have loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. But he that loveth the light, cometh to the light;” and he that loveth the light of the Gospel, will not shrink from the enlightening work of the Spirit. Still; it must ever be remembered, that whatever knowledge a natural man may acquire by the exercise of his rational faculties on the Word of God, that knowledge is neither spiritual nor saving, unless he be enlightened by the Spirit Were I asked to state what is the specific difference betwixt the natural and the spiritual knowledge of divine truth, or how they may best be distinguished from each other, I should feel the difficulty that is usually attendant on a discrimination betwixt two states of mind, which haye some common resemblance, and whose » difference consists in a quality of which the natural man knows nothing, because he has no experience of it. As it is difficult to convey an idea of colour to the blind, or of music to the deaf, so it is diffi- . cult to describe to a natural man the peculiar percep- tions of one whose eyes have been opened by the Spirit,—and the difficulty is not diminished but in- creased by the fact, that he has a kind of knowledge which is common to him with the true believer, and which is too apt to be mistaken for that which the Gospel requires. Perhaps the nearest approach that 104 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT As we can make to an explanation, may be, by asking you to conceive of a man who sees, but has no sense of beauty, or of a man who hears, but has no sense of harmony ; just such is the case of a natural man, who sees the truth without perceiving its spiritual excel- lence, and on whose ear the sound of the Gospel falls without awakening music in his soul. Saving know- ledge is not a knowledge of the dead letter or out- ward form of the Gospel, but a knowledge of the truth in “the light, and lustre, and glory of it;” a “ oustful knowledge,” * which has in it a relish of the truth as excellent: “O taste and see that the Lord is good.” Itis “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” Just conceive of the different views of Christ which were entertain- ed by those with whom he mingled in Judea, and this will help you to understand the difference, or at jeast to see that there is one, betwixt the one kind of knowledge and the other. All the Jews who saw Christ had some views concerning him; but to the carnal eye “he had no form nor comeliness ; and when they saw him, there was no beauty that they should desire him ;” while to the spiritual eye, he was “ fairer than ten thousand, and altogether lovely ;” for, says the apostle, “‘ He dwelt amongst us, and we beheld his . glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” And just as it was then, so is it now: as Christ, the sum and substance of the Gospel, came as the light, “and the darkness compre- hended it not,”—-as “he was in the world, and the * Professor Haliburton. * IN ENLIGHTENING THE MIND. 105 world was made. by him, and the world knew him not ;” so the Gospel, which is Christ revealed, may be read and heard,—yet “seeing we may not perceive, and hearing we may not understand,” until the Spirit “take of the things of Christ and show them unto us,” by “ shining into our hearts.” Another difference betwixt the two kinds of know- ledge, consists in this, that true spiritual light carries with it a self-evidencing power, and is accompanied with a heartfelt conviction of its certainty—a cordial belief of its truth, When the eye is opened to see the glory of the Gospel, the mind has an intuitive perception of its divine authority—it “commends itself to the conscience in the sight of God,” and the sinner feels that “God is in it of a truth.” God has “mag- nified his Word above all his name ;” it bears upon it a more striking impress of his divine perfections than any other manifestation by which he has ever made himself known ; and when the eye is opened to per- ceive God’s glory in the face of Jesus Christ, the mind can no more believe that the Word could be written, than that the world could be framed, by any other than an omniscient God. But the great discriminating test of the difference | betwixt the natural and spiritual knowledge of divine truth, is to be found in its practical influence and actual fruits. Spiritual light is accompanied with life and love,—it is vital and powerful, transforming, re- newing, purifying the soul in which it dwells; for if we behold the glory of God, we are thereby changed into the same image; we love what we discern to be ist 106 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT » good, we admire what we perceive to be excellent, we imitate and become conformed to what we love and admire ;—it is not a cold light like that of the moon or stars, but a lively light, accompanied with heat and warmth—vivifying, fructifying ; it attunes all the faculties of the soul for the service of God, like the light that fell on the statue of Memnon, and awoke the chords of his sleeping lyre. The difference betwixt the natural and spiritual knowledge of divine truth, is not only real but great. It is as the difference betwixt darkness and light, or betwixt night and day. Every natural man, however educated, is “alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in him.” He may be more learn- ed in the letter of the Scriptures, more thoroughly furnished with all literary erudition, more scientific in his dogmatic orthodoxy, more eloquent in illustration and argument, than many of those who are “ taught of God;” but “I say unto you, he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.” It is not a difference in degree, but in kind. In that which is common to both, the natural man may have a higher degree of learning than the spiritual; but in that which is peculiar to such as are taught of God, there is no room for comparison ;—that kind of know- ledge, although it, too, admits of degrees as it is pos- sessed by the people of God, belongs to none else—to none but such as are taught by his Spirit. And this. difference is great, insomuch that the people of God, whose eyes are opened to understand the Scriptures, are said to have “a new understanding given to them,” —‘“the Son of God is come, and hath given us an . IN ENLIGHTENING THE MIND. 107 - understanding that we may know him that is true ;” not that another faculty is created, but that the old one is thoroughly renewed. And this change is wrought on the understanding itself. Itis not enough that the affections be disengaged from sin, so as to remove obstructions to the right operation of a mind supposed to be in itself “pure, noble, and untainted ;” no, the understanding has shared in the ruins of the fall, and is itself perverted ; and as such it must be renewed by Him who created it, otherwise it will for ever distort the light, however clearly it may shine from the page of Scripture. As the understanding is the leading faculty of the soul, and plainly designed to influence, control, and govern every other by its light ; so darkness here is the prolific cause of much moral and spiritual evil. The understanding, therefore, must be enlightened, if the heart is to be renewed. Spiritual darkness is spoken of in Scripture,—not as a mere passive or negative thing, but as a positive power ;—‘ the power of dark- ness’ is expressly mentioned, and the apostate angels are represented as kept in “ chains of darkness,” as if it imposed fetters on the soul; and truly none can break those fetters, but He who caused the iron chain to fall from off the hands and feet of his imprisoned disciple. Our apostasy from God is described as consisting chiefly in our spiritual darkness. The very end of our being was, that we should “glorify God,” as in- telligent creatures might and ought, by perceiving, adoring, and delighting in his glory: this is the highest exercise of angels and seraphim. And if now 108 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT a dark cloud conceals from us his perfections—if we can have God present to our thoughts without per- ceiving his glory, this is at once the evidence and the description of our melancholy fall. This darkness is not only the deadly shade under which our enmity to God finds a shelter and covering, but it is in some sense the cause of that enmity, inas- much as it gives rise to innumerable prejudices against God, which feed it and keep it alive, and also to multiform delusions, varying from the barest atheism up to the most awful forms of superstition; and if those prejudices and these delusions are to be swept away, and if the enmity which they beget and nourish is to be slain, it must be by Him who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, shining into our hearts, to give us the light of the knowledge of the elory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. This illumination of the Spirit has reference to all Gospel truth, but is given in greater and less degrees, while in every instance it embraces whatever is neces- sary to be known and believed in order to salvation. “Ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.” “The anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you; and ye need not that any man teach you: but as #he same anointing teach- eth you of all things, and is truth, and is no he, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.” From these words it is plain, that every one who is taught of God, knows whatever is necessary to be believed in order to salvation, and that he is not left absolutely to depend on mere human teaching ; but it IN ENLIGHTENING THE MIND. 109 is equally clear from the context, that this anointing’ does not supersede the use of such helps, and such means of information as God has graciously provided for his Church ; on the contrary, the same apostle says, “T write, unto you fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning; I write unto you little children, because ye have known the Father ;” ‘“‘T have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it.” The apostle’s letter was designed and fitted for their instruction, and was useful, not only in “stirring up their pure minds by way of remembrance,” but also in helping them to apply the truth to the exigencies of their con- dition, as one that exposed them to the seductions of false teachers, and in enabling them to grow in the knowledge of God; for among Christians there are degrees of spiritual light, as among natural men there are degrees of secular knowledge; and the one kind of knowledge admits of growth and increase, and depends on the use of ordinary means, not less than the other. We may know the Lord, like Apollos ; yet we may be brought, like him, to “ know the way of the Lord more perfectly.” As the knowledge which is common to all who are taught of God embraces whatever is necessary to be known and believed in order to salvation, while being imparted in greater or less degrees, there may be a diversity of opinion even amongst true Christians on points of minor impor- tance, we see at once the origin and the nature of that wonderful uniformity of sentiment amongst them which marks the unity of Christian faith, in regard to 110 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT all the fundamental truths of God’s Word, while we may reasonably expect to find a variety of opinions, arising from different degrees of light, even amongst such as are in the main and substantially at one. And this consideration ought to be improved as a lesson of universal charity and of mutual forbearance among the disciples of Christ. * It is a precious Bible truth, that the enlightening grace of the Holy Spirit, although it be specially pro- mised to the Gospel ministry as that by which alone their peculiar functions can be successfully exercised, is not confined to them, nor to any one class or order of men, but is common to all believers. Every private person—every humble man, who takes his Bible in his hand, and retires to his closet to read and meditate on it there, is privileged to ask and to expect the teaching of the Spirit of God. “If any man lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” The direct communication of every soul with God as “the Father of lights,” with Christ as “the light of the world,” and with the Holy Ghost as “the Spirit of truth,” shows what standing the Christian people have in the Christian Church ; and that, al- though God has graciously provided for them minis- terial helps and spiritual guides, he has not left them absolutely dependent on any order of men,—still less has he subjected them to mere human authority in matters of faith: “their faith must stand not in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.” * Love’s Letters, p. 318, IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE, 1il CHAPTER V. THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE. Ir is part of the Spirit’s work to convince the soul of its sinfulness. I. There is, indeed, a conscience in man, which fulfils alike the functions of a law, by prescribing the path of duty,—and the functions of a judge, in pro- nouncing sentence against transgression,—a conscience which impresses every man with a sense of right and wrong, and which often visits the sinner with the inward pangs of conviction and remorse. But conscience, while it exists, and while it serves many useful purposes, is not sufficient in its present state to awaken the soul to a full sense of its real condition, although it be amply sufficient to render it responsible to God as a Judge, and to make it a fit subject for the convincing operations of his Spirit. That in its present state it is not sufficient of itself, nor even when it is surrounded with the outward light of the Gospel, to awaken the soul to a due sense of its own sinfulness, appears from various considera TZ THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT tions:—It is manifest that conscience has shared, hke every other faculty of our nature, in the ruinous effects of the fall; and the natural darkness of the soul prevents it from seeing its own corruption. It must be so, indeed, if by the fall we have lost the per- ception of God’s glory, or can no longer discern the excellency of his holiness ; for our views of sin stand connected with, and must be affected by our views of God ; one vivid view of his glorious character being sufficient to make the sinner tremble at the sight of his own vileness, and to exclaim with Job, “I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear ; but now mine eye seeth thee: wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” In as far, then, as the fall has “alienated us from the life of God through the igno- rance that was in us, because of the blindness of our hearts,” in the same proportion must it have weakened that power of moral perception, or that principle of conscience which should convince the soul of its own sinfulness ; and never, till it is restored to a spiritual acquaintance with God, will it come to see its euilt. m all its loathsomeness and ageravations. 2. That natural conscience, unaided by the Spirit of God, is not sufficient of itself to bring a man to a right sense of his own sinfulness, appears farther from the ten- dency of habitual sin to sear and deaden the con- science, whereby it comes to pass, according to the sovereign appointment of God, that conscience be- comes weaker, in proportion as sin grows stronger in the soul, till the sinner may arrive at a point of degeneracy at which he is wholly given over to a a IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE. 113 reprobate mind, and so far from being condemned by his conscience, he may dare to justify his wickedness by “calling good evil and evil good,” and instead of being ashamed of his guilt, may even “ glory in his shame.” We read of some whose “mind and con- science is defiled ;” and of others “ having their con- science seared with a hot iron,’”—the habitual practice of sin having a deadening influence over that principle by which alone sin is checked or condemned. This natural provision is in accordance with the great law of moral retribution which is laid down in Scripture— a law which insures the progressive improvement of those who make a right use of the imperfect light they have, and the rapid degeneracy of those who cor- rupt or abuse it; “for whosoever hath to him shall. be given ; and whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he seemeth to have ” (or think- eth that he hath). Now, if this be the natural law of conscience, that its moral perceptions become dead, and its condemning power weak in proportion as the power of sin becomes habitual and inveterate ; it fol- lows, that the more need there is for a thorough work of conviction, the less is it to be expected from the mere operation of natural conscience ; and that, if the Spirit of God do not interpose, the case of such a soul is hope- less. But lest it should be thought that this second proof applies only to the case of gross and hardened transgressions of the divine law ; let me observe farther, 3. That the experience of the more decent members of society, and even of many formal members of the Church, affords ample evidence that natural con- 114 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT science, unenlightened by the Spirit of God, is not sufficient to convince the soul of its sinfulness ; for of many such may it be said with truth, that they have no just idea of sin as in its own nature, and in all its manifestations, an odious and hateful thing. Natural conscience in such men takes cognizance chiefly of gross outward transgressions, and of these, too, mainly as they stand connected with the peace and order of society, or with the decencies and pro- prieties of social life ; it is a mere prudential reason ; but of sin, as it appears in the sight of God, it thinks little, and still less of those heart-sins, and that radi- cal depravity from which all actual transgressions proceed. It condemns murder,—but does it equally condemn pride? It condemns filial ingratitude and disobedience to an earthly parent,—but does it equally condemn ungodliness, which is the natural element of every unrenewed mind, and which implies filial in- gratitude and disobedience to our Father in heaven ? How can it discern the inherent turpitude of sin, unless it be taught the inherent loveliness of what is spiritual and divine ? and whence can this be learned, but from the teaching of the Spirit ? In fact, the work of conviction implies a work of illumination, and is based upon it. It is by enlightening the mind to discern the truth, that the Spirit quickens the con- science ; and so long as the mind remains in dark- ness, the conscience is prone to sleep. It is when the light of God shines into the heart that his vice- gerent there starts from his slumbers, and lifts a re- sponsive voice to the call of his Master, And hence IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE. 115 it is that we read of an enlightened conscience—a conscience that pronounces truly when it is rightly informed. 4. The necessity of a convincing work of the Spirit farther appears, from the fact, that it is the most diffi- cult of all things to fix the mind of any man ona due consideration of sin. Try to fix your own mind for any length of time on a steady consideration of sin, or endeavour to fix the mind of any child, or servant, or friend you have on this exercise, and you will at once find that it is all but impossible to succeed. The mind recoils from it. It will dwell on the sims of others, especially if they have provoked its resentment by a sense of wrong done to itself; but on sin in its own nature, and especially on its own sins, it cannot dwell—it flies off to some other and more inviting subject ; or, instead of seeking to know their real sen- timents, it busies itself in devising plausible excuses, and in putting blinds, as it were, on its own eyes. And so is it even when the subject is forced on its attention, and the ear is compelled to listen to a full exposition of the subject ;—the most searching sermon fails to convince, unless it be carried home with de- monstration of the Spirit and with power. How often does the sinner hear that “every sin deserveth the wrath and curse of God,”—that it is “an abominable thing which the Lord hateth,’—that it is a ‘great wickedness”—a loathsome disease—a_ hell-deserving crime ; and yet, either attaching no definite meaning to the plainest language that can be employed, or shifting the charge away from himself to others, or 116 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT inwardly deceiving himself by some plausible pretext or other, he sits unawed, unmoved, and rises and retires to his home without one salutary conviction on his conscience—without one impression deep enough to trouble his peace. And hence the free proclama- tion of a free salvation passes unheeded, because as yet he feels no need of a Saviour, and has no concern for his soul. If any sinner, then, is to be brought to such real heart concern about the state of his soul as is necessary for his thorough conversion, he must be convinced of sin by a power above that of mere natural conscience,—even by the power of the Spirit of God. II. In convincing of sin, the Spirit of God, acting agreeably to the moral constitution of our nature, takes the conscience as the subject of his operations, and seeks to enlighten, quicken, and invigorate it by the light and power of divine truth. It is the conscience that is the subject of his opera- tion. It is the moral faculty—the faculty of diseri- minating betwixt right and wrong, which makes us fit subjects for the convincing work of the Spirit. Had we no conscience, we should be incapable of moral convictions—as are the living but irresponsible beasts of the field, and fowls of the air. But under the ashes of our ruined nature, there are certain “ sparks of celestial fire,” the lights of conscience, which, dim and decayed, are yet not extinguished ; and which render us responsible on the one hand, and susceptible of being renewed on the other. And just as natural reason is capable of discerning spiritual things when IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE. 117 it is enlightened by the Spirit; so natural conscience is capable of discerning the evil of sin, when it is rectified and strengthened by the Spirit. But while conscience is the subject of true con- yiction, the Spirit of God is the author of it. He works in and by the conscience ; so that, while the Spirit reproves and convicts the sinner, the sinner is self-reproved and sclf-condemned. The conscience is quickened by the Spirit out of that lethargy into which it had fallen, through the benumbing influence of sin; it is invigorated and reinforced with new energy by the Spirit, having fresh life and power infused into it; it is called into action on its appro- priate objects by the Spirit, and enabled steadily to view the sins with which the transgressor is charge- able; and above all, it is enlightened by the Spirit, so as to discern sin in the light of truth. Thus con- science, once darkened, and imert, and powerless, acquires prodigious energy, and becomes one of the most active and powerful principles of the soul ; pre- scribing the law, and pronouncing the sentence of judgment in that mner chamber of judicature from which there lies no appeal, but to God himself. Con- science, once awakened by a ray of spiritual light, is an awful thing ; and what tremendous power it may acquire, when it is quickened by the Spirit, may be inferred from the energy which it puts forth when it is called into action by the reproofs of mere human faithfulness. Let a man commit a secret sin, and so long as no human eye was supposed to be privy to his guilt, he may contrive to lull his conscience to sleep ; 118 THE WORK OF THE SPtRIT but let a friend charge him with the fact, or even hint a suspicion of it, and the mantling cheek, the agitated look, the trembling frame, will at once evince how one’s conscience may be quickened into tremendous action by a ray of light passing to it from another mind ; and, successful as he may have been in quell- ing his own remorseful thoughts, by devising pallia- tions of his guilt, he will no longer attempt to deny the sinfulness of the fact, but try to disprove the fact itself, as the only possible way of escaping from the sure decision of another man’s conscience on his case. This instructive and familiar example shows that all along conscience is alive in the sinner’s breast—not dead but asleep, and how easily it may be awakened into vigorous conviction by a single ray of héaven’s light piercing through the veil of nature’s darkness, by the power of the Spirit of God. The Spirit of God thus quickens the conscience by the light and power of divine truth. The truth is the instrument by which this change is wrought. He reproves by enlightening. He reaches the con- science through the medium of the understanding. It is not a mere physical change, or a change wrought out in a way that is contrary to the laws of our moral nature ; but a moral change accomplished by moral — means, adapted to that nature, and fitted for the pur- pose for which they are employed. He finds entrance for the light of truth, and the conscience once enlight- ened acts its appropriate part, and pronounces its unerring sentence. The truths of God’s Word are the means of con- IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE. 119 viction, and almost every one of these truths may be employed for this end. The principal means of con- viction is the daw—the law of God in its purity, spirituality, and power ; for “ by the law is the know- ledge of sin,” and “the law is our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ.” The law in its holy command- ment—the law in its awful curse—the law in its spiri- tual nature, as reaching to the heart, and in all its length and breadth as extending over every depart- ment of human life the law in its condemning power, whereby “ every mouth must be stopt, and all the world must become guilty before God ;’—this law is unfolded to the understanding, and applied to the conscience by the Holy Spirit, and immediately, by its own self-evidencing light, it convinces ; the conscience is constrained to do homage to the law, and to ac- knowledge that “ the law is holy, and the command- ment holy, and just, and good ;” while, self-convicted and self-condemned, the sinner exclaims, “ But I am carnal, sold under sin.” And yet it is not a new law, nor one of which the sinner had heretofore been en- tirely ignorant, that becomes the means of his convic- tion ; he may have read and repeated the Ten Com- mandments a hundred times, and may be familiar with the letter of God’s requirements, and yet some one of these very commandments may now become as an arrow in his conscience—the very sword of the Spirit. A notional acquaintance with the law is one thing,—a spiritual experience of its power is another. Witness the case of the apostle Paul—an educated man, brought up at the feet of Gamaliel, walling from 120 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT his youth upwards, according to the straitest sect of the law, a Pharisee; who can doubt that he was familiar with the letter of God’s law? yet, being destitute of any spiritual experience of its power, he regarded. himself as having been without any due knowledge of the law, till he was taught by the Spivit of God ; for says he, “ I was alive without the law once ; but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died.” Previously he had only that natural and common knowledge which he elsewhere describes as “the form of knowledge, and of the truth in the law.” And what was it that converted the form into substance ? it was one of those very command- ments which he had often read and repeated, without perceiving its spiritual import, or feeling its convinc- ing power. “I had not known sin but by the law, for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.” He seizes the Tenth Com- mandment—a commandment which directly refers to the state of a man’s heart ; and finding that his heart cannot stand the test of a law so pure and spiritual, he is inwardly convinced of sin as well as made con- scious of its power ; and so every sinner who obtains a glimpse of the real nature of the divine law, which, hike its heart-searching Author, is heart-searching too, must on the instant feel, that if this law be the rule of judgment, then, by the deeds of the law shall no flesh living be justified ; for “ all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” But when it is said that the law is the principal means by which the Spirit of God convinces the con- IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE. 121 science of a sinner, that term must be understood in an enlarged sense, as including under it every princi- ple which has any relation or affinity to the conscience, and every fact in which any such principle is involved. It isnot the bare law, as it stands declared in the Ten Commandments, that is the sole instrument of convic- tion ; but the moral principle of that law, whether as it is displayed in the retributions of a righteous Providence, or illustrated by the afflictions of human life, or exemplified in the conduct of believers and the perfect pattern of Christ, or as unfolded in the parables, or as embodied in the Gospel, and shining forth in the Cross. The law is a schoolmaster that brings the sinner to Christ ; but Christ is a teacher that brings the sinner to know the law as he never knew it before. The law points the eye of a con- vinced sinner to the cross, but the cross throws in upon his conscience a flood of light which sheds a reflex lustre on the law. Hence we believe that the Gospel of Christ, and especially the doctrine of the cross of Christ, is the most powerful instrument for impressing the conscience of a sinner, and for turning his convictions into genuine contrition of heart. And this because the Gospel, and especially the doctrine of the cross, contains in it the spirit and essence of the law,—it recognises and proceeds upon the moral principles of God’s government, and affords a new and most impressive manifestation of the holiness of ~ the Lawgiver, and the turpitude of sin ; while, at the same time, it unfolds such a proof of the compassion and love of God, as is peculiarly fitted to melt and ; 122 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT subdue the heart, which the mere terrors of the law might only turn into a more hardened and unrelenting obduracy. Let the sinner who makes light of sin turn his eye to the cross of Christ, and he will see there, as well as amidst the thunderings and the light- nings of Sinai, that the Lord is a jealous God; that sin is the abominable thing which he hateth ; and that he is resolved, at all hazards, and notwithstanding whatever suffering it may occasion, to visit it with condign punishment: let him look to the cross, and behold there, suspended on that accursed tree, the Son of God himself: let him listen to the words which fell from that illustrious sufferer in the midst of his agony and passion, “ My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” and let him then inquire, why was it that he, of whom it had been once and again proclaimed from the highest heavens, “ this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased,” and of whom it is recorded, that once and again, on his bended knees, and with all the earnestness of impor- tunate supplication, he had prayed in the garden, “ O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me ;’—why was it that he, who was thus affectionately spoken of as God's beloved Son, and who, as a Son, so submissively poured out his heart into a Father's ear, was nevertheless subjected to the agony and death of the cross? and when, in reply to all his inquiries, the Bible declares, that the Son of God suffered because he had consented to become charge- able with sin; that he “* who knew no sin was made sin for us,” and that, therefore, “it pleased the Lord IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE. 128 to bruise him, and to put him to grief ;” that “he was wounded for our transgressions, and bruised for our iniquities ;” and that he died, because the wages of sin is death ;—oh! does not the sinner now feel in his inmost soul, that if Sinai be dreadful, Calvary has its terrors too ; that if “ by the law is the knowledge of sin,’ the Gospel adds its sublime and harmonious commentary,—that the cross of Christ is the most awful monument of Heaven’s justice, the most solemn memorial of the sinner’s danger; and does he not infer, with all the quickness of intuition, that if sin was not spared, nor left unpunished, but visited with condemnation and death, when it was imputed to his own, his only, his well-beloved Son, much less will sin, unexpiated and unforgiven, be spared, or left unpunish- ed, when, after this solemn work of atonement, God will arise to plead with those who cleave to that ac- cursed thing which nailed the Saviour to the cross? The cross—the cross of a crucified Saviour, is the most powerful, the most impressive demonstration of sin, and righteousness, and judgment. The cross may well alarm every sleeping sinner, and awaken every slumbering conscience, and stir into agitation and tumult every listless and impenitent heart. It is the law by which we obtain the knowledge of sin; but the law is magnified in the cross ; and it is the law in the cross that carries home to every awakened con- science the most alarming convictions of guilt. Can I hope to be spared, may one say, when “ God spared not hisown Son”? Are my sins venial, orlight? These sins of mme were enough, when transterred to the 124 THE WORK OF TEE SPIRIT Son of God, to nail him to the tree. May I venture’ into eternity, in the hope that my sins may be forgot- ten there? And why were they remembered here, when God’s Son ascended the hill of Calvary? May not the strictness of God’s law be relaxed in my favour? But why, oh! why was it not relaxed in favour of Christ? No; that one fact—that awful cross which was erected on the hill beside Jerusalem, —annihilates every ground of careless security—tears from me every rag by which I would seek to cover my shame—drives me from every refuge to which I would repair ;—that one fact, that Christ died for sin, shuts me up to the conviction, that as a sinner, I stand exposed to the wrath and curse of an offended God, and that the outraged law must receive a full and final vindication. But must it be by my personal and everlasting punishment? Yes, assuredly, if I stand on the footing of law ; for “ the soul that sin- neth, it shall die.” But look again to that mysterious cross: amidst the darkness which surrounds it, and the awful manifestations of God’s wrath which the sufferer felt, there breaks forth a light—glorious as the sun shining in its strength—unlike the light- nings which flashed around Sinai,—this is the Sun of Righteousness rising with healing in its beams—the effulgent light of God’s love—the glorious manifesta- tion of God's grace and mercy; for “* God so loved the world as to give his Son.” Look once more ; for the same cross which wounds will also heal; the same conscience which is pierced by the arrows of convie- tion, may be pacified by the Gospel of peace; and IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE. 125 thus all that is terrible in the cross, when combined with the tenderness of God’s mercy, and the amazing, the self-denying, the self-sacrificing love of the Saviour, will then only awaken convictions in the conscience, to melt and change them into sweet contrition of heart. It is thus, that under the Gospel dispensation, the Spirit of God convinces the conscience by pressing home the eternal and unchangeable principles of the law, as these are embodied, illustrated and displayed in a new and better dispensation. Itis not the naked law, but the law in all its forms and manifestations, and especially the law in the facts and truths of the Gospel, which is thus used. For the Spirit reproves the world of sin,—why ? because they believe not on me—of righteousness, because I go to my Father: of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged, —all having reference to Christ and his cross. III. The work of conviction, of which the con- science is the subject, the Spirit the author, and the light of truth the means, consists in impressing the soul with a sense of its own sinfulness, and exciting in it some suitable feelings of fear, and shame, and self-condemnation. Sin, when presented to the mind in the light of conscience, and especially in the light of God’s truth unfolded and applied by the Spirit, is discerned to be a vile and fearful thing ; and in order to this, a prin- cipal part of the Spirit’s work in conviction is to set _ before the sinner’s mind a discovery of s2n in its own nature, and to fix him on a due consideration of it. This, as we haye already seen, is an exercise in which 126 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT every sinner is very unwilling to be engaged; he shrinks from the subject—would willingly forget it, and even when it is presented to his mind, is prone to take partial views of it, and especially to excuse and exculpate himself. But God is often pleased to take the sinner into his own hands, and to press him with “line upon line, and precept upon precept,” until he is made to see sin in its true character, and especially to see his own sinfulness. He brings his sins before him, and presses them on his attention. ‘ These things hast thou done, and I kept silence; thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as thy- self; but I wiil reprove thee, and set’ them in order before thine eyes.” “ Now consider this, ye that forget God ; lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver.” Formerly, he thought seldom of sin,x—now he might say with David, “ My sin is ever before me.” There are many different ways in which the mind may thus be awakened to a sense of its guilt. Some- times it is occasioned, in the first instance, by some gross outward sin, too flagrant to pass altogether un- reproved by the most sluggish conscience, and which may lead the sinner to reflect what must be the state of his heart, and what his desert at the hand of God. Sometimes by a growing sense of his inherent depravity, strengthened every day by his experience of the instability of his best resolutions, and the weak- ness of his highest efforts after amendment. Some- times by a faithful reproof from a friend, which con- veys to his conscience the startling intimation, that his character is not so highly esteemed by others as it is IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE. 127 by himself,—which sets it on inquiry, and awakens some concern. Sometimes by a searching sermon—by an awakening Providence—by the judgments which God executes on others, or by distress sent into his own family, or by his being brought himself to the borders of the grave ; and when, in spite of himself, he is compelled to think of God, and sin, and judg- ment to come. In short, almost any text in the Bible, and almost any event in life, may be the occasion of calling the conscience into action, and pressing his own sinfulness home upon his attention; and the Spirit of God arrests and fixes it, till he makes such a discovery of sin as is suited to his case. In the quaint, but striking and comprehensive words of an eminent commentator,*—‘“ The Spirit convinceth of the fact of sin, that we have done so and so ; of the fault of sin, that we have done ill in doing so; of the folly of sin, that we have acted against right reason, and our true interest ; of the f/th of sin, that by it we are become odious to God; of the fountain of sin, the corrupt nature; and lastly, of the fruit of sin, that the end thereof is death.” Sin, thus presented to the mind, and discovered in somewhat of its native deformity, is applied to the conscience so as to excite some suitable feelings of fear, and shame, and self-condemnation. No such feelings can be awakened until the sinner has some sight of the evil of sin, and some conviction of his own sinfulness. All the thunders of Sinai, and all the threatenings of the law, and all the curses that * Matthew Henry. 128 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT are written in this book, and all the terrors of a judg- ment to come, may fall upon his ear, without awak- ening any serious concern, until conscience is roused within, and responds to the voice of God. An un- convinced conscience is utterly insensible: blinded by sin, it cannot see ; and hardened by sin, it cannot feel. This deep insensibility—this stupid lethargy—this deadness of the conscience to all sense of fear and shame—arises from ignorance of God’s character and law, or from unbelief, which, in spite of all testimonies to the contrary, refuses to acknowledge God as a righteous Governor and Judge who will assuredly bring every sinner to judgment, and punish every sin ; or self-delusion, by which many a sinner flatters him- self, that however it may fare with others, he has no reason to fear; or some false persuasion in religion, which acts as an opiate to all conviction, such as the persuasion that God is too merciful to punish, or too great to mark the commission of sin,—or that an orthodox profession, a correct exterior, or a regular attendance on ordinances will secure his safety. Alas! how is many a conscience lulled to sleep by such mere delusions ; and how often do these delusions serve, like so many shields, to ward off and repel the sharp- est arrows of the Spirit! Under their fatal influence, the conscience may remain insensible till the sinner’s dying hour; nay, death itself will not arouse it, nor will it feel its own guilt and danger, till the realities of eternity are disclosed. Hence you hear of the calm and unruffled indifference with which many a wicked man meets his death,—the apathy and uncon- IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE, 129 cern with which he can look back on a life of sin, even when he stands on the brink of the grave ; and you may often wonder at this, and be ready to exclaim, How comes it that “the wicked have no bands in their death,” if there be a Judge above, and a living conscience within? I answer, that here in this very spectacle—in this very insensibility—this deathlike apathy of the sinner’s conscience at that solemn hour, you have just one of the most affecting manifestations of the righteous retribution of God,—the manifest effect of that great law of conscience, whereby it is ordained, that one who has long resisted the light shall be left in darkness ; and that, by stifling his con- science, “he is given over to a reprobate mind.” He has no sight of his own sin—no shame—no fear, just because his conscience has been blinded or stifled, or because he is deceiving himself with some false per- suasion of his safety. Oh! let it not be said that a hardened conscience, which is insensible alike to the fear and the shame of guilt, is an enviable thing, or that it may not be the worst—the last stage of man’s degeneracy. Tor, the loss of shame is the crowning proof of long-continued sin. Mark, I pray you, the course of awicked man. Behold him first as an infant, clinging fondly to a mother’s breast, and gladly return- ing a mother’s smile ; behold him as a boy, in all the buoyancy of youthful health, with a heart as yet un- scathed by the habits of sin, and alive to every gene- rous impulse, and so sensitive to praise or blame, that a word—a look, will elevate or deject them: follow him onwards for a few years, when, yielding to the 130 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT current of this world’s wickedness, he plunges into its deadly waters: see him when he returns from the haunts of vice to his once happy hearth,—now, instead of being touched with a mother’s love, or awed by a father’s look, the sternest reproof falls unheeded on his ear, and his whole bearing shows that he is beyond the strongest of all influences—the influence of home. Still he is.alive, it may be, to the opinion of others, and especially would he stand well in the estimation of his companions, if not for temperance, and chastity, and religion, yet for truth, and honour, and kindness of heart ; but as he advances in the fatal path, truth and honour, and kindness of heart, are all sacrificed on the shrine of self-indulgence,—he is separated by his own vices from the companionship of equals; and now, descending rapidly, he loses all regard for God and man, and becomes utterly reckless. And, when urged by want or passion, he commits some fatal crime, he feels perhaps less compunction for shedding the blood of man, than he felt in other days for a youthful folly ; and when charged, convicted, and condemned, he may enter his cell, and,walk to the gibbet, amidst crowds of awestruck spectators, with no other feeling than the mere shrinking of the flesh from suffering,—with neither shame, nor fear, nor self-condemnation in his heart of stone. But when the sinner obtains a sight of the evil of sin, and especially of his own sinfulness, his convic- tions are attended with some suitable feelings or emotions, such as fear, shame, and self-condemnation. These feelings are the suitable, and, in one sense, the IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE. 131 natural attendants of conviction. When sin stands disclosed, especially in the light of God's truth, it throws a dark shadow in upon the sinner’s soul, which overawes, and agitates, and terrifies him. Conviction produces shame ; for sin is seen to be a vile and loath- some thing; and the soul, which is covered with sin, is felt to be vile and loathsome too. Conviction pro- duces fear; for a sense of guilt is inseparably con- nected, through conscience, with a sense of danger ;— and conviction produces self-condemnation ; for it is not in the reproof of another, not even the reproof of God himself, but such reproof so applied as to become his own decision upon his own case, that conviction for sin consists. Now these feelings, in a greater or less degree, are the appropriate and natural concomitants of convic- tion, by whatever means the conscience may come to be convinced. Let the conscience, whether acting by its own energy, or as quickened by the Spirit of God, obtain a realizing conviction of sin, and forthwith it pronounces a condemning sentence, and awakens shame and feat; and that, too, when the sinner’s per- sonal habits, and his known opinions, and general circumstances in the world would seem to make such a visitation the most unlikely. Take a few familiar but striking illustrations from the Word of God. Fear and shame were alike unknown in a state of conscious innocency ; but our first parents sinned, and immediately conscience called forth into action those latent feelings of their souls,—‘ The eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked ;”— 132 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT there was shame—the first-fruit of sin. ‘ And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking im the gar- den, in the cool of the day; and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden. And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou ? And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself ;” —there was shame mingled with fear. The Scribes and Pharisees brought an adulterous woman. to Christ, demanding to know what sentence should be pronounced against her. Jesus answered, “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her;” and immediately they which heard it—the self-righteous Pharisees—“ being con- victed by their own conscience, went out, one by one, beginning at the eldest even unto the last; and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.” Here we see conscience breaking through all the fences of self-righteous security, and compelling the guilty to retire in self-confusion from the presence of the Lord. A lawyer came to Christ, and “stood up and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus answered, ‘‘ What is written in the Jaw ? how readest thou?” And when he had given his own account of the law and in his own words, Jesus said, “Thou hast answered right; this do and thou shalt live.” But, it is added, he, willing to justify himself, was not content with this sentence of appro- ‘bation—why, but that while Christ pronounced an IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE. 133 approving sentence on the law which he had explain- ed, conscience pronounced another—a condemning sentence on himself, as a conscious transgressor of that law; and his seeking to justify himself when Christ had brought no charge against him, nay, when Christ had expressly said, ‘Thou hast answered right ; this do and thou shalt live,” proves that every sin- ner, however self-righteous, carries about with him an inward witness, which no sooner sees the pure light of God’s law, than it becomes an accuser ; and, in spite of all the sophistry of self-deceit, forces him at least to excuse, exculpate, and extenuate his guilt, if he would ward off or escape from a sentence of self-con- demnation ! L Herod the Tetrarch belonged to the family party or sect of Herodians who were opposed to the Phari- sees in many respects, and in religious matters seem to have been associated with the sceptical Sadducees,* who believed neither in angel, nor spirit, nor the re- surrection from the dead; yet no sooner did he hear of the miracles of Jesus, than his guilty conscience, bursting the flimsy covering of unbelief, forced him to exclaim, “It is John whom I beheaded: he is risen from the dead ;’—“ John the Baptist is risen from the dead, and therefore mighty works do show forth themselves in him.” Mark the power of con- science—how it starts from its sleep and fastens on the guilty sinner, and raises up around him imaginary terrors, and makes him believe against his professed creed, in the reappearance and resurrection of that * Torne’s Introd., iii, 106, 380. 134 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT ye faithful messenger, whose head he had severed from his body, but whose holy form still haunted his pre- sence, and scared his peace! “ A band of men and officers,” with lanterns, and torches, and weapons, came to the garden of Geth- semane by night, for the purpose of apprehending Jesus. “ Whom seek ye?” said the meek and lowly Saviour. ‘Jesus of Nazareth,” was the reply. “I am he,” answered the same calm voice; but it was a voice of power, that spoke like thunder to their con- sciences; for “as soon as he had said unto them, I am he, they went backward, and fell to the ground.” Behold the power of conscience, awakening fear, and agitation, and awe, and casting a band of officers and armed men to the ground before a defenceless and unresisting captive! Judas was with the band of soldiers on that fearful night—Judas, who had associated with the Lord for years,—who had covenanted with his persecutors to betray him for money,—who now marked him out by the preconcerted sign—hail Master, and kissed him. Oh! it might be thought that a conscience which had for years resisted the light of the Saviour’s teaching, and witnessed the blessed example of his holy life, and stood firm against the melting tenderness of his love,—that a conscience which left him to form his unhallowed purpose, and to plan the mode of its exe- cution, and to take the price of blood, and to kiss the Saviour in Gethsemane,—that a conscience, so steeped in guilt, might have acquired an obduracy which no subsequent reflection could overcome; and that, if it IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE. 135 troubled him not now in the act of treachery, it might never trouble him more; but even in the breast of Judas, conscience was not dead but asleep, and it awoke with terrific power, when his purpose had been safely carried into effect. And if you would see the self-condemning power of God’s vicegerent in the guiltiest heart, look to that traitor and apostate, who, when the eyes were now sealed in death, whose mild look of reproof might have withered his soul within him,—when the tongue which spake as never man spake was silent as the grave,—felt a new power rising within his own bosom which condemned him, and under the burden of his own remorse, and shame, and fear, “he repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver, and said, I have sinned, in that I have betrayed innocent blood. And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself!” I have referred to these scriptural examples of con- viction, for the purpose of showing that fear, shame, and self-condemnation, are its appropriate and suit- able attendants, and that these harrowing feelings are immediately produced in the soul, when at any time, and by any means, it obtains a view of its own sinfulness. There may be no sense of sin, and then there will be no sense of fear, or shame, or self-con- demnation ; but let a sense of sin be awakened, and these emotions will spring up instantaneously along with it. Now, this sight and sense of his own sin- fulness may be awakened at any time—it may be awakened suddenly, and when it is least expected ; 136 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT —a single text of Scripture, a faithful sermon, an awakening providence, a vivid view of God’s justice, a solemn thought of eternity,—any one of these may break up the false security of a sinner, while the Spirit of God has at all times access to his conscience, and can disturb, and trouble, and arouse it. The unbe- hever has really no security for one hour's continu- ance in peace; thoughtless and unconcerned as he is —unawed either by the rebukes of conscience, or the m authority of God, or the terrors of a judgment to come —he may at any time be made to feel a power rising up within,—a power long dormant, but now roused — 4 into tremendous action,—a power which troubles his soul, and brings over it a horror of thick darkness, and a cloud of appalling terrors—which overwhelms him now with shame under a sense of his vileness, and now with fear, under a sense of his danger,—a power which gives to every long forgotten sin a new place in his memory, and brings the whole train of his sins to pass in dark array before him, and gives to each of them a scorpion’s sting,—a power from whose presence he cannot flee, for it is within him; and go where he will, he must carry it along with him,—and which has this mysterious prerogative, that while it asserts a supremacy over every other faculty of his nature, and a right to judge and condemn every vio- lation of its authority, it makes him to feel that he is not dealing with himself only, but with God, the Judge of all. Willingly would he make light of sin, as before; but’ now sin has become a burden too heayy for him to bear: he would laugh at his fears, IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE. 37 as the phantoms of superstition, but something within tells him they are too real to be scorned; he would brave it out, as formerly, amongst his gay companions, and show no touch of shame; but his soul sinks in the effort, and loathes itself ae every thing a once - loved :—“a wounded spirit who can bear ? The intolerable anguish of conviction, when an awakened conscience rages unpacified within, no tongue of man can utter, no heart of man conceive. What must it » be with the conscience of an unbeliever, when from the lips of God’s own people, while they lay under ‘a passing cloud of conviction, such words as these were extorted by its power: “ When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long. For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me; my moisture is turned into the drought of summer, “QO Lord, rebuke me not in thy wrath, neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure; for thine arrows stick fast in me, and thy hand presseth me sore: there is no soundness in my flesh, because of thine anger, neither is there any rest in my bones, because of my sin. For mine iniquities are gone over mine head: as an heavy burden they are too heavy for me.” “TI am troubled, I am bowed down greatly, I go mourning all the day long.” “Tam feeble and sore broken: 1 have roared by reason of the disquiet- ness of my heart.” On another occasion, “I remem- bered God and was troubled, I complained and my spirit was overwhelmed. Thou holdest mine eyes waking; I am so troubled that I cannot speak.” “ Will the Lord cast off for ever? and will he be K 138 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT favourable no more? Is his mercy clean gone for ever, doth his promise fail for evermore? hath God forgot- ten to be gracious, hath he in anger shut up his ten- der mercies?” And so Job in a like case: “The arrows of the Almighty are within me, the poison whereof drinketh up my spirit; the terrors of God do set themselves in array against me. For thou writest bitter things against me, and makest me to possess the iniquities of my youth.” If conscience have power to awaken such feelings of shame, and” dread, and self-condemnation, in the case even of righteous men, when visited with a temporary with- drawment of the light of God’s countenance; oh! what must its power be when it is awakened in the case of impenitent and unpardoned sinners,—and awakened it must be, sooner or later; and if not sooner, certainly not later than the hour, when leay- ing this world, and entering into the world of spirits, the realities of eternity will burst at once on their view. Even in the case of men who are neyer savingly converted, conviction of sin may not be the mere fruit of natural conscience, but the effect of a common work * of the Spirit on their minds.—Many seem to suppose that the Spirit of God never operates except where he accomplishes the whole work of conversion ; but there are not a few passages in Scripture which seem to im- ply, that souls which are never converted, may never- theless be the subjects of His convincing power. They are convinced and reproved, not only by the light of natural conscience, nor only by the outward light of IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE. 139 God’s Word, but by the inward application of that truth to their consciences by the power of the Spirit of God. It is surely not unreasonable to believe that the Spirit of God may operate on their minds in the same way and to the same extent, although for a very dif- ferent end, as Satan does, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience ;—presenting the truth even as Satan presents falsehood—applying the motives of conversion even as Satan urges the allurements of sin,—while the sinner’s mind is left to make its choice. Accordingly we read of unrenewed men, who, under a common work of the Spirit, were once “ enlighten- ed, and tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,” who, nevertheless, were not renewed unto repentance, or thoroughly converted to God,—of some “who sin wilfully after they have received the knowledge of the truth,’ and who, on that account, are described as “doing despite unto the Spirit of grace.” Such persons were not savingly converted, for none who have been renewed and sanc- tified by the grace of the Spirit, will ever fall away, or come into condemnation ; but they did share, not- withstanding, in that work of the Spirit which is ordi- narily preparatory to conversion,—they may have had some knowledge, some conviction, some impressions from the Spirit of grace, and these are in their own nature good and useful, having a tendency and fitness as a means to prepare their minds for a greater change ; and if they fail to subdue their wills to the obedience of Christ, they will serve, at least, to make it mani- fest, that nothing but their own unwillingness stood 140 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT in the way of their being saved. When such convic+ tions decay and die without saving fruit, it is because they are not suitably improved or submissively fol- lowed ; for it is the law of Christ’s kingdom, that one talent suitably improved, procures another, while the neglect of it incurs its forfeiture,—for “to him that hath shall be given, and he shall have more abun- dantly ; but from him that hath not, shall be taken away that which he hath.” “For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God; but that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing, whose end 1s to be burned.” It appears, then, that the minds of unconverted men may be the subjects of conviction, of which the Spirit of God himself is the author; and that they are responsible, not only for the light of natural con- science, nor only for the light of God’s Word, but for that light and those convictions which the Spint may awaken in their souls. And if this common opera- tion of the Spirit stops short of conversion, it is not because the same motives are not presented to their minds, as to those of other men who are sayvingly changed, but from their own stubbornness in resist- ing these motives, and because their well stands out against the work of the Spirit. Here lies the radical difference betwixt the converted and the unconverted ; both may be the subjects of a convincing work of the Spirit ; but in the one the will is stubborn and refuses to yield, while in the other, the will is by Ged’s sove- IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE. 14} reign grace effectually subdued, so as to concur with his holy design; so that a real willingness to be re- newed and sanctified is the characteristic mark of a new creature. Hence those in whom the conscience ‘is convinced, while the will is unsubdued, are thus described,—“ But they rebelled, and vexed his Holy Spirit ; therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them.” “Ye stiff-necked, and un- circumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost.” And the apostle warns even the pro- fessing followers of Christ, in these solemn words,— “Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God ”—“ Quench not the Spirit.” IV. The work of conviction may be carried on in various ways, and may differ greatly in different cases, but in some degree it is necessary in all to a saving work of conversion.—It may be commenced and car- ried on in various ways. Sometimes it comes on a hardened sinner in advanced life like a sudden flash of lightning from heaven; sometimes it is implanted, like a seed, in the soul of a child, which grows with his growth, and strengthens with his strength. Some- times it is occasioned by one gross actual sin, which overwhelms the mind with a sense of its guilt and danger; at other times, by a calm review of the whole of a man’s experience, which impresses his mind with a sense of the radical corruption of his nature. Some- times the sins of youth are recalled and set in order before him; at other times his neglect of Gospel grace, his forgetfulness of prayer, his misimprovement of privileges, his frequent declensions, his broken reso- 142 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT lutions, his unfulfilled engagements, his unsanctified Sabbaths, his ingratitude for mercies, his inattention to the voice of judgment or of mercy, a fit of sickness, or the dangerous illness of a wife or friend, or the thought of death, or a vivid view of God’s justice or of the Saviour’s love,—in any one or all of these vari- ous ways, sound conviction may be wrought in the conscience. It differs, too, in its degree and duration in different cases. Some are brought through deep waters,— others are more gently conducted to the Saviour. Fear, and shame, and self-condemnation, are insepar- able from deep conviction, where it exists by itself and without a knowledge of the Saviour; but they may be wrought in a greater or less degree, and in some cases they are immediately swallowed up in a sense of redeeming love. IT mention these diversities in the experience of different men, with the view of removing a stumbling- block which has often given uneasiness,—a mistake which has often been injurious to the sincere be- liever, Many, when they hear that conviction is essential to conversion, and when they farther hear or read of the sharp convictions, the deep distress of mind, the fearful terrors which some have experienced, have been ready to question the soundness, or at least the sufficiency of their own convictions, because they find nothing corresponding to it in their own expe- rience. Tor their relief and comfort, let me assure them, that if they be really convinced and humbled on account of sin, it matters little whether their ex- IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE. 143 perience corresponds in all respects with the experience of other men or no; nay, that so various are the operations of the same Spirit, “ who divideth to every man severally as he will,” that itis impossible their experience can correspond with that of all other believers. God’s Spirit deals with each according to his own necessities, and the work to which he is called. Sometimes he leads a sinner to heaven by the very gates of hell,—to strong faith through the fiery fur- nace of unbelief ;* to the heights of holy love through the depths of wrath. At other times, conviction is no sooner awakened than it is allayed, at least in its painful agitations and fears, by the healing voice of mercy. You may think, indeed, that your convic- tions ought to be much deeper,—your fears more alarming, your sorrow more intense, your self-reproof more severe; but be it remembered, that mere fear and sorrow “belong not to the precept, but to the curse,” and are not so much “ required as inflicted on the sinner ;’ and if you have a deliberate and abiding conviction of your own sinfulness, accompanied with a persuasion that you are thereby worthy of punish- ment, and capable of being saved only through the mercy of God, you have the substance of true convic- tion, and need not perplex yourselves about its mode or form. 7 But some such conviction of sin is essential, and cannot be dispensed with. The very nature of con- version presupposes it. No sinner will ever receive Christ as a Saviour, until he is convinced that he * Haliburton. 144 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT needs to be saved ; and this implies a conviction of his guilt, a sense of his danger, and a persuasion of the absolute impossibility of saving himself. V. The result or isswe of this work of conviction, while in some respects it is the same in all, is in others, and these of the highest importance, different in differ- ent men. In some respects it produces similar effects in all who are the subjects of it. Of these we may men- tion the feelings of fear, shame, and self-condemna- tion, formerly noticed, which in some degree, greater or less, are experienced by every convinced sinner, and which correspond with “ the Spirit of bondage unto fear” spoken of by the apostle, and which are the effect of the law applied by the Spirit, and the utmost that the mere law can produce. Besides this there is an inward conflict betwixt sin and the conscience—a conflict which is widely different, and must be carefully distinguished, from that other con- flict of which the apostle speaks as being carried on in the soul of the true believer, and which is a warfare, not betwixt sin and the conscience, but be- twivt sin and the will. Of this latter conflict, the unconverted man may have little or no experience ; but of the former, every convinced sinner is conscious ; he feels that conscience and sin are at war within him ; that, while sin enrages and exasperates the conscience, conscience denounces and condemns sin; so that he is torn and rent by two antagonist forces, and his in- ward peace is destroyed. All this may consist with the prevailing love and power of sin; the will may IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE. 145 ‘still be on its side while conscience stands opposed to it. Remorse and even sorrow may also be felt,—that remorse which has no affinity with true repentance— that sorrow of the world which worketh death. Nay, under the influence of conviction, many an uncon- verted man may form the resolution, and make some efforts after amendment of life ; which, being based on a spirit of self-sufficiency, and having no dependence on the sanctifying grace of God, and unaccompanied with earnest prayer for the Spirit, quickly come to nought ; and he returns “ like a dog to his vomit, and like a sow that was washed to his wallowing in the mire.” Now, at this point, the one stem or stock of con- viction divides into two great branches—one which brings forth the fruit of repentance, and another which ends in the production of final reprobacy. Both may be covered with the buds and blossom of a fair pro- fession ; but the fruit is widely different. The con- trast betwixt the two is finely exemplified by the opposite effects of the same truth, as declared by Peter and Stephen respectively. When Peter preached, the Jews were pricked in their hearts, and began to in- quire in earnest, What must we do to be saved? But when Stephen preached, they were cut to the heart, yet they only gnashed on him with their teeth. (Acts i. 37; vu. 54.) With one class, conviction of sin stops short of thorough conversion. Such conviction was salutary in itself, and had a tendency to lead the sinner onward to a happy change; but its power is resisted—its 14.6 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT suggestions stifled—its voice drowned by the clamour of unruly passions. Such convictions are like the startling of a man in sleep, who quickly turns himself back on his pillow, and sinks again into lethargy ; or like a sudden flash of lightning, exciting momentary awe and terror, but quickly passing, and leaving all in darkness as before. They may continue for a longer or a shorter period, and may recur at intervals through a long life, but they are ever treated in the same way, and produce no greater effect,—they arouse the con- science, but do not conquer the will,—they alarm the fears, but do not subdue the heart,—they make sin dreadful, but they do not make it hateful to the soul. It loves sin, and hates its convictions ; and, therefore, the former is cherished, while the latter are suppressed. Oh! it is a fearful case, when God comes so near to the heart, and the heart is thus wilfully closed against him, and such convictions can neither be resisted without incurring guilt, nor stifled without leaving behind them, like a fire that has been kindled and quenched, the black traces of their power, in their withering and hardening influence on the heart. With another class, conviction works towards con- version, and, under the influence of evangelical motives, issues in true and lasting repentance. The soul, con- vinced of its guilt, and impressed with a sense of its danger, is prompted to ask, What must I do to be saved? How shall I flee from the wrath to come? Sensible of its vileness, and loathing itself on account of it, it begins to inquire, How may I be cleansed from the pollution of my nature, and the foulness of IN CONVINCING THE CONSCIENCE. 147 my sin? If, when the soul is thus convinced, and anxious, the glorious scheme of grace and redemption is unfolded to its view ; if it be enabled to look to the cross, and to Christ as the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world; and if it be penetrated with a lively sense of the love of Christ to sinners, and of God’s mercy through him,—then stern conviction will be melted into tender contrition, and the most alarming remorse into kindly repentance. The heart which trembled, and was perhaps hardened under the ice-cold fetters of conviction, is subdued by the beams of the Sun of Righteousness. The soul, under the horror of darkness, may have been a scene of inward agony ; but one ray of heaven’s light, piercing through the gloom, converts it into a scene of peace. In the greatest tumult of conviction, a single word of Gospel comfort may produce inward quiet, when it is spoken by Him who said to the raging sea, “ Peace, be still,” and immediately there was a great calm. The con- vinced sinner, thus apprehending the love of Christ, and the glorious design of his Gospel, is thoroughly changed by means of it; his stubborn will is subdued, and he is made willing in the day of divine power ; in a word, he undergoes a change of mind and heart, which is called evangelical repentance, and, in this its largest sense, is the same with being born again. Then legal conviction becomes evangelical contrition. ‘In this there is sorrvow—but not the sorrow of the world which worketh death ;—shame, but such as humbles without depressing the soul ;—and fear, but not the fear which hath torment—not the fear that is 148 AN ADDRESS TO CONVINCED SINNERS. associated with the Spirit of bondage ; but filial fear, having respect to the majesty of God, and even to his warnings and threatenings ;—yet not the servile fear of a condemned malefactor, but the ingenuous fear of a forgiven: child. AN ADDRESS TO CONVINCED SINNERS. As there may be some who have already passed, or are now passing through the various stages of convic- tion, and as their present situation is one of a very critical nature, on the due improvement of which their eternal welfare depends, I would earnestly solicit their attention to a special statement of the duties of convinced sinners. 1. Beware how you deal by your convictions, and remember that you are responsible to God for your treatment of them. Whether they have been pro- duced by the unaided exercise of conscience, or by the natural influence of the Word of God, or by the direct agency of the Holy Spirit applying the truth to your- selves individually,—there they are—in your bosom, and they will either prove a blessing or a curse. They cannot leave you as they found you; they will sub- due or harden every soul in which they have found a place. You cannot rid yourself of them without doing violence to your conscience, and despite to the Spirit of grace. You may try to allay them; you may seek, by hurrying into the world, and by mixing with thoughtless companions, and perhaps by having AN ADDRESS TO CONVINCED SINNERS. 149 recourse to the soothing opiate, or the intemperate draught, to forget the fears which haunt you; you may even succeed in regaining a temporary security ; but so far from diminishing, you are only adding to your guilt, and while you shun fear, you rush into greater danger. If there be one thing for which a man is responsible to God, it must be the manner in which he deals with the convictions of his own con- science. And even in the present world, aJthough it be not a state of strict retribution, there is going on, in the experience of every sinner, a process of judicial equity, which proceeds on the principle of aiding every attempt, however feeble, to improve the light he has, and of withdrawing that light from those by whom it is neglected or despised. The same convictions, im- proved by one man, and stifled by another, will issue in results as opposite as light and darkness, or heaven and hell! 2. Instead of stifling your convictions, seek to know more and more of the evil nature of sin, and of your own vileness in particular. Beware of dismissing them as idle, or imaginary, or exaggerated terrors ; and rest assured, that as yet you know comparatively nothing, either of the nature of sin, or of your own characters as they appear in the sight of a holy God. That you may know more of it, fix your minds ona serious consideration of sin,—place it in the light of God’s Word,—look on it as it appears in the cross of Christ,—consider it in connection with the curse of the law, the sufferings of life, the agonies of death, and the realities of a coming judgment; and that you may 150 AN ADDRESS TO CONVINCED SINNERS. feel as well as know what it is, seek to be suitably affected by a sense of sin,—till the conviction be thoroughly inwrought into the very frame of your minds, that you cannot justify nor even excuse it. However deep and painful your convictions may be, you may well believe that you are infinitely more sinful and vile in God’s sight than in your own ; first, because of the natural darkness, depravity, and deceit- fulness of your hearts, which prevent you from seeing yourselves as God sees you; and secondly, because of God’s essential, infinite, and unsullied purity, of whom it is said, that “ the heavens are not clean in his sight ; that he chargeth his angels with folly ;” “that he is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity, and that he can- not look upon sin.” And that this solemn thought may be impressed on your mind, dwell much on the contemplation of God’s character, contrasting 1t with your own ; endeavour to realize the thought of God as the omnipotent and omniscient Searcher of hearts, the pure, and holy, and just Governor and Judge,— till you are ready to exclaim with Job, “ Ihave heard of thee by the hearing of the ear; but now mine eye seeth thee: wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes ;” or with Isaiah, ‘““ Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell amongst a people of unclean lips ; for mine eyes have seen the King the Lord of hosts.” 8. Having acquired a sight and sense of your own sinfulness, listen with submission to the sentence of God’s law. Apply that sentence to yourselves, and beware of any disposition that may spring up within AN ADDRESS TO CONVINCED SINNERS. 151 you, either to quarrel with it as too severe, or to ima- gine that God cannot or will not enforce it. God’s sentence must be a just one ; and cannot be reversed, however it may be questioned, by man. It stands revealed in the Bible, and although conscience may not immediately respond to it when it is first an- nounced, yet the serious and frequent consideration of it will gradually impress and affect the conscience, till in the end you will be constrained to acknowledge, that sin deserves God’s wrath and curse. The sen- tence of the law, duly reflected on in connection with your present experience of ‘the curse that follows on sin, and with your future prospect of a judgment to come, will strengthen the self-condemning power of conscience, and shut you up to the conviction, that you are “ without excuse,” and that every “mouth must be stopt, and all the world become guilty before God.” And then, like David, you will be ready to justify God, and to condemn yourselves, saying, in the language of sincere confession, “I acknowledge my transgression ; that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.” We should resist every tendency to question either the equity of God in pronouncing, or the willingness of God to execute this sentence, by such reflections as these: (1.) That this sentence is plainly revealed in his Word. (2.) That being the sentence of God, it must be just and righteous ; for, “ will not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (3.) That, however it may be questioned, it cannot be reversed by man ; it may be disputed or denied, but cannot be disannulled or ex- 152 AN ADDRESS TO CONVINCED SINNERS., punged from the statute-book of heaven. (4.) That God is really the only competent Judge of what pun- ishment is due on account of sin, and what penalties are needful for the ends of his universal government ; and, (5.) That as he has unquestionably the power, so he has shown that he has the will to carry that sen- tence into effect, by the expulsion of the apostate angels,—by the universal prevalence of death,—and above all, by the sufferings of Christ on the cross. 4. Beware of having recourse to false grounds of confidence, or unscriptural means of relief. Under the pressure of conviction, the mind is prone to seek rest wherever it can find it, and too frequently it is found in some refuge of lies. Some false doctrine, or some superstitious practice, is often embraced, which serves to lull rather than to pacify the conscience, instead of that pure truth, and that Gospel holiness, which alone can restore it to spiritual life and health. Like the diseased, and feverish, and sleepless patient, who, instead of seeking to remove his distemper, and to recruit his health by wholesome diet, has recourse to the soothing draught, or the exciting stimulant, which allays the symptoms, while it aggravates the disease. Thus false doctrine, or partial and erroneous views of divine truth, may minister temporary relief to an awakened conscience, as when the sinner eagerly grasps at the doctrine of the ultimate salvation of all men,—or of God’s mercy as exercised without respect to justice,—or of the impossibility, or great unlikeli- hood of everlasting punishment ; or of the power of mere moral amendment to obliterate the stain of guilt, AN ADDRESS TO CONVINCED SINNERS, 153 and restore him to the favour of God; or of the effi- cacy of some external ordinance, or some ecclesiastical privilege to secure his safety. And so, some supersti- tious observance, grafted on one or other of these false doctrines, is made the opiate of conviction,—as when the poor Papist has recourse to confession, and trusts to the absolution of a priest; or the uninstructed Pro- testant fancies, ‘that by a decent life, and regular atten- dance at church and sacrament, his salvation may be secured. Thus it is that many say to themselves, ” while others seek relief by rushing into the world, and, by endless change of scene, and society, and employment, con- trive to forget convictions which they cannot endure. But let it be your inmost persuasion, that there is no stable ground of confidence, and no safe means of relief, except such as can bear the light of truth, and stand the test of God’s infallible Word; and that nothing ought to pacify a sinner’s conscience, except that which alone can propitiate and satisfy an offended God. Conscience is God’s vicegerent in the soul, and it can only be surely and permanently satisfied by that which God himself regards as a satisfaction for sin. “« Peace, peace, when there is no peace ; 5. Beware of the temptations which are peculiar to your present state, and stedfastly resist them. Every state has its peculiar snares: when convictions are weak, we are tempted to indifference in regard to salvation ; when consolations abound, we are too prone to fall into spiritual pride ; and when consolations are withheld, and convictions strong, we are apt to sink L 154 AN ADDRESS TO CONVINCED SINNERS. into despair. This is the temptation to which strong convictions tend. The mind is apt to take a false and exaggerated view of its own sins; for although we can never think too ill of sin, we may charge ourselves unjustly, and make a really false application of Serip- ture, by regarding every infirmity as a wilful sin, and every wilful sin as a token of utter reprobation.* It is apt.also to question whether its sins be pardonable, and its salvation possible, thereby limiting the efficacy of God's grace, and the Saviour’s sacrifice, and exclud- ing itself from the means of Gospel consolation ; nay, like a diseased stomach, it turns the most wholesome food into poison, extracting nothing from the most precious promises, from the freest invitations, from the richest privileges of the Gospel, but a soul-wither- ing sense of its own wretchedness in having no in- terest in them ; and, penetrated with the unwarranted idea of its own hopeless condition, it first believes in this fiation of its own fancy, and then raises out of it a thousand imaginary terrors, and dark phantoms of evil. I know that in such cases, reasoning can do little, and reproof still less ; and that none but God himself can bind up and heal this wound, . But while we look to earnest and persevering prayer as the most effec- tual means of ultimate relief, | may humbly represent what appears to me to be the duty of a convinced sinner in such a case. And Ihave no hesitation in saying, that the convictions of an awakened conscience are good and useful in themselves, and ought to be cherished and yielded to in so far as they tend to * Bolton's Comforting of Afflicted Consciences, pp. 56, 62. AN ADDRESS TO CONVINCED SINNERS. 155 humble. They ought not: to be yielded to, but re- sisted, when they go beyond. this their legitimate ob- ject, and threaten to plunge us into despair. It is not the conviction of your own sinfulness that you resist in such a case, but a misapplication of conviction-— a false inference from it—a fatal error growing out of it, which has no warrant in the Word of ava. Repentance, deep humility, and self-abasement, are the lawful and proper effects of cony iction, and Rhee are warranted by Scripture ; but hopelessness, des- pondency, or despair, are not warranted by Scripture, and ought therefore to be resisted as an unscriptural error. The Gospel is glad tidings—tidings of ereat joy to every—even the chief of sinners; and you can have no warrant from the Gospel to cherish that frame of mind. It is true that the Gospel speaks of the sin . against the Holy Ghost ; but it speaks of it in general terms, and so as to give no divine warrant to any sin- ner to believe that he has incurred it ; and therefore, this conviction of your having been guilty of that sin, is a mere conclusion or inference of your own under- standing, unsupported by express Scripture, unsanc- tioned by divine authority, and not capable, therefore, of being pled with justice in opposition to the uniform tenor of Scripture, which, speaking to you as a sinner, nay, as the very chief of sinners—calls, and invites, and entreais you to believe and be saved. And there- fore, I say, cherish conviction of sin so long as it tends to humble you, but so soon as it verges on the border of despair, resist it,—God’s truth is then converted by Satan into a strong temptation: resist the devil and 156 AN ADDRESS TO CONVINCED SINNERS. he will flee from you. This gloomy apprehension it may not be in yoursown power to remove, “yet it is your duty to oppose to the uttermost. When God clothes the heavens with darkness, and makes sack- cloth their covering, and shuts up in the prison-house where no light can be perceived, it is natural to take a kind of pleasure in yielding to despondency, and in defending it by many arguments. But to resist this tendency requires self-denial, and is the path of duty, however difficult.” “Therefore, when the cloud appears blackest and most impenetrable, and when conscience or imagination are mustering up their heaviest charges and forebodings, endeavour to believe that there is One behind and above the cloud, whose beams of grace will at length break through it, and shine in upon you with a sweeter lustre than ever,” * 6. Let the convinced sinner acquaint himself more fully with the complete remedy that is proposed to him in the Gospel, for aé/ that is really evil in his present condition. He may have read the Bible before, and may have acquired a cold intellectual no- tion of its leading truths; but never was he so well prepared for entering into its spirit, and feeling the suitableness of its provisions, and the power of its consolations, as he is now. [very sentence will now appear to have a new meaning, every truth a fresh- ness, every encouraging word a sweetness, unperceived before. When the heart is interested—when the conscience is seriously impressed, the mind will be awake, and active, and quick to discern what other- * Dr Love’s Letters, 284. AN ADDRESS TO CONVINCED SINNERS. 157 wise might escape his notice. The convinced sinner eannot read his Bible without feeling, that it is in all respects suited to his condition, and that it proposes a complete remedy for all its evils. There are just two comprehensive objects which an awakened conscience demands: the first is, the pardon of sin; and the second, the purification of the sinner; and the more thoroughly awakened any conscience may be, the more impossible is it to satisfy it on these points by any expedient of mere human origin, while it will all the more certainly respond to the method prescribed in the Gospel by God himself. For there he finds both the great objects of his anxiety inseparably link- ed together, and each proposed in its greatest fulness, and on principles which satisfy the conscience, as well as relieve its fears. Does he inquire after pardon ? and does his conscience suggest that, as sin deserves punishment, and as God is a righteous Judge, pardon cannot be indiscriminately bestowed, nor granted with- out some sufficient ground or reason? The Gospel proposes a free pardon—so free that the chief of sin- ners may take it freely; but a pardon, not granted without a sufficient ground or reason ; for it is a par- don founded on atonement,—a pardon not bestowed until Divine justice was satisfied,—a pardon which exhibits God as the just God and the Saviour,—a pardon which, as it depends on principles which satis- fied the demands of God’s justice, may well be re- garded as sufficient to meet the demands of a sinner’s conscience. The sacrifice of Christ—that one sacri- fice—is the complete remedy for all guilt. Yet sin— a. 158 AN ADDRESS TO CONVINCED SINNERS. sin still strong in the heart,—the power of that loath- some thing which makes a sinner vile in his own eyes; _ —this, also, must be taken away ; for, free as the par- doned sinner may be of all the guilt of his past trans- gressions, every conscience feels instinctively, that sin still reigning must be a constant disturber of its peace ; __ but here, too, the Gospel provides a remedy,—it pro- ». poses the Holy Spirit as the Sanctifier, by whose agency the principle of a new spiritual life is implanted in the soul, and gradually strengthened and matured, until, after a progressive sanctification, he shall be made “ meet for the inheritance of the saints in light.” Look at the whole remedy in all its fulness, and every convinced sinner will see, that it is not only suitable, but that it is adequate to all the exigencies of his case. 7. Let the convinced sinner seek a sure personal interest in that remedy, by closing with the free offer of the Gospel. Every sinner to whom the Gospel is preached, may be said to have a certain interest in it, as it is presented, exhibited, offered to all, without exception. But a saving personal interest in it de- pends on its being embraced, accepted, received. The general interest which every sinner has in it, and of which no man can deprive him—for it is given by God himself—is a sufficient warrant for his seeking this more peculiar and saving interest; in other words, every sinner who is invited to believe, is warranted and encouraged to believe to the saving of his soul. And he who can so far trust God as to take him at his word, and to rest in the assurance of his faithful- ness and sincerity in making this offer, need not fear, 4 AN ADDRESS TO CONVINCED SINNERS. tog that when he embraces it, it will be withdrawn, or left unfulfilled. But let him not rest in this general per- ‘suasion—let him act upon it; and, by a deliberate exercise of mind, and in the most resolute manner, let him take Christ as his own Saviour, and give up his soul into Christ’s hands ; and, “‘ emboldened by the free invitation which warrants him to take the waters of life freely, let him put in his claim to take Christ home in his person, merit, power, and love, as hisown.” This explicit and distinct closing with Christ,—by which the sinner takes him in all the fulness of his offices and benefits, and gives himself to Christ, soul, body, and spirit, to be pardoned, sanctified, and saved by him,— is the decisive act by which a convinced sinner may se- cure his safety, and arrive at peace and joy in believing. 8. The convinced sinner should give utterance to his convictions in the language of confession, and to his desires in the language of earnest prayer. Con- fession relieves the mind of much that is painful in conviction, while it is pent up and restrained in the sinner’s heart, and, at the same time, deepens the humility which ought to be produced by it, by bring- ing the sinner into immediate converse with a holy God. And these effects will the more surely follow, in proportion as confession is specific and full: “ He that confesseth his sin, and forsaketh it, shall find mercy.” But real conviction produces inward desire ; and that desire, expressed before God, is prayer. Let the sinner pour it out before the Lord, nothing doubt- ing, that “ his ear is not heavy that it cannot hear, neither his arm shortened that it cannot saye,” Let ,_* 160 AN ADDRESS TO CONVINCED SINNERS. hun pray, in the assurance that he is warranted and encouraged to do so, and that God will fulfil his own promise, by granting his request. Yea, though he be kept long at a distance, and may be tempted to re- _ tire under a feeling of disappointment, let him perse- vere, and wait, and seek: let him knock loud and long at heaven’s gate—and take no denial; but wait until God himself open the door, and a flood of hea- ven’s light bursts on his astonished eye: let him pray as fervently as the greatness of his interest demands ; and let him pray on until that interest is secured. For never should a sinner leave off the exercise of prayer while the throne of grace is standing, and God, seated on the throne, is waiting to be gracious there! When we address ourselves to sinners who are labouring under a conviction of sin, there are two classes of men, of very different characters, who may feel as if they had no interest in our message, and who may be in danger of applying it, although in different ways, to the injury of their own souls. There are some of God’s people who, when they hear of the convincing work of the Spirit, and of the deep convictions which others have experienced, may be unable to discover, in their present state of mind, any thing that corresponds to what they think ought to be the experience of every true Christian,—who are not conscious of that deep sorrow, and those alarming fears, which a sense of sin might be expected to in- spire, and who may, therefore, be ready to question whether they have yet undergone the great change AN ADDRESS TO CONVINCED SINNERS. 161 which is essential to salvation. They complain of their coldness, and apathy, and unconcern—of the hardness of their hearts, the insensibility of their consciences, and the want, or weakness, of that deep heartfelt contrition which they ought to feel. Now, to such I would say, distress of mind is not the substance of true repentance, although it may be its frequent at- tendant,—and that there may be true conviction, and genuine humility of heart, where there is no anguish or sensible remorse. Indeed, contrition is often most genuine, and humility most profound, when all that is painful and alarming in conviction has been re- moved by a view of the grace and mercy of a forgiving God, and an all-sufficient Saviour. All that is terri- ble in conviction of sin and wrath may be, and often is, prevented, or immediately dispelled by a clear view of the scheme of redemption ; and it is enough that you be really humbled, however little you may be distressed ;—it is enough if you be emptied of all self- righteous dependence, and convinced that you are “ wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.” Now, your very complaints of the want of due humiliation on account of sin, may be an evidence that you are one of those of whom our Lord speaks when he says, “ Blessed are the poor in spirit : Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled : Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted.” It has been truly said, “ that hardness of heart deeply felt and lamented, is real softness. A stony-ground hearer, and one seriously afraid of remaining such, are two different characters.” 162 AN ADDRESS TO CONVINCED SINNERS, _ There is, however, another class of men, who, when they hear of deep convictions of sin, are conscious of nothing in themselves which bears the least resem- blance to it ; and who may, therefore, be ready to con- clude that the exhortations which are addressed to such as have experienced it, are not applicable to them. They may even suppose that, because sin has given them little or no uneasiness, they need give no heed to the remedy which is proposed in the Gospel, and continue, as they have been, indifferent to the whole subject. These men differ from the former, in that they cherish their impenitence, and even glory in it ; but let them beware : the very indifference—the very absence of all concern about repentance, is the most alarming symptom in their spiritual condition. For just as in some cases of disease, the utter want of pain is the very worst symptom, and the surest precursor of natural death ; so this insensibility of the conscience —this utter recklessness in regard to sin—is the worst symptom, and the surest precursor of death eternal. If they were concerned about their impenitence,—if the hardness of their hearts grieved them,—if they were humbled because they saw so little, and felt so little, of the evil of sin,—these were hopeful symp- toms : but utter unconcern—death-like indifference— accompanied with no sense of its sinfulness, and no desire for its removal,—this is the characteristic of a “ hard and impenitent heart "which is alike proud and presumptuous in its obstinate resistance to all the truths of the Bible, and the teachings of the Spirit. THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT, ETC. 163 CHAPTER VI. THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT IN RENEWING THE HEART. We come now to consider that great change which 1s so frequently spoken of in Scripture under the various names of conversion, repentance, and regeneration ; and which is described by the expressive figures of passing from darkness to light, and of rising from death to life. And that we may clearly understand wherein it properly consists, and perceive its relation to the truths which have already been illustrated, it is important to observe,—1. That this great change is usually pre- ceded by a preparatory work of instruction and con- viction, which differs in different cases in respect to its extent, duration, and result ; but which, in some degree, is necessarily implied, or presupposed, in every case of real conversion in adult age. There is often a preparation of mind going before conversion, by which the mind is fitted for its great change,—just as wood, by being dried, becomes ready for catching fire when the torch is applied to it. This 164 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT preparatory work consists chiefly in the instruction of the understanding, and conviction of the conscience ; and is promoted gradually, and often for a long time before conversion, by the reading of the Word—by the lessons of a Gospel ministry—by Christian society and conversation ; while it is often more rapidly ad- vanced by those dispensations of providence which impress the mind with a conviction of the unsatisfying and uncertain nature of all earthly good, and which bring before it the realities of death, and judgment, and eternity. By such means the mifd is often in- structed, and the conscience awakened, long before that change is wrought upon it which is described as real, saving conversion. This preparatory work may be more orless extensive. Sometimes it amounts to little more than a few occa- sional thoughts of God and eternity, by which the mind of a sinner is haunted when he least expects or wishes to be troubled by them; but which have not sufficient power over him to attract his serious at- tention to the things which concern his peace. Some- times, again, the sinner is so situated, that, by the daily reading of the Word, and by regular attendance on ordinances, he acquires, before his conversion, a clear and comprehensive acquaintance with all the leading doctrines of divine truth ; so that he may be apt to suppose that little remains to be added to his knowledge, until, by the teaching of the Spirit, he sees that the light which was in him has been but darkness, and that he knew nothing yet as he ought ; and so conviction of sin may be occasional or con- IN RENEWING THE HEART. 165 stant, and more or less intense, while as yet he remains in an unconverted state. This preparatory work may be more or less pro- tracted. With some, it issues in immediate conversion, as in the case of the thief on the cross ; with others, it tends gradually and slowly to the same result, as in the case of those who stay long at the “ place of the breaking forth of children ;” while, with not a few, it stops short of conversion, and leaves them, at the end of life, as doubting and undecided as it found them. For this preparatory work of instruction and con- viction may issue in very different results. Whether it be considered as the fruit of a man’s natural facul- ties exercised on the truths of God’s Word, or as the fruit of a common work of the Spirit on his mind, it is clear that, while it is good and useful in itself, as having a tendency, a fitness as a means in order to conversion, it does nevertheless fall frequently short of it, and terminates without effecting a saving change. It may be the work of the Spirit of God notwith- _ standing. The grace of the Holy Spirit has usually been considered and treated of under distinct heads,— “as preparing, preventing, working, co-working, and confirming.” * And difficult as it may be to assign the reason why the Spirit’s grace is more effectual in some than in others, there can be no difficulty in understanding the causes which render his grace ineffectual in the case of many who are convinced without being converted. Such persons have been * Owen, 166 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT — instructed in the knowledge of divine truth, and they have often been visited with occasional, and sometimes with deep convictions of conscience ; but they fall short of conversion—why ? first, because, in the spirit of unbelief, they slight the testimony of God, and the warnings of their own consciences—resisting the light, or refusing to apply the truth to their own case :—secondiy, because, in the spirit of carnal secu- rity, they love a false peace, and refuse to be disturb- ed out of their pleasant dreams ; and would willingly be let alone to enjoy their fatal slumber :—thirdly, because, in the spirit of rebellion against God, they cleave to that accursed thing which he denounces, their heart's love being given to some sin, even while, perhaps, their conscience condemns it :—fourthly, because, in the spirit of the world, which is enmity against God, they allow other influences,—even “ the lust of the eye, or the lust of the flesh, or the pride | of life’—to wear out and obliterate from their minds the impression of God’s Word and Spirit; and the gay counsel of ungodly companions, or the taunts and sneers of mere formalists in religion, or the easy doctrines of false teachers, who say, Peace, peace, when there is no peace, have greater power over them than the combined testimony of their own consciences, of God’s faithful ministers, and of his Holy Spirit of truth ; and dastly, because “ the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience, leads their will captive to his sway, even when it is urged by all the motives of the Gospel to repent and be saved.” Oh! it is a fearful case,— IN RENEWING THE HEART. 167 the case of a man—thus enlightened in his under- standing—thus convinced in his conscience—thus far brought on in the way which leads to conversion, and yet deliberately stopping short,—wilfully turning aside—resolutely resisting all the teaching of God’s Word and Spirit ; but it is one which will make it plain on the last day, that, if he perish, it is not be- cause he had no knowledge, and no conviction, but because he has stifled both. To that man may Ged himself say, “ What more could I have done for my vine that I have not done for it? Wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes?” Even as now, the same God is saying to every such sinner, “ As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that he turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye; why will ye die, O house of Israel ?” But while, from these and similar causes, the pre- paratory work of instruction and conviction may come short of saving conversion, some such work is neces- sarily presupposed in that great change of heart. Not that we hold any natural or moral qualification to be indispensable for the efficacy of the Spirit's work ;—no ; “the wind bloweth where it listeth,” and the Spirit may come suddenly to a heart which, till then, was wholly unprepared to receive him. His gifts were bestowed on Saul, without any moral qualification, when he prophesied; and on Amos, without any natural qualification, when the Lord took him as he © followed the flock, and said to him, Go, prophecy ; and so, in his converting grace, he called the thief on I 168 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT the cross suddenly, and he converted three thousand murderers of the Lord on the day of Pentecost. Such unexpected and sudden conversions he is often pleased to effect, for the purpose of impressing us with the reality and the power of his gracious operations on the hearts of men, and with the certainty of his continued agency in the Church of God. But in other cases, previous instruction and education are employed as a preparatory means; so that every faculty is filled, like pipes laid under ground with the gaseous fluid : there is no light, but there is a real preparation for light ; and when the Spirit applies the torch, the fluid is converted into flame. And, universally, without excepting the most sudden conversions, this change implies and presupposes some knowledge in the under-_ standing, and some conviction in the conscience ; they may be suddenly produced ; and simultaneously, there may be a change of heart ; but; in the order of nature, that change presupposes these things; for it is a_ change of will, which implies a motive; it consists in embracing Christ as a Saviour, and this implies a sense of danger ; it is called repentance, and this im- plies a sense of sin. So that even in the case of the most sudden conversion, the understanding must be to some extent enlightened, and the conscience ‘con- vinced, before that decisive change is wrought in which conversion properly consists. ‘Take the remark- able case of the malefactor on the cross; and even here you will see a preparatory work, of short con- tinuance no doubt, but still real, and implying both instruction and conviction. Suppose that this sinner IN RENEWING THE HEART. 169 came to the cross with no more knowledge of the Saviour than the other who reviled him, still on the cross there was presented to his mind as much truth as was necessary to convince and convert him. From the words of the blasphemers who stood around him, who said in mockery, but with truth, “ He saved others,”"—from the inscription on Christ’s cross, “ This is Jesus of Nazareth, the king of the Jews,’—and from the prayer of Christ, “ Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do,’—from these sources pro- ceeded to the soul of this malefactor as much truth as was necessary for his conversion ; it enlightened his mind, it convinced his conscience ; it had power, when applied by the Spirit, to make him believe and pray —“ Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.” And so in other cases of sudden conver- sion, such as that of Paul, of the Philippian jailor, and of the three thousand on the day of Pentecost ; although there was no moral qualification of any kind beforehand, the understanding was enlightened, and the conscience convinced by such truth as was then presented, and this issued in thorough conversion to God. If. Conversion is not a partial work on any one faculty, but a change on every faculty of the mind, whereby the sinner is renewed really, though not per- fectly, in the whole man after the image of God. It takes effect on the understanding when the un- derstanding is enlightened by the Spirit; on the con- science, when the conscience is convinced by the Spirit ; on the will, when the will is subdued by the M 170 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT Spirit ; on the affections, when the affections are puri- fied, and refined, and elevated by the Spirit; and on the life, when the life is regulated by the Spirit, and conformed to the rule of God’s law. As in conversion all the faculties of the soul are renewed, and restored to their proper uses and ends, so none of them can be renewed without a renewal of every other ; and hence the change that is wrought in any one of them is often used in Scripture to denote the whole of this great work. The terms which are employed to describe this change are relative, and have each of them a reference to the previous state of the soul in that respect, wherein it is changed. Thus, illumination has respect to the soul as’ darkened ; regeneration to the soul as dead ; repentance to the soul as convinced of its sinfulness ; conversion to the soul as turned from the error of its ways ; renovation to the soul as renewed after the image which it had lost ; and these are so inseparably linked together, that any one of them is often used to describe the whole change which is wrought in the soul by the Spirit of God; as when the apostle describes it by saying, ‘“ God hath shined into our hearts {and again, “ You hath he quickened ;” and again, “ Repent and be converted ;’ and again, “ Whosoever believeth shall not perish, but shall have everlasting life.” Such, it would seem, is the saving grace of the Spirit, that it takes effect alike on the understanding, the con- science, the will, the affections, and the practical habits, —leaving no part of our nature in its original state, but renewing every part, and restoring it to healthful IN RENEWING THE HEART. 171 exercise. And hence “ all old things pass away, and all things become new ;’ the understanding obtains new light, the conscience new power, the will a new bias, the affections a new object, the life a new rule and end ; so that the whole man is renewed, and a new impress and image stamped upon it. But that image is yet imperfect, and far from resembling, in all respects, the likeness of Him after whom it is formed. No faculty of our nature is left unchanged; but neither is any faculty changed at once into a state of perfection. The understanding, the conscience, the will, the affections, the habits of a true convert, are all brought under the influence of the Holy Ghost ; but he does not restore them at once to full health and vigour ; he renews, but does not perfect them at the time of conversion. These views may serve to guard against two errors, —the one consisting in the supposition, which is too apt to be entertained by nominal professors, that a few notions infused into the understanding, a few convictions awakened in the conscience, a few emo- tions excited in the heart, amount to the whole of that change which is implied in conversion ; the other, is the apprehension incident to true Christians, that because they have reason to mourn over the imper- fection of every grace that is the fruit of the Spirit, they cannot have been converted or renewed after the image of God. These errors lie at the two opposite extremes, the one of carnal and unwarranted security, the other of Christian doubt and fear. III. Conversion properly consists in a sinner being 172 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT brought actually, intelligently, and ,cordially, to close and comply with God’s revealed will on the subject of his salvation. Some conviction of sin being wrought in the con- science, and some knowledge of God’s truth imparted to the understanding, the sinner is, at the time of his conversion, brought to the point ; he comes to a final decision, a decision which implies at once a firm assent of the understanding, in an act of faith, and a full consent of the will, in an act of deliberate choice. He surrenders himself to the power of God’s truth. He submits to God’s revealed will in the matter of his salvation. Convinced that he is a great sinner, and that Christ is a great Saviour—a Saviour appointed by God himself,—qualified alike by the dignity of his divine nature, the tenderness of his human sympa- thies, and the efficacy of his meritorious worl, to save unto the very uttermost all that come unto God by him,—a Saviour exhibited and proposed to every sinner in the general doctrines of the Gospel, and declaring his own free and unutterable love im its universal calls and invitations,—the sinner, taking that Gospel as his warrant, comes to Christ, closes with him, embraces him in all the fulness of his offices, and surrenders himself without reserve into the Saviour’s hands, to be washed, and justified, and sanctified according to the terms of the everlasting covenant. This is conversion ; this will secure the salvation of the sinner, and nothing short of this can. There must be a decisive closing with the Gospel call, a final de- termination—first, on the part of the understanding ; IN RENEWING THE HEART. 173 and secondly, on the part of the will. We must come to a decision ; and believing it to be infallibly certain that Jesus is the Christ, the only, but an all-sufficient Saviour, we must close with him as he is revealed to us in the Gospel, and choose him as “all our salvation and all our desire.” It is not enough that we are visited with occasional convictions of sim—so was Cain, and so was Herod, and so was Judas ; nor is it enough that we acquire some speculative knowledge of divine truth—so did Agrippa, who was almost per- suaded to be a Christian, and so also did Simon Magus, who made such a profession as was sufficient for his baptism, and who yet remained “ in the gall of bitter- ness, and the bond of iniquity.” Conversion implies much more,—it implies an actual, deliberate, and cor- dial closing with Christ in his revealed character, and a surrender of our soulsinto his hands. Itis a radical heart-change, by which the sinner is brought to close in right earnest with the Saviour. He may have been troubled in his conscience before, and moved in his affections, and, to a certain extent, instructed in the truth of God; but till now, he hesitated, and delayed, and doubted ; the bargain was not struck, the cove- nant was not subscribed, the decisive act was not done ; but now he is brought to a point,—the business, long in negotiation, is about to be finally settled; he sees the magnitude of impending ruin—the fearful hazard of an hour's delay ; and hearing that Christ, and Christ only can save him, he believes, and he comes to Christ, deliberately and solemnly, to commit his soul into his hands, and to embrace him as his own Saviour, 174 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT This decisive act of closing with Christ, and com- plying with God’s revealed will in the matter of our salvation, although it may at first sight appear a very simple and easy process, includes in it, I apprehend, every thing that is essential to saving conversion, or that is declared in Scripture to accompany or flow from it. Let the sinner close with Christ in his serip-- tural character ; in other words, let him have a correct apprehension of Christ as he is revealed in the Gospel, and cordially believe on him, and choose him as his own Saviour, in all the fulness of his offices, and he is really from that time a converted man, however defective his knowledge and his experience in many other respects may be,—he has already experienced all that is essentially involved in that great change, and every other consequence which properly flows from conversion will ensue. This decisive act implies, —1. That he believes Jesus to be the Christ ; in other words, that he believes the same Jesus who was crucified on the hill of Calvary to be the Son of God, manifested in human nature, as the Saviour of sinners ; and, as such, executing the will of God, acting by his authority, bearing his com- mission; nay, anointed with the Holy Ghost as a Prophet, to declare God’s infallible truth—as a Priest, to satisfy God’s inflexible justice—and as a King, to subject the world to God’s rule ;—a Christ once cruci- fied, but now exalted,—invested with almighty power, and able to save unto the very uttermost all that come unto God by him. 2. This decisive act of closing with Christ in his revealed character, implies that the man IN RENEWING THE HEART. 175 feels himself to be a sinner ; and, as such, condemned by God's law, exposed to God’s threatenings, and in im- minent danger of eternal ruin; while he has no means and no power to save himself, but must be indebted to a Saviour. 3. It implies that he is willing, or rather that he has been made willing, to receive, own, and ‘submit to Christ as God’s Anointed One, and in respect to every one of his offices, as the Redeemer of God's people ; that he willingly submits his understanding to Christ’s teaching, receiving the truth from his lips, and on his authority, as the infallible truth of God ; that he willingly acquiesces in the method of being justified— not by his own righteousness, but by the righteousness of Christ, seeking to be pardoned only through the merit of his blood shed on the cross, and accepted only through the efficacy of his meritorious obedience ; and that he willingly subjects his heart and life to Christ’s royal authority, that his heart may be renew- ed and sanctified by Christ's Spirit, and that his life may be governed and regulated by Christ’s law ; ina word, that he is willing to receive and aipiae a whole Christ and a whole salvation ; and to surrender himself wholly, soul, body, and spirit, into Christ's hands, to be saved and sanctified, governed and dealt with now and eternally, according to the terms of the everlasting covenant. Here we have a real thorough conversion ; which consists mainly and essentially in repentance and faith —iwo gifts of the Spirit which are often used together, or even separately, to denote the whole of this great change,—repentance indicating what the sinner turns 176 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT from,—faith, what he turns unto. Conversion is the turning point at which he turns out of the broad way which leadeth to destruction, and into the straight, the narrow way which leadeth unto life. He then flees from the wrath to come, and flees to Christ as his refuge; he forsakes the service of sin, and follows Christ as his Master ; he shuns perdition, and seeks salvation in Christ as his Saviour. Now, repentance describes his conversion, with reference chiefly to what he turns from, and faith describes his conver- sion with reference chiefly to what he turns to; and each implies the other, there being no true repentance where there is no faith, and no true faith where there is no repentance ; while both are wrought in the soul, at the time of its conversion, by the power of the Holy Ghost applying the truth as it is in Jesus. From this radical change of heart there flows an out- ward change of life, reformation of life proceeding from a renewed mind ; first, “ the tree is made good, and the fruit becomes good also ;” the fountain is puri- fied, and the stream that flows from it is also pure. The production of true faith is often spoken of ~ in Scripture as amounting to the whole work of re- generation,—“ Whoso believeth that Jesus is the Christ, is born of God.” And again, “To as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to as many as believed on hig name ; which were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” Here every one who really believes is said to be born of God; and as every true believer is a converted IN RENEWING THE HEART. 5 Aisf i man, it follows that the production of saving faith is equivalent to the work of regeneration. But then it must be a real scriptural faith—such as is required in the Gospel; not the faith which the Apostle James declares to be dead, but that living faith which is described in Scripture, as a well-ground- ed belief resting on the sure testimony of God; a positive belief,—not a mere negation or absence of disbelief, nor a doubtful and wavering opinion, but a thorough conviction of mind—an intelligent belief, such as is inconsistent with blind ignorance, and im- plies a perception of the meaning of God’s truth—a full and comprehensive belief, embracing all that is essential to be known in regard to the method of sal- vation ;—this belief, implying scriptural apprehensions of God in his true character—of Christ in his person, as Emmanuel, in the fulness of his offices as Mediator, his great design and his finished work—and of our- selves, as guilty, depraved, and exposed to a sentence of righteous condemnation ;—this belief, thus founded on God’s testimony, and implying spiritual apprehen- * sions of his truth, is a vital, active, and operative principle, bending the will to a compliance with God's call,—awakening suitable emotions of reverence, fear, complacency, delight, love, and joy,—renewing, trans- forming, purifying the soul, and effecting a complete change on all our practical habits. The production of this real, living, and sanctifying faith, is the great work of the Spirit in conversion,—a work which im- plies or produces a universal change on all the faculties of our nature; so that, as soon as this faith is im- 178 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT planted in his soul, the sinner becomes a new man,— the truth of God, received by faith, renewing his un- derstanding, his conscience, his will, his desires, his affections—“ all old things pass away, and all things become new.” Every believer, then, in the Gospel sense of that term, is born again; in other words, no one is a believer who is not regenerated, nor is any adult re- generated who is not a believer. The production of saving faith is that wherein regeneration properly con- sists. But then it must be such a faith as the Gospel requires and describes; and that faith, although it may have its seat in the understanding, implies a change in our whole moral nature, and especially a renewal of the will. The understanding is, in the order of nature, the leading and governing faculty of the soul, and it is by means of truth cordially be- lieved, that the great change is accomplished. But the truth is either not duly understood, or not really believed, where it works no change on the heart and habits of the sinner. He may read, and speak, and speculate about it—he may even embrace some frag- ments of it, and hold them tenaciously as the chil. boleth of his party; but the substantial truth of Christ’s Gospel cannot be really understood and be- lieved by any man who remains unconverted. He is an unbeliever, if he be unregenerate. An unregene- rated believer, or a regenerated unbeliever, are expres- sions which have no counterpart in the Word of God. And if it be so, then is it certain, that the production of true Gospel faith is equivalent to being born again. IN RENEWING THE HEART. 179 It is true that many an unregenerate man May sup- pose that he believes,—he may never have questioned ~ the general truth of God’s Word,—he may even have ranged himself on the side of truth, and by a public profession, or in private conversation, he may have often defended and maintained it,—nay, he may have had many thoughts passing through his mind—many convictions awakened in his conscience, which show that he is not altogether ignorant or unimpressed ; and sometimes, under a Gospel ministry, he may, like the stony-ground hearers, have heard the message with emotions of delight and joy, and, like Herod, he may have gone forth and done many things in compliance with the preacher's call; and in such a case, it may seem to be a hard saying to affirm, that after all his reading, and hearing, and doing, he is, or may be, an unbeliever still; yet I apprehend that nothing can be plainer from the Word of God, than that these transient impressions may often be expe- rienced by an unconverted man, and that the man who is not regenerated and transformed by his faith, has no true faith at all. He may not question the truth—but neither does he fully understand and firmly believe it; he may embrace a part of it—but the sub- stance of Gospel truth he excludes from his thoughts ; instead of yielding his mind up wholly and unresery- edly to its subduing and transforming power, he holds down or suppresses the truth in unrighteousness ; and, by a thousand shifts and expedients, the man who 1s unwilling to be brought wholly under its influence, contrives to shut it out, while, at the same time, he 180 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT may make a profession of a general faith. The mind which is unwilling to be thoroughly renewed, mani- fests its unwillingness—not by refusing to obey the truth after it has been firmly believed, but, at an earlier stage, by shutting its eyes to whatever in that truth is offensive to its taste. | IV. One characteristic difference betwixt the pre- paratory work of instruction and conviction, which is often experienced by unconverted men, and the effec- tual work of saving conversion, consists in this,—that, in the latter case, all voluntary resistance to God’s gracious will is overcome, and the sinner is made willing to close with the Gospel call. Every sinner’s heart offers resistance to God’s truth. There is a resistance arising from unbelief, which re- fuses to receive his testimony; there is a resistance arising from pride, which repels his charges and ac- cusations ; there is a resistance arising from the natu- ral enmity of the carnal mind, which opposes itself to his authority; there is a resistance arising from the prevailing love of sin, which recoils from the purity and spirituality of his service. Hence many a mé¢ who has experienced much of a common work of con- viction, and who has acquired some clear knowledge of the scheme of divine truth, is nevertheless found to stop short, and stand still, or turn aside, when he seems to be in a promising way towards conversion— just because, when it comes to the point, he cannot make up his mind to a full and cordial reception of the Gospel : convinced as he is, and perhaps troubled with his convictions of sin and danger, and enlightened IN RENEWING THE HEART. i8i as he is in the knowledge of that way of salvation which the Gospel reveals, he would willingly grasp at some of those blessings which it holds out to him; willingly, most willingly, would he secure the pardon of his sins, and exemption from the wrath to come, and some good hope of a happy, or at least a safe eter- nity ;—but when he looks into the Gospel, and finds that, if he would close with Christ, he must close with him out and out ;—that, if he would obtain pardon, he must take anew heart along with it,—that if he would be saved from hell, he must consent to be made meet for heaven,—that he must receive the Holy Spirit into his heart, and live under the power of faith, and walk in the path of humility, and self-denial, and devoted- ness to God,—that he must deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Christ,—and that he must submit to be saved from his sins;—oh! then he finds that while there is much in the Gospel which he most earnestly desires to secure, but much also in the same Gospel, and inseparable from it, which he is most anxious to shun ; he hesitates—he would take a free pardon, but he will not take a full Gospel salvation—his heart recoils from it; and, at this point, this critical, this decisive point, when he is choosing for eternity— choosing betwixt life and death, betwixt heaven and hell—at this decisive point, when the full salvation is freely offered, and placed at his acceptance ; and his eternal welfare might be secured by his willingly taking it ;—here, when nothing but his own unwil- lingness stands in the way, he pauses—he stops—he will not yield—he falls short of conversion. 182 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT Such is the case of a man half convinced, half per- suaded to be a Christian ; and it affords a melancholy confirmation of the Scripture doctrine, that it is the sinner’s unwillingness that constitutes the only bar to his conversion—the sure and equitable ground of his future condemnation. And if this be the great cha- racteristic difference betwixt such a man and a true convert, it follows, that a real willingness to close with Christ, and to receive a full salvation,—that this, al- though a simple, is a strong and sure evidence of con- version to God. It is this, indeed, which is every where set forth in Scripture as the turning point—the crisis—the decisive change. Every man that is really willing to be saved in the full Gospel sense—to be saved out and out—without exception and without reserve, has really undergone a change such as no human power could accomplish. No man who is really willing, in this sense, to come to Christ, and to close with him, has ever been, or ever will be, sent empty away. It is the will on which all depends. If the will be ranged on the side of God and Christ, it was the Spirit that placed it there; if the will be changed, all is changed ; if the will be won over to the Gospel, the Gospel is won over, with all its bless- ings and promises, to the sinner’s side. V. This decisive change admits of no degrees, and is substantially the same in all cases, while it is cir- cumstantially different. Conversion may be preceded by certain preparatory means, which have a fitness and tendency towards it; and it may be followed by an after-growth ; but, in itself, it is a quickening of a ~ IN RENEWING THE HEART. 183 the soul, by which it passes from death unto life,—and a decisive change, by which it is translated from the kingdom of darkness, and brought into the kingdom of God’s dear Son. There is no one point in its history at which it can be said of any soul, that it is neither converted nor unconverted. Conversion admits of no degrees. A man may be more or less wicked in his natural state, and he may be more or less holy in his regenerate state; but he cannot be more or less converted : he must either be converted or unconverted—regenerate or unregenerate—alive or dead. There isno medium. Every man who is not converted, is a mere natural, unregenerate man, however rational, moral and amia- ble he may be in the common relations of life. This decisive change is, in substance, the same in all ; while it admits of endless diversity in the circum- stances by which it is accompanied. The varieties that may occur in the experience of true converts, are almost infinite. Some are suddenly converted as soon as their thoughts are arrested, and fixed on divine truth ; others are carried on, gradually, along a protract- ed course of preparatory instruction. Some are visited with deep convictions of sin, and terrible alarm of conscience ; others no sooner see their sins than they are enabled to rejoice in the remedy. Some are ex- cited and agitated, even to the disturbing of the bodily functions ; others meekly receive the ingrafted Word, and drink in the dew of heaven quietly, as the silent flower. All these varieties may occur ; and it is im- portant to mark them ; because we are thus guarded 184 THE WORK OF THE SPTRIT against the error of seeking, in our experience, all the circumstantials which we haye heard or read of, as accompanying the conversion of others, The ex- perience of others is not, in these respects, a rule tous: the Spirit acts how he will, and exercises a sovereignty in this matter: it is enough if we have the substance of true conversion. Now, that sub- Stance is the same in all: it consists in true faith— such faith as subdues the will, and closes with Christ according to the terms of the covenant ; In other words, it consists in a change of mind and heart, by which it turns from sin unto God through Jesus Christ ; and he who can find the evidence of this change in himself, need feel no alarm about the absence of mere circumstantial and non-essential accompaniments, VI. This decisive change is wrought by the truths of God’s Word, applied and rendered effectual by the Holy Ghost. The Spirit of God is the agent by whom this work is wrought. It is every where ascribed to him in Scripture. He opens the eye; He enlightens the mind ; He works in us both to will and to do of his good pleasure. The truths of God’s Word are the means by which the Spirit effects this change in the case of adult persons. We are “ born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.” “ The law of the Lord is per- fect, converting the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart : the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.” “TI haye i ee IN RENEWING THE HEART. 185 begotten you by the Gospel.” These, and similar expressions, clearly show that the Word, or the truth contained in the Word, is the instrument by which the Spirit of God accomplishes the great change of mind and heart which is implied in saving conversion. Many questions have been raised upon this point, and agitated with great keenness,—as, whether the Spirit’s influence is exerted mediately, or immediately, on the mind, by a direct physical impulse, or by intermediate moral means ;* and whether, in the order of nature, the illumination of the mind be prior or subsequent to the production of a spiritual principle in the heart : + but, for my present purpose, it is unnecessary to dis- cuss these questions,—it being acknowledged on all hands, that the truth contained in the Word is instru- mentally useful as a means in the hand of the Spirit. And even were it impossible to explain the mode of his operation, we shall find no difficulty in admitting its reality notwithstanding, if we bear in mind that it is “a new creation” of which we speak—a superna- tural change—such as cannot, in all respects, be ex- plained any more than the creation of the world itself ; for “ the wind bloweth where it listeth, and we can- not tell whence it cometh, or whither it goeth ; and so is every one that is born of the Spirit.” The truth is so applied by the Spirit as to be made effectual for conversion. It accomplishes the design for which it is fitted and intended ; it convinces the understanding ; it carries the will along with it. The call of the Gospel takes effect, and becomes * Dr Payne’s Lectures, p. 371. + Fuller, M‘Lean, Dwight. N i 186 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT effectual calling, when the sinner is thus enabled and disposed to close with it. The work of the Spirit includes moral suasion; but it is also “a work of power.” (Eph. i. 19.) We are made a “ willing people in the day of his power.” On this point also a question has been raised,—whether the grace of the Spirit be irresistible or not? * It is clear that uncon- verted men are charged with “ resisting the Holy Ghost ;” for “ God strives with them, and they strive against God :” but that grace which they resist is rendered effectual in the case of all who believe, not by virtue of any power in themselves, but by God's power, “ who worketh in them both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” And to those who are inclined. to deny the efficacy of the Spirit’s grace, I would only suggest. the question,—what do you pray for when you implore God to enlighten, to sanctify, and com- fort you? Is it merely that he would give you the means of instruction, and sanctification, and comfort ? or is it not rather that he would make these means effectual in your experience, by dispelling your dark- ness, and subduing your corruptions, and saving you by his mighty power? All your speculative doubts on this point will vanish, if you will only consider the import of your own prayers. VII. Regeneration implies a great deal more than mere moral amendment, or external reformation of life. It isa change of heart. “The tree must be made good before the fruit can be good.” A new birth is essential to a new life. There is no real * Owen. IN RENEWING THE HEART. 187 holiness, except what springs from a renewed heart. “ That which is born of the flesh is flesh : that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” This decisive change is so important, that our eter- nal welfare depends upon it,—our state and relation to God here, and our everlasting destiny hereafter. Converted, or unconverted—that is the great question. If conyerted,—then pardoned, safe, sanctified, inte- rested in all the privileges and in all the promises of the Gospel. If unconverted,—then unforgiven, unsafe, unsanctified, destitute of ail interest in any one privi- lege or promise of the Gospel. Were the question asked,—are you converted ? vari- ous answers might be returned to it, if every reader would only express what is passing in his own mind. —Some might answer at once—no ; we have no hesi- . tation, no difficulty, in coming to a decision: the in- most feelings of our hearts, and the whole habits of our lives, testify, with sufficient plainness, that we have not been converted: we see no need, and feel no desire for so great a change !—Some others might say—yes; we believe ourselves to be converted. But of these there may be two very different classes,—the one, who really are what they profess themselves to be ; the other, who have a name to live, while they are dead.—Many more might say—we are in doubt as to this matter ; we cannot fully determine whether we have yet undergone so great a change ; we fluctuate be- twixt assurance and doubt—betwixt hope and fear. And of these also there may be two distinct classes, — the one, really converted, although they know it not; 188 THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT the other, as really unconverted, although they fancy that they have some reason to think they may have undergone some slight change. Now, it belongs not to man to decide as to the con- dition of individuals ; every one must decide for him- self. But the transcendent importance of the subject, as one on which the eternity of every soul depends, affords a strong reason why we should come to some decisive determination. In regard to those who are in doubt as to their spiritual condition, I admit at once that a man may be really converted, and yet may not be so fully aware of the change that has been wrought upon him, as to be able to use the strong language of the full assu- rance of hope; but they ought to be reminded that it is their duty to “ give all diligence to make their calling and election sure ;” and not to sink into in- - difference and security when, according to their own confession, every thing that most nearly concerns them in time and in eternity is in doubt. Mere doubt as to the fact of a saving change having been already wrought, may not be a sufficient evidence of their being unconverted ; but indifference, sloth, and secu- rity, existing along with such doubts, and cherished while the soul is yet at this awful uncertainty—these are evil symptoms, and should be seriously considered. Pray that you may be converted, and that your calling and election may be made sure. But may a man, who is in doubt as to his being yet converted, or who has reason to think that, as yet, he is unregenerate,—may such a man pray ? Tanswer, IN RENEWING THE HEART. 189 unquestionably; nay, a really unregenerate person may be exhorted to pray for regenerating grace. Wit- ness the apostle’s words to Simon Magus—words which proceed on a great general principle—viz., that what- ever God requires in a way of duty, we should do, in dependence on his grace to help us. The unregenerate man has duties that are required of him ; and it can- not be thought that his present condition, however depraved and helpless, releases him from the obligation. The danger of his present state should urge him to pray, and seek, and knock ; while the gracious promise of the Holy Spirit should encourage him. That pro- mise is indefinite, and is exhibited and proposed in the general doctrines, and calls, and invitations of the Gospel, so as to afford a sufficient warrant for faith to every sinner in drawing near to God. 190 THE RESULT OF THE CHAPTER VII. THE RESULT OF TIE SPIRIT’S WORK IN CON- VERSION. Tue grand result of the Spirit’s work in conversion, is described by the apostle, when he says, “‘ Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away ; behold, all things are become new. J. When a sinner is converted to God, he is said in Scripture to be united to Christ. He becomes a living member of that spiritual body of which Christ is the Head; and it is from his union with Christ that he derives all those blessings which he enjoys now, or hopes to enjoy hereafter. In virtue of this union, he is identified, as it were, with Christ, and Christ with him ; insomuch, that he is represented as having died with Christ when he died, and as having risen with Christ when he arose from the dead; his sins are reckoned to Christ’s account, and Christ’s righteous- ness 1s imputed to him; so that, as Christ suffered his punishment, he will share in Christ’s reward: he is “a joint heir with Christ,” and has an interest in SPIRIT’S WORK tN CONVERSION. 191 every privilege or promise which God has given to his Son on behalf of his people. The legal or judicial effect of this union, is his entire justification, the par- don of his sins, the acceptance of his person, his adoption into God’s family, and his final admission into heaven. And to this effect of his union with Christ the apostle refers, when he says, —“ Yea doubt- less, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, and be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Chnist, the righteousness which is of God by faith: that I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made con- formable unto his death; if by any means I might “attain unto the resurrection of the dead.”—-But there is another effect of this union which is equally impor- tant. By being united to Christ as a member of his spiritual body, he comes to be animated by that Spirit which pervades it,—the Spirit of Christ, which is, as it were, the vital power of his body, and which actu- ates eyery member belonging to it,—the Spirit with which the Head was anointed, and by reason of which he was called the Christ of God, being like the ointment which was poured on the head of Aaron, and which went down to the skirts of his garment. Every member of his body shares in this anointing, and the spiritual effect of this vital union is, that “from Christ the Head, the whole body fitly joined together, and 192 THE RESULT OF THE compacted by that which every joint supplieth, accord- ing to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.” Or, as the same truth is elsewhere represented under another figure,—every believer is a branch in Christ, the true vine; and from Christ derives that sap and nourishment which renders him fruitful: ‘“ Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine ; no more can ye, except ye abide inme. I am the vine, ye are the branches: he that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit : for without,” or out of, “me ye can do nothing.” Such is the union which is declared to subsist be- tween Christ and his people, and in virtue of which every converted man is said to be “in Christ.” If we inquire by what means this union is effected, or how it is that we may be grafted into the vine, we shall find that it is—by faith. Faith is the bond which unites the sinner with the Saviour. No unbeliever is in Christ—no believer is out of Christ. Nominal and formal professors may be said, indeed, to be in Christ externally or apparently, by reason of their connection with his visible body, the Church; and to their case our Lord seems to refer, when he says, “ Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away,’—refer- ring to fruitless and faithless professors, who are as withered branches that receive no vital sap or nourish- ment from the vine to which they seem to belong ; but the reason is, that they have no faith—his Word does not abide in them, nor does his Spirit animate SPIRITS WORK IN CONVERSION. 193 them. That which constitutes the vital union is FAITH. The Jews, the natural branches, were broken off because of unbelief; and, says the apostle, “Thou standest by faith. Thou wert cut out of the olive tree, which is wild by nature, and wert graffed contrary to nature into a good olive tree.” The Jews, the natural branches, were in this tree, as members of God's visible Church ; but through unbelief they were broken off: the Gentiles, who were branches of a wild olive, and had no connection at all with the true vine, were grafted in by faith; so that in both cases we see that faith is the bond of union. II. Now, of every man who is thus united to Christ, it is said, he is a new creature—or, that there is a new creation. And if we would understand the import of this statement, or what is meant by the new creation here spoken of, we may derive much instruction from a comparison of two other passages (Gal. vi. 15, and v. 6), where the same expression occurs, and which throw much light on each other, and also on the text. In the first, the apostle says, “In Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but @ new creature ;” and, in the second, he says, ‘“ In Jesus Christ, neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision ; but farth which worketh by love ;” and from a comparison of the two, we may infer that by a new creature in the one, he means the same thing as is described by “faith which worketh by love” in the other; or, that “faith working by love” is the new creation which is wrought in the soul of a sinner when he is converted to God, and united to Christ. 194 THE RESULT OF THE The production of true faith is often spoken of in Scripture as equivalent to the whole work of regene- ration: ‘ Whoso believeth that Jesus is the Christ, is born of God;” “ and he that believeth shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life :” “ he that believeth on the Son hath ever- lasting life ;’ and “ being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.” But then it must be a vital faith, such as is required in the Gospel; a living and active principle, serving at once to connect us with Christ, and to constrain us to live no longer to ourselves, but to him that died for us, and that rose again. Ina word, it must be “ the faith which worketh by love.” Love is the sum of God’s law, and the spring of all acceptable obedience; for, said our Lord himself, ‘Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart ; this is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets ;’—and, says the apostle, “ Love is the fulfilling of the law.” Now love is the spring which faith touches, and through which it brings into play every faculty of soul and body in the service of God. The Gospel, being a message of love from God, cannot be believed without awakening a responsive love in our own bosoms: we wil, we must love him, because he first loved us ; and loving him, we will love one another for his sake ; and SPIRIT’S WORK IN CONVERSION, 195 if it be true, that “ whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God,” it is equally true that every child of God must love his Father in heaven, and that “ every one that loveth him that begat, loveth those also that are begotten of him.” The Gospel message is fitted to call this powerful principle into operation ; and wherever it does so, we see the Gospel fulfilling the very end of the law,—we see faith producing that love which is the bond of perfectness, and through love, all the peaceable fruits of righteousness. And thus, and thus only, is the whole character changed, and changed so thoroughly, as to justify the strong language of the apostle, when he says, “ Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away ; behold, all things are become new. You see the connection at once between the two clauses of the passage, when they are:thus explained : we are united to Christ by faith, and’ the new creation consists in “ faith which worketh by love ;” so that it follows, “if any man be in Christ, he is a new crea- ture: old things are passed away ; behold, all things are become new.” It is of considerable practical importance to view the subject in this light, not only because it affords a clear and definite explanation, in a few comprehen- sive words, of all that is essentially implied in the new creation, but also because it may serve to guard us against two very opposite errors, into one or other of which many hearers of the Gospel are apt to fall. Some, when they read of the great change which must 196 THE RESULT OF THE be wrought on a sinner before he can enter into the kingdom of God, and are visited with some remorse- ful reflections on the carelessness or delinquencies of their past life, are so far impressed with God’s truth, as to resolve on breaking off some of their former habits, and may actually begin a work of outward reformation,—forsaking the tavern, and the haunts of profligacy, and the company of the careless and pro- fane; and repairing to church, and sacrament, and assuming the outward observances of a religious life, Far be it from us to discourage or despise these prac- tical reforms,—they are included in the duty which you owe to God and your own souls; and they will materially promote your present comfort, as well as bring you more frequently and more hopefully into contact with the means of grace. Persevere, then, in the course of outward amendment, and in the practi- cal work of self-reform. But oh! remember, lest even your amendment should become a snare to you,—that a new creation is God’s work,—that it consists, not in. amendment of life merely, although that will assuredly flow from it, but in a change of mind and heart; and that the only root on which the fruits of true righ- teousness will grow, is “ faith that worketh by love.” Mere civil virtue may spring from many roots,—from law, from policy, from prudence, from education, from example; but Christian virtue is the fruit and pro- duct of Christian faith. The nature of the fruit depends on the nature of the tree: first make the tree good, says our Lord, and the fruit will be good also: let the heart be changed, and the life will be reformed ; but SPIRITS WORK IN CONVERSION. 197 if you rest in mere outward reformation, while you are destitute of the “ faith that worketh by love,” you are only “cleansing the outside of the cup and platter,’ and you will resemble whited sepulchres, which are outwardly beautiful, while they inclose a mass of putrid corruption. It is by faith that you must be justified ; it is by the same faith, working by love, that you must be sanctified ; and any external refor- mation that is grafted on another stock, although it may have the semblance of sanctification, has nothing in it of its substance, and will neither suffice for your safety now, nor for your welfare hereafter. This 1s the first great error against which you should be warned by the doctrine of the apostle, when he de- clares, that in Christ Jesus, nothing that is merely external or ceremonial will avail you, but “ a new ‘creation ;’ and when he tells you that this new crea- tion consisteth mainly in the production of “ faith that worketh by love.” But there is another error, at the opposite extreme from the former, which is equally dangerous, and which, it is to be feared, not a few are prone to em- brace. Some, when they read of the privileges and promises which are given to faith,—when they hear that “‘ whoso believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God,” and that “he that believeth shall not perish, but shall have everlasting life,” —immediately conclude, that because they have never questioned the truth of the Gospel, and have, on the contrary, ac- quired a good measure of speculative knowledge, and ranged themselves on the side of those who profess the 198 THE RESULT OF THE faith of Christ, they need give themselves no uneasi- ness,—their creed is sound,—their orthodoxy is unt questionable; and they flatter themselves, therefore, that their souls are safe. Oh! would to God that a sound creed were always combined with a new heart, and that an orthodox profession were never separated from a holy and spiritual character ; but God’s Word, as well as our own experience, testifies the reverse. And hence the necessity of urging the great principle, that “ faith without works is dead,’—that speculative knowledge is nothing if it have no spiritual fruits,— and that, if any man be in Christ, “ he 1s a new crea- ture: old ties are passed away ; ppohold, all things are become new.” When a man believes so as to be united to Christ, his faith worketh by love, so as to change his whole character ; and for this reason he is said to be a new creature, and to have “ put off the old man with his deeds ; and to put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him.” And that we may understand the nature and extent of that change which is wrought on a sinner at the time of his conversion to God, and union with Christ, —I observe, 1, He is a new creature, because he is brought into a new state ; or, in other words, because his rela- tion to God is entirely changed. Formerly he was in a state of wrath; for the “ wrath of God is revealed. from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteous- ness of men ;”—now he is in a state of peace; for “being justified by faith, we have peace with God SPIRITS WORK IN CONVERSION. 199 through our Lord Jesus Christ ;’—formerly he was in a state of enmity; for “ the carnal mind is enmity against God ;’—now he is in a state of reconciliation ; for “‘ them that were sometime alienated, and enemies in their minds by wicked works, yet now hath Christ reconciled ;’—formerly he was in a state of imminent danger, “ without Christ, without God, and without hope in the world,” but now he is ina state of perfect safety ; for “if God be for us, who can be against us ?” “ All things are yours ; for ye are Christ’s, and Christ is God's.” Thus thoroughly is the state and condition of a sinner changed when he is united to Christ; he is brought, as it were, into a new world,—every thing assumes a new aspect—he has passed from death unto life, and exchanged the bondage of Satan for the liberty of a child of God. 2. He is a new creature, because, under the teach- img of the Spirit, he has acquired new views,—new views of himself, his nature, his character, his sins, his duties, his trials, his proper business, his everlasting prospects,—new views of life, its vanity, its shortness, its uncertainty, its real nature and momentous impor- tance, as the only season of preparation for eternity,— new views of the world—its gorgeous pageantry, and broken cisterns, its deceitful and ensnaring pleasures, its destructive lusts, its utter repugnance and opposi- tion to God,—new views of the truth, that same truth with which he may have long been familiar as it is presented in the letter of Scripture, or in the terms of an orthodox catechism or creed, but to which he now attaches a new meaning—his eye being opened to see, 200 THE RESULT OF THE and his heart to feel, its spirituality, its certainty, its awful magnitude and importance with relation to his own soul: God has shined into his heart, to give him the light of this knowledge, and he feels as if a veil had been removed from before his eyes ; so that, although he may still see only as “ through a glass darkly,” and per- haps at first more confusedly still, as did the man who “ saw men as trees walking,” still he is ready to exclaim, “ One thing I know, that whereas I was blind, now I see.”—He has now new views of God,—his infinite nature, his perfect character, his wonderful works, his . ways in Providence, his purpose and plan of grace ;— these things, which were formerly dark and doubtful, or which had no power to arrest and fix his thoughts, or which flitted before his fancy as shadowy and un- substantial forms, have now acquired a reality, and a power, and a magnitude which render them the most frequent objects of his contemplation, and leave a sense of awe on his spirit,—insomuch, that whereas formerly “ God was not in all his thoughts,” he “ now sets the Lord continually before him.”—-He has new views of sin,—of sin, in its relation to God, as opposed to every perfection of his character, to every precept of his law, and every principle of his govern- ment, “the abominable thing which the Lord hateth ;” and of sin in its relation to his own soul, exposing it to the wrath and curse of God, polluting and defiling it, so that it becomes utterly vile; infecting it with loathsome spiritual disease, like an overspreading leprosy, disturbing, or rather destroying, its inward peace; perverting and depraying every one of its SPIRITS WORK IN CONVERSION. 201 faculties, and binding them down by an intolerable tyranny, in a state of self-imposed bondage ;—thus con- ceiving of sin, he sees its heinousness, its demerit, and the justice of that sentence which God has denounced against it; and instead of making light of it, as he once did, he feels it to be a heavy burden,—instead of rolling it as a sweet morsel under his tongue, he feels it to be a root of bitterness ; and instead of excusing it, he con- demns himself on account of it, saying, “‘ the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just and good ;” “but Iam carnal, sold under sin.” He has new views of salvation—of its absolute necessity—of its infinite value as ‘“ the one thing needful,’—the pearl of great price, for which he is willing to bear the loss of all things, and to count them but dung ; for “ what is a man profited, if he should gain the whole world and lose his soul; or what can a man give in exchange for his soul ?”—of its difficulty, or rather its impossibility, in so far as his own resources or efforts are concerned ; for his new views of God, and of his government— of sin, and its demerit, teach him to entertain new thoughts also of the conditions on which salvation depends, and he is prepared to acquiesce with admi- ration and gratitude, in that scheme of grace and re- demption which formerly appeared foolishness to him, but which now, to his awakened conscience, commends itself as “ the wisdom of God, and the power of God.” “The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him ; neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned ;” but when he is converted by the teaching of the Spirit, oO 202 THE RESULT OF THE all his views are changed : doctrines which he was at first disposed to ridicule or dispute, come to be re- garded as first truths, or self-evident principles, which carry their own evidence along with them to an awa- kened conscience, and he is as a man awaking out of sleep, and exchanging the dreams of night for the realities of day—“ old things have passed away ; all things have become new.” 3, He is a new creature, because he has been en- dued with new affections, or rather his affections have been directed to new and worthier objects. Formerly they were withdrawn from God, and as they must have some object, they were centered on some worldly thing —power, or pleasure, or wealth, or fame ; and hence he was ungodly, as having no supreme affection for God, and subject to worldly lusts—‘ the lust of the eye, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life.” These lusts are not eradicated by conversion ; they may long con- tinue to be to the believer what the Canaanites were to the people of Israel,—“ They shall be as thorns in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare unto you ; that through them I may prove Israel, whether they will keep the way of the Lord or not.” But their power is broken, when, under the teaching of the Spirit, the mind is turned from lying vanities to the living God, and new, and holier, and better objects are embraced by the heart’s affections. Faith worketh by love—love to God as a reconciled and forgiving Father, which, springing from a lively sense of his mercy in the scheme of redemption, 1s evermore nour- ished and strengthened by new instances and tokens 1 Se ng So ere ene SPIRITS WORK IN CONVERSION. 203 of his goodness, and rises at length into a complacent esteem, and profound adoration of his essential char- acter, so that he is loved the more in proportion as he is better known ; and every new discovery of his boundless perfections, every new manifestation of his wisdom, and faithfulness, and power, adds fuel to the flame of this holy affection :—love to Christ, as God and man, uniting in his own person the perfections of the divine with the sympathies of the human nature ; and endeared by the recollection of what he did and suffered, the humiliation to which he submitted, the agony which he endured, the lovely graces which he exercised, the precious benefits which he purchased, and the freeness with which they are conferred. Christ is precious to the believer, and “ the love of Christ constraineth him ;’—and love to God as his Father, and to Christ as his elder brother, is combined with, and tends to nourish a disinterested love towards his people as brethren, and towards all men as God’s offspring ; so that he will be ready to “ do good to all men as he has opportunity, but especially,” as being more closely related to them by the most sacred bonds, “to such as are of the household of faith.” 4. As the objects of his affections are new, so also are his desires and aims. Formerly, these were directed solely to the world; he knew of nothing better, and cared for nothing more than its fleeting yanities ; but now they are raised above the world— to God as his chief good, and extend beyond the world—to heaven as his everlasting home. His su- preme desire is to know and enjoy God,—to maintain 204 THE RESULT OF THE communion with him,—to acquire larger views of his perfections, and a sweeter sense of his presence,—to become conformed to his will, and to be transformed into his image. “There be many that say, Who will show us any good? Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon me. Thou hast put gladness into my heart, more than in the time that their corn and wine increased.” “ My soul followeth hard after God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and parched land, to see thy power and thy glory as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.” This being his chief end and chosen good, his desires will be set on every thing that has a tendency as a means to lead towards it; and hence his deep concern as to his saving interest in Christ,—his earnest prayers for pardoning mercy and sanctifying grace,—his patient waiting upon God in the way of his own appointment,—and his spiritual appetite, when, “ like a new-born babe, he desires the sincere milk of the word, that he may grow thereby.” For spiritual life has its instincts as well as natural ; and just as surely as a new-born child will crave the food which nourishes the body, so will a soul that has been born again desire and seck after its congenial aliment. And seeing that here every thing is imper- fect, and that in its present state he cannot enjoy God. as he would, he will look beyond the world for the full satisfaction of his desires. The world was once his all; but now another world, infinitely greater and more glorious, has been brought into view ; and, by its surpassing worth and loveliness, has attracted SPIRITS WORK IN CONVERSION. 205 his affections towards it; so that, in some measure, he feels that his citizenship is in heaven,—that his home is there,—and that it is alike his duty and his privilege to “ set his affections on things above, and not on things which are on the earth; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.” 5. He is a newcreature, because he has new enjoy- ments,—enjoyments springing from the exercise of his gracious affections,—from the enlarged and elevated views which have been imparted to his mind,—from the blessed privileges of which he has been made a partaker,—from the sweetness of that inward peace which passeth all understanding,—from the comfort- able communion which he holds with God, and the new aspect in which every thing within and around, above and before him, appears to one who has been reconciled to his God. He may have enjoyed nature before, and may have looked with rapt admiration on its smiling landscapes, and swelling seas, and peaceful lakes; but a new element of joy mingles with his thoughts, when, looking on all these in the light which religion sheds on them, he can say, “‘ My Father made them all.” He may have delighted in the exercise of his faculties before, and may have felt a conscious elevation when engaged in some lofty study; but.a new element of joy is infused into his spirit, when, raising his thoughts from things terrestrial to: things celestial and divine, he contemplates them in the light which God himself has shed upon them in his Word, and in the delightful assurance, that “ what 206 THE RESULT OF THE he knows not now he shall know hereafter.” And so he enjoys what he never knew before—peace of con- science—even the very peace of God which passeth all understanding,—and the blessedness of him whose iniquity is forgiven, ‘“‘ whom God chooseth and maketh to approach unto him ;” and finds that, “im the very keeping of his commandments, there is a great re- ward,” —that “ wisdom’s ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace.” 6. He is a new creature, because his habzets are totally changed, in so far as they were previously inconsistent with the will of God. He leaves the broad way, and walksin the narrow path. Whatever in his previous course of life was at variance with God’s law, is at once abandoned ; whatever duty he had formerly neglected, whether religious, personal, or relative, he now honestly seeks to discharge. His own willis no longer his guide, but God’s will; by that unerring rule his whole life is regulated : “ Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?” is the lahguage of his heart. If he had previously been intemperate, or dishonest, or profane, or profligate, inattentive to the Word, and sacraments, and prayer—the change which has been wrought on his spirit will appear in his altered habits; and if, as is sometimes the case, he had been always decent in his external deportment, and regular even in his religious observances, although the change will not be so visible to his fellow-men, he will be conscious of it in his own bosom,—inasmuch as he will now be actuated by new motives and will really feel that he is leading a new life ; that what was SPIRITS WORK IN CONVERSION. 207 once form has become power; and that “old things have passed away, and all things have become new.” 7. He is a new creature, because he has now new expectations and hopes. He does not merely desire— he also hopes to obtain the unspeakable things which God has prepared for them that love him. Seeing that life and immortality have been brought to light in the Gospel, and that, besides being certified as in- fallibly true, the way to reach them has been revealed, and a gracious invitation given to betake himself to that way, and a promise of all needful grace vouch- safed, he conceives the possibility of his being admitted to the glory which remaineth to be revealed ; and al- though his hope may for a time be feeble, and often wellnigh extinguished by his remaining corruptions, still it is within him, and if not sufficiently lively to assure, it may be strong enough to sustain him in the posture of waiting patiently for God. This hope is an anchor to his soul, “ both sure and stedfast, entering into that- which is within the vail;” and it is alto- gether anew thing: the unconverted sinner may have no sense of danger in his spirit, and may cherish a false security, but he has no such hope: this 1s one of the fruits of the Spirit, for “ the fruit of the Spirit is hope.” 8. He is a new creature, because he has now a new experience, and especially a new conflict in his soul,— even that same conflict to which the apostle refers in Rom. vii., betwixt the law in his members and the law of his mind. There is a conflict of which an unconverted man may be conscious— 1 mean the 208 THE RESULT OF THE conflict betwixt sin and the conscience; but a new conflict begins when he is born again, and that is a conflict betwixt sin and the will. The difference be- twixt the two consists entirely in the position of the will. In the former, the will is on the side of sin, and both are opposed to the conscience ; in the other, the will is on the side of conscience, and both are opposed to sin. This may be said to be the charac- teristic difference betwixt the converted and the un- converted ;—both are subject to an inward conflict, but the one is willing to side with conscience, the other is willing to side with sin. When the will is made to change its position—when it is brought off from its alliance with sin, and ranges itself on the same side with conscience and God,—the great change is wrought ; there may be, there will be a conflict still; for “there is a law in the members warring against the law of the mind,” and our whole life must be a warfare; and this conflict may be severe, and arduous, and pro- tracted,—insomuch, that often the believer may be ready to exclaim, “ Oh! wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me !”—but the very existence of such a conflict, in which the prevailing bent and disposi- tion of the will is on the side of God and holiness, is a proof that “we have been renewed in the Spirit of our minds,” and that God has begun that good work in us which he will carry on unto perfection. This experience of a spiritual conflict is really one of the new things which belong to the new creature ; and I have thus briefly adverted to it, with the view of obviating an injurious misapprehension which is SPIRITS WORK IN CONVERSION. 209 too apt to be entertained by those who—considering the description which is here given of the new crea- ture, in whom “old things have passed away, and all things have become new,” and contrasting it with their own manifold imperfections and remaining corrup- tions—are ready to question whether it can be appli- cable to them. Now, you will carefully observe, that while it is said that “all things become new,” it is not said that any thing is yet made perfect ; there is‘a great change—a change so great, that it 1s called, and fitly called, “a new creation "—a change in the sin- ner’s state, and views, and affections, and desires, and enjoyments, and habits, and hopes, and experience, such as God only can effect, and such as makes the sinner a2 new man—and to live, as it were, in a new world, and to lead a new life ;—but not only is the new creature like a new-born child, weak and feeble, and destined to grow and gather strength by degrees, it is also surrounded and closely connected with a body of sin and death; nay, sin still dwells, al- though it no longer reigns, in the believer's heart: it is there, not now as a tyrant, but as a traitor,—not as a sovereign, but a watchful spy; and he is called. to watch against it, and to pray against it, and to fight against it, until the Lord shall release him from his warfare, by calling him to his everlasting reward. The most serious question that any man can put to himself is, Am I in Christ ? To be in Christ, 1s to be safe in life and death, in time and in eternity ; to be out of Christ, is to stand exposed every hour to 910 THE RESULT OF THE the most appalling danger ;—to be in Christ, is to be in a “ hiding-place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest ;” to be out of Christ, is to stand de- fenceless before that storm which will, ere long, burst forth to consume his adversaries, and to sweep away every refuge of lies ;—to be in Christ, is to be recon- ciled to God, pardoned and accepted ; to be out of Christ, is to be at enmity with God, guilty and con- demned ;—to be in Christ, is to be adopted into God’s family, as children, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God, and joint heirs with Jesus Christ ; to be out of Christ, is to be aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise— without Christ, and therefore without God, and with- out hope in the world ;—to be in Christ, is to bea new creature, renewed, sanctified, and made meet for glory ; to be out of Christ, is to be dead in trespasses and sins, polluted in our own blood ;—to be in Christ, is to be prepared for death, and judgment, and eter- nity ; to be out of Christ, is to have nothing but a certain fearful looking for of judgment, and fiery indignation. Would you come to a safe decision as to your pre- sent state, so as to be able to answer the question, Am I in Christ or no?—permit me to suggest another question,— Are you a new creature? “If any man be in Christ,” says the apostle, “ he is a new crea- ture ;° he is converted and changed, “ so that old things pass away, and all things become new.” It is by faith that we are united to Christ ; and wherever that faith exists, it works,—it works by love, and thereby pro- SPIRITS WORK IN CONVERSION. ay duces the peaceable fruits of righteousness. The par- ticulars which have been illustrated may materially aid you in arriving at a safe and satisfactory answer to this inquiry, if, in the exercise of serious self-exa- mination, and with fervent prayer for the guidance of the Spirit, you apply them closely, each to his own soul. Are you conscious of having undergone any such change as has been described,—any change in your views,—any change in the object of your affec- tions, —any change in the prevailing bent of your desires, — any change in the sources of your most cherished enjoyments,—any change in your outward habits, or in your inward experience, such as corres- ponds with the account given in Scripture of the “new creation,” or “ the second birth?” In prose- cuting this momentous inquiry, permit me to cau- tion you against the danger of either requiring more, or being satisfied with less, than the Bible declares to be implied in this great change. Nothing short of a new birth—a radical heart change—will suffice ; for “ except a man be born again, and born of the Spirit, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” This should be a solemn thought to the careless, and to mere nominal Christians,—to those who are at ease in Zion, having a name to live, while they are dead. 212 THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. CHAPTER VIII. THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. Ir is a doctrine of the Confession of Faith, that “ elect infants, dying in infancy, are regenerated and saved | by Christ through the Spirit, who worketh when, and where, and how he pleaseth ;” and again, “ That bap- tism is a sacrament of the New Testament, ordained by Jesus Christ, not only for the solemn admission of the party baptized into the visible Church, but also to be unto him a sign and seal of the covenant of grace, of his ingrafting into Christ, of regeneration, of re- mission of sins, and of his giving up unto God through Jesus Christ, to walk in newness of life ;” that “ not only those that do actually profess faith in, and obe- dience unto Christ, but also the infants of one or both believing parents are to be baptized ;” that “ although it be a great sin to contemn or neglect this ordinance, yet grace and salvation are not so inseparably annexed unto it, as that no person can be regenerated or saved without it, or that all that are baptized are undoubtedly regenerated ;” and that “ the efficacy of baptism is not tied to that moment of time wherein it is adminis- THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. 213 7 tered ; yet notwithstanding, by the right use of this ordinance, the grace promised is not only offered, but really exhibited and conferred by the Holy Ghost to such (whether of age or infants) as that grace belong- eth unto, according to the counsel of God’s own will, in his appointed time.” And in the Articles of the Church of England, we read, “ Baptism is not only a sign of profession, and mark of difference, whereby Christian men are discerned from others that be not christened ; but it is also a sign of regeneration or new birth, whereby, as by an instrument, they that receive baptism rightly are grafted into the Church, the pro- mises of forgiveness of sin, and of our adoption to be the sons of God by the Holy Ghost, are visibly signed and sealed, faith is confirmed, and grace increased by virtue of prayer unto God.” And “the baptism of young children is in any wise to be retained in the Church, as most agreeable with the institution of Christ.” Such is the doctrine of the Churches of England and Scotland, and indeed of the Reformed Churches generally,* on the subject of regeneration in the case of infants. The importance of the subject is apparent at once, when we reflect that one-half of all the chil- dren that are born into the world die in early life, and before they have reached the full standing of members in the Christian Church. No reflecting mind can contemplate this fact without being prompted to in- quire, whether any, and what provision has been made for the spiritual life and eternal welfare of these #* See the Helvetic, Belgic, and French Confessions. 914 THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. children, and without being impressed with the vast interests which that question involves. And its im- portance is not diminished, but rather enhanced, by the errors, both doctrinal and practical, which prevail to a lamentable extent on this subject at the present day. It is evident, that if any provision has been made for the spiritual welfare of infants, and if that provi- sion be included in the covenant of grace, they must be dealt with substantially on the same principles which are applicable to other sinners, and yet there is a peculiarity in the case which renders it worthy of distinct consideration. Let us review the points both of resemblance and of diversity betwixt thetwo. They resemble each other, in that children as well as adults are fallen, guilty, and depraved. This is expressly declared by our Lord, when he affirms, “ That which is born of the flesh is flesh ;” by David, when he con- fesses, “I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me ;” by Paul also, when he says, “ By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.”——“ Death reigned even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression ;” and it is significantly implied in the ordinances of circumcision and baptism, for why were children circumcised on the eighth day, in token of their spiritual separation from the corrupt mass, if they needed no separation? and why are children baptized, in token of their spiritual cleansing, if they be not naturally defiled ? If children resemble adults in THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. 919 respect of that natural corruption, from which, as a polluted fountain, all actual sin proceeds, then are they also placed in such a relation to God, and so subjected to his curse, as to stand in need of salvation. — Another point of resemblance betwixt the two cases consists in the oneness of the salvation, which is com- mon to both; they must be saved substantially in the same way, there being one only method of salvation for all sinners ; they must be saved according to the terms of the covenant of grace—through the redemp- tion of Christ, and the regeneration of the Holy Ghost. It is equally true of young and old, that “there is no other name given under heaven whereby they can be saved, but the name of Jesus;” and “that except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” This also is expressly declared in the doctrine of Scripture, and is significantly intimated in the ordi- nances of the Church ; for when a child is baptized, it is “ baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost,’—it is baptized into* the name of each person in the Godhead, and not simply as they are distinct subsistences in the undi- vided Trinity, but as they are officially concerned in the recovery of lost souls; in other words, it is bap- tized into the name of “ God in Christ,” the Father, the Saviour, the Sanctifier. And thus is significantly represented to us the identity of that salvation which is common to the infant and the adult members of his spixitual Church. But, on the other hand, there is a marked peculi- * us 70 ovouea, not “in nomine,”’ as in the Vulgate. af %, my ) 216 THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. arity in the case of infants, and a difference betwixt their case and that of adults, which cannot be over- looked. For not only is there, in the case of infants, no actual sin, such as has been contracted by every one who has reached the age of distinct personal re- sponsibility, but there is at first no capacity of thought or understanding, such as could render them fit sub- jects for the operation of that truth which is, in the case of adults, the instrument by which the Spirit of God carries on his work in the heart; and hence some, supposing the Spirit’s grace to be inseparably connected with the belief of the truth, have been led to question whether infants be capable of regeneration at all; while others have been content to leave them to God’s general mercy, perhaps with an unayowed, and it may be, an unconscious feeling, that it would be unjust in him to cast them off. But this is no proper subject for indifference: it involves the question of their salvation ; for if saved at all, they must be born again ; and unless they be capable of the Spirit’s grace, they are incapable of the Gospel salvation. And see- ing that they are not yet capable of forming a correct apprehension of the truth, nor of being enlightened and sanctified by its instrumentality, as adults are, it becomes us to inquire with reverence indeed, and deep humility, but still with that ardent and tender inte- rest which natural affection itself might prompt,— whether they be, in any sense, capable of the Spirit's grace, and admissible into the kingdom of God ? 1. That children, however young, even infants in their mother’s arms, are fit and capable subjects of es THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. 217 divine grace, may be evinced by various considera- tions. Several of these considerations afford a pre- sumption in favour of the expectation, that some pro- vision would be made in the scheme of grace on their behalf; while others of them afford a positive proof. that such a provision exists, and is available for their benefit. The presumptive proofs are such as these. When we examine the constitution of the human race, we find that it differs materially from that of the angelic race, of whom it is written, “that they neither marry, nor are given in marriage,’—each of these being created distinctly, and standing on his own personal and inde- pendent responsibility from first to last ;—-whereas, in the case of men, the family institute has been adopted, in virtue of which every human being comes into the world closely connected with others, — liable to be affected for good or evil by the influence of their opi- nions and habits,—and left, during the years of in- fancy, as in trust, in their hands. He is not, in the first instance, independent, nor able to think or to act for himself, but grows up gradually into a state of personal responsibility. Now, to this, which is the actual constitution of human nature, the scheme of revealed truth adapts itself. It reveals God not merely as the God of individuals, but as the “ God of families,"-—“ the God of ages and generations,’— and, in all his dealings with men, having respect to the hereditary constitution which he has given to the human race,—“ visiting the iniquities of the fathers upon the children, unto the third and fourth genera- P ~ 218 THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. tion of them that hate him, and showing mercy unto thousands of them that love him, and keep his com- mandments.” Distinct from this family institute, yet admirably adapted to it,—as the scheme of revelation is in all other respects to the constitution and course of nature,—is the federal system, by which men are placed under Adam as the head of the legal, and, un- der Christ, as the head of the evangelical dispensation ; so that, as from the one they inherit the fruits of re- volt, from the other they receive the fruits of redemp- tion. Now, as God has constituted two distinct heads __the first and the second Adam ;—and as, in fact, children are found to be included along with their parents in the one, and share, in consequence, in the ruinous effects of the fall,—a strong presumption arises hence, that children may be included also along with their parents in the other, and so included as to share in the blessed effects of the redemption. And as to their being incapable, at their tender years, and while their minds are yet immature, of any participation of the divine nature which is imparted by the Spirit,— surely it cannot be thought that they are less capable of this than they were of being infected by the virus of original sin. These are presumptions, I admit, and nothing more ; but they may have their use in clearing away those unfounded and injurious prejudices with which too many come to the study of the question, and in pre- paring them for giving to it a dispassionate and im- partial consideration. And if they be sufficient for this end, they serve the chief purpose for which they THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. 219 are adduced, while the positive proof on the subject will be found to afford ample evidence for affirming, that in the actual scheme of grace, provision has been made for the case of infants, and that they are fit and capable subjects of the Gospel salvation. That proof consists chiefly, (1.) in express doctrinal statements on the subject; (2.) in recorded instances of sanctified infancy ; (3.) in the analogy of the typi- cal dispensation ; and, (4.) in the ordinance of baptism, as applicable to infants in the Christian Church. Of the express doctrinal statements on this sub- ject, I shall only select one, which being accompanied with a most significant action, performed by Christ himself on little children, appears to me to be suffi- cient of itself to determine—not the question of infant baptism, but the prior and more important question of their interest in the kingdom of God. We read (Luke xviii. 15), that “they brought unto him also infants, that he would touch them,” or, as it is in the parallel passage of another Gospel, “that he would put his hands on them and pray ;” but when his dis- ciples saw it, they rebuked them. But Jesus called them (the infants *), and said, “ Suffer little chil- dren to come unto me, and forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom of heaven.” It is added (Mark x. 16), “And he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them.” Now, be it remembered, that these words were uttered, and this act was done, not as a mere expression of personal tenderness, such as every benevolent mind must feel * Bot@n—auru, 220 THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. towards these helpless, and just because they are help- less, these most interesting children: the words were uttered, and the act was done, by Him in his official character as Redeemer, and in the exercise of his pub- lic ministry as the Prophet of the Church; and while the former declare that of'swch—of such in point of age as well as of disposition—is the kingdom of God,— that is, his own Church, whether on earth or in heaven, is in a great measure composed; the latter—I mean his act when he put his hands on them, and blessed them—implies that they are the objects of a Saviour’s love, and capable of receiving a Saviour’s blessing ; nay, that they are fit subjects of the Spirit’s grace, for the imposition or the laying on of hands was the usual sign by which the communication of the Spirit was shadowed forth. And can we doubt, then, that infants, however young, who are fallen in Adam, may be saved by Christ? How his blessing operated we know not; but is there any parent whose mind is so sceptical, or his heart so cold, as to imagine that the putting on of the Saviour’s hands, and the pronounc- ing of that blessing on these little children, could have no efficacy, or that it was an idle ceremony—a mere empty form ? Of the recorded instances of infants who were the subjects of the Spirit’s grace, I might mention, first of all, “the Holy Child ”—the infant Jesus himself, whose body was prepared, and his human soul filled with the Holy Ghost, so as to be wholly “without sin ;” but as this is a peculiar and unparalleled in- stance, seeing that he descended not from Adam by THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. 22 ordinary generation, but was conceived of a virgin by the power of the Holy Ghost, I shall not dwell upon it here, although it is fraught with profound instruc- tion to all;* but shall select the case of his illustrious forerunner, of whom it was predicted by the angel, that “he should be filled with the Holy Ghost even from his mother’s womb ;” and the case of Jeremiah under the Old Testament, of whom it is written, ‘“‘ Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee, and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sancti- fied thee; and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.” The analogy of the typical dispensation affords another proof. The ordinance of circumcision, which was given to Abraham, and continued under Moses and the prophets, was in itself, considered as a sac- rament of that dispensation of the scheme of grace, an evidence that the children of believers had then an interest in God’s covenant; for it was appoint- ed to be observed on the eighth day, and it was to Abraham and his seed a “seal of the righteousness which is of faith.” But when that dispensation is regarded in its typical aspect—as designed to pre- figure or foreshadow the better things which were still in reserve for the Church under “the ministration of the Spirit,” the argument is so strong as to be alto- gether irresistible in favour of the interest of infants in the scheme of grace and redemption. And finally, the proof is completed by the ordinance of baptism in the Christian Church, if that ordinance * See Owen’s “ Work of the Spirit on the Person of Christ.” 222 THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. be applicable to children,—I say, if it be applicable to children; for there are some who deny that it ought to be administered to them, and to such the argument derived from the rite of baptism, in favour of the interest of children in the provisions and pro- mises of the covenant of grace, will appear to have no force or validity, until it is first proved that the ordi- nance was intended for them. On the proof of this it is not my present purpose to enter; * we can forego the use of this proof when speaking to those who object on this ground, seeing that the interest of in- fants in the covenant of grace is established on other and independent considerations ; and instead of argu- ing from the institution of baptism to the interest of children in the covenant, I would rather argue from the latter to the former; and seek to impress their minds, in the first instance, with the precious truth, that infants have an interest in the covenant, and that they are fit and capable subjects of divine grace ; whence it would naturally follow, that they are capable also of receiving the sign and seal, and ought to receive it, if there be the slightest reason to believe that they have not been excluded by Divine authority from all participation in that holy ordinance. On these grounds, I think it must be evident that infant children are fit and capable subjects of divine grace, and that they are included in the covenant of redemption. It may be difficult for us to understand in what way the Spirit of God operates on their minds, * See Dr Wardlaw on Infant Baptism for the Scriptural argument, and Wall's History for the Historical. THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. 923 or through what medium they obtain a participation of the blessings of salvation, which are said to be “ by faith.” The regeneration of infants may be ascribed to a direct operation of the Spirit on their minds, and in this respect may be said to resemble what is sup- posed by some to be in every case the primary influ- ence of the Spirit, under which the soul is passive, and by which, without the intervention of any instru- mentality, he effects a permanent change, “ predispos- ing it to receive, and love, and obey the truth.* By this direct operation he may implant that principle of grace which is the germ of the new creature,—that incorruptible seed, which may lie long under the fur- row, but will sooner or later spring up, and produce the peaceable fruits of righteousness. Our older di- vines were wont to distinguish between the principle or habit of grace, and the exercise of grace ;f and to maintain, that the principle might exist in children who were as yet incapable of the exercise, and that grace in such was real and saving. { It may be generally connected, too, with the faith of the parent, in whom, during the period of nonage, the infant 1s federally included. § But it is sufficient to say, in the language of the Westminster Confession, that “they are regenerated and saved by Christ through the Spirit, who worketh when, and where, and how he pleaseth,’—for “the wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou canst not tell whence it cometh, nor whither * Lectures by Dr Payne of Exeter, 338, 357. + Dr Owen, ii. 283, 482, 492. £ Ibid. ii. 413. § Homilies on Baptism, by Rev. Edward Irving, 346, 349. 224 THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.” And to him who objects to the regeneration of infants, on the ground of its mysteriousness, may we not say, that the natural birth of a child is full of mystery : “I am fearfully .and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works, and that my soul knoweth right well. My substance was not hid from thee when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being imperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them ;’—and in the preacher's words,—“ As thou knowest not what is the way of the Spirit, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child, even so thou knowest not the works of God who maketh all.” But there is another explanation of the subject which has obtained extensive currency—I refer to the doctrine of BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. If baptism be designed, as we have no doubt it is, for the benefit of infant children, it has appeared to many that this precious ordinance affords the readiest explanation of the means by which the Spirit of grace executes his gracious work, by imparting to them the germ of a new spiritual life, and engrafting them into the Church of Christ. On no subject is it more necessary to speak with caution, and to think with accuracy, especially in the present day, when the most opposite errors are current respecting it ;—some representing baptism as a mere ceremony, a naked sign, or an empty form ; while others are strenuously contending, that in‘eyery THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. 225 ease in which it is administered, it necessarily implies regeneration, and that no other regeneration is to be looked for. The language of the Westminster Con- fession is equally opposed to each of these pernicious errors; and, while it unfolds the spiritual import of baptism in all its fulness, by the use of scriptural terms, which may almost seem at first sight to imply all that the advocates for baptismal regeneration con. tend for, it singles out with the strictest discrimina- tion, and condemns with the utmost explicitness, the groundless opinions which have been mixed up with that doctrine, so as at once to confirm the truth and to correct the error. Let us briefly unfold the doctrine of the Confession on this subject. 1. It proceeds on the supposition that children are fit and capable subjects of divine grace, and that they have an interest in the covenant prior to their baptism. They do not acquire an interest in the covenant by being baptized ; they are baptized because they have an interest in the covenant. This distinction is of great practical value in many points of view: it utter- ly subverts the doctrine, that none are regenerated. who have not been baptized, and thus serves to com- fort the heart of many a bereaved parent, whose child may have died before that sacred rite could be admi- nistered, and enables us to say with the utmost free- dom, that while we contend for infant baptism, we are under no necessity of unchristianizing the children of our Baptist brethren, who from conscientious con- viction refrain from the use of that ordinance. It will 226 THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. be found also to throw considerable light on the pro- per nature and use of baptism itself.—Now, that an interest in the covenant of grace Is presupposed in baptism, must be evident to every one who inquires into the ground of his warrant to apply for that ordi- nance on behalf of his children, as yet unbaptized. Abraham had first an interest in the covenant, and then circumcision was added as a sign and seal of his interest in it; for it was “the seal of the righteousness of faith which he had, being yet uncircumcised ;” and so, in like manner, the children of believing parents have an interest in the covenant, and they receive baptism as the sign and seal of that interest which they had, being yet unbaptized.”* Their prior inte- rest in the covenant lies in the terms of the promise— “the promise which is unto us and to our children,” —T will be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee,’—and depends on the relation in which they stand to believing parents; for if either father or mother be a believer, the children are recognised as having a title to baptism, and that, too, by virtue of their having an interest in the covenant, according to the expressive words of the apostle (1 Cor. vii. 14): “For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband ; else were your children unclean, but now are they holy.” For “if the root be holy, so are the branches.” (Rom. xi. 16.) 2. The children of believing parents, haying a prior * Mr Molesworth, a zealous advocate of baptismal regeneration, objects to this application of the analogy, Sermons, p. 422. THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. yay interest in the covenant, receive baptism as a sign and seal of their engrafting into Christ—of regenera- tion—of remission of sin—and of their engagement to be the Lord’s. That all this is included in that sacred ordinance will be evident, if we simply read over those passages of Scripture which have an express bearing on the doctrine of baptism. ‘ Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.” (Rom. vi. 3.) “In the days of Noah, eight souls were saved by water. The like figure whereunto even bap- tism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good con- science toward God).” (1 Pet. iii. 20, 21.) “ By one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free ; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.” (1 Cor. xii. 13). “ In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.” (Col. 11. 11, 12.) “ Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as 228 THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. many as the Lord our God shall call.” (Acts ii. 38, 39.) These passages are sufficient to show that there is a profound significancy in baptism ; and that it is neither a naked sign, nor an empty form, but a true sacrament, and real channel of grace. And, in inter- preting this symbolical institution, we are free to pre- sent it in all the fulness of its meaning to the faith of the Church, and to show what efficacy is in it when it is made effectual. But you will observe that the apostles, when they used these expressions, were speaking of baptized men—who had been admitted into the Church on the profession of their faith in Christ—and that they thus spoke of the efficacy of their baptism on the supposition that their profession had been sincere, and that their faith was real. In such a case, there can be no doubt that baptism was both a sign and a seal of saving grace,—any more than that, if such persons had died after their conversion, and before their baptism, they would have entered into glory,—like the poor unbaptized malefactor on the cross. But having been spared to receive that exter- nal sign and seal of the covenant, the apostle refers to it as the token and pledge of their salvation. And so had he spoken of the children of these same men ; but still, on the supposition that the parents were true believers, he would have used the same language in regard to them, seeing that the children are included with, or rather in, their parents, in the provisions and promises of the covenant, and had an interest in it, being yet unbaptized. Viewed in this light, the ordinance of baptism is THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. 229 fraught with the richest instruction and encourage- ment. It embodies all the fundamental principles of the Gospel, and exhibits every truth that is necessary to salvation. In baptism, the name of each person in the Trinity is pronounced over us, not merely to mark the distinction of these Persons, but to intimate their harmonious co-operation in the scheme of grace, and the official relation in which they stand to us in the covenant of redemption. We are baptized into the name of each,—into the name of the Father, as our Father,—into the name of the Son, as our Saviour,— into the name of the Holy Ghost, as our Sanctifier ; we are washed, and thereby declared to be naturally unclean ; we are washed with water, as a sign of the blood of Christ, which cleanseth away the guilt of sin, and as a sign also of “ the washing of regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Ghost;” and thereby we are taught at once the possibility of God’s entering into covenant with an unclean thing, and the means by which its uncleanness may be taken away. And when a child is thus baptized on the strength of a parent's faith, we see the federal principle which per- vades the scheme of grace as well as the covenant of works,—and the parent is impressively reminded of his responsibility, as being answerable to God for his child, at least during its infancy or nonage. Whether, therefore, we consider baptism as a sign of grace, or as a seal of the covenant,—or as a visible witness for the truth,—or as an intelligible symbol of spiritual blessings,—it is fraught with profound instruction ; and not less fraught with encouragement to faith, since 230 THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. it is a true sign, arid a real seal, and ought to be re- garded by every parent as a pledge of his child’s in- terest in the covenant of grace, and as a motive and stimulus to hope, and pray, and labour, for its ever- lasting salvation. In what respects does this view of the nature and efficacy of baptism differ from the doctrine of bap- tismal regeneration, as it is taught so generally in modern times? It may seem, at first sight, to differ from it chiefly in two respects. The latter doctrine is understood to mean, that every one is regenerated who is regularly baptized, and that no one is rege- nerated who is not baptized. The Westminster Con- fession, while it unfolds the doctrine of baptism in all its fulness, carefully guards against these inferences from it; and declares, “ that although it be a great sin to contemn or neglect this ordinance, yet grace and salvation are not so inseparably annexed to it, as that no person can be regenerated or saved with- out it, or that all that are baptized are undoubtedly regenerated.” But I apprehend that there is a far more important difference betwixt the two systems of doctrine: the one represents regeneration as an in- ward spiritual change, wrought in the mind and heart by the power of the Spirit of God; while the other speaks of it as a mere external or relative change, which has no necessary and no uniform connection with any degree of spiritual renovation.* The latter *“ Tf regeneration takes place in baptism, it cannot, upon principles of common sense, be an entire change of mind: if it is an entire change of mind—a radical change of heart and soul—upon principles of common THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. 251 system speaks of every baptized person as regenerated, while it admits that many of them may be, and are unrenewed. Did the question relate only to the right use of a term, or to a distinction betwixt one term and another, it might be of little consequence in most cases, though not in this, where the sense attached to regeneration would go far to nullify the import of many precious texts of Scripture ;* but the evil is - greatly increased when, having attached this meaning to the term, it is contended that no other regeneration is to be looked or hoped for; + and that all are alike regenerated, whether elect or non-elect, and whether, ultimately, they be saved or lost. Considered in this light, our divines have generally opposed the doctrine of baptismal regeneration. ‘‘ Regeneration does not consist,” says Owen, “ in a participation of the ordi- nance of baptism, and a profession of the doctrine of repentance. This is all that some will allow unto it, to the utter rejection and overthrow of the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. For the dispute in this matter is not—whether the ordinances of the Gospel, as baptism, do really communicate internal grace unto them that are, as to the outward manner of their administration, sense and experience, it cannot take place in baptism.’’— Bishop Betheit on Regeneration in Baptism, xiii. The same writer refers to Bishop Mant, Waterland, Wall, and others, as founding on the distinction betwixt regeneration and conversion, or spiritual renewal, andillustrates the distinction by the case of Paul, ‘‘ who, though converted, was not regenerate, till he had washed away his sins in baptism !”’ * See Taylor’s Key to the Romans. + Mr Molesworth says, ‘‘ The only subsequent regeneration is the rege- neration of the corruptible to the incorruptible in the resurrection to life eternal !’’—P. 110. 232 THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. duly made partakers of them,—whether ea opere ope- rato, as the Papists speak, or as the federal means of the conveyance and communication of that grace which they betoken, and are the pledges of ; but—whether the outward susception of the ordinance, joined with a profession of repentance in them that are adult, be not the whole of what is called regeneration ?—The vanity of this presumptuous folly,—destructive of all the grace of the Gospel,—invented to countenance men in their sins,—and to hide from them the neces- sity of being born again, and therein of living unto God,—will be laid open in our declaration of the work itself.”** “ The error of baptismal regeneration,” says Irving, whose ideas of the spiritual import of baptism were sufficiently high, “consisteth not in holding that the true children of God are regenerated at their bap- _tism, and from thence should date their admission into the household of faith—which, with all my orthodox fathers in the Church, I hold to be the only true doctrine,—but in holding, that every person who is baptized doth virtually thereby become regenerate, and possessed with the Holy Spirit ; or, to speak the language of theologians, that the inward grace 1s so connected with, or bound to, the outward ordinance, that whosoever receiveth the one doth necessarily be- come partaker of the other. This is an error of the most hideous kind,—bringing in justification by works, or rather by ceremonies,—destroying the election of the Father, the salvation of the Son, and the sanctifi- cation of the Holy Ghost,—and exalting the priest * Owen’s Works, ii. 247; see also p. 513. THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. 236 and the ceremony into the place of the Trinity.”* And the judicious Scott sums up the received doctrine in these five propositions: “1. Baptism is truly the sacra- mental sign and seal of regeneration, as circumcision was under the old Testament, and not regeneration itself, nor inseparably connected with it. 2. Adults, sincerely professing repentance and faith, are already regenerate, and, in baptism, receive the sign and seal of the righteousness of faith which they had, yet being unbaptized. 3. The event, as to each baptized infant, must determine whether it was, or was not, regene- rated in baptism. 4. Baptism is not universally and indispensably necessary to salvation ; but regenera- tion is. 5. Ungodly and wicked persons, who have been baptized, need regeneration,—even as all wicked Israelites needed the circumcision of the heart,—and the Jews, in our Lord’s days, needed regeneration.” T But while we guard against extreme opinions on the one hand, it is equally necessary to guard against extreme opinions on the other ; and there is reason to fear, that if, by some, the efficacy of baptism is unduly magnified, it is by many more unduly depreciated, or altogether disbelieved. We have seen that children are fit and capable subjects of the Spirit's grace, and that the ordinance of baptism is a sign and seal of “ engrafting into Christ.” In the case of an adult, where there is no faith, it is devoid of efficacy ; and in the case of a child, where there is no faith on the * E, Irving’s Homilies on Baptism, 387. + Rev. Thomas Scott’s Remarks on Bishop Tomline’s Refutation of Calvinism. Q 234 THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. part of the parent, through whom alone the child has a claim to this ordinance, it may be equally ineffectual ; but this hinders not, that in either instance, it may be a real channel, as well as a visible symbol of grace, where faith is exercised in the covenant promise. And I cannot help thinking, that the administration of baptism to an infant child is fraught with rich encouragement to the parent, and with profound in- struction to the child himself when he arrives at a riper age ; for in baptism there is, as it were, a visible application made to that child individually of the sign and seal of all the grace which the covenant contains, —such an application as gives a special and personal direction to all the invitations, and calls, and promises of the Gospel ; and is alike fitted to nourish the faith and hope of the parent, and to call forth, at a later period, the grateful acknowledgments of his offspring, or to impress them with a very solemn sense of the responsibility under which they lie. And although I cannot agree with those who seem to argue that there would be no ground for Christian education, unless regeneration were included in baptism ;* yet it seems very clear, that education may be stimulated, and conducted, too, on a better principle, by reason of the truths which baptism unquestionably implies. The parent knowing that, on the ground of his faith, his * “ Christian Morals,” by the Rev. Wm. Sewell, Professor of Moral Philosophy at Oxford. This book proceeds on the assumption of baptis- mal regeneration, and represents that doctrine as the groundwork of Christian Ethics. With much that is objectionable, it presents some fine views of the improvement which should be made of baptism, and of the connection, too often overlooked, betwixt Christianity and Education. + THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. 236 children are declared to be “ holy,” and as such, have been admitted to the privilege of baptism, should feel that he is thereby encouraged to regard them as fit and capable subjects of the Spirit’s grace, and as having such an interest in all the privileges and promises of that covenant as affords ample warrant for the exercise of faith, and hope, and prayer ; and the children, as they grow up, should be frequently reminded that they were dedicated to God,—that they were baptized into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost,—and that they received baptism as a pri- vilege for which they must give in an account. And when, at any time, in after-life, they have any doubt as to their interest in the covenant, they may look back to the personal application of the seal of the covenant to themselves individually, while as yet they were unconscious infants, and draw from it a precious assurance of the perfect freeness of the Gospel. To believing parents, again, who have lost their children in infancy, the truths which have been illustrated are fitted to impart a consolation such as the world can neither give nor take away.” We have purposely reserved the case of infants for distinct consideration. To some it may appear, that it would have been a more natural course to consider the effect of baptism in the first instance, and there- after to develope the course of the Spirit’s operation, when children grow up to a capacity for knowing and. believing the truth. But as the work of the Spirit 1s * Dr Russell on the ‘* Salvation of Children Dying in Infancy.” ~ «AK 236 THE REGENERATION OF INFANTS. spoken of in Scripture chiefly with reference to adult persons, and as in their case only can we trace it in its visible manifestations and actual fruits, we have drawn our illustrations from their experience. And it deserves to be remarked, that even those who hold the highest views of baptismal regeneration, should not, on that account, object to a detailed illustration of His subsequent operations on the mind and heart, since they admit, that whatever grace may be imparted at baptism, there must be an internal and spiritual change of mind and heart—a change wrought by the agency of the Spirit, and the instrumentality of the truth in riper years, before any man can enter the kingdom of God. y —_ a ye L ie (‘io ea mead old 7 ‘ mae ee one ty ee oe) IPS aca ; i iy ' 1 F " ca Paes ui \ mp *, Y ‘ \ ’ a 4 * , * j é ’ ‘ r] : Os PART IL. | he ILLUSTRATIVE CASES) 10)? ae ‘ MF iy r [Los 13 t x CP eas i A Lf H 5 ¥ he! : fs eae rye ¥ 1h Atay uN UP. J gard r » * = ~. As- - ve —_ i au CHAPTER I, THE PHILIPPIAN GAOLER. Acts xvi. 19-34. Tue nature of a sinner’s conversion to God is illus- trated in Scripture in various ways. Sometimes in the way of doctrinal statement, as when it is represented. in general terms as a change of mind and_ heart, wrought by the Spirit of God applying the truths of his Word, whereby the sinner is led to turn from sin unto God ;—sometimes by the use of figurative or metaphorical expressions, descriptive of the various aspects in which it may be viewed,—as when it is denominated a resurrection, a new birth, an enlighten- ing, a transformation, a renewing, a cleansing, & cure, an awakening of the soul ;—sometimes by the help of parables, or stories derived from ordinary life, and. employed to illustrate spiritual truth,—as when the apostasy, and ruin, and wretchedness of the natural man, and the commencement, progress, and consum- mation of his conversion, are represented in the history of the Prodigal Son ;—and, lastly, by the account of many instances of genuine conversion which the Spirit of God has recorded in the Word, and which 240 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. afford a practical illustration of the truth, such as is admirably fitted at once to awaken our interest in it, to impart a clear idea of its nature, and to impress our minds with a sense of its reality, as matter of personal experience. I propose to consider some of these scriptural cases of conversion—such as that of the Philippian Gaoler, the Ethiopian Treasurer, Cornelius the Roman Cen- turion, Saul the Persecutor, Lydia of Thyatira, the Malefactor on the Cross, and the three thousand on the day of Pentecost,—viewing them as so many illus- trative specimens of that great change which must be wrought on ourselves individually, if we would enter into the kingdom of God. And I do the rather prefer such cases of conversion as are to be found in Scripture, before all others that have been reported in the diaries of private Christians, or the more recent history of the Church,*—because, being recorded by the Spirit of God, they are of standard authority, and exhibit the truth without any admixture®*of error or enthusiasm, but in connection with the personal history and actual experience of individuals of various views, and disposi- tions, and habits; so as to enable us at once to discover, by a simple comparison, what was common to all, and what is essential in every case of conyersion, and to separate from each the mere circumstantial accompani- ments. And, in reviewing these cases, I trust we shall be impressed with a solemn sense of the greatness of * Dr Owen selects the case of Augustine. In 1833 the Rey. J. K. Craig, Oxon, published a work in 2 vols. on Conversion, in a Series of all the Cases recorded in the New Testament, Defective, Doubtful, Real; intended as a help to self-examination, THE PHILIPPIAN GAOLER. 941 conversion, when we reflect that God himself has not deemed it unworthy of His own infinite mind to mark and to record, in his Word, the commencement, and progress, and completion of this change in the bosoms of individual men and women; the mere fact that such cases are recorded being a sufficient proof at once that God regards the conversion of a soul with pro- found interest,—and that, as “ there is joy in heaven among the angels of God when one sinner repenteth,” so the Holy Spirit is near him, watching his progress, aiding his efforts, and rejoicing in his success. The first case which I select is that of the Philippian Gaoler, which affords an interesting and instructive example of real conversion to God. And in illustrating the words in which it is recorded, I shall—1s¢, Consider what is said of the state of his mind before his conver- sion; 2d, The circumstances which accompanied, and the means which effected this great change; and, 3d, The true nature of it, or wherein it properly consisted, and the practical results which followed it. 1. In respect to the state of his mind before the time of his conversion, you will observe, on a careful review of the narrative, that there are two distinct descriptions of it,—or rather he was successively in two different states of mind—first, as a careless sinner, and then as a convinced sinner, before he became a converted man. It is evident, that down to the time when the earth- quake occurred, he had been a careless, unregenerate, worldly man. This appears, not so much from his haying imprisoned the apostles, and made their feet 242 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. fast in the stocks—for that might be thought to be his duty in the subordinate situation which he filled ; and the guilt of persecution properly rested on the people who accused, and the magistrates who condemned them,—of whom it is said, that (ver. 19) when the masters of the damsel, who had been possessed with a spirit of divination, and who had been miracu- lously cured—when they “ saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas, and drew them in to the market-place unto the rulers, and brought them to the magistrates, saying, These men being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city, and teach customs which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans. And the multitude rose up together against them; and the magistrates rent off their clothes, and commanded to beat them. And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the gaoler to keep them safely: who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.” The guilt of this persecution rested mainly on the magistrates and the multitude, and the gaoler was no farther responsible for it than as he was their agent in carrying it on; but that he was a care- less sinner, appears with conclusive evidence from his conduct Mervwrards, when (ver. 26) “suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one’s bands were loosed. And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison-doors open, he drew out his sword, THE PHILIPPIAN GAOLER. 243 and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled.” We have here a lively deli- neation of a worldly, careless, godless man distracted and driven to desperation by a sudden and unexpected temporal calamity. He supposed that his prisoners had escaped, and that he would be called to account by his earthly superiors, and condemned to forfeit. the situation which he held ; and immediately, under the. influence of “ that sorrow of the world which work- eth death,” “he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself.” The thought of suicide was an indi- cation of utter practical atheism ; for it showed that he had no fear of God—since he was more afraid of “them that could kill the body, than of Him that could cast both soul and body into hell ;” that he had no care for his soul—since he was ready to peril its salyation, merely because he apprehended the loss of his situation on earth; and that he had no concern, or rather was utterly reckless about eternity—since to escape from the misery of the present hour, he was about to rush, unprepared and unsummoned, into the presence of his Judge. The idea of suicide is one that could not have occurred to any man, however severe the trials, and however heavy the disappomt- ments which he was called to endure, unless he were utterly ignorant or careless in regard alike to God and his own everlasting prospects ; and from the fact, that <¢ he drew out his sword, and would have killed him- self,” we infer, that down to the time when the earth- quake occurred he was a mere worldling,—an indif- ferent, careless, and unawakened sinner. 244 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. But a change was wrought on his state of mind éefore his conversion, and which was only preparatory to that still greater change: from being a careless, he became a convinced sinner. This preliminary change consisted in strong convictions of conscience, and lively apprehensions of danger; and_ these, although sud- denly produced, were alike sincere and profound, in- somuch that it is said (ver. 29), “ he called fora light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, and brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” Here isa great change,—a change from total apathy to real con- cern,—from utter recklessness to sincere and anxious inquiry. He appears to have been suddenly seized with an agonizing sense of his guilt and danger ; and there is an affecting contrast betwixt his present con- victions and his former carelessness ; for the same danger existed then as now: his sins were as many and great,—God was as just, and holy, and terrible, — eternity was as vast and awful when he thought not at all of these things as now, when, in agitation and alarm, he could think of nothing else: his danger was not created by his convictions,—it was only rea- lized and impressed on his conscience ; hig state was as perilous before, when, in the recklessness of unbe- lief, he drew a sword, and would have killed himself —as now, when, with a newly awakened anxiety and earnestness, he was inquiring what he should do to be saved? But now he was brought under deep con- cern as to the state and prospects of his soud. He was convinced of his danger, and of the need of salvation : THE PHILIPPIAN GAOLER. 245 for his question was understood and answered by the apostles as having reference to his spiritual state and everlasting prospects. And this conviction, although suddenly awakened in the bosom of one who had here- tofore been a careless sinner, may be accounted for by what he had seen and heard since the apostles: had appeared at Philippi. We find that the apostles had been certain days in that city; that Paul had preached by the river side, “where prayer was wont to be made;” that Lydia had been converted, and, along with her household, had been baptized; and that a miracle had been wrought on the damsel possessed with a spirit of divination ;—these things had occurred. before that memorable night ; and although the gaoler might not have been personally present, he could hardly fail to hear the report of what had happened, as we find that the whole city was thrown into an uproar,—and “ the multitude rose up together against the apostles, and the magistrates rent off their clothes, and com- manded to beat them.” And besides the report of these things, the conduct of the apostles in prison was fitted to impart much instruction: lacerated with stripes, loaded perhaps with chains, and with their feet fast in the stocks, “ at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God; and the prisoners heard them.” That song of praise at the dead of night, and within the walls of a public prison, bespoke a sustain- ing power which no persecution could crush,—a peace which the world could neither give nor take away ; and, when the song ceased, and the prayer was ended, * suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the 246 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. foundations of the prison were shaken, and all the — doors were opened, and every one’s bands were loosed.” These events, whether witnessed by the gaoler, or re- ported to him when he awoke out of sleep, must have impressed his mind with the conviction, that there was some unearthly greatness in these men, and some un- seen power working on their behalf,—especially when, in the midst of that awful scene, in which the earth had opened, and. the foundations of the prison were shaken,—and when, in utter distraction and terror, the gaoler drew his sword, and would have killed him- self, he heard Paul's voice, rising calm and clear above the confusion, and saying,—“ Do thyself no harm, for we areall here.” Such seem to have been the circum- stances which awakened the conscience of this careless sinner, and brought it under the power of strong con- victions, for ‘immediately he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, and brought them out, saying, Sirs, what must I do to be saved ?” But while a marked change had been wrought on his views and feelings, inasmuch as, from being a very careless, he had become a deeply convinced sinner, you will carefully observe that he was not yet a con- verted man. He was only at the stage of conviction which precedes conversion, but which is not always followed by it. He had strong remorse ; but remorse is not repentance ;—he had a deep sense of fear; but fear is not faith ;—he had an awful apprehension of danger ; but danger may be apprehended while the method of deliverance is unknown. These convictions THE PHILIPPIAN GAOLER. 247 were useful as preparatory means—as motives to seri- ous inquiry and earnest attention ; at the most, they were but hopeful symptoms ; they neither amounted to conversion, nor did they afford any certain ground to expect that this great change would follow; for such convictions, however profound, may be, and often are stifled, resisted, and overcome. ‘The careless sin- ner may be startled for a time in his slumber, and the transient alarm passing away, he may fall back again into the sleep of spiritual death, and the latter end of that man is worse than the beginning. That the gaoler was not yet converted, is evident from the question which he put to the apostles,—a question which implies, indeed, that he was now con- vineed of his danger, and concerned for his soul, and impressed with the necessity of salvation, and willing to inquire after it,—but which also implies, that as yet he was ignorant of the method of salvation, and the ground of a sinner’s hope; nay, his question seems to imply that, besides being ignorant as yet of the only ground of acceptance with God, he was still, notwith- standing all his convictions, disposed to look to some- thing that he might himself do as the means of effect- ing his deliverance; for it is very remarkable, that even when under an agonizing sense of guilt and danger, he came trembling to the apostles, his question to them was not—how can I be saved? but—what must I do to be saved? and this accords with the disposi- tion and tendency of every natural mind. However deep his convictions may be, and however alarming his fears, the first impulse of every convinced sinner, 248 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. before he is savingly converted, is to look to some efforts or doings of his own as the means of his deli-- verance, and to betake himself to a reformation of life, or to deeds of charity, or to penance and self-mortifi- cation, or some other outward observance, in the vain hope that he may thereby construct for himself a ground of hope, and secure the forgiveness and favour of God. Down to the time, then, that he put this question to the apostles, he was an unconverted man, although he had been so far changed, as from a care- less to have become a convinced sinner. 2. Let us now consider the means by which his conversion was effected, as distinct from the circum- stances by which it was preceded or accompanied. It is of considerable practical importance to separate these two, and to consider what is essential to conversion apart from the mere circumstantial accompaniments which were peculiar to this individual’s case. Of the latter, we may mention—the earthquake, the opening of the prison-doors, the bursting of the prisoners’ bands, and other such circumstances, which in this particular _case were employed as means of awakening the con- science and impressing the mind of a careless sinner ; whereas in other cases God brings about the same change without any such manifestation of miraculous power,—sometimes by the ordinary dispensations of his providence, and at other times by the simple operation of his truth. It matters little by what circumstances a sinner is first awakened to inquire,—whether by the ‘earthquake, or the still small voice,—provided only that he is convinced of his sin and danger, and led to THE PHILIPPIAN GAOLER. 249 inquire in earnest after the salvation of his soul. But while the circumstances which may accompany this change are very various in different cases, the means of conversion—that by which it is properly effected— are one and the same in all: it is nothing else than the truth as it is in Jesus, or the full and free Gospel of the grace of God. The gaoler was not converted by the earthquake, and the shaking of the prison, and the opening of the prison-doors ; on the contrary, the immediate effect of these miraculous events was such a terror and distraction of mind, that “he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself ;” and even when they were made the means of awakening his con- science, and impressing him with a sense of danger, they only served the preparatory purpose of exciting him to earnest inquiry: but what the earthquake, and the other miraculous events of that memorable night could not do, was done by the simple proclamation of the Gospel message. For when he came to the apostles, and, trembling under a sense of his guilt and danger, asked them, saying, “ Sirs! What must I do to be saved ?” they immediately replied, “‘ Believe in the Lord Jesus.Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” And this word was the instrument of his conversion,—the means by which the convinced sinner became a con-. verted man ! In this short but comprehensive passage, we have only, as it were, the text of Paul's discourse ; for it is evident that he unfolded its meaning, and instruct-. ed the gaoler fully in the truth, since it is added, “ They spake unto him the Word of the Lord, and. R 250 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES, to all that were in his house.” The whole discourse is not recorded ; but the substance of it is preserved in that precious answer which was given to the gaoler’s question, and which contains in a few pregnant words a summary of the Gospel—a complete directory to every anxious inquirer after the way of peace. They directed him to look out of himself to Christ,—to re- linquish all hope of salvation by works, and to seek salvation by faith,—and to depend not at all on his own righteousness, but on another righteousness which God had provided, and which Christ had wrought out for him. They exhorted him to believe on the Lord Jesus Shrist,— which implies, first, that he should believe the truth concerning Christ, which is involved m the names which are here given to him, and which, doubtless, was more fully explained in the subsequent address : as that Jesus of Nazareth was the Son of God, and the Saviour of sinners ;—that he was anointed by the Father with the Holy Ghost, and therefore to be received as the Christ of God, the Messiah that had been promised to the fathers ;—that he was anointed for the discharge of his various ofhiices,—as God’s Pro- phet, to declare his mind and will,—as God’s High Priest, to make atonement for sin and intercession for simmers,—and as God’s King, to whom all power was given in heaven and on earth ;—that once humbled, he was now exalted, so that every tongue should confess that heis Lord, to the glory of God the Father. All this is imphed im the names which are here given to him: he is called Jesus, ‘“* because he should save his people from their sins ;’—and Christ, because he is the THE PHILIPPIAN GAOLER. 25% Lord’s Anointed, to whom the Spirit was given with- out measure, in token of his designation, by Divine appointment, to the offices which he sustained, as well as to qualify him for effecting his great redemption ;— and “ Lord,” because he is highly exalted, not only in respect of the original dignity of his nature, but also in respect to the reward which he had earned, and the glory which should follow his humiliation, on the completion of his work. And the gaoler was called, in the first instance, to believe these truths concerning Christ, because they constitute the means by which sinners are savingly converted,—there being enough of Gospel truth in the very name of Jesus to be an adequate object of saving faith, and to work that great change; for “ whoso believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God,’—and there is “no other name given under heaven among men, whereby we must be saved, but the name of Jesus.” The apostle’s exhortation farther implies, that, be- lieving the truth concerning Christ, the gaoler should place his own personal trust and reliance on Christ alone,—that he should come to him, and commit his goul into Christ’s hands, as one who was able to save unto the very uttermost, and receive and embrace him as his own Saviour, in all the fulness of his offices, as he is freely offered in the Gospel. In other words, that he should believe the truth concerning Christ, with a special application of it to the case of his own soul,— not resting in vague generalities, nor contenting him- self with speculative inquiry, but closing with Christ as his own Saviour, and. resting on him as all his salva- 252 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. tion and all his desire. For the apostle speaks point- edly to him, and says to him individually, “ Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and tov shalt be saved.” Many precious lessons are taught by the apostle’s answer, which are applicable for the direction and encouragement of convinced sinners in all ages of the Church ; but omitting these for the present, and con- fining our attention to the case of the individual before us, I shall only observe that the general truth which he was called to believe concerning Christ, as the Anointed Saviour of sinners, afforded a sufficient warrant and reason for his immediately relying on Christ as his own Saviour; and that, when he was exhorted to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and encouraged to hope that he should be saved, he had presented to him the sum and substance of the Gospel message, which is glad tidings of great joy even to the chief of sinners. The Gospel thus proposed was the means of his conversion ; and, considered as a means, it was alike suitable and sufficient ;—suitable, as prescribing a remedy in all respects adapted to the evils which he felt or feared ;—and_ suflicient, as containing every thing that was needed to instruct, or encourage, or persuade him. ‘The Gospel is the only, and it is an adequate means ; but it is a means, and nothing more. It is an instrument whose eflicacy depends on its. being applied by the Spirit. It is not said, indeed, of the Philippian Gaoler, as it is of Lydia in the same eity,—that “the Lord opened his heart ;’ but it is manifest that the Spirit must have concurred with the THE PHILIPPIAN GAOLER. 253 Word: the mere Word will not do it. If you doubt this, the same words are now, and have often been, addressed to you, and with a special application to each of your souls—‘“ Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” You have read these words, and you have often heard them before ; and even thus much of God’s truth is sufficient to convert a sinner, and to bring about a sudden and universal change,—but only when it is applied with power by the Holy Ghost ; for your own experience may serve to convince you, that the same words which converted the gaoler may be repeated often, and press- ed with earnestness, and fully unfolded and explained, and yet leave you as unconcerned and unconverted as before. So the gaoler might have been in danger, and yet have cherished his former security,—or he might have been visited with convictions of conscience, and yet have stifled them,—or he might have been alarmed, without inquiring after salvation,—or he might have inquired, without discovering the truth,— or he might have heard the truth, without believing it,—had not the Spirit of God convinced him of his danger, and awakened a spirit of earnest inquiry, and made known to him the Gospel, and disposed and enabled him to receive and rest upon Christ, as all his salvation and all his desire. 3. We are now to consider the nature of that great change which was thus wrought on his mind, or wherein it properly consisted, and the practical fruits which followed it. It is clear that his conversion properly consisted 254 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. in his complying with the apostle’s exhortation,— by “ believing in the Lord Jesus Christ.” Until he believed, he was unconverted ; but, so soon as he believed, he became a converted man. The produc- tion of true faith is a new creation,—it is not a mere change of opinion, but a radical and thorough renova- tion of mind, in virtue of which it may be said, that from the same hour in which he “ believed in the Lord Jesus Christ,” he became “a new creature: old things passed away ; all things became new.” Not that it is a small matter to be born again, but it is a great thing to believe. Many who have never ques- tioned their own faith in Christianity, and who pre- sume that they are believers, merely because they have not opposed it, may be totally unconscious of any thing in their own experience which bears any resemblance to that of the Philippian gaoler, when, under deep convictions of conscience, and with earnest desire after salvation, he was first taught the truth concerning Christ, and enabled to form a vivid and realizing conception of his office and power, as the real, only, and all-sufficient Saviour of sinners; but every one who, like him, has been really awakened te a sense of his sin and danger, and who has been led to contemplate Christ in his true character, and really to believe on him for salvation, will acknowledge, that on the instant when he acquired the first inward conviction of the truth, he passed, as it were, from darkness into marvellous light,—that he then ex- perienced a very great change in all his views and feelings,—that a new mind was given to him, and a THE PHILIPPIAN GAOLER. PASTS. new life seemed to have begun,—insomuch, that he felt as did the blind man when he was restored to sight. « One thing I know, that whereas I was blind, now I see.” A real, simple, and scriptural Farris that essential element, without which there can be no conversion, and in which it properly consists ; but this faith has uniformly certain accompaniments and effects, which are so many proofs of its genuineness and tokens of its efficacy. The “ faith which is without works is dead, being alone;” but living faith eorketh by love. And it is deeply interesting to mark, in the short and simple: narrative of the gaoler’s conversion, how soon and how surely the faith of the Gospel is followed by the peaceable fruits of righteousness. For that narrative bears—Ist, That he thirsted for more instruction ; that he hungered for the bread of life; and was solicitous to know more of divine truth. For after hearing the answer which the apostles gave to his question, it is said (ver. 32), “ they spake unto him the Word of the Lord;” just as it is said that they who, on the day of Pentecost, “ gladly received the Word,” “ con- tinued stedfastly in the apostle’s doctrine and fellow- ship, and breaking of bread and in prayers.” 2d, That he was concerned, not only for his own soul, but also for the souls of his family; for “ all that were in his house” were brought together to hear the Word. 3d, That his faith wrought by love, producing gratitude and kindness to his instructors; for “ he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes," — «and when he had brought them out, he set meat before 256 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. them.” 4th, That he had peace and joy in believing : his fears were removed, and in their stead a new happiness sprung up in his bosom ; for “ he rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.” And, finally, he made an open profession of his faith, and evinced his entire submission to the authority of Christ, by consenting to be baptized with all his family, and thereby declared that, even in the midst of a city where magistrates and people were alike opposed to the religion he professed, he was not “ashamed of the Gospel of Christ,” since he had felt it to be “ the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth.” In this narrative we have an interesting example of true scriptural conversion ; and we may deduce from it several instructive lessons, which are applicable for the benefit of the Church in all ages. We learn from it such lessons as these,— 1. That men, in their unconverted state, are often utterly careless, and destitute alike of all fear of God, of all concern for their souls, and of all solicitude about death, and judgment, and eternity. This was the character of the gaoler when he was about to rush unprepared into the presence of his J udge; and it is the character of many amongst ourselves, who have never felt that religion was a great reality—nor expe- rienced any deep impressions of its awful truths—nor spent a single hour in the serious consideration of the state of their souls, the relation in which they stand to God, and their future prospects in eternity ; and who, “‘ having no fear of God before their eyes, have no sympathy with such as are in earnest on the subject THE PHILIPPIAN GAOLER. 257 of religion, but are disposed to ridicule their exercises and their experience as the dreams of fanaticism. This utter insensibility—this death-like apathy—is one of the worst symptoms of a man’s spiritual state. 2. While they are thus careless, God is often pleased to make use of some solemn and awakening dispen- sation of providence to arouse and alarm them,—as the earthquake was employed in the case before us, and the unloosing of the prisoners, which threatened the gaoler with temporal ruin. So God brings a careless sinner into sudden and imminent danger, or visits him with affliction, with disease of body, or bereavement in his family, or embarrassment in his worldly affairs,—and this because, ‘“ when they have no changes, the men of the world fear not God ;” but when smitten by the rod of his providence, they are awakened to serious thought. These afflictive dispensations are often useful as preparatory means ; and many a Christian may trace his first serious im- pressions to a season of personal or domestic trial ; but they are not effectual of themselves for thorough conversion, and do often, in point of fact, fall far short of it, as is evident in the case of Israel of old, of whom it is said, “ When he slew them, then they sought him: and they returned and inquired early after God. And they remembered that God was their rock, and the high God their Redeemer. Neverthe- less they did flatter him with their mouth, and they lied unto him with their tongues. For their heart was not right with him, neither were they stedfast in his covenant.” 258 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. 3. Sometimes the trials and disappointments of careless sinners only serve to exasperate their natural enmity ; and, instead of producing ameek, and quiet, and broken spirit, issue in the “ sorrow of the world which worketh death,’—as was the case of the gaoler, when, under the pressure of unexpected calamity, his first impulse was to draw his sword and kil] himself; and of-Ahithophel, who, “when he saw that his counsel was not followed, saddled his ass, and arose, and gat him home to his house, to his city, and put his household in order, and hanged himself, and died, and was buried in the sepulchre of his father.” 4. But in other cases a work of conviction is wrought in the conscience, which may be more or less intense, and of longer or shorter duration, but is in some degree essential to saving conversion,—such conviction of guilt and danger as impressed the mind of the gaoler when he came trembling and said, “ What must I do to be saved?” This isa hopeful symptom, but it is not a decisive proof of a saving change ; on the contrary, such convictions are often stifled and suppressed, and, instead of subduing, they exasperate, —as in the case of F elix, who trembled while Pau] preached, but was not converted ; and of those in the Acts, who were “cut to the heart” by the apostle’s doctrine, but only “gnashed on him with their teeth ;” and of others “who were cut to the heart,” and only “took counsel to slay them.” Convictions are useful only when they produce an earnest spirit of thought- fulness, and lead the sinner to inquire, “ What must I do to be saved 2” a i a THE PHILIPPIAN GAOLER. 259 5. The Gospel, which is mainly designed to reveal an answer to that question of an awakened conscience, is the only effectual instrument of conversion.—Other means may concur in carrying forward the prepara- tory process, but this alone can work the great, the saving change ;—all other expedients are worse than useless—they are pernicious and fatal to the soul. The only answer that ought im any case, or in any circumstances, to be given to the question—* What must I do to be saved?” is the answer that was re- turned to the Philippian Gaoler—“ Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” And the circumstances in which that answer was given throw an interesting light -both on the perfect freeness of the Gospel, and the certainty of salvation to every one that believeth ;—on its freeness, as being proposed even to the chief of sinners ; for Paul, you will observe, had no scruple in proposing the full Gospel to the gaoler on the mstant when he came to him, although he had hitherto been a careless, uncon- verted man. He did not say to him, You have been a great sinner, I have no Gospel for you; a little while ago you drew your sword, and were about to commit suicide ; how can you hope to be saved? No; but to this trembling sinner he said on the instant, and without any qualification or reserve,—“ Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ ;” and that answer is the sin- ner’s warrant at the present hour. And it throws an interesting light on the certainty of salvation ; for he did not say, Believe, and you may be saved ; but, Be- lieve, and thou sHatr be saved. There is no doubt, 260 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. no uncertainty, no cautious reserve,—but an absolute assurance ; and that assurance is the sinner’s encour- agement at the present hour. To every sinner, however careless, and however deeply conyinced of sin, we are warranted by the apostle’s example in saying, fully and freely, without any conditions or exceptions, “ Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” 6. Conviction ends in conversion only when a true sense of sin is combined with a belief of the Gospel, or an apprehension of the mercy of God in Christ. The careless sinner may become a convinced sinner by the operation of natural conscience, or by the power of the law, aided by the awakening dispensations of Pro- vidence; but he does not become a converted man until he believes the truth as it isin J esus, and realizes the fact that Jesus is the Christ. Conversion properly consists in the production of repentance and faith ; and a new birth is followed by a new life. Conyer- sion by the Word produces conformity to the will of God, and faith is fruitful of works. All these truths are exemplified in the case of the gaoler at Philippi, and are confirmed by the experience of every believer at the present day. THE DYING MALEFACTOR. 261 CHAPTER II. THE DYING MALEFACTOR. Luke xxiii. 32—43. Tue crucifixion of the Lord Jesus was so ordered as to furnish a striking illustration, at once of the depth of his abasement, and the certainty of his reward. To enhance the agony and the shame of his death, he was crucified between two thieves—being numbered with transgressors—placed on the same level, in the public view, with men whose lives had been justly for- feited by their crimes, and subjected, in his last mo- ments, to the painful spectacle of their sufferings ;— but, to evince the certainty of his reward,—to make it manifest that the joy which was set before him, and for which he endured the cross, despising the shame, would be realized,—and to give him as it were a pledge in hand, that “ he should see of the travail of his soul, and be satisfied,’—one of the thieves who suffered along with him was suddenly converted ; and, in the lowest depths of the Redeemer’s humiliation,—in the darkest hour of the power of darkness, when Satan’s policy seemed to be crowned with complete 262 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. success,—this immortal soul was snatched as a brand from the burning, and given to Christ as a pledge of his triumph, and the first-fruits of a glorious harvest. While others mocked and reviled him, and when his chosen disciples stood aloof, the dying malefactor re- lented—his conscience awoke—his heart was touched ; and, amidst the ridicule, and the execrations, and the blasphemies of that awful hour, one solitary voice was heard, issuing from the cross beside him, which called him “ Lorn,” and which spake of his “ x1ne- Dom ” in accents of faith, and penitence, and prayer. And how must that voice have gladdened the Saviour’s heart! and imparted to him, in the midst of his bit- terest agony, a foretaste as it were of the “ joy that was set before him,”—exhibiting, as it did, a proof of the efficacy of his death, the faithfulness of God’s covenant promise, and the certainty of his reward ! for if, even now on the cross, and before his work was finished, this stricken spirit fled to him for refuge, and was quickened into spiritual life in the very hour of death,—was it not a sure pledge and earnest, that he should yet bring many sons and daughters to glory, when, being by God’s right hand exalted to the throne, he should receive the promise of the F ather, and shed forth the Spirit from on high ? I. In reference to the state of this man’s mind before the time of his conversion, nothing is recorded that would lead us to suppose that he had ever thought seriously of religion, or acquired any know- ledge of the Gospel, until he was brought to Calvary. Ife is described as a malefactor, and more specifically THE DYING MALEFACTOR. 263 as a thief or robber—a desperate character—fearing neither God nor man, whose crimes exposed him to the highest penalties of the law ; and his own confes- sion admits the justice of the sentence under which he suffered —“ We receive the due reward of our deeds.” On a comparison of the parallel passages in the Gos- pels of Matthew and Mark, it would seem that at first he had joined with the other malefactor in reviling the Saviour; for, in the one, it is said, “* The thieves also which were crucified with him, cast the same in his teeth ;” and, in the other, “‘ They that were cruci- fied with him reviled him ;’—expressions which may, indeed, be interpreted, generally, as descriptive of Christ’s extreme humiliation in being subjected to re- proach from such a quarter,—this class of men being spoken of as partaking in the crime of embittering his last moments, just as the soldiers are said to have filled a sponge with vinegar, because one or more of them did so; but if they be understood as applying specifi- cally to each of the two, they are sufficient to show that, at first, the one who was converted was as un- godly and as guilty as the other. But immediately before his conversion, and prepa- ratory to it, a change seems to have been wrought in the state of his mind,—a change which consisted in a deep conviction of sin, and a just sense of his own demerit on account of it. For when one of the male- factors railed on Jesus, the other answering “ rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing that thou art in the same condemnation ? And we indeed j ustly ; for we receive the due reward of our deeds.” The 264 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. whole process was so suddenly accomplished in this. case, that it is difficult to say whether, in the order of time, the convictions which are expressed in this re- markable confession preceded, byany perceptible inter-. val, his cordial reception of the truth ; but as, in the order of nature, conviction precedes conversion, we may consider it as part of his experience, while as yet he was in a state of transition from darkness to light. The words of his confession imply—that his. conscience, which, by the commission of crime, might have been seared as with a hot iron, was now deeply impressed with a sense of sin; and it was a true sense of sin,—not the mere “ sorrow of the world which worketh death ;” but godly sorrow, working towards genuine repentance: for, although the condemnation of which he speaks might be the temporal sentence. of death, pronounced and executed by his fellow-men, his language shows, that he viewed his guilt with re- ference not to men merely, but to God also—to God, as the supreme Lawgiver and the final Judge. As.a resident at Jerusalem, or at least in Judea, the seat of true religion, he had probably enjoyed some of the advantages of early religious instruction, and had been taught some of the elementary truths of Scripture ; for he speaks of God, the only living and true God, whose name he knew and feared, although he had lived in the violation of his law. “The thought of God as a Lawgiver and Judge was now vividly present to his mind ; and the conception of God's character, combined with the inherent power of conscience, which, even in the breasts of the most depraved, is ° THE DYING MALEFACYOR. 265 never altogether extinguished, produced that convic- tion of sin which is invariably accompanied with the fear of God, and of a judgment to come. So long as God can be kept out of view, there may be a secret consciousness of guilt, without any sensible alarm, or apprehension of danger ; and hence the malefactor’s question to his hardened fellow-sufferer—* Dost thou not fear God ?” but so soon as God is present to the mind, every conscience intuitively connects guilt with danger, and awakens fear of the wrath to come, for conscience intuitively points to God as a Judge—to God as an avenger. But, in the case before us, as in every other, where there is a commencement of a work of grace in the heart, conviction of sin was accorfpanied, not only with the fear of danger, but with such a sense of de- merit, as led to the acknowledgment, that punish- ment was justly deserved. This is not always implied in the mere terrors of an awakened conscience, and would be altogether repudiated by a conscience still asleep. The malefactor who railed at Jesus might not be able to deny his guilt, and he might yield him- self as a passive and unresisting victim to the arm of public justice, merely because he could not, by any resistance, escape from the punishment of his crimes ; but had he been asked to acknowledge that he justly merited the bitter death which he was called to en- dure, he would, too probably, have denied that he was so guilty as to deserve such a punishment, and com- plained of the hardship and severity of his case. In reference to God, the supreme Judge, and the retri- S 266 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES: butions of an eternal world, he seems to have had iid fear ; for he could join, even at that solemn hour, and in spite of his own sufferings, in the insults and blas- phemies which were poured out on the meek and lowly Saviour: but even had his conscience been so far awakened, as to impress him with the fear of God and eternity, he might still have been utterly destitute of that deep sense of the evil nature of sin, which led his fellow-sutferer to acknowledge that he was receiy- ing only the due reward of his deeds. A convinced sinner may tremble, as Felix did, when he heard of temperance, and righteousness, and judgment to come; and he may be conscious of a deep horror when he hears of the worm that shall never die, and the fire that cannot be quenched: yet the omniscient eye of Him who can analyse the confused emotions of a sinner’s heart, might not discern there any one ele- ment of genuine contrition ; on the contrary, He might find the fear of wrath, and the dread of hell, com- bined with an invincible spirit of opposition to God’s authority,—an undying reluctance to condemn his own sin, and an unyielding determination to deny the rec- titude and reasonableness of its penalty. And when, therefore, the poor malefactor was so far convinced of his sin, as not only to be impressed with a sense of his danger, but also with a sense of his demerit, and of God's justice, we see the commencement of a great change, which affords the best and most hopeful symp- tom of his ultimate and entire conversion. IJ. While he was thus changed so as to have become a convinced sinner, he was not yet a conyerted man, * 7 THE DYING MALEFACTOR. 267 but his conversion immediately followed ; and it will be interesting now to inquire into the circumstances which accompanied, and the means which, under God's blessing, effected that great change. It was alike great and sudden,—it was wrought, like the con- version of the gaoler, in a short space of time, and yet it amounted to a complete revolution in all his views and habits, insomuch, that he becameanew man,—and, born on the cross, he passed into heaven. Now, what was there in the circumstances in which he was placed, and in the means which were brought to bear upon him, that could account for so great a change ? If we place ourselves in his circumstances,—if, by a strong mental effort, we bring ourselves to look on the scene which he saw, and to realize, by the eye of faith, what then passed before the eye of sense,—if, joining the crowd which thronged the judgment-hall of Pilate, we listened with the same personal interest which the poor thief must have felt, when Pilate made the proposal to release one or other of the condemned, —did we then join the tumultuous procession, and follow the meek sufferer, as he slowly walked along with the thieves, “followed by a great company of people, and of women, who lamented and bewailed him,’ —did we hear the words of warning and con- solation which he spake to the daughters of Jerusa- Jem,—did we stand beside him on the hill, when the eross which Simon was honoured to bear was firmly planted in the ground,—did we see the godlike man carried by violence, and nailed to the accursed tree,— did we look on his benignant countenance, and listen 268 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. to his awful words,—did we behold the sudden dark- ening of the sky, and the rending of the rocks, which gave a deep impressiveness to the scene ;—then, with our knowledge of the personal dignity of the sufferer, the causes, design, and end of his death, and the fulness of all Gospel truth, which is embodied in his cross, we could have no difficulty in conceiving how such a scene, so witnessed and so understood, might have converted any sinner unto God. It is, indeed, nothing else than a spiritual view of the scene then witnessed on Calvary which is the chief means of every con- version, the cross of Christ being to every instructed disciple the power of God and the wisdom of God unto salvation,—insomuch, that every believer will say with the apostle, “God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ.” Looking back to that scene with the eye of faith, the Christian derives from it all his sublimest views, and his holiest impressions of the truth; he delights to contemplate what the poor malefactor was then privileged to wit- ness; and as often as he reviews the events of that awful hour, he is filled with awe and wonder, with admiration, and gratitude, and joy. But while the scene at Calvary must appear to every instructed mind the most solemnly interesting and the most profoundly instructive scene which was ever witnessed on earth,—it was quite possible that, to an unenlightened mind, it might fail to impart any spiritual or salutary impression ; and we are to put ourselves into the place of this poor malefactor, and inquire what were the means of his conversion, when a a a, THE DYING MALEFACTOR. 269 it is clear he came to Calvary in a state of great ignorance and guilt, and yet was suddenly brought out of darkness into marvellous light. We have already seen that he had been brought under convictions of sin, such as are sufficient to show that, depraved and guilty as he had been, he had still a conscience in his breast, and some notion, however obscure and feeble, of God as a Lawgiver, Governor, and Judge. He was a man—a poor, wretched, and degraded man ; but still a man, and therefore a fit and capable subject of conversion; and partly from the light of nature, which is never altogether extin- guished, and partly from his early education in a country where the knowledge and worship of the true God were established, he had acquired the knowledge of some elementary truths, such as the being and pro- vidence of God, the difference betwixt right and wrong, the demerit and sure punishment of sin, which was sufficient to awaken remorse and apprehension, but had no power to effect his conversion. Real conver~ sion to God depends on the knowledge and belief of the truth as it is in Jesus: how, then, was this poor malefactor converted, and whence did he derive his acquaintance with that truth which alone maketh wise unto salvation? Oh! it is deeply interesting to mark how a heart that has been opened by the Spirit of God, and awakened to earnest and serious inquiry, will pick up the fragments of Gospel truth in what- ever form they may be presented to it, and will find nourishment in the very crumbs which fall from the Master's table! for, in the case before us, there was 270 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. no formal discourse,—no full disclosure of doctrine, — no systematic instruction ; but his eye was opened to observe, and his ear to hear, and his heart to recelve, the truth as it was presented incidentally during his progress from Pilate’s hall to the hill of Calvary, and exhibited before his crucifixion there ;*—and there are just three sources from which he derived those simple lessons which sufficed for his conversion :— The first was, the testimony of Christ's Sriends,— not only the testimony of Pilate, who declared that “he had found no fault in him,” but that of many others who bore witness to his spotless character, and of whom it is said (ver. 27), that “ there followed him a great company of people, and of women, which also bewailed and lamented him.” The innocence of Christ was thus impressed on the malefactor’s mind, and is pointedly referred to in his confession, —“ We receive the due reward of our deeds, but this man hath done nothing amiss.” The second was, the deportment of Christ—the meek majesty of that godlike sufferer,—the words he uttered, breathing a spirit so different from that of this world,—these seem to have deepened the impres- sion of his innocence and worth. His address to the daughters of Jerusalem, so solemn, yet so tender; and still more, the prayer for his murderers—“ Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do ;”—that address, and this prayer, pronounced at such an hour, the one exhibiting a prophet’s faithfulness, the other a Saviour's love, and both breathing a spirit of meek . ™ See an admirable sermon by Dr M‘Crie. a) THE DYING MALEFACTOR. 271 submission to God’s will, and intimating the guilt of sin, the certainty of future judgment, and the neces- sity of forgiveness,—these few words, uttered in such circumstances, might reveal to the poor malefactor such a view of Christ as would irresistibly impress him with the conviction that he was no common suf- ferer, and that his was no ordinary death; and con- strain him to believe that he was none other than the Son of God, and the Saviour of men,—the Son of God, for he calls him Father,—and the Saviour of men, for he prayed for the forgiveness of his very murderers. But there was a third: he was not left to ponder on the scene without a commentary, and that commen- tary was furnished by the Saviour’s enemies,—first of all, in the sneers and blasphemies which they uttered ; and secondly, in the inscription which was put on the cross. They meant it not; but in these they gave such a testimony to the Saviour, as sufficed for the conversion of his fellow-sufferer. ‘ The rulers,” we read, derided him, saying, “ He saved others.” Yes, he saved others; he had healed the sick, and given eyes to the blind, and ears to the deaf, and life to the dead ; and that testimony to Christ’s miraculous power sunk deep into the heart of the dying man beside him, But who was this to whom his very enemies gave witness, that “he saved others,” or what did he pro- fess to be ? This also the dying malefactor learned from their lips: “ Let him save himself, if he be the Christ, the chosen of God,’—* If thou be the king of the Jews, save thyself <<; and they put a superscrip- 272 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. - tion over him,—* This is the king of the Jews.” These words, used in ridicule or rancorous hatred, conveyed to the mind of the malefactor the idea of what Christ claimed and. professed to be; and when combined with what he had seen and heard,—with the testimony which had been given to his miraculous powers, now confirmed by the preternatural darkness of the sky, and the rending of the rocks,—-with what he had witnessed of his godlike bearing, “ full of grace and truth,” and with the words which had fallen from his lips,—they carried to his heart the con- viction that the illustrious sufferer was indeed the Son of God, the Christ, the Messiah that had been pro- mised to the fathers ; that, although suspended on the cross, he was the king ; and if a king, then he had a kingdom ; and immediately the prayer of faith broke from his quivering lips, ‘“ Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.” III. If we now consider the nature of the great change which was thus suddenly produced, or wherein it properly consisted, and the results which flowed from it, we shall find that the turning point of his con- version was his believing that Jesus was the Christ. This was precisely the point in question, both with the scornful multitude and the subdued malefactor. They doubted—he believed. They required another kind of evidence,—* Let him come down from the cross, and we will believe on him:” he did not come down from the cross, but having died there, he arose from the dead, and their unbelief remained ; but the dying malefactor, satisfied with the evidence alread ¥ Se ee THE DYING MALEFACTOR. 273 ! given, saw his glory through the veil of his humilia- tion, and, embracing him in his true character as the Christ, the chosen of God, he believed to the saving of his soul. It was simply by faith—and by faith in the simple truth, that Jesus is the Christ—that this man passed from death unto life ; but here was great faith indeed. For consider the circumstances in which Christ was then placed. He was in the lowest depths of his humiliation,—in the extremest hour of his agony on _ the accursed tree,—suffering the sentence of death as a public criminal,—surrounded by multitudes who ridiculed and reviled him,—forsaken by his chosen disciples, and complaining that he had been forsaken of God himself; yet, in these circumstances of humi- liation, and sorrow, and shame, the dying malefactor calied him Lord, and spake of his kingdom, and ad- dressed him in the language of prayer ! Yes; when Jesus was slowly dying on the cross, and had no pros- pect of life, still less of a kingdom on earth, the poor malefactor showed at once the greatness of his faith, and his correct apprehension of the nature of Christ’s _ kingdom, by uttering a prayer which implied in it the hope of his own immortality, and of a spiritual and eternal kingdom in heaven. Here was a manifesta- tion of faith to which we can find no parallel in the history of the apostles themselves. They called him Lord after his resurrection ; but this man calls him Lord on the very cross ;—they spake of his kingdom, ~ but doubtfully, and with many gross earthly anticipa- tions : “ We trusted that it had been he which should 274 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES, have redeemed Israel ;” and, “ Lord ! wilt thou at this time restore the kingdom to Israel ” but this man speaks of his kingdom as a future inheritance, whose certainty was not affected by his shameful and ignomi- nious death. And believing in Christ as the Lord’s Anointed — the Messiah which had been promised unto the fathers, he embraced him as his own Saviour, —encouraged, doubtless, by the grace which he had witnessed, and by that most merciful prayer for his murderers, he felt that he could confide and trust in such a friend ; and therefore he addressed him in the language of believing prayer—“ Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.” This prayer is alike touching from its simplicity, and remarkable for its comprehensive brevity. He seemed to ask little, yet he asked every thing that was necessary for his everlasting welfare : “ Lord, remem- ber me,” was his simple and modest request ; but it included much,—it cast him on the Saviour’s care,—it put his soul into the Saviour’s hands,—it expressed his faith, his dependence, his desire, his hope ; as if he had said, Iam a poor dying sinner: thou art a king going to thy kingdom,—thou canst save me. I leave myself in thy hands ; I lean on thy love; Lord! remember me! The circumstances of the case did not admit of that full exhibition of the practical fruits of conversion which adorn the life and conversation of every true believer ; for he was converted at the eleventh hour, and was no sooner converted than he died and enter- ed into glory. We have, however, even in this brief THE DYING MALEFACTOR. 275 narrative, some precious indications of the great moral change which had been wrought on his mind and heart. He evinced a true sense of sin, a thorough conviction of its demerit, a just apprehension of the punishment that was due to it; an awful fear of God, a lively trust and confidence in the Saviour, a serious thoughtfulness in regard to the future, a disposition to pray, and a new-born but honest zeal for righte- ousness and truth, which prompted him to rebuke his fellow-sufferer in these remarkable words,—“ Dost thou not fear God, seeing that thou art in the same condemnation ; and we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds ;” and these new principles and feelings would no doubt have evinced their power, by altering all his habits and his whole course of life, had life been prolonged. It is true, that mm many cases, serious thoughts of God, and judgment, and eternity, are often awakened in the souls of uncon- verted men, when they have the near prospect of death, and that, in many cases, when health is restor- ed and life prolonged, they “vanish like the morning cloud and the early dew.” So that in the case of most late conversions, there is a painful feeling of doubt as to the genuineness and stability of those good resolutions which are awakened in the mere prospect of death, such as must prevent any very certain deliverance on the actual state and eternal prospects of such as are not spared to verify their pro- fession by a consistent Christian life. But in the in- stance before us there is no room for doubt; we have the infallible testimony of Christ himself sealing this 276 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. man’s conversion, and assuring him of eternal glory. The grand result of the change that was wrought upon him on the cross, is declared in these words, — “Verily, I say unto thee, this day shalt thou be with me in paradise.” No sooner was the prayer uttered, than the promise was given; and that promise was to be immediately fulfilled. The Lord gives more than was asked: the malefactor’s request was, “Lord, re- member me!” but the answer far exceeded the de- mand; it spake to him of paradise, and of Christ’s presence there, and of his admission that very day. What a sudden transition—what a glorious change ! A malefactor condemned for his crimes to die,—led to Calvary that he might be nailed to a cross,—con- verted there as he hung between life and death, on the brink of eternity,—and on the self-same day born again, justified, adopted, saved; translated from earth | to heayen—from Calvary to Paradise—from a cross of shame to a throne of glory ! On a review of the interesting narrative to which our attention has been directed, we may derive from it many instructive lessons which are applicable to all sinners at the present day. 1. It exhibits a remarkable proof of the Saviour’s power. That this malefactor was a great sinner, only serves to show that He by whom he was delivered was a great Saviour ;—that he had reached the ex- treme point of guilt, and the very end of life, only serves to make it clear that “Christ is able to save unto the uttermost.” The power of Christ to subdue the most hardened sinner, and his power to cancel the THE DYING MALEFACTOR. pag dp most aggravated guilt, and his power to open the gate of heaven, and secure our admission there,—all this is evinced with undeniable certainty by the fact, that even in the lowest depths of his humiliation, before his work was finished, or his reward secured, he snatched this brand from the burning, and rescued this captive from the power of Satan, and carried him as a trophy from the cross, when he entered within the veil. And oh! if such was Christ’s power then, who should now despair, who knows that Jesus,—then on the cross, is now upon the throne,—exalted as a Prince and Saviour, to give repentance and remission of sins. 2. It exhibits a precious proof of the perfect free- ness of His grace. Loaded with crime, and standing on the very verge of an eternal world, what could have been of any avail to this poor sinner but grace, and grace that was perfectly free. Righteousness he had none; good works he had none; he was self- convicted and self-condemned; and he had nothing before him but the certain fearful looking for of judg- ment, unless God had grace, and that grace were free. But when he heard the Saviour pray for his murderers—when he heard him pray for their for- giveness, the idea of free grace to pardon sin seems to have entered into his inmost soul, and he ventured to ask that the Lord would remember him; and imme- diately, such was the grace of Christ, he required no previous qualifications, demanded no acquired merit, imposed no conditions, made no stipulations of any kind; but gave him at once an answer in peace, and 278 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. a full and irreversible promise of admission into glory, —and this, too, while he was in such agony as might have been expected to concentrate all his care upon himself; yet even then he had room in his heart for the sorrows of this poor sinner. 3. It has been remarked, that in the Bible this is a solitary example of a man being converted at the hour of death; there being one such instance that none may despair, and only one, that none may presume. Presumption and despair are the two great rocks on which we are ever in danger of making shipwreck ; and this narrative may well serve to guard us against both. Against despair,—for why should any man despair who reads of the thief who was converted on the cross; and against presumption,—for who dare presume when he reads that there was another thief on another cross, who died unconverted there? The hoariest sinner that lives may be encouraged by the one, but the boldest sinner may be deterred by the other. “The one was taken and the other left.” 4. We learn from this narrative how little of God's truth may serve for conversion, if it be suitably improved by the hearer, and savingly applied by the Spirit. The penitent on the cross was saved by means of mere fragments of truth, and these presented to him in the blasphemies of Christ’s accusers and the inscrip- tion on his cross. This is a delightful thought, when it is viewed in connection with the case of the poor and ignorant, and of others who live under a dark or defective dispensation of truth; but it is unutterably solemn, when viewed in connection with our own * THE DYING MALEFACTOR. 279 case ; for how shall we escape if we die unconverted, after the light we have received—the many sermons we have heard—the much truth which we have slighted and despised ! 5. We learn, that on the instant of his conversion, a sinner acquires all the rights and privileges of a child of God, and that, if he die immediately there- after, he will immediately pass into glory. No sooner was this malefactor converted, than he was assured by the Lord himself, that on the self-same day he should be with him in paradise. Had he lived on earth, he would have been capable of growth and increase in grace; but the new creature, although but as a new- born babe, is entire in all its members, and capable of entering into the kingdom, however short its earthly span. aos | 280 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. CHAPTER III. PAUL, Acts ix. ]-22. Tus case of conversion is, in many respects, the most remarkable of all the examples which the Spirit of God has recorded for the instruction of the Church. Saul of Tarsus, the Jewish persecutor, was suddenly converted into Paul, the Christian philanthropist, the zealous apostle of the Gentiles. And whether we consider the masculine talents, the education, the learning, the morals of the man ; or the suddenness and magnitude of the change which was wrought upon him; or the rich and varied fruits of personal holiness, and public usefulness which sprung from it, ——we shall discover ample reason for regarding him as one of the most signal monuments of the riches and the efficacy of divine grace. It is peculiarly for- tunate, too, that, in this instance, our materials are so abundant, that there can be no difficulty in forming a correct conception, both of his state of mind before his conversion, and of his experience afterwards ; for not only have we three distinct accounts of his conversion PAUL. 281 in the Acts of the Apostles (Acts ix. 1-22; xxii. 9; xxvi. 4-9), but several instructive references to it in some of his epistles (as Gal. i. 13; 1 Cor. xv. 9); while every part of his writings teems with illustra- tions of the magnitude and extent of that great spiri- tual change, by which the persecutor became a preacher of the faith he had despised. I. In reference to the state of his mind before his conversion, we derive much interesting information from various parts of his writings. It is evident, I think, that, in point of intellectual culture and at- tainment, as well as natural vigour and energy of mind, he was superior, not only to most of the primi- tive converts, but to all his fellow-apostles. It appears that, from his infancy, he had shared in the rich ad- vantages of a liberal education ; and that, as he ad- vanced. in years, he was reece to lettered and cultivated society, which his capacious mind was qua- lified at once to appreciate and to improve. In a notice which is incidentally g given of his early life, we read that he was born in Tarsus, the chief city of Cilicia, a capitol long distinguished for a University, where Grecian learning was taught with eminent suc- cess. Whether he attended that University or not is uncertain ; but, from the frequent and appropriate quo- tations which he makes in several of his speeches and epistles from the poets and philosophers of Greece, it is certain that there, or elsewhere, he had acquired a knowledge of polite literature, and a taste for the pursuits of learning. He could speak to the polished Athenians, on Mars’ hill, in their own exquisite tongue. T 282 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. (Acts xvii. 22.) During his abode at Tarsus, indeed, he had, in part, followed the occupation of his father, as a tent-makar,—for it was the custom of good fami- lies among the Jews to bring up their children to a trade, even though they should be destined to the more liberal pursuits of learning ; and the advantage of this early training was afterwards exemplified in the experience of this remarkable man. We find that, while he was yet young, he left Tarsus, and re- paired to Jerusalem, the chief seat at once of Jewish learning and religion,—probably with the view of pursuing his scriptural studies, and qualifying himself for the sacred office of scribe, or doctor of the law; and he there enjoyed the privilege of studying under Gamaliel, who is described “asa member of the coun- cil, and doctor of the law, had in reputation among all the people.” He had enjoyed, then, the best op- portunities which his age afforded, for becoming ac- quainted both with Greek and Jewish literature ;-— and that he had genius to relish, and industry to profit by these advantages, appears from his wonder- ful writings and labours in after-life, as well as from his own testimony—“ I am verily a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city of Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers,"—‘ And I profited in the Jews’ religion above many my equals,” or contemporaries, “in mine own nation.” In respect, again, to his religious opinions and moral habits, it is clear that he was by conviction, as well as im profession, a Jew—holding the faith of the PAUL. 283 Old Testament, and observing the worship of the one living and true God, in opposition to all the false, but seductive forms of polytheistic superstition, which prevailed among the other nations, and which had been adorned with all the attractions of poetry, and painting, and sculpture, by the genius of Greece and Rome ;—and not a Jew only, but a Pharisee—a strict professor of the Jewish faith—maintaining, in opposition to the Sadducees, who were, both in their principles and habits, the libertines of the age, thase grand doctrines which they had discarded,—such as the immortality of the soul, the resurrection of the body, and the certainty of a judgment to come; and exhibiting, in his outward deportment, a fair, and even a strict example, both of ceremonial observance and of civil virtue. His own account of his early life shows that he was never, either in his own estimation, or in that of his fellow-men, irreligious or immoral ; on the contrary, he says, “ My manner of life from my youth, which was at the first among my own nation at Jerusalem, know all the Jews ; who knew me from the beginning, if they would testify, that after the most straviest sect of our religion, I lived a Phari- see. (Acts xxvi. 4.) “And I profited in the Jews’ religion above many mine equals in mine own nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the traditions of my fathers.” (Gal. i. 14.) “ Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the fiesh, I more: circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew 284 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. of the Hebrews ; as touching the law, a Pharisee ; con- cerning zeal, persecuting the Church ; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.” (Phil. iii. 4.) Such is the account which he gives us of his character before his conversion,—an account which may, at first sight, appear to be inconsistent with those humbling confessions, and those deep penitential feelings which he uttered in other parts of his writ- ings, where he speaks of himself as “ less than the least of all saints,” and as the very “‘ chief of sinners ;” but, on farther reflection, these expressions, when compared together, will only serve to show that the fairest exterior may conceal an unsanctified heart ; and that a correct creed, and a moral life, may well consist with the absolute necessity of regeneration. It is not said that he was any thing more than a Phari- see ; and our Lord himself declared to his disciples, “ Except your righteousness exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in nowise enter into the kingdom of God.” He knew the law in ats letter, and yet was ignorant of its sperit and power; for, at a subsequent period, he made this acknowledg- ment—*“ I was alive without the law once ; but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died.” By the law is the knowledge of sin ; but it is by the law spiritually understood ; and hence he was desti- tute of any true sense of sin, till he was impressed with the spirituality of the law. “ I had not known sin, unless the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.” In this state of mind he was neither more nor less than a zealous formalist,—resting in the correctness PAUL. ; 285 of his creed, and the decency of his life, and the strict- ness of his religious observances,—while his heart was far from being right with God; and: shared largely in the character which is ascribed to the sect to which he belonged, when it is said of them, that “ they trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others.” In respect, again, to his views of Christ and the Gospel, he was not only an unbeliever, but a violent persecutor of the Christian Church. Here is a melancholy combination of apparently opposite and incompatible qualities of character: a learned, reli- gious, moral, and self-righteous man, evincing a dis- position to oppress and exterminate the followers of the meek and lowly Jesus. We read that, at Stephen’s martyrdom, ‘“ the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man’s feet, whose name was Saul ;” and “that Saul was consenting unto his death.” And during the great persecution which followed, it is said, “ As for Saul, he made havock of the Church, entering into every house, and haling men and women, com- mitted them to prison.” Nay, not content with this, his zeal urged him to proceed farther: “ And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, and desired of him letters to Damascus to the syna- gogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem.” On this subject, he often expressed, after his conversion, the deepest and most penitential sorrow ; and it is clear that herein he acted in opposition to the ~ 286 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. advice of his great master, Gamaliel, Acts v. 34: yet I apprehend that we are not entitled to regard it as a proof, either that he was naturally cruel in his dispo- sition, or insincere in the profession of his former faith. It is true, indeed, that persecution for conscience’ sake can, in no case, be defended,—and this was afterwards acknowledged by the apostle himself; but then it ought to be remembered that the principle of tolera- tion was not recognised in the age in which he lived, and never exemplified—whatever may be said of the “mild spirit of Paganism”*—where there was any thing that opposed, and would not coalesce with its polytheism. We are too apt, in judging of Paul's conduct to the primitive Christians, to carry with us all our modern ideas of liberality and mutual tolera- tion, and, by applying these to his case, to draw from it a very harsh and injurious reflection against his character. But it is a well-known historical fact, that some of the most violent persecutors of the Church have been, in their private character, not only devoutly attached to their own religion, but tenderly affection- ate to their friends: such, for example, was Marcus Aurelius, in Ancient Rome ; and Charles the First, and Sir Thomas More, in our own country. They resembled the “ devout and honourable women,” of whom we read in the Acts, “ that they were stirred up, with the chief men of the city, to raise persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them out of their coasts.” It was zeal, blended with deplorable ignorance, rather than any ferocious or savage dispo- * Gibbon. PAUL. 287 sition, which in these, and similar cases, led to perse- cution ; and, considering the tenderness of heart, and warmth of affection, which were subsequently mani- fested by the apostle of the Gentiles, I cannot help believing that it was the perfect sincerity of his attach- ment to the law of Moses which prompted him to oppose what he then conceived to be an impious in- novation, and that it was his very zeal for what he thought to be the cause of God, which stirred him up to persecute what he no doubt believed to be a dangerous heresy. In most cases of controversy, and ‘especially in those in which controversy ends in perse- cution, it will generally be found, that there is at least an image of right and justice for which each party contends ; and that zeal for what they conceive to be truth and justice, gives them a consciousness of sin- cerity even in an unholy cause. We might find many illustrations of this remark in the controversies of modern times. But, in the case before us, I think it is clear that Saul had “a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge,” —that he was ignorantly opposing the same authority which he professed to revere,—that the very sincerity of his attachment to the traditions of his fathers made him unapt to enter- tain the thought, that, in persecuting the followers of Christ, he might probably be found to fight against God,—for such is the account which he gave of his present state of mind after his conversion, when, pene- trated with a conviction of his guilt, and deeply hum- bled on account of it, he could still say, “ I. verily thought that I ought ”—a false sense of duty is clearly 288 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. implied—* to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth ; and many of the saints did I shut up in prison, having received authority of the chief priests ; and when they were put to death, I gave my voice against them. And I punished them _ oft in every synagogue, and compelled them to blas- pheme : and being exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted them even unto strange cities.” (Acts xxvi. 9.) And again, “ I was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious ; but I obtained mercy, be- cause I did it ignorantly, and in unbelief.” (1 Tim. i. 13.) Such seems to have been the character of Saul ; and there is enough in it, both to account for his opposition to the Gospel, and to show that he needed, not less than the reckless gaoler at Philippi, or the poor malefactor on the cross, to undergo a great spiritual change before he could enter into the kingdom. His character was, indeed, so respectable, that some, look- ing only to the fair exterior, may be at a loss to dis- cover in this learned, religious, moral, and self-righ- teous man, any thing else than his violent opposition to the Gospel, in persecuting its first professors, that called for any change ; but, on deeper refleetion, they will find cause to believe, that his vehement zeal “in breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord,” if it did not necessarily imply a cruel and bloodthirsty disposition, did at least indicate a frame of mind in all respects opposed to the spiri- tual and benign genius of the Gospel,—and that it is to be regarded as the natural fruit, and the outward PAUL. 289 manifestation, of a rancorous aversion to the truth as it is in Jesus. It showed that, in his heart, he was an enemy to Christ and his cause ; and there was enough of enmity in his bosom to render regeneration absolutely needful, as well as to account for his zeal in the work of persecution. Learned as he was, his very learning made him look down with contempt and scorn on the illiterate fishermen, who had ap- peared in opposition to the doctrine of the Scribes and Pharisees ;—religious as he was, his very religion prompted him to oppose a system of doctrine at vari- ance with all his preconceived opinions ;—moral as he was, his very morality fostered a spirit of self-righteous confidence, which rendered the humbling doctrine of the Cross utterly offensive to him ;—and patriotic as he was—so patriotic, that* his heart seems to swell when he speaks of ‘‘the Israelites, to whom pertained the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises,”—his personal convictions, his national pride, and his party spirit—all combined to exaspe- rate his hatred, and excite his contempt, for those who represented Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah that had been promised to the fathers—the Messiah whom he, like most of his countrymen, probably expected as a temporal prince, to deliver them from the Roman yoke, and establish a powerful monarchy in Judea ; and hence, when Jesus appeared, claiming this august character, he might conceive that he was justly con- demned, and that his followers might also be put to death, as deceivers of the people. In those very fea- 290 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES, tures of his character, then, which, at first sight, seem the most amiable, and the least likely to lead to such a result, we find the very strength and source of his opposition to the Gospel,—just as, in modern times, none are more bitter and inveterate against the doc- trines of free grace and a life of spiritual religion, than those moral, decent, and self-righteous men, who have a form, while they deny the power of godliness. But I apprehend that Saul’s violent opposition to the truth is to be ascribed in no small measure to cer- tain convictions which had been awakened in his con- science by what he had seen and heard of the Gospel and the conduct of its professors,—convictions which were not effectual to subdue, but were abundantly sufficient to stir up and exasperate his enmity. It does not appear that he had been present at the cruci- fixion of Christ; but he was present as an interested and active spectator at the death of Stephen, the first martyr for the truth,—he had heard his sublime dis- course, and looked on his countenance when “his face seemed as it had been the face of an angel,’—and wit- nessed his triumphant death, when he fell asleep, say- ing, “ Lord Jesus, receive my spirit,”—and, “ Lord, lay not this sin to their charge ;” and on a mind like Paul’s such a scene must have made some impression: if it did not disarm and subdue, it would excite and exas- perate. It might, and probably it did awaken some inward misgiving—some secret suspicion that possibly there might be truth in that Gospel which Stephen sealed with his blood ; and some feeling of uneasiness, amounting even to pain; for such is often the effect PAUL. 291 _ of conviction awakened in the conscience of unbeliey- ing men, as is remarkably evinced when it is said of those who surrounded Stephen on that memorable oceasion, “ When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and gnashed on him with their teeth ;” and again, of those who listened to the faithful tes- timony of Peter and the other apostles, “ When they heard that, they were cut to the heart, and took coun- sel to slay them.” The arrow of conviction, where it fails to bring the sinner bleeding to Christ, saying, “What must I do to be saved?” seldom fails to exas- pPerate his natural enmity, so as to rouse his violent opposition to Christ and his cause; imsomuch that when at any time we see a man breathing out vio- lence and threatenings against the ministers or people of God, we are ready to think that at one time that sinner must have had an arrow sticking fast in his conscience, and that he is uneasy, and restless, and wretched within, in consequence of its rankling and festering sore. And that Paul had experienced some such convictions, appears, I think, from the language of our Lord, when he said to him, “It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks,’—it is as if he had been pricked in his heart, and as if he was goaded on to violence and bloodshed by convictions which he was determined to kick against and resist, in so far as they tended to subdue his haughty spirit to the faith and obedience of the Gospel,—just as king Saul’s per- secution of David was stimulated by the secret con- sciousness of his own guilt, and a lurking suspicion that Dayid was the Lord’s anointed. 292 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. II. If we now consider the circumstances which accompanied, and the means which effected his con- version, we shall find that, while it was brought about in a miraculous way, it was the result of the truth which was made known to him by the vision and the voice of the Saviour, and which was carried home to his heart by demonstration of the Spirit and by power from on high. It is said, that “as he jour- neyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: and he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?” The mira- culous accompaniments of his conversion, were the shining light—a “light above the brightness of the sun’—the supernatural voice, and the sudden inflic- tion of blindness, which was afterwards miraculously cured, when there “fell from his eyes as it had been scales ;” but while these and similar circumstances were useful as subordinate means, in the way of arresting his attention, and impressing his conscience, and affording evidence for the truth,—it was the truth itself{—the simple truth as it is in Jesus, which effect- ed the conversion of Paul; and herein it resembles the ease of every other sinner. That truth was presented to him in three distinct ways -—1. It was embodied, as it were, and exhibited in the vision of Christ. And that you may under- stand the suitableness of this manifestation, and what a flood of light it was fitted to pour into his mind, I request you to remember, that as Saul did not at that time believe in Jesus, he must have regarded him as PAUL. 2938 an impostor, who had been justly condemned and put to death ; and that his unbelief, which had probably been founded on the extreme humiliation of Christ, when he appeared as a “ man of sorrows and acquaint- ed with grief,” was doubtless confirmed by his death and burial, when his enemies seemed to have triumphed over him. And what, then, could be better fitted to undeceive him—to convince him of his former error, and to unfold to him the glorious truth—than the personal appearance of the same Man of sorrows, after he had been crucified, in the brightness of his resur- rection glory, and in the dignity of his exaltation ? "The mere appearance of the Saviour in such a form contained in it the whole Gospel; it proved as well as exhibited the truth; it showed that he had risen from the dead—that he had ascended up on high— that he had been exalted by the right hand of God, and if exalted, then he was what he professed to be —the Son of God, the Christ, the Messiah that had been promised to the fathers; nay, that he had finished the work which the Father had given him to do—that his work had been accepted, and his reward earned,—insomuch, that now “all power was given to him in heaven and on earth ;” and from the cross he had passed to the throne! All this must have flashed at once on the mind of Saul, as soon as he was made acquainted with the Person who spake to him from amidst that shining light! 2. While the truth was embodied and exhibited in | the vision of Christ, it was farther explained by his yoicr. We find no formal discourse, no full expo- 294 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. sition, no systematic statement of the truth, but a few intimations, which, when combined with what he then witnessed, and what he afterwards learned, were enough to produce in his mind the faith which is unto salvation. When he said, “ Who art thou, Lord ?” the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest : it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. And he, trembling and astonished, said, Lord, what wilt thou have me todo? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do.” When the voice asked him, “ Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?” he must have had some indistinct impression that it was Jesus who spoke to him, for he knew in his conscience that he was persecuting his disciples, and the miraculous vision convinced him that he was in the Divine presence, for he called him Lorn; but when, in answer to his question, “‘ Who art thou?” he received that express — declaration, “Iam Jesus,” or as it is in the 22d chapter, “ Tam Jesus of Nazareth,’—oh! what deep convic- tions and emotions must, at that instant, have rushed into his soul! If Jesus was indeed alive ; if he had really risen from the dead ; if he had ascended into heaven ; and if he now stood in his immediate pre- | sence,—then Saul must have felt, with all the quick- ness and certainty of intuition, that, in opposing the Gospel, he was fighting against God ; and no wonder that he lay on the earth “ trembling and astonished,” when he knew that the same Jesus who was crucified in weakness had been raised in power, and had now come down,—might it not be to judge and destroy ? PAUL. 298 There was, indeed, no word of threatening, but a point- ed question, a touching expostulation, — demanding the reason of his present conduct, in such a way, as must have awakened his conscience to veprove him of sin. ‘That he felt the reproof, and was alarmed on account of his guilt and danger, appears from his “ trembling ;” but fear is not faith ; remorse is not repentance ; nor is there sufficient power in mere terror to effect the conversion of the heart. The heart is turned by the attraction of the Saviour’s love ; and if, on the one hand, the words of Christ served to impress his mind with a very awful sense of his guilt, seeing that they represented his persecution of the Church as equivalent to the persecution of Christ himself; they were also fitted, on the other hand, to convey to his mind a very vivid idea of the tender- ness of his compassion, and the riches of his grace. For when the Saviour said, “ I am Jesus whom thou persecutest,” what a discovery was made of his love to his own people! Saul was not consciously perse- cuting Christ, he was only pursuing his poor follow- ers ; he was in quest of certain men and women at Damascus, that he might bring them bound to Jeru- salem ; but when Jesus met him by the way, he did not say to him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou them, but—Why persecutest thou mr,—intimating there- by that he identifies himself with his people,—that in all their affliction he is afflicted, that they were “members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones,” —that if any one member suffered, the Head sym- pathized and suffered too, according to his own 296 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. language in another place: “ Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye did it unto me!” But full as it was of love for his people, this language might have only terrified the trembling persecutor, and driven him to the verge of despair, had there been no manifestation of tenderness and com- passion to himself: he might have thought, if, in pur- suing these men and women, I have been persecuting Christ, the Lord of Glory, there is no hope for me ; but immediately Jesus drops a word of kindness which was as a cordial to his sinking spirit ; his very expos- tulation breathes a spirit of tenderness, and shows that the persecutor had a place in the Saviour’s heart,—for mark the gracious words, “ It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks :” it is hard—not for me, whom thou persecutest,—not for my poor followers, the men and women whom thou art haling to prison; but, “ it as hard for THEE.” Oh! then, the Saviour had a sym- pathy even for this sinner; the Prince of peace was concerned for this persecutor, and spake of the hard- ship—the injury he was doing to himself; and how must this tenderness have touched his heart, at a time when he was self-convicted, and self-condemned, especially if, by “kicking against the pricks,” he un- derstood the Lord to mean his resisting the convic- tions of his own conscience, and setting himself in opposition to the truths which he had now been taught. By such means he was at once convinced of his sin and danger, and satisfied of the truth of the Gospel, and instructed in the relation which Christ bears to his people, and the compassion which he felt for him- % PAUL. 297 self; and to these means he refers afterwards as having been instrumental in God’s hand in bringing him to a Knowledge of the truth: “I certify you, brethren, that the Gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.” 3. While Saul was first brought to the knowledge and belief of the truth, by the vision and voice of the Saviour himself, God was pleased, even in this re- markable case, to put honour on his own ordinance, by employing the ministry of Ananias to instruct and confirm him in the faith: (ver. 6)—“ The Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do.” (Ver. 10)—“ And there was a certain disciple, named Ananias, and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias! And he said, Behold, Iam here, Lord. And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and inquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth, and hath seen in a vision a man named Ananias coming in, and putting his hand on him, that he might re- ceive his sight. Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem: and here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name. But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the chil- dren of Israel: for I will show him how great things he must suffer for my name’s sake. And Ananias U 298 - TLLUSTRATIVE CASES. went his way, and entered into the house ; and putting his hands on him, said, Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost. And im- mediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales : and he received sight forthwith, and arose, and was baptized.” The words of Ananias, and his very mission to him at such a time, must have enlarged his views, and strengthened. his belief of the truth ; for he had been taught to expect such a visit, from one who should tell him what he ought to do; and when he came, and spoke to him of Jesus who had appeared to him by the way, and wrought a miraculous cure of his blind- ness, and imparted to him the gift of the Holy Ghost, and accosted him as a brother, and exhorted him to “arise, and be baptized, and wash away his sins, calling on the name of the Lord,’—he could not fail to regard these events as at once a signal proof of divine interposition, and a manifest fulfilment of Christ’s pro- mise ; and—what was much better fitted at once to subdue and comfort him—as so many precious tokens of the Saviour’s care and kindness for himself indi- vidually, such as might well awaken the liveliest gratitude, and afford a ground of confidence and hope. For mark the minute knowledge, the personal kind- ness, the pastoral care of the Lord Jesus Christ,—he keeps his eye on this spirit-stricken penitent as he enters into the crowded city ; he marks the street, he sineles out the very house in which he takes up his -_ “La ~~) PAUL. 299 abode, and comes to another disciple, whom he also names, and says, Go, for behold he prayeth ! By these means,—by the vision of Christ, by the words he spake, and by the ministry of Ananias,—the truth was presented, along with its appropriate evi- dence, to the mind of Saul; but it is of importance to observe, especially with a view to account for his being immediately employed in the work of preaching the Gospel, that as soon as he was convinced of Jesus being the Messiah, al/ his Old Testament knowledge became at once available,—he had now obtained pos~ session of the key which unlocks that storehouse of typical and prophetic instruction; and his previous familiarity with the writings of Moses and the pro- phets must have qualified him, in no ordinary degree, for understanding, and expounding, and vindicating the Gospel, as soon as he was brought to believe that “ the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” But neither the vision nor the voice of Christ,— neither the ministry of Ananias, nor Saul’s familiar acquaintance with the writings of Moses and the pro- phets, would have availed for effecting his conversion, without the grace of the Holy Spirit. We read that he received the Holy Ghost; and if this is to be un- derstood of his supernatural gifts, it is equally certain he must have received his spiritual grace ; for he him- self testifies,“ By the grace of God I am what I am.” “ It pleased God to reveal his Son in me.” “God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined into our hearts, giving us the light of the know- _ ledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” 300 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. III. If we now inquire into the nature of this great change, or wherein it properly consisted, and the practical results in which it terminated, we shall find that his whole conversion hinged on one point,—it de- pended on his believing that “ Jesus was the Christ.” A single thought is often the key to a great discovery, and so a single event may be the occasion of a total revolution in the whole opinions, and feelings, and habits of aman. Thus it was with Paul. The single thought that now took possession of his mind, and threw a clear and steady light on the whole scheme of revealed truth, was, that Jesus was the Christ of God ; and the single event that carried home to his heart a conviction which revolutionised his whole creed, and character, and conduct, was the personal appearance of Jesus, once crucified, but now exalted, as he journeyed towards Damascus. He saw Jesus— Jesus was then alive; he saw Jesus shining in light above the brightness of the sun: Jesus was then glorified, and if glorified, his work was accepted, his Gospel true, his authority divine, his power almighty, and that one thought was enough to convert the Pharisee into a penitent, the persecutor into a preacher, the Jewish bigot into a Christian philanthropist. The change was sudden, indeed, but it was also complete ; for Christ was above, and the Spirit within him. From that hour he became a “ new creature: old things passed away ; all things became new.” Oh! it is deeply instructive to mark the contrast, in every point of view in which it can be contemplated, betwixt his former and his future character. His PAUL. — «©8301 life was now turned, as it were, into a new channel. And if his change was sudden, it was also permanent. He had now new views—new views of himself: “T was alive without the law once; but when the com- mandment came, sin revived and I died.” Once he was a Pharisee, believing himself to be righteous, and de- Spising others,—now he is a penitent, confessing himself to be the “chief of sinners,” and “less than the least of all saints ;’—once he was built up in the fond conceit of his own worth,—now he accounts it but as filthy rags: “ Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more: circum- cised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews ; as touching the law, a Pharisee.” “But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea, doubtless, and [ count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom [ have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, and be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith.” He had new views of God ; he now saw “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ ;’—new views of the law ; he saw it now in its true character, as a ministration of death, a covenant gendering to bondage, a schoolmaster to bring him to Christ ;—he had new views of the Gospel, as God’s truth,—of Jesus, as God’s Christ,—of his Church, as 302 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. God's people,—of the Jews, and their fearful guilt,— of the Gentiles, and their predicted privileges ; and his views being thus changed, his affections and aims, his pursuits and pleasures, his habits and his hopes were all alike new,—insomuch, that the bigoted Jew be- came the universal philanthropist, exclaiming, “ Is he the God of the Jews only? is he not also of the Gentiles ?” and the fierce persecutor became the fer- vent preacher, exclaiming, “‘ The weapons of our war- fare are not carnal, but spiritual, and mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds ;” and he who breathed out “threatenings and slaughter, and was exceedingly mad, against the people of God,” devoted his life to their service, taking upon him “ the care of all the churches,” “making himself all things to all men, if possibly he might gain some ;” and nothing moved by peril and persecution, nor “ counting his life dear unto himself, that he might finish his course with joy, and fulfil the ministry which he had received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the Gospel of the grace of God.” Need I dwell on the moral and spiritual fruits of his conversion? Read his matchless epistles, study the simple but sublime narrative of his life, and see how brightly and how steadily the fire of divine love, which was first kindled in his breast: on his way to Damascus, burned there, and how it continued to brighten, and to burn more strongly in the face of all obloquy, and opposition, and danger, till his warfare was ended, and his soul was joined to the kindred society of seraphic spirits in the sanctuary above. PAUL. 303 And let those especially who declaim against conver- sion as a fanatical or enthusiastic dream, and suspect it the more if it be suddenly wrought, behold in the life of Paul, the reality and the practical frutis of this great change; for the new lfe which he led flowed from his new birth on the way to Damascus ; this was the fountain,—that was the pure and fertiliz- ing stream. His conduct, indeed, had been decent and regular, and in many respects exemplary before ; but still his life was changed as well as his heart ; it was regulated by new principles, and conversant with other objects, and devoted to higher and better ends,— insomuch, that now he could say, “ The life which I live in the flesh, I live by the faith of Christ, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” Many practical lessons might be deduced from this case,—as that, 1. A man may be learned, decent, and exemplary in many things, and yet be destitute of spiritual life, so as to require, not less than the irreligious and im- moral, to be converted and renewed. 2. A form of godliness, where its power is absent, is a grievous snare to the soul.. 3. A zeal for God may exist which is not according to knowledge, and a man may be sin- cere in following a course which is leading him down to the chambers of death. 4. Ignorance of the Gos- pel, combined with the form of religion, and a decent moral life, is often observed to issue in inveterate opposition to Christ and his cause, especially where the conscience is weary and restless, by reason of its unappeased convictions. 5. The one truth, that 304 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. ““ Jesus is the Christ,” is sufficient, when it is really believed, at once to lay a solid ground of hope for the sinner, and to change him into a new man. 6. Faith worketh by love, so as to constrain the believer no longer to live unto himself, but unto Him that died for him, and that rose again ; and prompts him to make known to others the truth which has brought peace and comfort to his own soul. 7. The conversion of Paul is a striking evidence, and the life of Paul is a striking illustration, of the power of truth.* * H. More. Lord Lyttleton. THE ETHIOPIAN TREASURER. 305 CHAPTER IV. THE ETHIOPIAN TREASURER. Acts viii. 26-40. Tue case of the Ethiopian Treasurer affords a beau- tiful example of the way in which an ignorant, but sincere and devout inquirer, is often led, under the guidance of the Spirit of God, and notwithstanding many unfavourable circumstances in his condition, to a clear and saving knowledge of the truth as it is in Jesus. It belongs to a different class of cases from that to which the Philippian Gaoler, the Dying Male- factor, and Saul the Persecutor, are to be referred ; since these memorable characters, while they differed from each other in many respects, agreed in this, that each of the three was chargeable with some specific erime of a very aggravated nature,—the Gaoler with intentional suicide, the Malefactor with robbery, and Saul with persecution and bloodshed,—while nothing is recorded of the Ethiopian that is criminal, and much that is creditable to his character—his main defect being his ignorance of divine truth, and even that he was devoutly seeking to remove. His experience, therefore, is fitted to illustrate the case of such as have * 306 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. long been seeking the truth, but are still “ walking in darkness and having no light ;” and it cannot fail, when rightly understood, and duly considered, to im- part to them a very large measure both of instruction | and encouragement. I. In his previous state there were many unfayour- able circumstances which might seem to render his conversion a very difficult undertaking, while there were, at the same time, some very hopeful symptoms. Among the unfavourable circumstances which might seem to present an obstacle to his conversion, and which probably retarded his progress in acquiring a know- ledge of the truth, I may mention his birth and resi- dence in Ethiopia—a land of heathen darkness—at a great distance, probably not less than one thousand miles, from Jerusalem, the seat of the true religion ;— his worldly wealth, which is often a snare to the soul, for “ how hardly, says our Lord himself, shall a rich man enter into the kingdom of God ;” and again, “I say unto you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God ;” for not only the cares of the world, but the deceitfulness of riches also, and other lusts, choke the Word and render it unfruitful ;—and his elevated rank and extensive injluence, as “an eunuch of great authority under Candace, queen of the Ethiopians : he belonged to a class of men who exercised almost unlimited power in some of the Eastern nations, and who were notoriously addicted to intrigue and the other arts of courtly ambition; and this might be a bar in the way of his spiritual progress,—for “ ye see . THE ETHIOPIAN TREASURER. 307 { your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called ; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise, and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty, and base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen; yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are, that no flesh should glory in his presence.” Tt is manifest that these, or some other circumstances of a like nature in his condition, had exerted an inju- rious influence over him, and had retarded his progress in the acquisition of religious knowledge ; for he was, as we shall immediately see, lamentably ignorant, not- withstanding all the efforts he had made ; and, looking on him, as he returned in his chariot to his native land, we might be ready, in a spirit of hopelessness, to exclaim, “ Can this Ethiopian change his skin Q” But while many circumstances in his outward con- dition were unfavourable, we cannot read the narra- tive without discovering some hopeful symptoms in the state of his mind. For, while he was by birth and residence an Ethiopian Gentile, he was, notwith- standing, both in his creed and in his profession, a proselyte to the Jewish faith, and a believer in the one only, the living and the true God. Although surrounded by the forms of polytheistic superstition, and living in a land of gross spiritual darkness, he had in some way, not described, become acquainted, with the revelation of divine truth in the Old Tes- tament Scriptures, and his eye had been opened to 308 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. discern the true light, so far as to satisfy him that it was the light of heaven. Thus much is implied in the fact that “ he had come to Jerusalem to worship,” and that on his return he was engaged in reading the Old Testament Scriptures. And this instance affords an exemplification and proof of a very delightful truth,—I mean the extensive influence which was exerted by the Jewish dispensation on the surrounding nations.* While it was in some respects limited and local, as being specially designed for the children of Israel, and established in the land of Judea, it was nevertheless fitted to instruct other nations in the grand principles of religious truth, and all the great nations of antiquity were successively brought into such near contact and such familiar intercourse with the Jews as could not fail to impart to many a thinking mind amongst them the knowledge of the one living and true God. In the earlier part of their history, the Jews were connected with the Egyptians, who. were the wisest, the Canaanites, who were the most warlike, and the Phcenicians, the most commercial of these nations: and ata later period, partly by their long captivity, partly by their dispersion and their residence in almost every city, they were intermingled with the Assyrians, the Persians, the Greeks, and the Romans,—insomuch, that not only was the Old Testament translated into Greek for the use of the Hellenic Jews, but heathenism itself derived from it many useful hints as well as the materials of many a fable, as is clear in the case of Zoroaster and others. * Dr Graves on Pentateuch, p. 336-351. THE ETHIOPIAN TREASURER. ‘309 _ And as the Old Testament dispensation was fitted to exert such an influence over the surrounding nations, ” so provision was made for the admission of proselytes to some, at least, of the privileges and services of the Jewish Church. These proselytes have been divided into two classes, called respectively the proselytes of righteousness and the proselytes of the gate; and these were in the habit of coming up to Jerusalem at the stated festivals as well as the Jews that were scattered abroad,—of whom it is said, that on the day of Pentecost, which occurred after the crucifixion of the Saviour, there were then assembled, “ Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Meso- potamia, and in Judea, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, in Egypt and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes, Cretes, and Arabians,” speaking different languages, but worshipping the same God. The Ethiopian Treasurer was one of these ; and his coming out of Ethiopia, and repairing to Jerusalem, was a virtual declaration that his mind could not rest in the popular mythology of his own country,—that he saw the error of polytheism, and admitted the cardinal principle of the Divine unity,— and was in itself asolemn and public testimony to the supremacy of the God of Israel. While he was, both by conviction and profession, a believer in the one only, the living and the true God, and a proselyte to the Jewish faith, he was also a devout worshipper, and an attendant on the services of the Jewish Church. It is said of him, that “ he 510 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. had come to Jerusalem to worship,’-—not to inquire — merely, still less to speculate or dispute, but to engage — in the solemn exercises of public religious worship, at one of the greatest festivals of the Jewish Church. It is important to mark this, for it shows that he was — already imbued with a spirit of prayer, a hopeful — symptom in any case, and one of the first in all,—for of Paul, Jesus said to Ananias, “ Behold, he prayeth,” — and of Lydia, that “ she attended the apostle’s mi- nistry by the water side, where prayer was wont to be — made,” ninth hour, the angel of the Lord appeared to him.” and of Cornelius, that “as he prayed at the — True prayer is never lost,—the cry of an earnest spirit — comes in unto God in his holy temple,—and in due time will bring down an answer in peace. But “ who- so cometh unto God must believe that he is, and that he is the rewarder of them that diligently seek him ;” and what encouragement, then, had this Ethiopian to pray, or what was the ground and warrant of his faith ? He was not by birth a Jew,—he was “an alien from the commonwealth of Israel, and a stranger to the covenants of promise,’ —he had no natural or civil con- nection with those “to whom,” and as they themselves supposed, to them alone “‘ pertained the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises.” He was a foreigner, an African, a negro, a Gentile, an eunuch,—and how, then, could he hope to associate himself with the people of God, and dare to approach his temple? Oh, mark how a simple faith, and a~ devout spirit, and an earnest mind, will surmount a THE ETHIOPIAN TREASURER. 511 - thousand difficulties, and bring a sinner into the way of peace. He had a warrant for his faith and hope,— a warrant in the Old Testament Scriptures, which was - enough to embolden him to draw nigh. For, besides the prayer which was uttered at the dedication of Solomon’s Temple, in the very book of the Prophet Isaiah (lvi. 3), which he read in his chariot, he found this precious word of promise, —“ Neither let the son of the stranger, that hath jomed himself to the Lord, speak, saying, The Lord hath utterly separated me from his people: neither let the eunuch say, Behold, Iam a dry tree. For thus saith the Lord unto the eunuchs that keep my Sabbaths, and choose the things that please me, and take hold of my covenant; even unto them will I give in mine house and within my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters: I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off. Also the sons of the stran- ger, that join themselves to the Lord, to serve him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be his servants, every one that keepeth the Sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant ; even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joy- ful in my house of prayer: their burnt-offermgs and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar ; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people.” This man was both an eunuch and a stranger ; and being such, he knew that this pro- mise comprehended him ; and, in the faith of it, he came to Jerusalem, and worshipped the God of Israel there. 312 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. Besides a spirit of prayer, he had also a spirit of diligent inquiry, combined with that humility and- teachableness which may be justly regarded as the most hopeful symptoms of a great and blessed change. That he had an inquiring and docile mind, appears not only from his going up from Ethiopia to Jerusalem, a distance of about a thousand miles, passing from Africa.to Asia, and leaving for a time the cares of his honourable and responsible office, that he might be present at the Feast of Pentecost,—but still more strikingly from the manner in which he was occupied on his return from Jerusalem : instead of casting aside his religion when the festival was over, or allowing his mind to be diverted to other objects, “he sat in his chariot reading the prophet Isaiah.” Probably he read aloud for the benefit of his attendants; at all events he had his Bible in his hand, and was engaged in reading its sacred contents ; so that he had himself procured a copy of the Scriptures for his own use,— a roll which must have been written by himself, or obtained at great expense,—and which he carried with him as his companion by the way. But even this is not so remarkable, as the humility and teach- ableness with which he received Philip, a stranger, and one who, perhaps, was neither in point of dress or manners likely to attract the regard of a man of rank and station. Yet, when he joined himself to the chariot, and ventured to ask the question, “ Un- derstandest thou what thou readest?” instead of spurn- ing the question, he replied with child-like humility, ‘* How can I, except some man should guide me,’— a ee P r ee, Seen Dees \ |! THE ETHIOPIAN TREASURER. 313 and he requested Philip that ‘he would come up and sit with him.” While there were several hopeful symptoms in this state of mind, it is manifest that he was still extremely agnorant of the truth. We was not only destitute of all knowledge of Christ and the Gospel, but he had no correct apprehension of the spiritual meaning of the Old Testament in which he professed to believe, and which, in the midst of much remaining darkness, he still continued to read. For when, after reading a part of the 53d chapter of Isaiah, he put the question, “| pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this ? of himself, or of some other man ?’—his language, if it indicate a spirit of sincere inquiry, betrays also a lamentable degree of ignorance, and makes it manifest that he was still in a condition like that of the Jews themselves, of whom it is said by the apostle, “ Their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the Old Testament ; which vail is done away in Christ. But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart.” His language seems to indicate that he had no acquaintance with the spiritual import of the Old Testament, and that, if he was attached to the Jewish faith, he adhered to it chiefly as a sublime system of religion which taught his duty to the one living and true God, but without any intelligent ap-~ prehension of its connection with the scheme of grace and redemption, or the work of Messiah who had been promised to the fathers. II. If we now consider the manner in which he was x 314 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. brought to a saving knowledge of the truth, we shail find an interesting and encouraging exemplification of the care with which God provides for the instruction of a sincere inquirer, although he may be placed in circumstances apparently the most unpromising. The Ethiopian had just been at Jerusalem,—where the mighty moral movement had already begun which was destined to revolutionize the world. He had been at Jerusalem, where Emmanuel, God manifest in the flesh, had preached, and suffered, and died, and risen again from the dead. And he had been at Jerusalem at the Feast of Pentecost, when the promise of the Father was fulfilled by the descent of the Holy Spirit in the miraculous gift of tongues; and three thousand souls were converted in a single day. It cannot be sup- posed that a stranger of rank and influence, possessing, as he no doubt did, many facilities of intercourse with the leading men at Jerusalem, could fail to hear, during his sojourn in that city, the numerous reports about Jesus which were then circulating in the country, and especially in the capitol, of Judea. Itis evident, how- ever, from the narrative before us, that he had left Jerusalem without acquiring a knowledge of the truth asit is in Jesus. He had been in the holy city where Christ himself had ministered, and where his apostles were now proclaiming the Gospel of the kingdom, and had left it, perhaps for ever,—and now he was on his way back again to that land of spiritual darkness, where he could have no reasonable prospect of enjoying such opportunities of grace as Jerusalem afforded. But God himself had given him a spirit of inquiry and a THE ETHIOPIAN TREASURER. ale spirit of prayer; and although his journey to Jerusalem had not led him to find what he was seeking, God, whose ways are not as man’s ways, sent it to him in the midst of a desert, when his back was turned on Jerusalem, and he was returning to a land of darkness. God met him in the desert of Gaza, and he was con- verted there! And there is much in the narrative that is fitted to impress our minds with a sense of the lively interest and the tender solicitude with which God regards and provides for the instruction of a single soul. First of all, there is the ministry of an angel,—‘“ The angel of the Lord spake unto Philip,’ — “for there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth ;” “ and are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister to them that are the heirs of salvation.” 2d, There is the ministry of an evangelist—specially commissioned to attend to this individual ; and it is very remarkable, as evincing God's watchful solicitude for a single soul, that Philip was commanded to leave his work at Jerusalem and in the villages of Samaria, and to go unto the desert, at a time when multitudes were attending his ministry, and when his labours there appeared to be remarkably blessed, for it is said,— Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them. And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did; and there was great joy in that city.” And afterwards “ they returned to Jeru- salem, and preached the Gospel in many cities of the Samaritans.” Yet, for the sake of one humble in- 316 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. quirer, who had come to Jerusalem to worship, and was returning through the desert to a land of dark- ness—but reading his Bible by the way, an angel was sent from heaven; and Philip was taken away from the crowd who listened to him at Jerusalem and Samaria, that he might minister the Word of life to one benighted soul! And, lastly, the Spirit of God was there—in that dreary desert—watching over this prayerful man,—even that blessed Spirit who “ lead- eth the blind by a way that they know not, and mak- eth darkness light before them, and crooked things straight.” The Spirit directed Philip—“ Go near, and join thyself to this chariot.” The Spirit enabled him to speak a word in season,—and the Spirit gave the hearing ear and the understanding heart; and then, when the work was done, he withdrew the human agent to follow his Master's service in another place. Such was the agency employed for the in- struction of the Ethiopian eunuch. And can we consider it in connection with the circumstances which have been described, without regarding it as a very affecting proof of the solicitude with which God cares for every inquiring soul, and a most encouraging ful- filment of God’s promise,—“ Then shall ye know, if ye follow on to know the Lord ?” But while the ministry, both of an angel and an evangelist, and the agency of the Holy Spirit, are expressly declared to have been employed on this occasion, you will observe, that the means by. which his conversion was effected, was simply the truth as it is in Jesus. And herein it resembles the conversion THE ETHIOPIAN TREASURER. 317 of every other sinner. Having mentioned that the _ place of the Scriptures which he read was the 53d chapter of Isaiah, the narrative adds (ver. 35), “Then Philip opened his mouth and began at the same Scrip- ture, and preached unto him Jesus.” Tt were easy to show, by an analysis of that chapter, that it afforded ample materials for a full exposition of the Gospel ; for it is an eminent prediction of Christ—a prediction so full, indeed, and yet so minute and circumstantial, that the enemies of our faith have declared that it must be regarded as a history rather than as a pro- phecy. It predicts almost every fact, and sets forth every doctrine connected with the person, the offices, and the work of Christ, as—the unbelief of the Jews, ver. 1; the reason of that unbelief, ver. 2 ; the suffer- ings and rejection of Christ, ver. 3; the cause of his sufferings, ver. 4, 5, 6; the patience of the Sufferer, ver. 7; the condemnation and death of Christ, ver. 8 ; his burial, ver. 9; his resurrection, ver. 10; his re- ward, ver. 11; and the reason of his reward and the end of his death, ver. 12. All this was predicted by the prophet ; and the apostle could tell how minutely it was fulfilled in the person and history of Jesus. III. In regard to the nature of the change which was then wrought on the Ethiopian, and the practi- eal results which flowed from it, I apprehend that it properly consisted in his believing that “ Jesus 2s the Christ,’ —in. so believing this, as that he received and embraced him in all the fulness of his offices as the Lord’s Anointed. For, on asking to be baptized—a request which plainly implies that he had been in- 518 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. — _ structed in the nature and emblematic meaning of that sacred rite, and also felt that he needed to “ wash away his sins’—Philip. said, “‘ If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest ;” and he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” This confession of faith, short and simple as it is, contains the sum and substance of all Gospel truth. The immediate effect of his faith was a request that he might be baptized ; and his baptism is at once a manifestation of his faith, and also a proof of his new obedience and submission to the authority of Christ. He was not ashamed to own, by this visible act, his attachment to Christ and the Gospel. Being baptized, “ he went on his way rejoicing,”— he felt that the Gospel was glad tidings of great joy; from the instant when he believed it, it became the joy and the rejoicing of his heart; and, doubtless, “the joy of the Lord was his strength,” fitting him for the right discharge of every commanded duty, and the patient endurance of every appointed trial,—so that he “could run in the way of his commandments, when God had enlarged his heart.” We learn from this interesting narrative, that God is no respecter of persons, but that men of every nation, and colour, and clime, may become partakers of his grace ;—that a long preparatory work often precedes a sinner’s conversion ;—that a conscientious and prayer- ful spirit is a hopeful symptom ;—that this may exist where as yet there is little light ;—that a sinner’s cir- cumstances, however unfavourable, are no bar to his progress, if only he seck and obtain the direction and THE ETHIOPIAN TREASURER. 319 blessing of God ;—that “the truth as it is in Jesus” is the simple means of conversion ;—that the Gospel is glad tidings, and no sooner is it believed than the sin- ner may “go on his way rejoicing,’ —for it 1s capable of imparting immediate peace and joy in believing ;— that abundance of privileges may fail in working that” change which may be brought about in more unfa- yourable circumstances, for the Ethiopian left Jeru- salem unconverted, and was converted in a desert ;— that a diligent attention to the means of grace, accom- panied with prayer, will sooner or later be crowned with a blessing ; and yet,—that an inquiring, prayer- ful, and exemplary man, may need to undergo a great spiritual change. 320 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. CHAPTER V. CORNELIUS. Acts x. Ar the period of our Lord’s advent, there existed amongst the Jews the same diversities of opinion and character as are found amongst ourselves at the present day, and the men to whom he preached were in very different states of preparation for the Gospel of the kingdom. There were Sadducees then, as there are sceptics now, who doubted or disbelieved the truth as it had been revealed by Moses and the prophets ; there were Pharisees then, as there are formalists now, who rested in the form, whilst they denied the power of godliness; there were Pilates, who asked, ““ What is truth ?” and Gallios, who “ cared for none of these things ;’—-but there were also not a few whose hearts the Lord had touched, and who waited, in faith and hope, for “ the consolation of Israel.” There were such men both among the Jews and Gentiles. Among the Jews we read of Zacharias, and his wife Eliza- beth, “ who were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord CORNELIUS. 33 blameless ;’-—and Mary, the mother of Jesus, whose song breathes the spirit of genuine piety, when she exclaimed, “ My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced inGod my Saviour ;’—and Simeon, of whom it is said, that “the same man was just and. devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him ;’—and Anna the pro- phetess, a widow of about four score and four years, who departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day, and spake of Christ to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem ;’—and Nathaniel, of whom our Lord him- self said, ‘ Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!” And among the Gentiles, we read of the Ethiopian who came up to Jerusalem to worship, and on his return read in his chariot the book of Isaiah the prophet ;—and of Cornelius, a Roman centurion, and a devout soldier who waited upon him,—“a devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, who gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway.” In these cases we have a most precious exemplifica- tion of the spiritual life which still existed in the bosom of the Jewish Church, and of the blessed fruits’ which had sprung from the faith of the Old Testa- ment; and it is delightful to discover such instances of genuine piety in the retired walks of private life, at a time when their national character had been sadly deteriorated, and the scribes, and rulers, and Pharisees had made the commandment of God of none effect by their traditions. There was still amongst them a blessed remnant—a peculiar people, who cherished the 322 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. faith, and walked in the footsteps of faithful Abra- ham. And it is deeply interesting to mark, that, as they were prepared, on the one hand, by their spiri- tual acquaintance with the truth as it had been revealed in the Old Testament, for the reception of any other revelation which God might be pleased to make ; so God was pleased to manifest the utmost care for them, and to give them the earliest and best opportunities of acquiring a knowledge of the truth as it is in Jesus,— thereby fulfilling the law of his spiritual administra- tion: “ To him that hath shall be given, and he shall have more abundantly ; while from him that hath not, shall be taken away that which he seemeth to have.” Of this we have a very remarkable instance in the narrative which relates to the experience of Cornelius, at the time when he was made acquainted with the full truth of the Gospel, and a change was wrought upon him, which cannot, I think, be considered as a case of conversion, for he was already a devout be- liever,—but as a case of advancement, or of transla- teon from the lower form ‘of the Jewish to the higher form of the Christian faith, but still in the same “school and under the same teacher. This will become apparent, if we consider, I. His state and character previous to the time when this change occurred. He was by birth a Gen- tile—by profession a soldier; but notwithstanding the disadvantages to which he was thus subjected, he had become a proselyte to the Jewish faith, and believed in and worshipped “the one only, the living and true God.” His character is thus described —“ a devout CORNELIUS. 323 man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway ;” and again, “a just man, and one that feareth God, and of good report among all the nations of the Jews.” Inced not dwell on the proof which these words afford of his being a believer in the Jew- ish religion, and a worshipper of the true God. Suf- fice it to say, that such language is never applied in Scripture to any idolater or heathen ; and that his was not a mere natural religion, appears from its being incidentally mentioned, that “at the ninth hour of the day, he was praying in his house,’—the hour of evening sacrifice among the Jews, when such as were not present at the temple prayed at home, as we read, “Peter and John went up together into the temple, at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour.” And as he conformed to the Jewish worship, so it is evi- dent that his prayers were addressed to the God of Israel, and not only so, but that they were accepted of him, for the angel said to him, “Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God,” whence we infer that he must have been a genuine believer, and a justified man, for “without faith it is impossible to please God ; for he that cometh to God, must believe that he is, and that he is the rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” He was acquainted, then, with God’s revealed truth, as it had been made known by Moses and the prophets, and had embraced it with a lively faith which led him to fast and pray, and to care for the religious instruction of his family,—and loving God, he loved his neighbour also, for he gave 324 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. ra much alms to the people; nay, it would seem that he was not altogether ignorant of the Gospel itself, although he had not been fully instructed or firmly established in the belief of its truth ; for when Peter came to him, he said, “The word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ (he is Lord of all): that word, ye know, which was published throughout all Judea, and began from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached.” We are to consider him, I apprehend, as a Gentile prose- lyte to the Jewish faith, who, without submitting to the rite of circumcision,—for we learn that he was uncircumcised, from the objection to Peter’s conduct, which was afterwards founded on this consideration, ——did nevertheless embrace the faith of the Jewish Church, and worship the God of Israel, being encour- aged, doubtless, by the gracious provision which had been made for the admission of strangers to a partici- pation in its privileges (2 Kings viii. 41; Isa. lvi. 6) ; and as a devout and conscientious man, who acted up to the light he had, and waited for more,—listening to the reports which had reached him of the miracles and preaching of Jesus, but without having yet arrived at a clear apprehension or certain belief of the Gos- pel. And on the whole, he may be regarded as a believer, in the same sense in which Abraham was a believer, or the cloud of witnesses mentioned in the 11th of the Hebrews, who “ all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and CORNELIUS. 825 > pilgrims on the earth ;” and being a believer, he was justified and accepted, as they were, by faith in God’s covenant promise; nay, as many were who, like himself, were not Jews, but sinners of the Gen- tiles,for there was a promise before the law was given, even the first promise, that “ the seed of the woman should bruise the serpent’s head ;” and that promise, with the accompanying rite of sacrifice which prefigured “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world,” afforded a sufficient object of faith, and a solid ground of hope, to many who had no natural connection with Abraham and his family. By this faith Melchizedek was justified, and Jethro the father- in-law of Moses, and Rahab before she had any inte- rest in Israel,—nay, Abraham himself, before he was circumcised ; for, says the apostle, ‘faith was reckon- ed to Abraham for righteousness. How was it then reckoned? when he was in circumcision, or in un- circumcision? Not in circumcision, but in uncircum- cision. And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised, that he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be not circum- cised, that righteousness might be imputed unto them also: and the father of circumcision to them who are not of the circumcision only, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham, which he had being yet uncircumcised.” Such seems to have been the state of Cornelius previous to the events which are recorded in the chapter before us ; but here a question may arise,—If he was:already a believer and 326 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES, a justified man, what necessity existed for any change such as is here described, and especially for the em- ployment of agency so various and so extraordinary as is said to have been put in motion for his instruction and improvement? Some have supposed, that had he died in his present state he must have perished,* —ifounding mainly on an expression which occurs in the following chapter, where Peter, rehearsing what had occurred, represents the angel as having said to Cornelius, “Send men to J oppa, and call for Simon, whose surname is Peter, who shall tell thee words, whereby thou and all thy house shall be saved.” Hence it has been inferred that he had not yet acquired a saving knowledge of divine truth, nor entered on a state of, acceptance with God; but I apprehend the expression admits of being understood in a sense which does not necessarily imply what is thus ascribed to it, while the whole description which. is given of his character seems very plainly to imply the reverse. t The centurion, we believe, was at that time in a state of transition from the Jewish to the Christian faith ; and the change which now occurred in his views ought to be regarded as his advancement from an im- perfect to a more perfect state, rather than as his first conversion to God. He underwent precisely the same change which was wrought on all the devout Jews who ‘looked for redemption in Jerusalem,” and “waited * “Cornelius had not, as yet, the knowledge of the Gospel of Jesus. le was not even a Jew. He was a Gentile Roman, but had turned from the pagan idolatries to pray to the true God. He was not, therefore, saved, Had he died in that state, he would not have had salvation.”’— Conversion. By Rev. J. K. Craig, Oxon, vol. ii. p. 256, t See Robert Haldane’s Evidences, vol. ii, p. 429. CORNELIUS. 327 for the consolation of Israel,” when having long ex- pected the promised Messiah, they were led to believe that Jesus was he. That God would send a deliverer, was the subject of their faith as Jews,—that “Jesus was the Christ,” became the subject of their faith as Christians. Before he knew Christ, and while as yet under the influence of prejudice, he was saying, ‘“ Can any good thing come out of Galilee?” Nathaniel was “an Israelite indeed, in whom was no guile;” but when Jesus spoke to him, and convinced him of his omniscient knowledge by a few simple words, he be- lieved and exclaimed, “ Rabbi! thou art the Son of God; thou art the king of Israel.” Just such was the change which was wrought on Cornelius, the devout Gentile believer; and it was needful that such a change should be effected, for two reasons,—one of which was personal to himself, the other of a more public nature. It was necessary for HIMSELF that he should now believe the truth as it is in Jesus: it was no longer true that God would send a deliverer—the Deliverer had already come; and from the time of his advent it became necessary to believe and acknow- ledge that “Jesus is the Christ.” Had he died before Christ’s advent, or even after his advent, but before he had any sufficient information on the subject, he might have been saved as Abraham was, and all the faithful children of Abraham were, by the faith of what God had promised to the fathers; but had he rejected Christ, or refused to believe in him, when he had been fully informed of all that he did and taught, his unbelief would have been fatal, not only because 328 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. it rejected the Saviour, but also because it indicated the absence of that spirit of faith in the true meaning — of the Old Testament itself, which, wherever it exist- ed, was invariably found to embrace the Gospel when it was first proclaimed. There was an affinity betwixt the faith of a spiritual Jew or proselyte, and the faith of the New Testament; in virtue of which, the one Jed on-to the other, and found in it, not a new creed, but the completion—the perfecting of the old one. ——But the events which are recorded in this chapter were not designed exclusively, nor, perhaps, chiefly, for the personal benefit of Cornelius and his family ; they were designed to subserve an end of the highest importance, and of a public nature, with reference to the Church at large,—to make it manifest that the “middle wall of partition,” which had long divided the Jews from the Gentiles, had been taken down,—that in Christ “there is neither Jew nor Greek, circum- cision nor uncircumcision, bond nor free, but Christ is all and in all,”—-and that the Christian Church was to be truly Catholic, as comprehensive of all nations and peoples and tongues,—the Gentiles being admitted on an equal footing with the Jews to a participation of its holiest privileges, and a share in its highest hopes. If. This leads me to consider the circumstances which accompanied, and the means which effected the change in the centurion’s views and profession, —when, from being a Jewish proselyte, he became a Christian convert. In the accompanying circumstan- ces, many of which were miraculous,-we have a beau- tiful example of the concurrence of various means CORNELIUS. 329 towards the accomplishment of one end, such as affords a most interesting illustration of the working of God’s providence. For one day at Cesarea, about 75 miles from Jerusalem, a vision appeared to Cor- nelius, instructing him to send messengers to Joppa, and to call for one Simon, whose surname was Peter. Next day, while the messengers were on their way, Peter went up to the house top to pray, about the sixth hour, and he had the vision, as it were, of a great sheet descending from heaven, and containing all, manner of beasts, accompanied with the command, “ Arise, Peter, kill and eat ;” and when he objected, saying, “Not so, Lord, for I have never eaten any thing common or unclean,” the voice answered, “What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common :” this was done thrice, and the vessel was received up again into heaven. And while Peter doubted in himself what this vision which he had seen should mean, the messengers arrived, and furnished, unconsciously, a key for its explanation; for their words seem imme- diately to have suggested to his mind the true mean- ing of the vision, as appears from his language, when he said to Cornelius and his friends, “ Ye know how - that it is an unlawful thing for a man that is a Jew to keep company or come unto one of another nation ; but God hath showed me that I should not call any man common or unclean.” And when, after he de- clared the Gospel, ‘the Holy Ghost fell on all them that heard the word, so that “they began to speak with tongues and magnify God,” the whole purpose of God in this series of visions was made clear,—even Y 330 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. that the Gentiles should be admitted, as well as the Jews, to the privileges and hopes of the Christian Church. All this was implied in the vision of the sheet which descended from heaven and contained all manner of four-footed beasts,—for the distinction betwixt clean and unclean animals had been purposely adopted as a mark of separation betwixt the Jews and the. Gentiles, as we learn from the law of Moses. ““T am the Lord your God, who have separated you from all other people. Ye shall therefore put differ- ence between clean beasts and unclean, and between unclean fowls and clean: and ye shall not make your souls abominable by beast, or by fowl, or by any man- ner of living thing that creepeth on the ground, which I have separated from you as unclean. And ye shall be holy unto me: for I the Lord am holy, and have severed you from other people, that ye should be mine.” So long as the distinction subsisted betwixt the clean and the unclean beasts and fowls, a wall of partition interposed to divide and separate the Gen- tile from the Jew; but when the sheet descended, — 3 containing all manner of beasts, and creeping things, and fowls, and Peter was commanded to kill and eat, —and when, in answer to his objection, that “he had never eaten any thing common or unclean,” he was told, “ What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common, —he was thereby significantly informed, not merely that the distinction of meats should now cease, but that the Old Testament dispensation was pass- ing away, and that the separation betwixt Jew and Gentile, which that distinction marked and tended to CORNELIUS. aa perpetuate, was now to be completely and for ever abolished. And this great lesson was taught by a series of successive events, all distinct and independent of each other, but concurring by a most marvellous coincidence to the accomplishment of the same end,— msomuch, that the apostle’s mind must have been as much impressed by the leadings of God’s providence as by the express declaration of his will, with the belief of the great catholic truth, that the Christian Church was to comprehend both Jew and Gentile, and that they were all “one in Christ.” While these circumstances accompanied, and were subservient to the change which was wrought on his views and sentiments, the means by which it was pro- | perly effected, was the truth, declared by the apostle, and applied by the Holy Spirit. The message which Peter delivered was, in all respects, suitable to his case. Tt contained (1.) an unequivocal recognition of Corne- fius, and other believing Gentiles, as belonging to the Church of God, and accepted of Him. “ Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons ; but in every nation he thatfeareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted of him.” In these words the apostle clearly intimates the delightful truth, that the Church of God is catholic, and comprehends all believers, of whatever country, colour, or clime,—a truth which the Jews and the apostles themselves were slow to entertain, and which probably had first been carried home to the mind of Peter by the memorable incidents recorded in the chapter before us. Peter was employed on that ocea- 3352 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. sion, and was the appointed agent in effecting a great change in the constitution of the Church, by the ad- mission of Gentiles to the privilege of baptism ; so that, were the words of our Lord, when he said, “Thou art Peter, and on this rock will I build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against her,” considered as having some reference to the per- son, as-well as to the confession, of that apostle, we should find a sufficient fulfilment of the prediction in the fact, that Peter was actually employed to found the Caruotic Church, and had thus a distinguished pre-eminence, although he could claim no primacy over the rest of the apostles. But however this may be, it is clear that Peter now understood and declared the great truth, that the middle wall of partition be- twixt Jews and Gentiles was removed, and that, “in every nation he that feareth God, and worketh righ- teousness, 1s accepted of him.” His words, however, on this memorable occasion have been grievously perverted ; and several false in- ferences have been drawn from them. Some, con- sidering Cornelius as a Gentile, and founding on his declared acceptance with God, have inferred the suffi- ciency of mere natural religion, and the indifferency, or non-importance, of all varieties of creeds, provided only they who profess them be sincere. This mon- strous heresy, which prevails so extensively in the world, and which has sometimes been presented, with the fascinations of poetry, to the public mind,— “ For forms of faith let senseless bigots fight, His faith cannot be wrong, whose life is in the right,’ — CORNELIUS. 333 is utterly repudiated by every Christian mind which really believes the truth, and appreciates the value of the Gospel. The Church of England does not hesitate to say, in her Articles, “ that they are to be held ac- cursed who presume to say, that every man shall be saved by the law or sect which he professeth, so that he be diligent to frame his life according to that law, and the light of nature ;’ and, most assuredly, the sentiment which is here so pointedly denounced, de- rives no support or countenance from the case of Cor- nelius. Jor the religion of Cornelius was not derived solely, nor even chiefly, from the volume of Nature : it was drawn from the revelation of God’s truth in the Old Testament Scriptures, with which he had be- come acquainted during his residence in Palestine, and which had already converted him from the Gentile to the Jewish faith ; and, so far from representing the knowledge and belief of the truth as a matter of in- difference, the narrative shows with what solicitude and care God provided for the farther instruction of Cornelius, with a view to his advancement, when he vouchsafed a series of supernatural visions, and em- ployed the ministry of Peter, and granted the gift of the Holy Ghost, in order that the Jewish proselyte might become a Christian convert—a baptized profes- sor of the Gospel. When, therefore, the apostle says, “Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons ; but in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted of him,” he did not mean to intimate that the privileges of salvation were extended indiscriminately to all men, without 334 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. reference to their religious creed, as if they might be safe under any form of natural religion, while they were ignorant of the Gospel; but simply that these privileges, and the knowledge and faith with which they are inseparably connected, were not confined to the nation of the Jews, but extended to true converts from every nation under heaven. | Stilldess does the narrative afford any countenance to another erroneous opinion which it has sometimes been employed to support,—the opinion, that a moral fife will render a man acceptable to God, independ- ently of religion ; and that it matters little whether he be religious or no, provided only his conduct be decent and exemplary. For whatever virtues are here ascribed to Cornelius—his justice, his charity, and his social respectability,—were the fruits of religious prin- ciple, and inseparably combined with the fear of God, and the faith of divine truth, and the habit of prayer ; so that those men of mere morality, who, from taste or education, or the influence of worldly prudence, or the example of others, maintain a decent exterior, while they are utterly irreligious, and live without prayer and without God in the world, cannot justly found any hope of acceptance on the case of Cornelius, of whom it is said, that he was a devout, or godly man, ‘“ and one that feared God with all his house, and gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway.” Nor does this narrative afford any countenance to the legal or self-righteous doctrine, which represents the graces and virtues of a man’s character as the ae oe . eee ES Sees CORNELIUS. 305 ground of his acceptance with God. It is true that the angel refers to the devotion, and the alms, and the prayers of Cornelius, and declares “ that they had come up for a memorial before God,”—just as we learn that, at the last day, the Judge will refer to the con duct of his believing people in feeding the hungry, and clothing the naked, as the proper fruit and evi- dence of their faith and love ; but the sole ground of their acceptance is the redemption of Christ ; and surely no one can imagine, that the good qualities which are here ascribed to Cornelius, were the meri- torious cause of his salvation, when Peter was sent to speak to him as a sinner, and to tell him that, “through Christ's name, whosoever believeth in him shall re- ceive remission of sins.” The prayers and the alms of Cornelius are not referred to as being the grounds of his pardon—for that rested solely on the redemp- tion of Christ—but as being the evidences of his faith in the promisé of a Saviour ; a faith which God gra- ciously rewarded by making known to him the fulfil- ment of that promise in the person of Christ. The message of Peter, while it contained an une- quivocal recognition of Cornelius, and other Gentile believers, as belonging to the Church of God, pre- sented also to his mind (2.) a summary of Gospel truth, accompanied with its appropriate evidence, with the view of convincing him that “ what God had promised to the fathers,” he had so fulfilled in the person of Christ. The Gospel properly consists in the doctrine of Christ, in his person, offices, work, and reward ; and all these points of Gospel truth are pre- 336 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. sented in the short, but comprehensive statement of the apostle. THe intimates the personal dignity of Christ —“ He is Lord of all;” his humiliation, as “ Jesus of Nazareth ;” his divine mission—for “ God sent the Word unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ ;’ his divine wnction with the Holy Ghost, whereby he became the Christ, the Lord’s Anointed — for “ God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost, and with power ; his holy life, and beneficent ministry —“ who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil, for God was with him ;” his miraculous power—* for we are witnesses of all things which he did, both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem ;” his igno- minious and painful death—“ whom they slew, and hanged on a tree;” his resurrection from the dead, and manifestation to his disciples—“* Him God raised up the third day, and showed him openly, not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before of God ; even to us, who did eat and drink with him after he rose from the dead; his commission to the apostles —‘ He commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he who was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead ;” and, finally, the swum and substance of the Gospel—the same Gospel which had been preached beforehand to Abraham, but was now more fully unfolded—“ To him gave all the pro- phets witness, that through his name whosoever be- lieveth in him shall receive remission of sins.” Even this brief analysis, without any detailed exposition, of Peter’s address, may suffice to show how pregnant it is CORNELIUS. 337 with all Gospel truth, and how admirably suitable to the case of Cornelius. He was a devout man, a prose- lyte to the Jewish faith, and one that waited for the consolation of Israel. He had even heard—for the apostle speaks of him as “knowing ”—the Word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ ; but probably he had not had an opportunity of satisfying himself as to the truth of the Gospel, and was waiting, in a prayerful spirit, for farther Ba and clearer light. And while he waited and prayed, God sent hie message, and pre- pared the way for it by those visions, first to himself, and afterwards to Peter, which afford such an affect- ing proof of God’s solicitude and care for every humble inquirer. And the message was, in every respect, suited to his case; for it made known to him the meaning and substance of the Gospel, of which it con- tains two brief, but most comprehensive summaries— being ERoitiedat in the one, as God’s proclamation of peace through Jesus Christ (ver. 36) ; and, in the other, as a message which declares, “ that through his name, whosoever believeth in him shall receive remis- sion of sins ;’—and, secondly, it made known to him the evidence by which the truth, as it is in Jesus, is certified as of divine and infallible authority ; for he appeals to God’s testimony, who “ anointed him with the Holy Ghost,” and who was with him in his mighty works ;—to the testimony of the apostles, who were eye-witnesses of his miracles, and conversed with him and to the concurrent witness after his resurrection ; of ancient prophecy, for “ the testimony of Jesus 1s 338 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES, the spirit of prophecy.” And, when this reference to the evidence which arises from God’s testimony, and that of his inspired apostles and prophets, was imme- diately followed up by the descent of the Holy Ghost, —insomuch, that “ while Peter yet spake, the Holy Ghost feli on all them which heard the Word ; so that they of the circumcision which believed were aston- ished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost ; for they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God,”—need we wonder that Cornelius at once embraced the Gospel, and entered, by baptism, into the Christian Church? The Holy Spirit was the agent by whom Cornelius was convinced and established ; partly by his miracu- lous gifts, which are no doubt intended in the narra- tive, and which afforded evidence on which his faith might securely rest ; but partly, also, by his spiritual grace, accompanying the preaching of the Word, by which he was enabled to believe to the saving of his soul. ITT. As to the nature of the change which was now wrought on the mind of Cornelius, and its practical results in his life and conversation,—it properly con- sisted in his being enabled to believe, that the Messiah whom God had promised to the fathers, and whom, as a believer in Old Testament prophecy, he had long expected, had actually come, and that Jesus of Naza- reth was he. The whole of Peter’s message is directed to the establishment of this great truth, that “ Jesus is the Christ ;” and the cordial reception of that truth, ' CORNELIUS. 339 in its full Gospel import, constituted the change which now passed on the mind of the devout centurion. In the case of one who had previously been so consci- entious, and whose whole character was consistent with his profession as a Jewish proselyte, there was no room for such a striking manifestation of the change which is wrought by conversion, as in the case of the Phi- lippian gaoler, or even of Saul of Tarsus. But it was, doubtless, attended, even in his experience, with a very great and happy change ; for not only is it said, that “he was baptized,” in token alike of his faith in Christ, and his submission to Christ’s command, but he and his household “ glorified God.” We have here—a beautiful exemplification of the way in which the providence of God works in differ- ent places, on the same plan, and for the same object. Simultaneously at Joppaand at Caesarea, God’s agency was at work ; and the coincidence or concurrence of events demonstrated the interposition of Him “ who is wonderful in counsel, and excellent in working.” —. We have also an interesting example of personal and family religion, under the less perfect dispensation of the Old Testament, and one which may well put to shame many a professor enjoying far higher privileges amongst ourselves. Cornelius was a godly man, and he carried his religion into his family, caring for the souls of those who were committed to his care: “ he feared God with all his house,”—‘“ he prayed in his house,’—he had “a devout soldier” for his servant, —and he collected his whole household to listen to the apostle, saying, “‘ Now, therefore, are we all here 340 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. present before God, to hear all things that are com- manded thee of God.”—Again, the case of Cornelius affords a memorable proof of the efficacy of prayer, and how much prayer is concerned in the advance- ment of believers, as well as in the conversion of sin- ners. Cornelius was praying when “ the man in bright clothing stood before him ;” Peter was praying when the sheet descended from heaven ; and the Centurion’s kinsfollx and friends were assembled for the same pur- pose when Peter arrived.—But the great end of all the visions and events recorded in this chapter was’ to de- clare the abolition of all distinctions betwixt Jew and Gentile, so that all were alike welcome to share in the blessings of the Gospel, and that no man should now be called common or unclean. The instruction of Corne- hus and his family, important as it was, was not the only, nor even the chief object of God in this wonderful interposition. It was designed to remove the prejudice which the Jews, and even the apostles themselves, still entertained against the Gentiles, and to open the door for their admission into the Christian Church. The narrative teaches us to cherish a catholic spirtt —first, as it represents Cornelius as a true believer, although a Gentile by birth, and a Jewish proselyte by profession ; and secondly, as it shows that every one on whom the Holy Spirit is bestowed, be it in his miraculous eifts, or in his renewing grace, is to be recognised and received as a member of the Church of Christ : “Can any man forbid water that these should not be baptized, who have received the Holy Ghost as well as we ?” LYDIA. 341 CHAPTER VI. LYDIA. Acts xvi. 13-15. THERE is one important circumstance which was com- mon to all those cases of conversion that are recorded in Scripture, and which well deserves our most serious consideration,—I mean the direct operation of the Holy Spirit on the mind of every true convert to the Christian faith,—in the way of applying the truth, which is ordinarily the means of conversion. The agency of the Spirit is specially referred to by our Lord _ himself, in one of the last and most affecting of those addresses which he delivered to his disciples before his death. And by comparing his words with other passages of Scripture, we learn that there were two very different ways in which the Spirit should act ; or, that there are two distinct modes of operation by which he carries into effect his great design. The one is external, and sensible; the other is internal, and spiritual. We read of “the manifestation of the Spirit which is given to every man to profit withal ;” and we read of the “ indwelling of the Spirit in the 342 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. hearts of true believers.” In other words, the dispen- sation of the Gospel is called the “ministration of the Spirit,” for two distinct reasons — first, on ac- count of the miraculous gifts which were vouchsafed to the apostles and first converts ; and secondly, on account of the enlightening, converting, and sanctifying grace which rendered the Gospel effectual for their salvation. There is a wide difference betwixt the two. They differ in their nature, their use, and their effects ; the one being an appropriate evidence, a divine attestation of the truth; the other, a direct operation on the soul, by which it is renewed and quickened, and turned from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God. And not only are they widely different,—we have reason to believe that they might be separated from each other. Such being the difference betwixt the miraculous gifts and the inward graces of the Spirit, it is a delightful truth, that the latter, and the more valuable of the two, is the permanent inheritance of the Christian Church. His miraculous gifts were to cease when they had fulfilled their end, by establishing the truth; but his office did not cease. Nor was his work completed when, by his descent on the day of Pentecost, and his subsequent effusion at Cesarea on the Gentiles, the promise of the Father was fulfilled, and the truth of the Gospel established. Considered as an evidence, the gift of the Spirit was decisive ; but evidence is not enough—nor an inspired Bible—nor a faithful minis- try. In every human heart there is a spirit of unbe- Hef and enmity, and many a lofty imagination, which LYDIA. 043 exalteth itself against the knowledge of God; which is not overcome by any amount of evidence, or by the mere force of truth, and can only be subdued by the inward grace of the Spirit ; and hence we learn that it belongs to his office, and forms a part of his blessed work, at all times, to “ shine into our hearts ”—“ to renew us in the spirit of our mind ”—“ to quicken “—and. “ to turn us from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God.” The direct personal operation of the Spirit on the soul of every convert, is beautifully illustrated by the ease of Lydia. Itis said of her, that while she listened to the preaching of the Word, “ the Lord opened her heart, so that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul.” us into spiritual life’”—‘“to open our eyes’ I. Inregard to her state and character before her con- version and baptism, the narrative, although extremely short, contains several intimations, which throw a very interesting light on her case, and that of a large class in our own time, who resemble her in the chief points of their character. It is intimated that, like the Roman centurion, and the Hthiopian treasurer, she was a _ proselyte to the Jewish faith, and a believer in the one only, the living and the true God. By birtha Gentile, and a native of Thyatira, she had come to Philippi as a selier of purple ; and, although a stran- ger, she maintained in the city of her adoption, and amidst the idolatries which prevailed in it, a devout attachment to her religion, and continued in the wor- ‘ship of God. Itis also intimated, I think, with suffi- B44 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. cient clearness, that she was really devout, and imbued with a spirit of prayer ; for not only did she observe the Sabbath, in conformity with the law of Moses, but, when probably no other opportunity was afforded of observing the ordinances of public worship, in a city where both ‘the magistrates and the multitude seem to have been easily excited against any innova- tion in. their public customs, she ‘“ went out of the city by a river side, where prayer was wont to be made.” It is deeply interesting to mark, that, at the time of her conversion, this devout woman was attend- ing a prayer-meeting, in the open air, by the water side, along with a few other women who were in the habit, it would seem, of assembling together for this purpose, for itis said that “ they resorted thither ;” and it is not less interesting to notice, that Paul and his companions did not reckon it beneath them to join that humble meeting, but, on the contrary, leay- ing the noise and tumult of the city, they sought out the little band of praying women, and sat down beside them, and spake to them the Word of life. And: while they were thus engaged in prayer and confer- ence, “ the Lord opened the heart of Lydia ”—a striking proof of the immediate efficacy of prayer. Without prayer, we have no reason to look fora bless- ing- God may, indeed, and sometimes does surprise a prayerless sinner: he is sometimes found of them that sought him not, as in the case of the gaoler in , this same city; and then the first effect of his change will be the same that the Lord marked in the case of Paul, when he said, “ Behold, he prayeth!” But’ a paper e ey LYDIA. 345 although this may happen, in manifestation of God’s sovereignty and the riches of his undeserved mercy, there is no promise in the Bible except to prayer, and that promise is alike unlimited and sure—“ Ask, and ye shall receive ; seek, and ye shall find ; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth ; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened.” « If any man lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not, and it shall be given him.” It is implied, however, in the narrative, that while she was a proselyte to the Jewish faith, and a sincere worshipper of the true God, her heart was still shut or closed against the reception of the truth as it is in Jesus. It is said, “ the Lord opened her heart ;” an expression which clearly implies, that, devout as she was, her heart was in such a state, that, but for the gracious operation of the Spirit, it would have ex- cluded the Gospel message. Such is the natural state of every heart ; and by the heart, I mean, as is gene- rally meant in Scripture,—the whole moral nature of man,—including alike his understanding, his con- science, his will, and his affections. In this compre- hensive sense, the heart is closed against the reception of the truth,—and every faculty presents an obstacle such as divine grace alone can remove. In reference to unregenerate men, it is expressly said, that their understandings are shut against the light of the Gos- pel—insomuch, that of the Jews, with the Old Testa- ment in their hands, it is said, “ But their minds Z 346 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. were blinded,”—“ the veil was upon their hearts,” —and “if our Gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost; in whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious Gospel of Christ, who is the image of. God, should shine unto them’”—and “the natural man,” universally, “ receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him ; neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” And so the conscience is “ seared as with a hot iron” — the “ very mind and conscience is defiled ” — and ““ the heart is hardened ;” and thus there are many bars or obstacles which obstruct the entrance of the truth.* There is the bar of ignorance ; many “hear the Word, but understand it not; and the wicked one taketh away that which was sown ;’—there is the bar of unbelief; which rejects the testimony of God ; —there is the bar of enmity—for “the carnal mind is enmity against God ; it is not subject to the law of God, neither, indeed, can be ;’—there is the bar of presumption or pride: “ The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts ;’—there is the bar of discouragement and despair: “ Thou saidst there is no hope ; for I have loved strangers, and after them will I go ;’—there is the bar of unwillingness—“ Ye will not come to me that ye might have life ;’—there is the bar of worldly-mindedness: “The cares of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the Word, and it becometh unfruitful ;’—there is the bar of sloth : * Andrew Gray’s Sermons. mr. LYDIA. BAT “ A little more sleep, a little more slumber, and the folding of the hands to sleep ;’—there is the bar of vittous passion and depraved habits—any one bosom sin being enough to exclude the saving power of the truth—“ for this is the condemnation, that light hath come into the world, and that men have loved the dark- ness rather than the light, because their deeds are evil.” Under the influence of these, and similar hindrances, the heart is closed against the admission of the truth, —closed as really as are the eyes of the blind, or the ears of the deaf; for, says our Lord himself, “ In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Hsaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand ; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed ; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them ;” and in the same light does he represent the state of our own hearts, when he now says to each of us, “‘ Behold, I stand at the door and knock : if any man will hear my voice, and will open the door, I will come in to him.” But, it may be asked, if Lydia was a sincere and devout worshipper of the true God, is it reasonable to suppose that her heart was thus shut against God’s truth? I answer, that, even in persons of true piety, there may be much remaining ignorance, and many groundless prejudices, which, but for the enlightening grace of the Spirit, might prevent them from embrac- ing the Gospel. This was remarkably exemplified in 348 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. those “ devout and honourable women, and the chief men of the city, whom the Jews stirred up, and who raised persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them out of their coasts,—insomuch, that the apostles shook off the dust of their feet against them ;” and still more, in the case of Paul himself, who was a Pharisee, and the son of a Pharisee, living according to the straitest sect of the law, yet his heart was barred, by invincible prejudice, against the truth, until it was removed on his way to Damascus. And so of Lydia. She, too, was devout ; but her heart was closed, until it was opened by the Lord ; and many professors, in mo- dern times, resemble her in this—being conscientious and deyout according to their light, but still ignorant or unbelieving, or imbued with strong prejudice,* in regard to the Gospel of Christ,—just as Nathaniel himself, of whom our Lord said, “ Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no guile,” was yet so far influenced by mere prejudice, as to say, in answer to the first intimation he received of the Messiah, “ Can any good thing come out of Galilee?” And if, in such cases, divine agency be needful to open the heart for the reception of the truth, how much more in the vast majority who are utterly irreligious and unconcerned ! If. If we consider the means by which her conyer- sion was effected, we shall find that here there was no miraculous accompaniment of any kind, but an ex- ample only of what takes place in the experience of every genuine convert. Itis simply said, “ A certain woman heard us, whose heart the Lord opened, that * M‘Laurin’s Essay on Prejudices against the Gospel. LYDIA. 349 she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul.” But this pregnant statement brings before us, in a state of beautiful combination, two things which are equally essential to a sinner’s conversion: the first is, the agency of the Spirit ; and the second is, the instru- mentality of the Word. There was a direct personal operation of the Spirit on the heart of Lydia; he re- moved those obstacles which might otherwise have obstructed the admission of the truth. It was not Paul who effected this. Paul preached ; but, though inspired with supernatural wisdom, and endowed with miraculous powers, and especially with the gift of tongues, he says himself, “ Paul may plant, and Apollos water ; but God giveth the increase. Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, according as the Lord gave to every man?” God alone can open the heart. That change consisted in opening the understanding to dis- cern the light of God’s truth—the conscience to feel its convincing power—and the heart to receive its sanctifying influence ; and this belongs to the office of the Holy Ghost, whose worK IS HEART-WoRrK, and consists of two parts—the opening of the Scriptures, and the opening of the mind,—as we learn from the case of the disciples after his resurrection, of whom it is said, in one place, that they exclaimed—“ Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked with us by the way, and opened unto us the Scriptures ;” and, in another,—“ Then opened he their understandings, that they might understand the Scriptures.” 5350 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. But while the Lord only can open the heart, he employs the truth as the instrument of conversion to the careless, and of edification to the devout inquirer. The Spirit’s agency does not supersede the use of the Word ; on the contrary, the truth read or heard is still the wisdom of God, and the power of God, unto salvation. ‘The Lord opened the heart of Lydia,” but he did so “ that she might attend unto the things which were spoken of Paul.” It is by the truth con- tained in the Word that this great change is wrought —that being the instrument which the Spirit of God renders effectual ; and hence, while we are said to be ‘“‘ born of the Spirit,” we are also said to be “ born not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, even by the Word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever;” and again, while the Spirit is revealed as the Sanc- tifier, our Lord himself prayed, in these memorable words, “ Sanctify them by thy truth; thy Word is truth.” And both are combined—both the agency of the Spirit and the instrumentality of the Word, —in that comprehensive statement of the apostle, ‘“‘ God hath from the beginning chosen you unto sal- vation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth.” Various similitudes are employed to represent the same thing: the Word is compared to a Jire, or furnace, in which His people are melted and tried—but the Lord sits as a refiner over it ;—and as a hammer, a powerful instrument, but inert in itself, and effectual only when applied by a powerful arm ;— and as a sword—* the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God,’——a sharp two-edged sword, but LYDIA. 361 utterly powerless unless it be applied by the Spirit. So David’s prayer combines a reference to both— “ Open thow mine eyes, that I may see wonderful things out of thy law.” III. The nature of Lydia’s change, and the practi- cal results which flowed from it, are briefly indicated ; but enough is said to show, that she had that “ faith which worketh by love,” and in which properly consists “‘ the new creation ;” for we read that she was baptized, —thereby professing her faith in Christ, and her sub- mission to his authority,—and that, too, ina city where the professors of the Gospel were exposed to reproach and persecution ;—that, as soon as she was baptized, she besought the apostles, saying, “‘ If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and abide there,”’—her faith working by love to Christ ~ and to his ministering servants, and producing zeal for his cause and service, such as prompted her to make sacrifices for his name’s sake ; and, if these principles of faith and love were really planted in her heart, they would unquestionably produce, in her after-life, all the “ peaceable” fruits of righteousness.” The case of Lydia suggests various practical les- sons. It affords an example of the care with which God provided for the instruction of sincere inquirers in the Jewish Church. It shows, in a very striking light, the efficacy of prayer, as a means of spiritual advancement. It illustrates the necessity of a great spiritual change, even in the case of such as are regular in their attendance on ordinances, and con- 352 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. scientious according to their light. It affords a beautiful exemplification of the relative functions of the Word and Spirit in the work of conversion, and enforces the duty of combining diligence, in the use of means, with a spirit-of dependence on the divine blessing. And it shows how different are the feel- ings of one ‘“ whose heart the Lord has opened ” towards» his faithful ministers, and those of the un- godly multitude :—she constrained the apostles to reside in her house 3—they rose against them, and committed them to prison, making their feet fast in the stocks. ee oe TIMOTHY. 300 CHAPTER VII. TIMOTHY. 2 Tim. iii. 14, 15. Ir appears from Scripture, that while many are con- verted after a long course of carelessness and sinful indulgence, others are trained up for God from their earliest years, and sanctified even from the womb. The experience of these two classes must necessarily be widely different; while,in whatever is essential to rege- neration, it must be substantially the same in all. All men being by nature fallen and depraved, that which is “born of the flesh being flesh,” and “the carnal mind being” in every instance “ enmity against God,” a new spiritual birth is universally and indispensably necessary in order to a new spiritual life; and no man lives, however gentle his natural disposition, and however propitious his early education, of whom it may not be said, that except “he be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Whenever that change occurs, and by whatever means it may be accomplished, it is substantially the same in all; it implies the enlightening, convincing, renewing, and 354 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. sanctifying work of the Spirit, whereby the natural blindness is removed, and the natural enmity subdued, and the natural man becomes a new creature—in all his views and feelings, his desires and affections, his aims, and habits, and hopes. And we greatly err, if we suppose that, in any one case, a good natural temperament, or a sound religious education, can of themselves introduce a fallen being into the spiri- tual kingdom of God, or supersede the grace and the agency of the Holy Spirit. That is spirit, and that only, which is born of the Spirit; and every soul that is really converted must have that experience which is common to all true believers, and which consists in conviction of sin, an apprehension of the mercy of God in Christ, a cordial compliance with the Gospel call, and a course of conflict and warfare with its own corruptions. But while some such change must be wrought on every one at the period of his conver- sion, it may be brought about jin a variety of ways, which will occasion great diversity in the experience of different believers. Some, for instance, are per- mitted to grow up without any religious culture, being deprived of the inestimable privilege of a father’s counsel and a mother’s prayers, and surrounded, in- stead, with the noxious influences of a domestic circle where there is no fear of God, no form of religion, and nothing in the shape of example, except what is fitted to corrupt and contaminate. Thus neglected in early life, and inured to vice from their earliest years, they go forth into the world, not only unprepared to resist, but predisposed to comply with its temptations ; TIMOTHY. 345 and following the bent of their own evil passions, and falling in with the current of evil society, they may remain for years utterly careless of their souls, of God, and of eternity—and may be allowed to go great lengths in wickedness ; till, by some providential dis- pensation, or by an awakening sermon, or even by the remorseful restlessness of their own consciences, they are brought under serious concern, and led to inquire, “ What must we do to be saved?” The case of such persons is illustrated by the experience of the dying malefactor and of the Philippian gaoler, who had both been careless, and one of them utterly flagitious in life; till, by the awful circumstances in which they were placed, they were awakened, convinced, and converted to God. But while such cases do occur, and are sufficient to show that God’s grace is alike free and sovereign, and able to soften the hardest heart, and to save even at the eleventh hour; there are others whose experience is widely different,—they are the children of religious parents,—they have en- joyed the inestimable advantages of Christian instruc- tion, and the still more precious privilege of constant intercourse with a domestic circle where every influ- ence is favourable to their moral culture,—where example is combined with precept, and the tenderest affection with paternal authority, and the family meet around the domestic altar, to read God’s Word, and to sing his praise, and to unite in social prayer,—and every association, the more tender and the more en- during, because formed in the morn of life, connects religion with the most endearing relations and the 356 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. holiest charities of home. By such means, many grow up in those families which are nurseries for the Church of Christ, well instructed in the truths of the Gospel, impressed with a feeling of reverence for religious ordinances, and imbued with sentiments and disposi- tions which render them amiable and engaging in their manners, and which serve at least to preserve them from the grosser pollutions of the world; while in not a few, the precious seed sown in early life, takes root in the heart, and grows up so gradually and imperceptibly, that they may not be conscious, at any one time, of any great or sudden change, such as was experienced by the dying thief and the poor gaoler ; although really the work of grace is begun, and will be carried on to perfection. In such cases, it is manifest that we are not to expect precisely the Same course of experience as is found in those who, after a life of sin, are suddenly awakened and changed. And of this class we have selected the case of Timothy as a very interesting and instructive example. The account which is given of this eminent and devoted servant of God, shows, that his first serious impressions were derived from his religious education in early life, and from the plous care and example of his parents. The apostle tells us, that from “a child he had known the holy Scriptures,” —referring to his early instruction in the truths of the Old Testament, to which he had access, although his father was a Greek, through the pious care of his mother, who was a Jewess. For he is thus introduced to our notice : ‘Then came Paul to Derbe and Lystra: and, behold, a TIMOTHY. 357 certain disciple was there, named Timotheus, the son of a certain woman, which was a Jewess, and beliey- ed; but his father was a Greek.’ But what is of much more importance than her mere profession, she was a woman of sincere piety; and the same piety characterised other members of her family. For the apostle writing to Timothy, as “his dearly beloved son, says, “I thank God, when I call to remem- brdnce the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois and thy mother Eunice ; and I am persuaded that in thee also.” Here isa beautiful example of domestic piety: the aged grand- mother cherishing an unfeigned faith in the promise which God had given to the fathers, and waiting for the consolation of Israel; the mother cherishing the same hope, and gladly embracing the Gospel as soon as it was proclaimed to her, for she was not only a Jewish but a Christian believer; and the young man, taught from his earliest years to “know the Scrip- tures, which were able to make him wise unto salva- tion, and becoming, under Paul’s ministry, a disciple in the school of Christ, and afterwards an eminent, zealous, and devoted minister of the everlasting Gos- pel. Being connected with a Greek by marriage, the pious Jewess had not, it would seem, insisted on the circumcision of her child ; but she was not inattentive to his religious training—she instructed him in the knowledge of God’s truth. And most amply was her motherly care repaid, when this child of many prayers became the companion of an apostle, and the honour- ed instrument of founding many churches, and win- 558 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. ning many souls to Christ. The details of his expe- rience are not recorded ; but, from the incidental intj- mations which are given in the course of the two epistles which were addressed to him, we may gather that his experience corresponded in substance with that of every other child of God: he must have been convinced of sin, so as to feel his need of a Saviour, ——he must have been enlightened in the knowledge of Christ, so as to perceive his all-sufficiency and suitableness,—and he must have personally closed with Christ, receiving him as his Prophet to teach, as his Priest to reconcile, and as his Lord to govern him. All this is implied in his profession as a Christian, and especially as a Christian evangelist, since nothing short of this could have sufficed, either for his own salvation or for the work of the ministry ;—and what secret conflicts, what inward struggles he endured, educated as he had been by plous parents, and in- structed, too, by an inspired apostle, is sufficiently evinced by the exhortation of Paul, where he speaks of his being engaged in a warfare— Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life,” —** Hold fast the form of sound words which thou hast heard of me,”—“ Continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; and that from a child thou hast known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation, through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” The case of Timothy affords several useful lessons. 1. It shows that little children are capable subjects TIMOTHY. 359 of divine grace. In the case of adults, the truth ap- prehended and believed is the instrumental means of conversion and sanctification ; but before children are capable of knowing the truth, they are fit subjects of God’s grace, as is evident from many passages of Scripture. We read of some who were sanctified from the womb: “Now hear, O Jacob my servant: and Israel, whom I have chosen: thus saith the Lord that made thee, and formed thee from the womb,—I will pour my Spirit on thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring: and they shall spring up as among the grass, as willows by the water courses. One shall _ say, I am the Lord’s; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe with his hand unto the Lord, and surname himself by the name of Israel.” ‘“ Hearken unto me, O house of Jacob, and all the remnant of the house of Israel, which are borne by me from the belly, which are carried from the womb: and even to your old age I am he; and even to hoar hairs will I carry you: I have made and [ will bear; even I will carry, and will deliver you.” It was by the Spirit that the Lord Christ was sanctified in his human nature, so that the angel spake of “the holy thing that should be born of Mary ;” and the prophet, of whom it is said, that he was “ called from the womb, and formed from the womb to be his servant.” And when, during his personal ministry, “there were brought to him little children, that he should put his hands on them and pray; and the disciples rebuked them,” Jesus said, “ Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come 360 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. ~ unto me; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.” Nay, on another occasion, “ Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of the disciples, and said, Verily I say, unto you, Except ye be con- verted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” That little chil- dren are capable subjects of God’s grace, is implied in the provision that was made for their admission to the privileges of the covenant—first, by circumcision under the Old Testament—and secondly, by baptism under the New; and this precious truth is our war- rant and encouragement in prayer, when we remem- ber those objects of our tenderest affections at the throne of grace, while as yet they are unable to pray for themselves. 2. We learn from the case of Timothy, that a sound religious education in early life is often blessed as a means of saving conversion to God. The apostle traces Timothy’s religion to this source: “ From a child thou hast known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation.” His early | acquaintance with the Bible was a great and precious privilege ; for although, from the operation of other causes, Bible knowledge is sometimes unproductive of saving benefit, yet it is the instrument by which God works, and an instrument which is in itself at once absolutely perfect, and admirably adapted for the end which it is designed to serve. A great commenda- tion is given to the Word, when it is said, that “it is able to make us wise unto salvation ;” that “it is pro- fitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and for TIMOTHY. . 361 instruction in righteousness ;” and that it is sufficient “to make the man of God perfect, thoroughly furnish- ed unto all good works.” The Bible contains all the truth which is needful to be known for our salvation ; considered simply as a means or instrument, it is abso- > lutely perfect : and every parent who really believes in God’s Word, and considers it as God’s instru- ment for the salvation of sinners, must feel it to be his most sacred obligation, as well as his sweetest privi- lege, to impart to his immortal children a knowledge of its precious truths. He will remember that he has in his hands an instrument which God himself de- clares to be “the sword of the Spirit,’—that he has that - truth which is emphatically described as “the good seed ;” and, with mingled feelings of awe, and gratitude, and hope, he will seek to apply that instrument to the heart of his child, and to sow that precious seed in his soul from his earliest years. Nor will he be content with giving a few formal lessons, or prescribing a few stated tasks; out of the “ abundance of his heart his mouth will speak,” and his conversation will be seasoned with God’s truth, in those hours of affection- ate and confiding converse when the hearts of his children are most open to receive “ the truth in love,” —remembering God’s words to his ancient people : “These words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart; and thou shalt'teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest >» up. But neither formal instruction, nor frequent Aa 362 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. conversation on divine truth will avail, ‘unless they be combined with exemplary faith and piety on the part — of parents. Children are quick to discern every, even the minutest indicatioy of real character ; and a great part of their education consists in those impressions which are made on their minds incidentally, and which are often imperceptibly deepened, by circumstances which-escape the notice of their parents. True edu- cation is a course of fraining,—not a system of lessons, but the formation of practical habits, and these depend far more on the spirit and conduct of a family than on the tasks of the school: “ Z'rain up a child im the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” This training implies much more ~ than mere teaching, and it is best promoted by the © unfeigned faith and holy living of which the apostle speaks in the mother and grandmother of Timothy ; and it is deeply interesting to mark how this eminent servant of God was prepared for his future labours by the quiet and unostentatious, but real piety of these women in the private walks of domestic life, and that the Holy Spirit himself, in preparing a record for the universal and permanent instruction of the Church, does not disdain to mention, in connection with the — labours of an inspired evangelist, the unfeigned faith | which dwelt first in his grandmother Lois, and after- wards in his mother Eunice ;—nor can we doubt that this is the reason why many an aged saint is spared, when their work on earth might seem to be finished, even that they may exhibit the power of God's grace and truth to the generation following, and leaye the AO aS tt ae 3 | € impress of their own characters on the tender minds of the children that are playing around them! 3. We ian from the case of Timothy, that true religion is sometimes implanted in the soul of a child at a very early period, and continues to grow with his growth, and strengthen with his strength, although for a time his progress may appear to be almost im- perceptible. Jesus himself said, “The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard-seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, which indeed is the least of all seeds; but when it is grown, it is the TIMOTHY. 363 greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof ;” and again, “the kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of _ meal, till the whole was leavened.” These parables are equally descriptive of the kingdom of God as it exists in the world, and of the kingdom of God in every _ single soul ;—grace grows and spreads, and that, too, imperceptibly, just as the mustard-seed springs from the earth, and the leaven diffuses itself amongst meal. _ This is often the blessed effect of an early religious _ education ; and, although the good seed of the Word should not spring up so quickly as we could desire, _ yet, being incorruptible, we may cherish the hope that, _ sooner or later, it will be quickened, so as to produce _ the peaceable fruits of righteousness, long, it may be, | after we have been gathered to our fathers. In now addressing those who, like Timothy, have enjoyed the privilege of an early religious education, 364 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. and who may still enjoy the society, or at least re- member, with affectionate gratitude, the counsels and the prayers of their pious parents, I must not forget that they may yet belong to two very different classes. There may be some who, like Timothy, have not only known the Holy Scriptures from their youth, but have also that “ unfeigned faith which dwelt in him ;” while there may be others who enjoyed, like him, the advantages of a religious education, and are as yet, at least, destitute of saving grace. No human being may be able to discriminate betwixt the two classes, so as to determine to which you individually belong ; but I would affectionately remind you, that there are two classes even amongst those who have received a reli- gious education, and that it is of infinite moment that you should determine for yourselves whether you be- long to the one or the other. The apostle’s exhortation is addressed to Timothy on the supposition that he was a true believer, and is applicable, in its original purpose, only to such as have, like him, been made wise unto salvation ; but before applying it to such, I would address myself to all who have shared in the advantages of early religious in- struction, and would affectionately remind you, that you have much reason for gratitude, and at the same time, for a very deep sense of your responsibility, on account of the privileges which you have enjoyed. Even should the instruction which you have received, and the example you have been privileged to witness, fail in leading you to saving conversion, be assured that they are in their own nature privileges of great value, TIMOTHY. 365 and that they will form an element in your last ac- count. You will stand at the judgment-seat on a very different footing from that of the poor outcasts who live in the wretched streets and lanes of our city, and will be reckoned with for the use of your Bibles, and your closets, and your family worship, and all your other means of grace; for it is the equitable law of God's kingdom, that to “ whomsoever much has been given, of him shall the more be required.” Impressed, as I trust you are, with this solemn reflection, and with a sense of God’s distinguishing goodness to you, permit me farther to remind you, that as there are many advantages, so there are also some peculiar dangers, in your case ; and of these I shall only men- tion, first of all,—the tendency, of which you may per- haps be conscious, to take too readily for granted that you are religious, merely because you are a member of a religious family, and have been from your youth accustomed to religious observances, forgetting that religion is, with every soul of man, a personal matter, and that it has its seat in the heart ;—secondly, the danger of your mistaking the natural and common fruits of a religious education for thorough conversion to God,—your knowledge, your amiable dispositions, your gentle manners, your correct habits, your atten-> dance on ordinances,—all these and many more may be nothing else than “ the form of godliness while you are destitute of its power ;—and thirdly, the danger of your supposing, that because you know a great deal more than others, you have no need of farther inquiry, and may give your thoughts to other studies, and your 366 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. time to other pursuits. These temptations are peculiarly incident to you, and while I warn you against them, I would point out a few symptoms by which you may discover the real state of your heart. Are you con- scious of a sincere desire Godwards,—such a desire as leads you to pray for yourselves in secret, as well as to join with your families in prayer? Do you, in your private, and family, and public prayers,—do you really seek after God, and offer up the desires of your heart to him? Are you convinced of sin, and have you discovered that the ‘ heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked?” — and, under a sense of sin, are you seeking to be cleansed by the blood of Christ, and to be purified by the grace of his Holy Spirit? If thus concerned for the salvation of your souls, you are seeking it in the way of God’s . appointment, and making conscience of duty, then “wait upon the Lord, and be of good courage, and he will strengthen your heart; wait, I say, upon the Lord.” To you the apostle’s exhortation may be ad- dressed, when he says to Timothy, “Continue thou in the things which thou hast learned, and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them, and that from a child thou hast known the Holy Scriptures ;”"—continue, i. e., “ Hold fast the beginning of your confidence,—be not turned away from the hope of the Gospel, but continue in these things ;” nay, “meditate upon these things ; give thyself wholly to them, that thy profiting may appear to all.” Paul deemed it necessary to address such exhortations to Timothy, his dearly beloved son, of whose un- TIMOTHY. o6T feigned faith he had no doubt, and to whom he gave that honourable testimony, “‘ Ye know the proof of him, that, as a son with the father, he hath served with me in the Gospel.” If, notwithstanding, Paul be so urgent in exhorting him to flee youthful lusts, to avoid the snares and temptations of the world, to watch over his own spirit, and to maintain a constant warfare with sin,—oh! is not this an affecting proof that you, too, require to be strengthened, and stirred up, and animated in the path of duty? His exhorta- tion specially points to the careful and continued use of the means of grace ; and if these were needful for Timothy, how much more for you ? But if there be any who have enjoyed the advan- tages of areligious education, and who are yet unable to discover in themselves any of those hopeful symp- toms which I have described ; if they cannot honestly say, that they have ever made the salvation of their souls a matter of personal concern; that they have ever sought after God, either in the retirement of their closets, or in the season of domestic worship,— that they are now resting on Christ’s atonement, or desirous of the Spirit’s grace ; and if, on the contrary, they begin to be conscious of a repugnance to the strict views of religion in which they were brought up,—of a disposition to cherish slighter thoughts of sin and to extenuate its guilt, or of a tendency to be weary of a religious life, and to long after greater licence and gaiety than their father’s house affords ; if they are seldom or never found on their knees, or with their Bibles in their hand, and yet flatter them- 368 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. selves that there may be some easier road eo heaven than their fathers trod before them,—oh! let me be- seech them, now, and before they advance one step in that way which appears to them so attractive, to pause, and choose such a course as they will be con- tent to live and die in; and to remember, while they make their choice, that heaven or hell is inyolyed in it! CONVERSIONS AT PENTECOST. 369 CHAPTER VIII. CONVERSIONS AT PENTECOST. Acts il. Tur nature, method, and results of true scriptural conversion may be illustrated by the striking narra- tive which is given of the events that occurred at Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost. These events were in many respects extraordinary ; they were ac- companied with miraculous interposition, they pro- duced a powerful impression on the public mind, and they resulted in the sudden and simultaneous conver- sion of many thousand souls; yet, in other respects, they correspond exactly with the usual methods of God’s procedure in the conversion of individual sin- ners, and may be improved, as affording an instructive example of the great change which may be still wrought by the faithful preaching of the Gospel, when it is applied by the power of his Spirit. I, In regard to the previous state of the three thousand souls who were converted on this occasion, there is reason to believe that they belonged to two distinct classes,—the first including devout persons 370 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. who were religious according to the light which they had previously enjoyed ; and the second including, perhaps, a still larger number of irreligious men who had rejected and persecuted the Saviour, and were chargeable with the guilt of instigating or consenting to his death. The distinction which I draw betwixt these two classes is founded on those parts of the narrative, on the one hand, which declare that among the assembled multitude there “ were dwelling at Jerusalem, devout men, out of every nation under heaven ;” and on the other hand, on those parts of Peter's sermon in which he directly charges on those whom he addressed. the guilt of the Lord’s blood :— ‘« Him being delivered by the determinate counsel of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have cru- cified and slain,’—“ God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.” So that here we have a variety of characters. Among the “devout men” who were assembled at Jerusalem for the celebration of a great religious festival, there might be some intelligent and godly Jews or prose- lytes, who, like Cornelius, “feared God, and gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway ;” ——some others, who, like the Ethiopian treasurer, were ignorant but sincere,—while perhaps there were not a few, who, like the devout women at Antioch, were filled with Jewish prejudices, and with an intolerant zeal which might lead them to take part in persecut- ing Christ and his humble followers. And among the mixed multitude who listened to Peter’s sermon, there were probably men of every different shade of CONVERSIONS AT PENTECOST. 371 character,—some who had been active agents in the crucifixion of the Lord,—others who had been mere spectators of it ; and who, according to their several habits of thought and feeling, were so differently affected by the miraculous manifestation of the Spirit, that while some were impressed and affected by it, others treated it with mockery and scorn. How many belonging to each of these various classes were con- yerted, we have no means of ascertaining; but it is plain that not a few then underwent this great change who were chargeable with the guilt of the Saviour's blood ; for when Peter pressed this charge on their consciences, they ‘were pricked to the heart,”’—a clear proof that they were self-convicted and self- condemned. II. If we now consider the circumstances which accompanied, and the means which effected their con- version, we shall find that it is of considerable prac- tical importance to distinguish betwixt these two things, and to assign to each the place which properly belongs to it. The circumstances of this case were, in some respects, extraordinary and peculiar, and such as have no parallel in the usual experience of the Christian Church, and the means which contributed more or less directly to the result which is here re- corded, were some of them preparatory, others imme- diate and direct. This great awakening of souls was preceded by fervent and united prayer. ‘This was an important preparatory means,—a means which, in accordance with the faithful promise of God, engaged almighty 3872 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. power on the side of the preachers of the Gospel, The apostles had been commanded by the Lord, im- | mediately before his ascension to glory, to wait at Jerusalem until they should receive the promise of the Father ; and when they returned to the city from Mount Olivet, “they went up into an upper room, where abode both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Mat- _ thew, James the son of Alpheus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James. These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.” The number of the disciples at this time was about one hundred and twenty,—these all continued to mect for prayer; and so, “‘when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place,” when the promise of the Father was suddenly fulfilled by an outpouring of the Holy Ghost. Mark here how prayer preceded the most remark- able awakening of souls that ever occurred in the Church of God; nay, how it stood connected with the miraculous gifts of the Spirit. It was after fre- quent united prayer, and it was when they were again assembled for the same purpose, that ‘“ they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” It is worthy of remark, too, that the Lord had given them an express promise, which left no doubt as to the communication of the Spirit’s gifts ; for not only had he said, before his crucifixion, “I will pray the CONVERSIONS AT PENTECOST. ate Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever, even the Spint of truth ;’ but again, after his resurrection from the dead, and immediately before his ascension to glory, he said, “ Behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you : but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from onhigh.” “ And being assembled together with them, he commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me.” “ Ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me, both in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” ‘The Lord’s promise, then, was express ; but his promise did not supersede their prayer ; on the contrary, the former was the ground and reason of the latter, according to the saying of the prophet, “1 the Lord have spoken it, and I will do it. Thus saith the Lord God, I will yet for this be inquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them.” Great things are still promised in answer to beliey- ing prayer. For not only have we the general pro- mise, “* Ask, and ye shall receive ; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you,’—but specially, in regard to the Holy Spirit, we have that precious assurance,—“ If ye being evil know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him.” And a peculiar blessing 1s an- nexed to wnifed social prayer ; for “I say unto you,” O74 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. said Christ, “ that if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heayen, For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” Let these gracious promises be an encouragement to fervent, persevering prayer ; and let us, with holy importunity, never hold our peace day nor night. “ Ye that make mention of the Lord, keep not silence, and give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth.” In answer to believing prayer, the primitive disci- ples received the miraculous gifts of the Holy Spirit, which were also a preparatory means in leading to the great work of conversion which was soon after- wards accomplished. These gifts were, in various respects, fitted to prepare the way for that glorious work. They served at once to strengthen the faith of the disciples, as they were a manifest fulfilment of the Lord’s word of promise,—to qualify them for de- claring the Gospel message to men of various nations then assembled at Jerusalem, as they conferred a power of speaking to them in their own languages,—and to afford ample evidence to others of God’s interposi- tion, as they were, in their own nature, clearly and undeniably miraculous. We have already seen that the gift of the Holy Spirit was the crowning evidence of the divine mission of the Saviour : it was purposely reserved, and expressly promised, as the divinely ap- pointed proof of his ascension and exaltation to the right hand of God,—of the acceptance of his finished VONVERSIONS AT PENTECOST. 313 work,—and of its efficacy in procuring those gifts for men which He died to purchase, and was exalted to bestow. And we may well admire the wisdom of God in providing this crowning proof of the divine mission of the Saviour, and manifesting it at that par- ticular time. For not only did it strengthen the faith of the apostles, and qualify them for declaring the Gospel in various languages,*—but being sent during one of the great annual festivals of the Jews, it made known the truth, and its divine evidence, to multi- tudes who were then collected at Jerusalem, and who, on their return to their respective homes, carried with them the seed of the Word, and scattered it every where throughout the world; for there were among them “ Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judea, and Cappa- docia, in Pontus, and Asia, Phrygia, and_Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya, about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and Proselytes, Cretes and Arabians.” Such were the preparatory means which led to the great work of conversion on the day of Pentecost ;— united social prayer on the part of the disciples or Church of Christ, and a miraculous effusion of the Holy Ghost in the gift of tongues. But you will carefully observe, that the conversions _ * I take for granted that the words are to be understood in their natural and obvious meaning. Dr Neanper of Berlin has attempted to show, as it appears to me, without success, that the apostles did not speak in other languages than their own, but spoke in their own language with such ecs- tacy and power, that others could understand them.—Neander’s History of the First Pianting of the Christian Church, vol, i) Py bos 376 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. which are here recorded are not ascribed solely, or even chiefly, to the miraculous and extraordinary cir- cumstances by which they were preceded ; otherwise, they would afford no ground to expect similar conyer- sions in these modern times, when the gift of tongues has ceased. The miraculous dispensation of the Spirit was a powerful preparatory means; but the direct and immediate means of conversion in this, as in every other case, was the preaching of Gospel truth, applied to the heart and conscience by the Holy Ghost. The gift of tongues served an important purpose in prepar- ing the way for the free proclamation of the Gospel on the part of the apostles, and for the believing recep- tion of it on the part of the people; for it enabled the apostles to speak, and the people to hear, the Gospel in various languages, so as that it could be clearly understood, and intelligently believed. It was fitted also to excite their interest, and to awaken their at- tention to the Gospel message, inasmuch as the gift of tongues evinced the miraculous interposition of God; and it afforded sufficient evidence to authenticate the truth, and to establish the divine commission of the apostles ;—but farther than this it went not: it was not of itself the means of converting the soul: that change could then be wrought by no other means than those which are still effectual for the same end,—I mean the truths of the Gospel, applied with power by the Spirit of God. You will observe, that no con- version followed immediately on the miraculous gift of tongues. The effect of that wonderful manifestation was, that all wondered, some doubted, others mocked ; CONVERSIONS AT PENTECOST. 377 —but none were converted till the glorious Gospel was proclaimed. There were, in fact, THREE successive stages in the experience of those who were converted on the day of Pentecost ; and as many distinct results of the various means which were brought to bear upon them. First of all, before any discourse was addressed to them, the whole multitude were called to witness the mtra- culous gift of tongues ; and this produced, as its ap- propriate effect, in some, a sense of awe and wonder ; and, in others, mockery and scorn: it set the minds of both classes to work,—but the one in the way of anxious inquiry, the other in the way of sceptical ex- planation ;—for the immediate result of this miracu- lous dispensation is described, when it is said, “ And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What meaneth this ? Others, mocking, said, These men are full of new wine.” They were not converted—they were not even convinced by the miracle; but their attention was arrested by means of it. Then followed, secondly, a work of condiction, which was wrought by the first part of Peter's sermon, in which he established, by incontrovertible proof, the great truth, that Jesus is the Christ ; and this effect is described, when it is said, “ Now, when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?” Here we see the gift of the Spirit, considered as the fruit and manifestation of Christ's exaltation to glory, ae in the minds of unbe- B 378 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. lievers a deep conviction of sin ; according to his own intimation to the apostles— When he is come, he will reprove or convince the world of sin”—“ of sin, because they believe not on me.” Still their conver- sion was not complete—they were as yet only under- going the preparatory discipline of conviction, and im- bued with a spirit of thoughtful inquiry; but then followed, Thirdly, the work of real conversion, by which they were enabled and persuaded to embrace Christ for salvation ; and which was effected, instrumentally, by the second part of Peter’s address, in which he de- clared the Gospel message, and exhorted them to close with it, by the gracious assurance, that guilty as they were, they were welcome to come to Christ for life. ‘‘'Then said Peter unto them, Repent and be baptized every one of you, for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost ; for the pro- mise is unto you and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.” So that, on the day of Pentecost, it was the Gospel chiefly, and not the miracle, which led to the great work of conversion, by which three thousand souls were added to the Church of such as should be saved. The direct means, then, of this great work of con- version, was Peter’s sermon, in which he unfolded the Gospel message, and pressed it home on their hearts and consciences, with demonstration of the Spirit and power. , Let us briefly consider the scope and substance of this CONVERSIONS AT PENTECOST. 379 remarkable discourse. It divides itself into two parts. In the first, Peter does not disdain to remove a pre- judice from the minds of his hearers which might have disinclined them to receive the message he was about to deliver ; and, accordingly, he begins by re- ferring calmly to the accusation which “ mockers ” had raised against the apostles, as if they were intoxi- cated or unduly excited. He then refers toa passage in the prophecy of Joel, which predicted an outpour- ing of the Spirit of God, in virtue of which many should prophesy before “ the great and notable day of the Lord ;” and represents the events which they now witnessed as the visible fulfilment of that predic- tion. He proceeds fearlessly to preach Christ cru- cified ; he declares that Jesus of Nazareth was a ‘man approved of God among them, by miracles, and wonders, and signs, which God did by him in the midst of them—appealing to their own knowledge, as affording ample confirmation of his testimony ; he then charges home upon them the guilt of having taken, and by wicked hands crucified and slain him—appeal- ing to their own consciences, as sufficient to convict them of this flagrant sin ; he then declares his resur- rection from the dead, both as predicted by the psal- mist, and as testified by the apostles, who were all witnesses that God had raised him up ; and, finally, he declares his ewaltation by the right hand of God,— not his ascension merely, but his glorification, in token of God’s acceptance, and in preparation for his great reward,—for he represents the gift of the Holy Ghost as having been received from the Father, as a pledge 380 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. of his approbation, and as having been dispensed by the Son, in the exercise of his royal power as a Prince and Saviour ; a gift which made it manifest, that He who once hung on the cross, was now seated on the throne ; and that he occupied that throne by virtue of His authority who said to him, “ Sit thou on my’ right hand until I make thy foes thy footstool.” Thus Peter narrates the leading facts of the Lord’s personal history : beginning at Nazareth, he traces him through his public ministry to the cross,—from the cross to the grave,—and from the grave to the throne of heaven ; and the one purport and design of the whole of his discourse, is just to establish, on the ground of its proper evidence, and to impress on their minds, that one great, but simple truth, which is stated in the 36th verse, as the sum and substance of his present testi- mony—“ Therefore, let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, norn Lorp anp Curisv.” The great object of the first part of Peter's discourse, then, was to show that “ Jesus is the Christ ;’ in other words, that the same Jesus who was born at Bethlehem, brought up in Nazareth, and was cruci- fied on Calvary, was the Messiah who had been pro- mised to the fathers; and that he was, as his name imports, God’s anointed One ; his anointed Prophet, to declare his mind and will; his anointed Priest, to make reconciliation for the people ; and his anointed Lord and King, whom they were bound to obey. This one truth, if established, was sufficient to demon- strate their guilt in having crucified the Lord of glory, CONVERSIONS AT PENTECOST. 381 and to change all the views and feelings with which they had heretofore regarded him ; for if Jesus was the Christ, then they had been guilty of rebellion against God when they put him to death, and they could not now be safe if He were on the throne! — The immediate effect that was produced on their minds by the first part of Peter's sermon, was a con- viction of their guilt and danger—a conviction which is here described as deeply painful and penetrating, when it is said, “They were pricked in their hearts ;” and, under the influence of this conviction, they uttered that serious question, ‘“ Men and brethren, what shall we do?” They might have begun to think that all was over with them—that their case was utterly hopeless— that, having crucified the Lord of glory, there remained nothing for them “ but a certain fearful looking for of judgment, and fiery indignation :” their language bespeaks bewilderment, if not despair: they speak as men who know not to what hand to turn themselves, or what they could do.— But, oh !_ mark the freeness of the Gospel: having thus prepared them to receive the gracious message : having established the factthat Jesus is the Christ of God, and thereby awakened a sense of guilt and danger, and prompted a spirit of earnest inquiry,—Peter at once, and without any qualification or reserve, unfolds the glad tidings of a full and free salvation: he excepts none—he excludes none; he exhorts all—he encourages all ; for this is the glorious message which he was commissioned to deliver — ‘ Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and 382 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.” This is emphatically tH Gosert—the Gospel in all its fulness and in all its freeness. It proceeds on a sup- position of their guilt and danger, and addresses them as sinners, but, at the same time, and to these same sinners, it proclaims the remission of sins 3 nay, the remission of sins through that very blood by which their hands were stained, and which now lay heavy on their consciences. They are exhorted to be bap- tized, in token of their being washed by that blood which might seem, like the blood of Abel, to call for Heaven’s vengeance against them; but this was the blood of sprinkling, which speaketh better things than the blood of Abel, and here God, instead of saying, “ What hast thou done? the voice of thy bro- ther’s blood crieth unto me from the ground,”—com- missions his ministering servant to preach that very blood for the remission of sins. True, it was their sin, that they had shed this blood ; and Peter charges them with it, when he says, “Him being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain ;”—but mark, it was the very blood which they had sinfully shed, whereby they were to obtain the remission of that and of every other sin,—for this “was the blood of the New Testament shed for many, for the remission of sins.” It was their sin that they crucified the Lord ; yet his crucifixion was the means CONVERSIONS AT PENTECOST. 383 of their salvation. And the same truth is applicable to ourselves ; for be it remembered, our guilt was the real cause of thé Saviour’s sufferings,—our sins were the nails which suspended him to the accursed tree: he who knew no sin was made sin for us; he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; and as without the shedding of blood there could be no remission, so by the blood of Jesus the sins which caused his death are freely forgiven ; for now in consequence of that stupendous atonement, God can be the just God and yet the Saviour; the sin has been expiated, and the sinner may be saved. This is the Gospel message; and it was the will of Him who died on the cross “ that repentance and re- mission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.” .-The sum and substance of the Gospel is repentance and remission of sins,— remission of sins through the name of Jesus ; and the perfect freeness of it is beautifully illustrated by the narrative of what occur- red on the day of Pentecost, viewed in connection with our Lord’s command, that this doctrine should be preached among all nations, beginning at sJuRU- SALEM.—Beginning at Jerusalem!—the city of his murderers—the same city whose streets had but re- cently resounded with the ery, “Crucify him! crucify him !”—the city that had called forth his tears, when he wept over it, and said, “ O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children as a hen gathereth her chickens under 384 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. her wings, but ye would not,’—“ Oh! that thou hadst known, even thou, in this thy day, the things which belong to thy peace, but now they are hid from thine eyes, —the city, which besides being washed with his tears, was now stained by his blood,—that same city, guilty, devoted as it was, was yet to receive the first announcement of the remission of sins, and the Lord’s command was fulfilled on the day of Pentecost, when Peter freely proclaimed repentance and the remission of sins even to the very men whom he charged as the murderers of his Lord. To them, without exception and without reserve, he proclaimed a full and free salvation; and in this one fact, we have a conclusive proof of the perfect freeness of the Gospel,—for where is the man now under the Christian ministry whose case is worse than that of the thousands who then received the joyful sound? Viewing it in this light, John Bunyan, the able author of the “ Pilgrim’s Pro- gress, makes a felicitous and powerful application of this part of the Gospel narrative, to remove all the doubts and scruples of those who think themselves too guilty to be saved, or who do not sufficiently under- stand the perfect freeness of this salvation. He sup- poses one of those whom Peter addressed, exclaiming, But I was one of those who plotted to take away his life: is there hope for me? Another, But I was one of those who bare false witness against him: is there grace for me?