The Sermons of John Wesley
1872 Edition
(Thomas Jackson, editor)
SERMON TWENTY-ONE
Upon Our Lord's
Sermon On The Mount: Discourse One
"And seeing
the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: And when he was set, his disciples
came unto him: And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, `Blessed
are the poor in spirit: For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they
that mourn: For they shall be comforted." Matt.
5:1-4.
1. Our Lord had now "gone about all Galilee," (Matt. 4:23,) beginning
at the time "when John was cast into prison," (Matt. 4:12,) not
only "teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom,"
but likewise "healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease
among the people." It was a natural consequence of this, that "there
followed him great multitudes from Galilee, and from Decapolis, and from Jerusalem,
and from Judea, and from the region beyond Jordan." (Matt. 4:25.) "And
seeing the multitudes," whom no synagogue could contain, even had there
been any at hand, "he went up into a mountain," where there was
room for all that came unto him, from every quarter. "And when he was
set," as the manner of the Jews was, "his disciples came unto him.
And he opened his mouth," (an expression denoting the beginning of a
solemn discourse.) "and taught them, saying." --
2. Let us observe, who it is that is here speaking, that we may take heed
how we hear. It is the Lord of heaven and earth, the Creator of all; who,
as such, has a right to dispose of all his creatures; the Lord our Governor,
whose kingdom is from everlasting, and ruleth over all; the great Lawgiver,
who can well enforce all his laws, being "able to save and to destroy,"
yea, to punish with "everlasting destruction from his presence and from
the glory of his power." It is the eternal Wisdom of the Father, who
knoweth whereof we are made, and understands our inmost frame: who knows how
we stand related to God, to one another, to every creature which God hath
made, and, consequently, how to adapt every law he prescribes, to all the
circumstances wherein he hath placed us. It is He who is "loving unto
every man, whose mercy is over all his works;" the God of love, who,
having emptied himself of his eternal glory, is come forth from his Father
to declare his will to the children of men, and then goeth again to the Father;
who is sent of God "to open the eyes of the blind, and to give light
to them that sit in darkness." It is the great Prophet of the Lord, concerning
whom God had solemnly declared long ago, "Whosoever will not hearken
unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him;"
(Deut. 18:19;) or, as the Apostle expresses it, "Every soul which will
not hear that Prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people." (Acts
3:23.)
3. And what is it which He is teaching? The Son of God, who came from heaven,
is here showing us the way to heaven; to the place which he hath prepared
for us; the glory he had before the world began. He is teaching us the true
way to life everlasting; the royal way which leads to the kingdom; and the
only true way, -- for there is none besides; all other paths lead to destruction.
From the character of the Speaker, we are well assured that he hath declared
the full and perfect will of God. He hath uttered not one tittle too much,
-- nothing more than he had received of the Father; nor too little, -- he
hath not shunned to declare the whole counsel of God; much less hath he uttered
anything wrong, anything contrary to the will of him that sent him. All his
words are true and right concerning all things, and shall stand fast for ever
and ever.
And we may easily remark, that in explaining and confirming these faithful
and true sayings, he takes care to refute not only the mistakes of the Scribes
and Pharisees, which then were the false comments whereby the Jewish Teachers
of that age had perverted the word of God, but all the practical mistakes
that are inconsistent with salvation, which should ever arise in the Christian
Church; all the comments whereby the Christian Teachers (so called) of any
age or nation should pervert the word of God, and teach unwary souls to seek
death in the error of their life.
4. And hence we are naturally led to observe, whom it is that he is here
teaching. Not the Apostles alone; if so, he had no need to have gone up into
the mountain. A room in the house of Matthew, or any of his disciples, would
have contained the Twelve. Nor does it in anywise appear that the disciples
who came unto him were the Twelve only. Oi maqhtai autou, without any force
put upon the expression, may be understood of all who desired to learn of
him. But to put this out of all question, to make it undeniably plain that
where it is said, "He opened his mouth and taught them," the word
them includes all the multitudes who went up with him into the mountain,
we need only observe the concluding verses of the seventh chapter: "And
it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the multitudes (oi ocloi)
were astonished at his doctrine," or teaching; "for he taught them,"
the multitudes, "as one having authority, and not as the Scribes."
[Matt. 7:28-29]
Nor was it only those multitudes who were with him on the mount, to whom
he now taught the way of salvation; but all the children of men; the whole
race of mankind; the children that were yet unborn; all the generations to
come, even to the end of the world, who should ever hear the words of this
life.
5. And this all men allow, with regard to some parts of the ensuing discourse.
No man, for instance, denies that what is said of poverty of spirit relates
to all mankind. But many have supposed, that other parts concerned only the
Apostles, or the first Christians, or the Ministers of Christ; and were never
designed for the generality of men, who, consequently, have nothing at all
to do with them.
But may we not justly inquire, who told them this, that some parts of this
discourse concerned only the Apostles, or the Christians of the apostolic
age, or the Ministers of Christ? Bare assertions are not a sufficient proof
to establish a point of so great importance. Has then our Lord himself taught
us, that some parts of his discourse do not concern all mankind? Without doubt,
had it been so, he would have told us; he could not have omitted so necessary
an information. But has he told us so? Where? In the discourse itself? No:
Here is not the least intimation of it. Has he said so elsewhere? in any other
of his discourses? Not one word so much as glancing this way, can we find
in anything he ever spoke, either to the multitudes, or to his disciples.
Has any one of the Apostles, or other inspired writers, left such an instruction
upon record? No such thing. No assertion of this kind is to be found in all
the oracles of God. Who then are the men who are so much wiser than God? --
wise so far above that is written?
6. Perhaps they will say, that the reason of the thing requires such a restriction
to be made. If it does, it must be on one of these two accounts; because,
without such a restriction, the discourse would either be apparently absurd,
or would contradict some other scripture. But this is not the case. It will
plainly appear, when we come to examine the several particulars, that there
is no absurdity at all in applying all which our Lord hath here delivered
to all mankind. Neither will it infer any contradiction to anything else he
has delivered, nor to any other scripture whatever. Nay, it will farther appear,
that either all the parts of this discourse are to be applied to men in general,
or no part; seeing they are all connected together, all joined as the stones
in an arch, of which you cannot take one away, without destroying the whole
fabric.
7. We may, Lastly, observe, how our Lord teaches here. And surely, as at
all times, so particularly at this, he speaks "as never man spake."
Not as the holy men of old; although they also spoke "as they were moved
by the Holy Ghost." Not as Peter, or James, or John, or Paul: They were
indeed wise master-builders in his Church; but still in this, in the degrees
of heavenly wisdom, the servant is not as his Lord. No, nor even as himself
at any other time, or on any other occasion. It does not appear, that it was
ever his design, at any other time or place, to lay down at once the whole
plan of his religion; to give us a full prospect of Christianity; to describe
at large the nature of that holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord.
Particular branches of this he has indeed described, on a thousand different
occasions; but never, besides here, did he give, of set purpose, a general
view of the whole. Nay, we have nothing else of this kind in all the Bible;
unless one should except that short sketch of holiness delivered by God in
those Ten Words or Commandments to Moses, on mount Sinai. But even here how
wide a difference is there between one and the other! "Even that which
was made glorious had no glory in this respect, by reason of the glory that
excelleth." (2 Cor. 3:10.)
8. Above all, with what amazing love does the Son of God here reveal his
Father's will to man! He does not bring us again "to the mount that burned
with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest." He does not
speak as when he "thundered out of heaven;" when the Highest "gave
his thunder, hail-stones, and coals of fire." He now addresses us with
his still, small voice, -- "Blessed," or happy, "are the poor
in spirit." Happy are the mourners; the meek; those that hunger after
righteousness; the merciful; the pure in heart: Happy in the end, and in the
way; happy in this life, and in life everlasting! As if he had said, "Who
is he that lusteth to live, and would fain see good days? Behold, I show you
the thing which your soul longeth for! See the way you have so long sought
in vain; the way of pleasantness; the path to calm, joyous peace, to heaven
below and heaven above!"
9. At the same time, with what authority does he teach! Well might they say,
"Not as the Scribes." Observe the manner, (but it cannot be expressed
in words,) the air, with which he speaks! Not as Moses, the servant of God;
not as Abraham, his friend; not as any of the Prophets; nor as any of the
sons of men. It is something more than human; more than can agree to any created
being. It speaks the Creator of all! A God, a God appears! Yea, o vn, the
Being of beings, JEHOVAH, the self-existent, the Supreme, the God who is over
all, blessed for ever!
10. This divine discourse, delivered in the most excellent method, every
subsequent part illustrating those that precede, is commonly, and not improperly,
divided into three principal branches: The First, contained in the fifth,
-- the Second, in the sixth, -- and the Third, in the seventh chapter. In
the First, the sum of all true religion is laid down in eight particulars,
which are explained, and guarded against the false glosses of man, in the
following parts of the fifth chapter. In the Second are rules for that right
intention which we are to preserve in all our outward actions, unmixed with
worldly desires, or anxious cares for even the necessaries of life. In the
Third are cautions against the main hinderances of religion, closed with an
application of the whole.
I. 1. Our Lord, First, lays down the sum of all true religion in eight particulars,
which he explains, and guards against the false glosses of men, to the end
of the fifth chapter.
Some have supposed that he designed, in these, to point out the several stages
of the Christian course; the steps which a Christian successively takes in
his journey to the promised land; -- others, that all the particulars here
set down belong at all times to every Christian. And why may we not allow
both the one and the other? What inconsistency is there between them? It is
undoubtedly true, that both poverty of spirit, and every other temper which
is here mentioned, are at all times found, in a greater or less degree, in
every real Christian. And it is equally true, that real Christianity always
begins in poverty of spirit, and goes on in the order here set down, till
the "man of God is made perfect." We begin at the lowest of these
gifts of God, yet so as not to relinquish this, when we are called of God
to come up higher: But "whereunto we have already attained, we hold fast,"
while we press on to what is yet before, to the highest blessings of God in
Christ Jesus.
2. The foundation of all is poverty of spirit: Here, therefore, our Lord
begins: "Blessed," saith he, "are the poor in spirit; for theirs
is the kingdom of heaven."
It may not improbably be supposed, that our Lord looked on those who were
round about him, and, observing that not many rich were there, but rather
the poor of the world, took occasion from thence to make a transition from
temporal to spiritual things. "Blessed," saith he, (or happy,
-- so the word should be rendered, both in this and the following verses,)
"are the poor in spirit." He does not say, they that are poor, as
to outward circumstances, -- it being not impossible, that some of these may
be as far from happiness as a monarch upon his throne; but "the poor
in spirit," -- they who, whatever their outward circumstances are, have
that disposition of heart which is the first step to all real, substantial
happiness, either in this world, or that which is to come.
3. Some have judged, that by the poor in spirit here, are meant those who
love poverty; those who are free from covetousness, from the love of money;
who fear, rather than desire, riches. Perhaps they have been induced so to
judge, by wholly confining their thoughts to the very term; or by considering
that weighty observation of St. Paul, that "the love of money is the
root of all evil." And hence many have wholly divested themselves, not
only of riches, but of all worldly goods. Hence also the vows of voluntary
poverty seem to have arisen in the Romish Church; it being supposed, that
so eminent a degree of this fundamental grace must be a large step toward
the "kingdom of heaven."
But these do not seem to have observed, First, that the expression of St.
Paul must be understood with some restriction; otherwise it is not true; for
the love of money is not the root, the sole root, of all evil. There are a
thousand other roots of evil in the world, as sad experience daily shows.
His meaning can only be, it is the root of very many evils; perhaps of more
than any single vice besides. -- Secondly, that this sense of the expression,
"poor in spirit," will by no means suit our Lord's present design,
which is to lay a general foundation whereon the whole fabric of Christianity
may be built; a design which would be in no wise answered by guarding against
one particular vice: So that, if even this were supposed to be one part of
his meaning, it could not possibly be the whole. -- Thirdly, that it cannot
be supposed to be any part of his meaning, unless we charge him with manifest
tautology: Seeing, if poverty of spirit were only freedom from covetousness,
from the love of money, or the desire of riches, it would coincide with what
he afterwards mentions, it would be only a branch of purity of heart.
4. Who then are "the poor in spirit?" Without question, the humble;
they who know themselves; who are convinced of sin; those to whom God hath
given that first repentance, which is previous to faith in Christ.
One of these can no longer say, "I am rich, and increased in goods,
and have need of nothing;" as now knowing, that he is "wretched,
and poor, and miserable, and blind, and naked." He is convinced that
he is spiritually poor indeed; having no spiritual good abiding in him. "In
me," saith he, "dwelleth no good thing," but whatsoever is
evil and abominable. He has a deep sense of the loathsome leprosy of sin,
which be brought with him from his mother's womb, which overspreads his whole
soul, and totally corrupts every power and faculty thereof. He sees more and
more of the evil tempers which spring from that evil root; the pride and haughtiness
of spirit, the constant bias to think of himself more highly than he ought
to think; the vanity, the thirst after the esteem or honour that cometh from
men, the hatred or envy, the jealousy or revenge, the anger, malice, or bitterness;
the inbred enmity both against God and man, which appears in ten thousand
shapes; the love of the world, the self-will, the foolish and hurtful desires,
which cleave to his inmost soul. He is conscious how deeply he has offended
by his tongue; if not by profane, immodest, untrue, or unkind words, yet by
discourse which was not "good to the use of edifying," not "meet
to minister grace to the hearers." which, consequently, was all corrupt
in God's account, and grievous to his Holy Spirit. His evil works are now
likewise ever in his sight: If he tells them, they are more than he is able
to express. He may as well think to number the drops of rain, the sands of
the sea, or the days of eternity.
5. His guilt is now also before his face: He knows the punishment he has
deserved, were it only on account of his carnal mind, the entire, universal
corruption of his nature; how much more, on account of all his evil desires
and thoughts, of all his sinful words and actions! He cannot doubt for a moment,
but the least of these deserves the damnation of hell, -- "the worm that
dieth not, and the fire that never shall be quenched." Above all, the
guilt of "not believing on the name of the only-begotten Son of God"
lies heavy upon him. How, saith he, shall I escape, who "neglect so great
salvation!" "He that believeth not is condemned already," and
"the wrath of God abideth on him."
6. But what shall he give in exchange for his soul, which is forfeited to
the just vengeance of God? "Wherewithal shall he come before the Lord?"
How shall he pay him that he oweth? Were he from this moment to perform the
most perfect obedience to every command of God, this would make no amends
for a single sin, for any one act of past disobedience; seeing he owes God
all the service he is able to perform, from this moment to all eternity: Could
he pay this, it would make no manner of amends for what he ought to have done
before. He sees himself therefore utterly helpless with regard to atoning
for his past sins; utterly unable to make any amends to God, to pay any ransom
for his own soul.
But if God would forgive him all that is past, on this one condition, that
he should sin no more; that for the time to come he should entirely and constantly
obey all his commands; he well knows that this would profit him nothing, being
a condition he could never perform. He knows and feels that he is not able
to obey even the outward commands of God; seeing these cannot be obeyed while
his heart remains in its natural sinfulness and corruption; inasmuch as an
evil tree cannot bring forth good fruit. But he cannot cleanse a sinful heart:
With men this is impossible: So that he is utterly at a loss even how to begin
walking in the path of God's commandments. He knows not how to get one step
forward in the way. Encompassed with sin, and sorrow, and fear, and finding
no way to escape, he can only cry out, "Lord, save, or I perish!"
7. Poverty of spirit then, as it implies the first step we take in running
the race which is set before us, is a just sense of our inward and outward
sins, and of our guilt and helplessness. This some have monstrously styled,
"the virtue of humility;" thus teaching us to be proud of knowing
we deserve damnation! But our Lord's expression is quite of another kind;
conveying no idea to the hearer, but that of mere want, of naked sin, of helpless
guilt and misery.
8. The great Apostle, where he endeavours to bring sinners to God, speaks
in a manner just answerable to this. "The wrath of God," saith he,
"is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness
of men;" (Rom. 1:18, &c.;) a charge which he immediately fixes on
the heathen world, and thereby proves they are under the wrath of God. He
next shows that the Jews were no better than they, and were therefore under
the same condemnation; and all this, not in order to their attaining "the
noble virtue of humility," but "that every mouth might be stopped,
and all the world become guilty before God."
He proceeds to show, that they were helpless as well as guilty, which is
the plain purport of all those expressions: "Therefore by the deeds of
the law there shall no flesh be justified:" -- "But now the righteousness
of God, which is by faith of Jesus Christ, without the law, is manifested:"
-- "We conclude, that a man is justified by faith, without the deeds
of the law:" -- Expressions all tending to the same point, even to "hide
pride from man;" to humble him to the dust, without teaching him to reflect
upon his humility as a virtue; to inspire him with that full, piercing conviction
of his utter sinfulness, guilt, and helplessness, which casts the sinner,
stripped of all, lost and undone, on his strong Helper, Jesus Christ the Righteous.
9. One cannot but observe here, that Christianity begins just where heathen
morality ends; poverty of spirit, conviction of sin, the renouncing ourselves,
the not having our own righteousness, (the very first point in the religion
of Jesus Christ,) leaving all pagan religion behind. This was ever hid from
the wise men of this world; insomuch that the whole Roman language, even with
all the improvements of the Augustan age, does not afford so much as a name
for humility; (the word from whence we borrow this, as is well known,
bearing in Latin a quite different meaning;) no, nor was one found in all
the copious language of Greece, till it was made by the great Apostle.
10. O that we may feel what they were not able to express! Sinner, awake!
Know thyself! Know and feel, that thou wert "shapen in wickedness,"
and that "in sin did thy mother conceive thee;" and that thou thyself
hast been heaping up sin upon sin, ever since thou couldst discern good from
evil! Sink under the mighty hand of God, as guilty of death eternal; and cast
off, renounce, abhor, all imagination of ever being able to help thyself!
Be it all thy hope to be washed in His blood, and renewed by his almighty
Spirit, who himself "bare all our sins in his own body on the tree!"
So shalt thou witness, "Happy are the poor in spirit: For theirs is the
kingdom of heaven."
11. This is that kingdom of heaven, or of God, which is within us; even "righteousness,
and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost." And what is "righteousness,"
but the life of God in the soul; the mind which was in Christ Jesus; the image
of God stamped upon the heart, now renewed after the likeness of Him that
created it? What is it but the love of God, because he first loved us, and
the love of all mankind for his sake?
And what is this "peace," the peace of God, but that calm serenity
of soul, that sweet repose in the blood of Jesus, which leaves no doubt of
our acceptance in him; which excludes all fear, but the loving filial fear
of offending our Father which is in heaven?
This inward kingdom implies also "joy in the Holy Ghost;" who seals
upon our hearts "the redemption which is in Jesus," the righteousness
of Christ imputed to us "for the remission of the sins that are past;"
who giveth us now "the earnest of our inheritance," of the crown
which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give at that day. And well may this
be termed, "the kingdom of heaven;" seeing it is heaven already
opened in the soul; the first springing up of those rivers of pleasure which
flow at God's right hand for evermore.
12. "Theirs is the kingdom of heaven." Whosoever thou art, to whom
God hath given to be "poor in spirit," to feel thyself lost, thou
hast a right thereto, through the gracious promise of Him who cannot lie.
It is purchased for thee by the blood of the Lamb. It is very nigh: Thou art
on the brink of heaven! Another step, and thou enterest into the kingdom of
righteousness, and peace, and joy! Art thou all sin? "Behold the Lamb
of God, who taketh away the sin of the world!' -- all unholy? See thy "Advocate
with the Father, Jesus Christ the Righteous!" -- Art thou unable to atone
for the least of thy sins? "He is the propitiation for" all thy
"sins." Now believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and all thy sins are
blotted out! -- Art thou totally unclean in soul and body? Here is the "fountain
for sin and uncleanness!" "Arise, and wash away thy sins!"
Stagger no more at the promise through unbelief! Give glory to God! Dare to
believe! Now cry out, from the ground of thy heart, --
Yes, I yield, I yield at last,
Listen to thy speaking blood;
Me with all my sins, I cast
On my atoning God.
13. Then thou learnest of him to be "lowly of heart." And this
is the true, genuine, Christian humility, which flows from a sense of the
love of God, reconciled to us in Christ Jesus. Poverty of spirit, in this
meaning of the word, begins where a sense of guilt and of the wrath of God
ends; and is a continual sense of our total dependence on him, for every good
thought, or word, or work; of our utter inability to all good, unless he "water
us every moment;" and an abhorrence of the praise of men, knowing that
all praise is due unto God only. With this is joined a loving shame, a tender
humiliation before God, even for the sins which we know he hath forgiven us,
and for the sin which still remaineth in our hearts, although we know it is
not imputed to our condemnation. Nevertheless, the conviction we feel of inbred
sin is deeper and deeper every day. The more we grow in grace, the more do
we see of the desperate wickedness of our heart. The more we advance in the
knowledge and love of God, through our Lord Jesus Christ, (as great a mystery
as this may appear to those who know not the power of God unto salvation,)
the more do we discern of our alienation from God, of the enmity that is in
our carnal mind, and the necessity of our being entirely renewed in righteousness
and true holiness.
II. 1. It is true, he has scarce any conception of this who now begins to
know the inward kingdom of heaven. "In his prosperity he saith, I shall
never be moved; thou, Lord, hast made my hill so strong." Sin is so utterly
bruised beneath his feet, that he can scarce believe it remaineth in him.
Even temptation is silenced, and speaks not again: It cannot approach, but
stands afar off. He is borne aloft in the chariots of joy and love: He soars,
"as upon the wings of an eagle." But our Lord well knew that this
triumphant state does not often continue long: He therefore presently subjoins,
"Blessed are they that mourn; for they shall be comforted."
2. Not that we can imagine this promise belongs to those who mourn only on
some worldly account; who are in sorrow and heaviness merely on account of
some worldly trouble or disappointment, -- such as the loss of their reputation
or friends, or the impairing of their fortune. As little title to it have
they who are afflicting themselves, through fear of some temporal evil; or
who pine away with anxious care, or that desire of earthly things which "maketh
the heart sick." Let us not think these "shall receive anything
from the Lord:" He is not in all their thoughts. Therefore it is that
they thus "walk in a vain shadow, and disquiet themselves in vain."
"And this shall ye have of mine hand," saith the Lord, "ye
shall lie down in sorrow."
3. The mourners of whom our Lord here speaks, are those that mourn on quite
another account: They that mourn after God; after Him in whom they did "rejoice
with joy unspeakable," when he gave them to "taste the good,"
the pardoning, "word, and the powers of the world to come." But
he now "hides his face, and they are troubled:" They cannot see
him through the dark cloud. But they see temptation and sin, which they fondly
supposed were gone never to return, arising again, following after them amain,
and holding them in on every side. It is not strange if their soul is now
disquieted within them, and trouble and heaviness take hold upon them. Nor
will their great enemy fail to improve the occasion; to ask, "Where is
now thy God? Where is now the blessedness whereof thou spakest? the beginning
of the kingdom of heaven? Yea, hath God said, 'Thy sins are forgiven thee?'
Surely God hath not said it. It was only a dream, a mere delusion, a creature
of thy own imagination. If thy sins are forgiven, why art thou thus? Can a
pardoned sinner be thus unholy?" -- And, if then, instead of immediately
crying to God, they reason with him that is wiser than they, they will be
in heaviness indeed, in sorrow of heart, in anguish not to be expressed. Nay
even when God shines again upon the soul, and takes away all doubt of his
past mercy, still he that is weak in faith may be tempted and troubled on
account of what is to come; especially when inward sin revives, and thrusts
sore at him that he may fall. Then may he again cry out,
I have a sin of fear, that when I've spun
My last thread, I shall perish on the shore! --
Lest I should make shipwreck of the faith,
and my last state be worse than the first: --
Lest all my bread of life should fail,
And I sink down unchanged to hell!
4. Sure it is, that this "affliction," for the present, "is
not joyous, but grievous; nevertheless afterward it bringeth forth peaceable
fruit unto them that are exercised thereby." Blessed, therefore, are
they that thus mourn, if they "tarry the Lord's leisure," and suffer
not themselves to be turned out of the way, by the miserable comforters of
the world; if they resolutely reject all the comforts of sin, of folly, and
vanity; all the idle diversions and amusements of the world; all the pleasures
which "perish in the using," and which only tend to benumb and stupefy
the soul, that it may neither be sensible of itself nor God. Blessed are they
who "follow on to know the Lord," and steadily refuse all other
comfort. They shall be comforted by the consolations of his Spirit; by a fresh
manifestation of his love; by such a witness of his accepting them in the
Beloved, as shall never more be taken away from them. This "full assurance
of faith" swallows up all doubt, as well as all tormenting fear; God
now giving them a sure hope of an enduring substance, and "strong consolation
through grace." Without disputing whether it be possible for any of those
to "fall away, who were once enlightened and made partakers of the Holy
Ghost," it suffices them to say, by the power now resting upon them,
"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? -- I am persuaded, that
neither death nor life, nor things present nor things to come, nor height
nor depth, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in
Christ Jesus our Lord." (Rom. 8:35-39.)
5. This whole process, both of mourning for an absent God, and recovering
the joy of his countenance, seems to be shadowed out in what our Lord spoke
to his Apostles, the night before his passion: "Do ye inquire of that
I said, A little while, and ye shall not see me: And again, a little while,
and ye shall see me? Verily, verily, I say unto you, that ye shall weep and
lament;" namely, when ye do not see me; "but the world shall rejoice;"
shall triumph over you, as though your hope were now come to an end. "And
ye shall be sorrowful," through doubt, through fear, through temptation,
through vehement desire; "but your sorrow shall be turned into joy,"
by the return of Him whom your soul loveth. "A woman when she is in travail
hath sorrow, because her hour is come. But as soon as she is delivered of
the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born
into the world. And ye now have sorrow;" ye mourn and cannot be comforted;
"but I will see you again; and your heart shall rejoice," with calm,
inward joy, "and your joy no man taketh from you." (John 16:19-22.)
6. But although this mourning is at an end, is lost in holy joy, by the return
of the Comforter, yet is there another, and a blessed mourning it is, which
abides in the children of God. They still mourn for the sins and miseries
of mankind: They "weep with them that weep." They weep for them
that weep not for themselves, for the sinners against their own souls. They
mourn for the weakness and unfaithfulness of those that are, in some measure,
saved from their sins. "Who is weak, and they are not weak? Who is offended,
and they burn not?" They are grieved for the dishonour continually done
to the Majesty of heaven and earth. At all times they have an awful sense
of this, which brings a deep seriousness upon their spirit; a seriousness
which is not a little increased, since the eyes of their understanding were
opened, by their continually seeing the vast ocean of eternity, without a
bottom or a shore, which has already swallowed up millions of millions of
men, and is gaping to devour them that yet remain. They see here the house
of God eternal in the heavens; there, hell and destruction without a covering;
and thence feel the importance of every moment, which just appears, and is
gone for ever!
7. But all this wisdom of God is foolishness with the world. The whole affair
of mourning and poverty of spirit is with them stupidity and dullness. Nay,
it is well if they pass so favourable a judgment upon it; if they do not vote
it to be mere moping and melancholy, if not downright lunacy and distraction.
And it is no wonder at all, that this judgment should be passed by those who
know not God. Suppose, as two persons were walking together, one should suddenly
stop, and with the strongest signs of fear and amazement, cry out, "On
what a precipice do we stand! See, we are on the point of being dashed in
pieces! Another step, and we fall into that huge abyss! Stop! I will not go
on for all the world!" -- when the other, who seemed, to himself at least,
equally sharp-sighted, looked forward and saw nothing of all this; what would
he think of his companion, but that he was beside himself; that his head was
out of order; that much religion (if he was not guilty of "much learning")
had certainly made him mad!
8. But let not the children of God, "the mourners in Sion," be
moved by any of these things. Ye, whose eyes are enlightened, be not troubled
by those who walk on still in darkness. Ye do not walk on in a vain shadow:
God and eternity are real things. Heaven and hell are in very deed open before
you; and ye are on the edge of the great gulf. It has already swallowed up
more than words can express, nations, and kindreds, and peoples, and tongues;
and still yawns to devour, whether they see it or no, the giddy, miserable
children of men. O cry aloud! Spare not! Lift up your voice to Him who grasps
both time and eternity, both for yourselves and your brethren, that ye may
be counted worthy to escape the destruction that cometh as a whirlwind! that
ye may be brought safe through all the waves and storms into the haven where
you would be! Weep for yourselves, till he wipes away the tears from your
eyes. And even then, weep for the miseries that come upon the earth, till
the Lord of all shall put a period to misery and sin, shall wipe away the
tears from all faces, and "the knowledge of the Lord shall cover the
earth, as the waters cover the sea."
Edited by Kimberly
Horner with corrections by Ryan Danker and George Lyons for the Wesley Center
for Applied Theology.
Copyright © 1999 by
the Wesley Center for Applied Theology. Text may be freely used for personal
or scholarly purposes or mirrored on other web sites, provided this notice
is left intact. Any use of this material for commercial purposes of any kind
is strictly forbidden without the express permission of the Wesley Center
at Northwest Nazarene University, Nampa, ID 83686. Contact the webmaster for
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