HUMAN RESPONSIBILITY AND THE CHURCHES' SECURITY. BY H. MYERSON, MINISTER OF SHALOM CHAPEL, HACKNEY ROAD. God's justice is displayed in rendering to every man according to his works; thus man is not responsible for any sin but his own sin; and man will not be punished for another's sins, but his own sins, let them be what they may. "We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that every man may receive the things done in the body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.” Here I see man's accountability; and should you be surprised at this attempt to show man's true position, dear reader, let me state two reasons:-first, because we are stigmatised as being that class that say, "Let us do evil, that good may come ;" and, secondly, because man will make excuses for his sins committed against God. In every man's history there are events God who hath given him a conscience, and which transpire that prove the providential dictates to him to abstain from that which care of God over him. I mean something is evil and cleave to that which is good. striking, of a remarkable character: and unless man obstinately shuts his eyes to this fact, he will not only admit God's kind and providential care, but will also perceive that as God evinces his care for, and displays his kindness to him, he is indebted to God; and, therefore, a responsible being that is responsible for his own actions. No man is without his losses, and no man can deny that remarkable and unexpected ways are made for him to meet his exigencies; or to provide for him in his extremities; no man is without his days of adversity, though the causes from whence they spring are as varied in their nature and kind as wormwood is from gall; still, both are bitter, and man may as easily perceive God's hand, God's care, God's goodness, as these trials, but while the one Let me now direct your attention to a is very apparent and notable, because felt great error, which I trust God the Spirit and affecting his interests; the other is has delivered you from. Though man is passed by because man is ungrateful, selfish punished for his sins in the next world, he and sinful. Nevertheless, it doth not fol- is not rewarded for his goodness; hence low that man is inexcusable, he cannot be saith David, My goodness extendeth not excused for ingratitude to God; and here unto thee." Thus, though we may do good we may quote the Apostle's language- to others, and in doing good to others, may "Thou art inexcusable, O man.' Inex- do good to ourselves; yet, we cannot by cusable because you treat with contempt our actions, gain a high position in the God of your blessings, from whom heaven; nay, nor a place at all there by you receive your very being, and every dis- our works. Now many sincere souls who play of his providential goodness is thus are seeking peace and striving for heaven passed by in forgetfulness. Here is human stumble at this stumbling stone, and are responsibility. filled with dismay and confusion, because men who are blind guides, direct them wrong; and here is the great evil of bringing carnal reason and human laws to guide them, instead of the Word of God. Hence seeking souls are exhorted to do all they can to get a high position in heaven: of course, meaning that we are rewarded in heaven for our goodness done on earth. This I denounce in toto. Hart says we must renounce all our works, both the bad and the good. Now, child of grace, not only cease from your own works but cease from man's also; and seek the direction of the Holy Spirit; and remember that He saith we are not to look at things which are seen, but the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, and must die, will not continue; hence, we shall not be rewarded for our natural doings; but things which are not seen, not seen by the eye of sense, but by the eye of faith, these things are eternal. Thus the eye of faith must clearly view the perfections But we will take another view of man's responsibility. God hath endowed man with power to abstain from moral evil; and also to perform moral good. Now here we may see that man is culpable. God lays down this rule in his word-"Cease to do evil; learn to do well:" that is moral evil, and moral good. It cannot mean spiritual good; for there is none good but One, that is God; and no goodness can be achieved by man acceptable to God, since man is defiled and corrupted by the fall. God's goodness to man is displayed in the work of regeneration; and actuating him to good works; which works are acceptable to him, being the effect of his own grace; but, still, there is a moral goodness that all men may attain to; and it is unmanly not to strive to attain to it. Alas, how many are as Peter saith, more like natural brute beasts than men. Man is exhorted by God, God who has endowed him with reason, God who hath surrounded him with mercies, of God in Christ. The hand of faith must lay hold of Christ's hand, the mouth of faith must feed on Him; and the soul must cleave to Him, and nought beside. If this be true, which I am confident it is, for Jesus says, "I am the way;" and Paul tells us to look to Jesus; then there cannot be degrees in glory. Taking this view of this important subject, which is a scriptural one, it must appear plain that the Church of Christ is not held responsible. All the members of the Church will be equal in glory. Such an idea as degrees in glory only leads to pride and vain glory. Faith in Christ gives dignity to the soul, and brings glory to Jesus's great name. How does a sinner get pardon, and obtain pardon? By looking to Jesus. How does a poor sinner find justice to be his friend? May I be found a living stone And help to sing around the throne "Think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you.”—1 Peter iv. 12. "MAN is born to trouble as the sparks fly upward."-Job v. 7. Is it as certain that man is born to trouble as that the sparks fly upward? Yes! Is he the creature of many troubles, as the fire is of many sparks? Yes! Are his troubles designed to bear him upward? Yes, if he be a Christian: " Lord, in trouble have they visited thee," &c. Are his troubles like the sparks extinguished by ascending upward? Yes! You are sometimes discouraged because of the troubles of the way, because it is an uphill, rugged, and thorny road; but remember, it is UP to heaven and DOWN to hell; 'tis a rough way to heaven, 'tis a smooth and slippery path to hell; 'tis a thorny way to heaven, tis a flowery path to hell. It is" through much tribulation that we must enter the kingdom of heaven." In the text we have, first, the trials which are to try you; second, the discrimination you are to exercise with respect to these fiery trials. I. THE TRIALS WHICH ARE TO TRY YOU. What the tempest is to the atmosphere; what the storm-cloud is to the seed sown; what the winter is to the summer; what the night is to the day; what the probe is to the wound; what physic is to the patient; what the plough is to the fallow ground; what the pruning knife is to the vine; what the war ery is to the soldier; what the stormy wind is to the mariner; what the chisel is to the sculptor; what the fire is to the ore-that trial is to the Christian. Our text speaks of FIERY trials. There are trials of a severe and intense nature-of such an intense nature that to pass through them is like passing through fire (Isaiah xliii. 2; nay, more, is like being melted in the "fining pot."-Zech. xiii. 9; Malachi iii. 3. "He 1. There is the fiery law of God. sent out a fiery law for them." When He sends that fiery law into the conscience, He tries a man-his life, his works, his words, his ways. Paul was tried by this fiery law; indeed, it burnt the Pharisee of Pharisees to death, and he died a moral death in the terrible blaze of Sinai.-Rom. vii. 9. God's fiery law is a killing letter. The fire of God's word will burn us out of all our refuges of lies, and burn up all our wood, hay, and stubble. Every child of God shall know something of the law before he shall understand in his own experience anything of the Gospel. By the law is the knowledge of sin, and by the Gospel is the knowledge of salvation." A man may be convinced of sin by the law, and not by the Spirit of God. The Spirit's convictions will not only convince a man of sin by the morality of the law in the overt act, but they will also convince of sin by the spirituality of the law, which deals with sin in the thought and feelings. See how the Great Teacher discriminates beween the morality of the law in the ACT of sin, and the spirituality of the law in the THOUGHT of sin. Matt. v. 2. There are the fiery darts of the wicked one. Let God call a poor man out of the kingdom of Satan, and then his old master will begin to hurl his fiery darts at him. Directly the man begins to believe in God, he tries to fill him full of atheistical thoughts, The reason and says, There is no God. As soon as he Christ, NONE but Christ, NONE but begins to pray, he tries to distract his Christ; let him contend for the TRUTH as it mind by filling his soul with blasphemous is in Christ; let him lay the axe at the thoughts of that God at whose feet he is root of Pharisaism and human merit; let bowing, and he thinks it strange: of course him sing, "Grace, grace unto it; let him he does, because he is ignorant of Satan's pray, "THINE is the power;" let him put the devices. Depend upon it the fiery tempta- crown upon the right brow, and sing, "Saltions of Satan will burn up all our fleshly vation is of the Lord," then depend upon religion, all our borrowed religion, all that it he shall suffer persecution. religion which we have inherited from why so few of us suffer persecution is not others. Yes! Satan's fiery darts will prove because the persecuting element is EXTINCT; a man's religion of what sort it is aye, but because we do not live godly in Christ they will burn up all our ready-made Jesus. If we are not persecuted by hypoprayers, our lying mockeries at God's throne, crites, and pharisees, and false professors, and all our false peace, and all our false there must be something awfully wrong in comforts, and all our false hopes. If God our ministry. Depend upon it, if the were to let Satan loose upon the professing fires of Smithfield are ever rekindled, we world, tens of thousands of them would, shall soon see who is on the Lord's side. like Judas, take a short cut to hell. It really is difficult to tell now. Religion Thousands have no experience, but the ex- is so fashionable now-a-days, we want a perience of conscience, and that in some is little fire to burn up the flimsy, flaunting very deep, for conscience will work, until it professions of godless formalists. is steeled by a long course of crime. And they have no religion but what they pick up from the canting literature of a bastard theology. How different are the strong cries of godly sorrow, of soul distress, as recorded in the Word of God, to the flippant jargon of this "religious age." Take the standard periodicals of the day; and how rare a thing it is to find an article with God's image and superscription upon it. And just what periodical religion is, that the people are; tis the pulse by which we ascertain the health of the body; tis the face of the watch by which we learn the hour of the night. God will send the fireman of hell to set fire to all that religion which is not from above. Mind you, it doesn't matter where your religion comes from, if it is not from God, it will, it must be burnt up, for the fire shall try every man's work. Man may lean religion as easily as he learns the rule of three; he may learn to talk religion with as much facility as he learns to talk politics; he may discuss points of theology as clearly as he could explain the problems of Euclid; he may split hairs with as much nicety as the mathematician may split the minimum. They may have all knowledge, and understand all mysteries, and be amazingly eloquent, and have extraordinary faith, and be wonderfully charitable, and go to hell after all (1 Cor. 13). Every man's religious work shall be tried by fire. 3. There is the fire of persecution, and that is to try you. For if any man will live godly in Christ Jesus, he shall suffer persecution. It is possible for a man to live godly IN the world, according to the world's idea of godliness, and not suffer persecution. But let him live godly IN Christ Jesus; let him cry up, None but What 4. Then there are fiery trials. made Job curse his day? The fiery darts of the devil, or rather the devil hurling his fiery darts at him. You a child of God, you-a poor, miserable, loathsome, forsaken wretch like you-you, a favorite of heaven? Aha! ha-ha-ha! Ay, no doubt the devil laughed with malicious glee when Job began to curse his day. Poor Job! it was a trial to try him he had no idea there was so much dross in him till that trial came; but, poor fellow, he looks out of the furnace and cries out loud enough to make the devil tremble, "WHEN he hath tried me I shall come forth as gold.”—Job xxiii. 10. II. Secondly, You are not to think it STRANGE CONCERNING THE FIERY TRIAL WHICH IS TO TRY YOU. When the winds blow and the tempests rage, we do not think it strange. No! we know that the miasma and effluvia arising from vegetable and animal decompositions would poison the atmosphere but for the purifying tempest. And when the summer is over, and the wintry chilling winds blow, and all nature looks bleak and sad, we do not think it strange. No, much has been created in the summer that must be destroyed in the winter; energies have been taxed by the summer that must be relaxed by the winter. The freezing bands of Orion must bind the forces called into active operation by the sweet influences of Pleiades. Job xxxviii. 31. When the shadows of the evening are upon us, we do not think it strange. No; night is heaven's merciful ordinance of repose. That which appears adverse in nature, is not really adverse; neither is that which appears adverse in the soul, properly considered, adverse, for "All things shall work together for good." God's children have sometimes looked upon their fiery trials as strange. And portion, saith my soul." Asaph thought then, again, they have taken another view it strange when he said, "Will the Lord of them for instance, Jacob thought it cast of for ever?" but he did not think it strange when he said, "All these things are strange when he said, "This is my inagainst me." But he did not think it firmity." David thought it strange when strange when he said, "It is enough, Jo- he said, "I shall one day fall;" but he did seph my son is yet alive." Job thought it not think it strange when he said, "He strange when he "cursed his day;" but will perfect that which concerneth me." he did not think it strange when he said Hezekiah thought it strange when he said, "When he hath tried me I shall come "He will cut me off with pining sickness;" forth as gold." "I know that my Re- but he did not think it strange when he deemer liveth." Jonah thought it strange said, By these things men live." when he said, "I do well to be angry; but Rebekah asked, Why am I thus?" he did not think it strange when he said, Naomi, "Call me Mara"-Ruth i. 21. But Salvation is of the Lord." Jeremiah subsequent events explain all. Eli's faith thought it strange when he said, "Woe is is the faith for the day of trouble, "It is me, my mother;" but he did not think it the Lord." strange when he said, "The Lord is my DEVOTIONAL READINGS FOR LORD'S-DAY EVENINGS. BY WILLIAM FRITH, BOROUGH GREEN; AUTHOR OF "COMMUNION OF SAINTS." "Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it." Psalm 1xxxix. 10. and receive this very gracious and abundant blessing! Dear Lord Jesus, come, pardon our indifference to thy merciful invitation, and "may we more and more hunger and thirst after righteousness that we may be filled." O may we not "feed upon the husks that the swine do eat," not be like Ephraim, "feed upon the wind." How often has this blessed portion of Holy | sion goes further in its condescending invitaScripture been a comfort to the " 'poor and tion, and whispers, "Eat, O friends, yea, drink afflicted people!" Truly the contents of abundantly, O beloved!" The streams of Scripture are wisely adapted to meet the mercy, like "the streams of Lebanon," are manifold wants of the deeply exercised "sons clear, deep, and ever-flowing! Behold the of affliction." It is an arsenal full of ammuni- blessedness of the promise in its fulness!— tion, from which the Christian takes his I will fill it! O that those who are "sword of the Spirit," yea, his "whole "dwelling in a dry and thirsty land where armour of God." It is a revelation of in-no water is" may open their mouth wide vitations and promises that cheer and support those who are "weak in faith," and ready to halt" in "the path of life." O my soul, what is there that is not provided for thee? The Bible does not reveal nor promise more than its Divine Author, our covenant God, is able to give. He does not invite without first preparing the feast, nor call without making all things ready! And if it is true that, "He who was rich for our sakes became poor, that we through his poverty might be rich," surely He will not fail to bestow what he has already obtained; and communicate what he has received especially for us! O no; "He has received gifts for men, even for the rebellious also (what a mercy), that the Lord their God might dwell among them!" He is our great and gracious, and faithful ALMON ER. He is faithful to his great mediatorial trust. "For all the promises are in Him yea, and in Him amen, to the glory of God by us!" O precious promises! May I open my mouth wide in filial obedience to this gracious and inviting injunction! Come, my soul, sip this "cup of salvation"-taste and see that the Lord is good; there is no unrighteousness in Him! Divine compas O, that we may open our mouth in faith and love, with longing desires to be "satisfied with the goodness of Thy house," and like Naphtali," satisfied with favour, and FULL with the blessing of the Lord." Deut. xxxiii. 23. David said, and he was a good experi mental saint, "They shall be satisfied with the fatness of Thy house." Psa. xxxvi, 8. My soul, listen, regard and obey this gracious and very blessed invite, and thou "shalt be satisfied as with marrow and fat ness." O think not that earthy joys, plea- When all created streams are dried, THE BURNT OFFERING. DEAR SIR,-You will much oblige by inserting in the columns of your valuable paper a few remarks in reply to a work that has lately appeared under the title, Burnt Offering not in the Hebrew Bible. (Mr. Lennell, the author.) Thus we see that the Holy Ghost recognized Schrevelius, Bowyer, Watts, Entick, define holokautoma "Genus sacrificii ubi tota victima cremabatur."" A sort of sacrifice where the whole victim was consumed by fire." The first remark in reference to the Jerome says: "Si holocautoma fuerit ejus burnt offering that attracted my notice oblatio. (If his offering will be a burnt runs thus-"How sadly the whole scope offering.)" I am by no means surprised and teaching in the Sacred Text (Autho- that Mr. L. is so much opposed to the word rized Version) is here missed;" and as an holocautoma, it is so subversive to his theory amendment Mr. L. introduces a revised-oλog, whole, and katw, to burn. version, "If his gift be an ascension sacri- Levit. vi. 9,-"This is the law of the fice." In order to establish his premises, (olah) whole burnt-offering, it is the whole he assails Gesenius, who erroneously. he burnt-offering,-upon (pi) the hearth, states, followed the dictum of the Septua- or place of burning upon the altar, all gint in the use of holokautoma, the ren- night unto the morning, and the fire of the dering of (y) olah. Mr. L. admits altar shall burn on it." that Origen found holokautoma promis- Gesenius admits that olah is derived cuously used in the Septuagint. After all, from halah. Mr. L. embraces the conhe states, it is not an adequate rendering cession. At the same time Gesenius mainof the Hebrew olah. In his opinion holo-tains that burnt-offering is the true sigkautoma was borrowed from the heathen nification. Mr. L demurs, as it does not idea of sacrifice. It seems to be an insurmountable obstacle to his theory; ergo, it is nothing short of heathenism. I have to observe that our Lord, in his addresses to Israel, never charged her with the crime of applying heathen terms to the instituted sacrifices, or of any interpolations in the Sacred Oracles of truth; but on the contrary, he referred to the Greek Scriptures in his quotations. Had the Jews vitiated the spiritual signification of the true bearing of the sacrifice (olah) by the usage of a heathen term to define its import, our Lord would have condemned them for their idolatrous perversions, and especially so, as those sacrifices referred to himself. The inquiring Scribe, in reply to our Lord, quoted the Septuagint in referring to the absolute duty of loving God with all the heart and his neighbour as himself. It is more than whole burnt offerings, &c., (holokautomaton, kai thusion). Again, Heb. x. 5, 6, the Apostle quotes thus"Sacrifices and offerings Thou wouldest not, but a body (owμa) hast Thou prepared me. In (holokautomata) burnt offerings and sin offerings Thou hast had no pleasure. suit his theory. In a word, the Rabbins, He ex JESUS existed in his original glory previous to his birth in Bethlehem, for God "sent forth"-words which imply the previous existence of Him that was sent. also was "made of a woman"-an pression that implies a supernatural birth, for the word "woman" is distinctive and emphatic. He was "made under the law." What does this mean? Every creature, from the loftiest seraph to the meanest worm, is "under the law." But this strange statement that Christ was "made under the law" involves and implies the fact that He was previously above law. The law-maker took the place of the law-breaker, and became in his stead the law-magnifier.-- Cumming. |