DARKNESS EXPERIENCED, DARKNESS THREATENED
Isaiah 50:10-11. Who is among you that feareth the Lord, &c. [1547]
[1547] I believe this passage has been generally, if not dangerously, misunderstood. It has been quoted, and preached upon, to prove that “a man might conscientiously fear God, and be obedient to the words of the law and the prophets; obey the voice of His servant—of Jesus Christ Himself; that is, be sincerely and regularly obedient to the moral law and the commands of our blessed Lord, and yet walk in darkness and have no light, no sense of God’s approbation, and no evidence of the safety of his state.” This is utterly impossible; for Jesus hath said, “He that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” If there be some religious persons who, under the influence of morbid melancholy, are continually writing bitter things against themselves, the word of God should not be bent down to their state. There are other modes of spiritual and scriptural comfort. But does not the text speak of such a case? And are not the words precise in reference to it? I think not; and Bishop Lowth’s translation has set the whole in the clearest light, though he does not appear to have been apprehensive that the bad use I mentioned had been made of the text as it stands in our common version. The text contains two questions, to each of which a particular answer is given:—
Q. 1. “Who is there among you that feareth Jehovah?” A. “Let him hearken unto the voice of His Servant.”
Q. 2. “Who that walketh in darkness and hath no light?” A. “Let him trust in the name of Jehovah, and lean himself[prop himself] upon his God.”
Now, a man awakened to a sense of his sin and misery, may have a dread of Jehovah, and tremble at His Word; and what should such a person do? Why, he should hear what God’s Servant saith: “Come unto me, all ye who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” There may be a sincere penitent walking in darkness, having no light of salvation; for this is the case with all when they first begin to turn to God. What should such do? They should trust, believe on, the Lord Jesus, who died for them, and lean upon His all-sufficient merit for the light of salvation, which God has promised. Thus acting they will soon have a sure trust and confidence that God, for Christ’s sake, has forgiven them their sin; and thus they shall have the light of life.—Adam Clarike, LL.D., F.A.S.
This representation of the text by this admirable commentator is here reproduced, in order that preachers may be warned against repeating it. Lowth’s treatment of the text, on which it is founded, has been repudiated by all our most eminent scholars, with the exception of Matthew Arnold. Kay and Cheyne agree with Delitzsch in ending the question with the second clause: “Who is there among you that feareth Jehovah, that hearkeneth to the voice of His servant? He that walketh in darkness, and hath no light, let him trust in the Name of Jehovah, and rely upon his God (Cheyne).
Plumtre’s comment on Isaiah 50:10 is excellent:—“The words grow at once out of the prophet’s own experience and that of the ideal Servant (Isaiah 50:6). All true servants know what it is to feel as if the light for which they looked had for a time failed them, to utter a prayer like Ajax, ‘Give light, and let us die’ (Hom. Il. xvii: 647). The Servant felt it when He uttered the cry, ‘My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?’ (Matthew 27:46). For such an one there were the words of counsel, ‘Trust, in spite of the darkness.’ (β) So the cry of the forsaken Servant was followed by the word, ‘Father, into Thy hands I commend my spirit’ (Luke 23:46).”
I. A MYSTERIOUS DISPENSATION DESCRIBED. A good and holy man sinking in despondency and dejection—walking in darkness and having no light. Mysterious, according to the ordinary estimate we form of what is right and fit. “No wonder,” you say, “that this should be the doom of the openly ungodly, of the close hypocrite, of the presumptuous Antinomian, or even, perhaps, of the newly-awakened convert; but how strange that it should be the case with the most approved of God’s people—those who fear the Lord, and obey the voice of His servant!” Yet so it has often been. A horror of great darkness fell upon Abraham. Job said, “My soul chooseth strangling rather than life.” Paul complained of the messenger of Satan. Our Lord Himself said, “My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?”—Let me specify some causes of this despondency; I cannot specify all.
1. When the course of God’s Providence towards His Church is perplexed and clouded. This was the case here. The captives were overwhelmed with their calamities (Isaiah 49:14; Isaiah 50:1-3).—When God does not interpose for His church or themselves as they expected, and comes not forward in the path they had marked out for Him, they seem like prisoners in a dungeon without a lamp; or like midnight travellers in the wood and the thicket without a star (Job 23:8; Psalms 77:7-9).—Again, when their own lot is privation and suffering; when long-continued affliction of body and mind is permitted; when hope after hope is disappointed, and plan after plan is broken; when the interests of others are involved in your own, and a succession of trials takes place each darker and more painful than before, then this sorrow and dejection is felt (Lamentations 3:1, &c.)
2. When, in conjunction with outward trials, there is a sense of sin upon the conscience, unaccompanied with adequate views of the power and grace of Christ to save. I lay great stress on this. A sense of sin is the heaviest part of the believer’s burden: and it is the natural and proper tendency of affliction to bring sin to remembrance. Much of this darkness and depression may be intended to embitter sin; to arouse the recollection of past offences and neglects before conversion, or since (Job 13:26; Psalms 27:7; 1 Corinthians 15:9; Ezekiel 16:43; Ezekiel 16:63). Of some sins of ungodly men, God says, “As I live, this iniquity shall not be purged away from you till ye die;” and there are provocations in His own people which He long remembers. The Jews said, “There was an ounce of the golden calf in all the afflictions Israel suffered.” For instance, after signal enjoyments of God’s love, or particular mercies of God’s providence, if a man be negligent and inconsistent in his walk, it seems to carry an unkindness with it that shall not be forgotten. How suggestive the remark on the misconduct of Solomon: “God was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the Lord, who had appeared to him twice!” All sins under or after special mercies will meet at one time or other with special rebukes. Nothing more distresses a believer than the remembrance in darkness of abused light, in desertion of neglected love.—Then, the processes of sanctification are always incomplete. If not open sins, there may be secret departures from God: pride, bitterness, sins of the spirit.—Suppose these recollections to occur without adequate views of the power and grace of Christ, or without a consciousness of deep and often renewed repentance, dejection will occur.
3. When the promise is very long delayed, and answers to prayer seem to be withheld (Lamentations 3:8; Psalms 80:4; 2 Corinthians 12:8). [1550]
[1550] As it happened to the Saviour, so it will happen to His disciples, who are known by their fear of the Lord, and their obedience to the voice of His Son. There will be times when it may be said of them that they “walk in darkness, and have no light.” The rule then is, after the example of Him who said, “The Lord will help me, therefore I shall not be confounded,” to trust in the Lord; and if the blind man who walks in darkness trusts in the brute that guides him, and goes on his sightless way without a fear and without a doubt, how much more may the believer fear not with such a stay on which to lean!—Keith.
4. When their religious state is after all doubtful. For the pardon may have passed the great seal of heaven, and yet the indictment be suffered to run on in the Court of Conscience. Real Christians have not at all times equal confidence in the integrity of their religious profession (H. E. I. 311–314, 323, 335–339). If you doubt the reality of your conversion, be it far from me to say the doubt is unfounded; carry the apprehension to Him who alone is able to relieve it.
II. A SAFE DIRECTION GIVEN. “Let him trust in the name of the Lord, and stay upon his God.”
1. Wait in the exercise of earnest, fervent, persevering prayer. Go to God as the man who had not a loaf of bread in the house went to his friend at midnight. Beware of the delusion of waiting passively for some strange manifestation. The blessing is to those who actively seek, not who remain passively content. “Blessed is the man that waiteth at the posts of my doors,” not who lies down at the threshold like a drunkard, asleep. In the act of seeking God, we find. In flying for refuge, we meet the promise of strong consolation. As they went, the lepers were cleansed.
2. Strenuously abide by known duty. Resist all temptations to employ doubtful means to extricate yourself from calamity (H. E. I. 169–176). Still fear, still obey. Take care that speculative difficulties be not increased by moral causes.
3. Frequently review past experiences of God’s mercy, enjoyed by yourself or others. In seeking the grace you want, do not deny the grace you have (H. E. I. 330–334). This is to bear false witness, not against your neighbour, but against yourself and God. “If the Lord were pleased to kill,” &c. (Judges 13:23.) Gain the benefit of the darkness (H. E. I. 1649–1654).
4. Revolve in your mind the great and distinguishing consolations of the bright economy in which you live. The grace and righteousness of Christ. The teaching and unction of the Holy Spirit. Not in vain is He revealed as a Comforter.
III. A FEARFUL CONTRAST BETWEEN THE RIGHTEOUS AT THEIR WORST AND THE WICKED AT THEIR BEST. The wicked ironically counselled to walk by the light of their own fire. Antithesis between the light of God and the light of men. The faithful were to be delivered from captivity into light and liberty. But the wicked kindle a fire of their own, and are without God. Isaiah 50:11 is not a first warning to repent, but a warning that destruction, darkness, endless sorrow, are about to descend upon them.—Samuel Thodey.
I. The best of men may find themselves walking, as it were, in the valley of the shadow of death, [1551]
[1551] For developments of these divisions, see other outlines on this text.
II. They should then honestly examine themselves (H. E. I. 4446–4464).
III. If as the result of that examination they see that “the fear of the Lord” is the governing principle of their hearts, they should walk on in the path of duty submissively and hopefully. The God whom they trust will keep them in the midst of the darkness, and in His own time, which is always the best, will lead them forth into light.
SPIRITUAL DARKNESS
Isaiah 50:10. Who is there among you that feareth Jehovah, that hearkeneth to the voice of His servant? He that walketh in darkness and hath no light, let him trust in the name of Jehovah, and rely upon his God.
Micah 7:8. When I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light unto me.
These utterances make it clear that spiritual darkness occurred at times in the experience of the prophets of the Lord. His people now must not be surprised if it befalls them, nor should they then be dismayed.
I. DARKNESS AS A FACT OF CHRISTIAN EXPERIENCE, AND THE CHRISTIAN’S PROPER EXERCISE UNDER IT.
In the natural world it is not always light; the sun goes down and darkness spreads, &c. So in higher life. The spiritual heavens are not always bright.
1. It may be the light of faith that is darkened. Spiritual realities are withdrawn into shadow. There is a God to rule over all and love all, but where is He? There is a Christ to die for all, but where is the cross? The cloud has fallen even on Calvary. What is the man to do? Do! He is to believe. Faith is not wholly gone. Both texts call on its exercise. The light exercises sense. It is the darkness that exercises faith.
2. It may be the light of God’s face that is felt to be withdrawn. The soul feels deserted and is in dismay—for God’s favour is its life. The resource against this feeling of abandonment is God’s character and word, and the gift of His Son (chap. Isaiah 54:8; Job 13:15).
3. Darkness may come in the form of the fading away of some Christian hope—personal hopes, or hopes for the kingdom of God (H. E. I. 323). With the sun of hope gone down behind the sky, what are we to do? Remember
(1.) This setting of hope is not for ever. It precedes a glorious dawn. God is the God of hope. He often lets hope wane that it may gather strength.
(2.) Though the sun of hope has set for ever on earth, earth is not all.
It may be remarked here that this dark experience gives a striking demonstration that God only is man’s comforter (2 Corinthians 1:3-4). The spiritual helper of the man who sits in darkness feels he may as well throw his words on the dead wall; and the sufferer whom he would help is ready to say of all human helpers whatever, “miserable comforters,” &c.
II. DARKNESS AS A MEANS OF SPIRITUAL DISCOVERY.
Perhaps the best explanation of this darkness, and it is a vindication too, is found in the results which it works. In nature the darkness of night lets us see what we cannot see when the sun is shining. The unnumbered worlds of God are not seen under the effulgence of noonday. It is the same with spiritual night in the soul, or may be the man of God may then get great enlargement of spiritual information and understanding—under the dim starlight of darkened faith and hope may more truly descry the positions, relations, and magnitudes of Divine realities. His experience improves and enlarges his knowledge of God’s ways and of himself to begin with, and from that beginning a great deepening and widening of his spiritual education may be effected. And by and by he shall come forth into the light with treasures of wisdom and knowledge far greater than if the cloud had never overshadowed him. There are worlds we are told which, having two suns in their heavens, are perpetually in the light. What can the inhabitants of these worlds know of the universe, if their sunlight is of a nature like ours? So with those whose spiritual heaven is always bright. They can on that account perhaps see not so near to the throne of God. In heaven it is always light, but the light there is not the light of the sun. The help of darkness is no longer needed there.
There need be no mystery why all this is so. The man who sits in darkness is by the pressure of his position made a more diligent searcher into Divine things. The mind that feels the darkness spreading immediately around, is made to seek the light that is far away. When a man is always in the light he may be too easily satisfied with the light he has. Darkness brings alarm. It quickens. It shows how easily all our satisfactions may be gone (H. E. I. 117–121).
III. DARKNESS AS A DISCIPLINE OF THE CHRISTIAN CHARACTER.
It may secure for it some of its best graces—the mildest, the most mellowed, the most hallowed. There are plants that grow best in a dim light. Amongst those Christian graces that take deeper root in the dark are—
1. Humility. It is not when the windows of heaven are open that the child of God feels himself a broken cistern, and looks up and says, “All my well-springs,” &c. More readily does he do this when the windows of heaven are shut and there is no rain.
2. Trustfulness.
3. Self-surrender.
IN CONCLUSION:—Ye servants of God who sit in darkness, beware of two things—impatience and sullen indifference. Don’t fret as if God did not heed your grief. Don’t be callous as if He were not dealing with you. Pray for the light, but will not your prayers be heard the sooner and the enlargement you seek be sent the more speedily, if you long less for the deliverance than for the full benefit of the chastening?—J. Wardrop, D.D.: Homiletical Quarterly, vol. v. pp. 32–34.
GOD’S MESSAGE TO THE DESPONDING
Isaiah 50:10. Who is among you that feareth the Lord? &c.
It is not, then, a thing unheard of or impossible, that a child of God should “walk in darkness and have no light.” And when the sadness of such an experience comes upon the saint, it will not be always safe to say that it is the shadow of some special sin. It may not be with him as it was with David when he cried, “Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation,” after committing the great transgressions which stain his name; nor, as it was with Elijah, when running from the post of duty, “under the juniper tree” he wailed, “O Lord, take away my life now!” The case described in the text is different from these. It is that of one who even at the moment “feareth the Lord, and obeyeth the voice of His Servant,” while yet he is bending under the weight of spiritual despondency.
Many would say flippantly that a Christian must be very feeble indeed if he is ever in such a state; and some, cruelly, that he who permits himself thus to lie “in heaviness” cannot be a Christian at all. But all such unqualified assertions spring out of a shallow philosophy and a superficial experience. Our salvation depends on Christ, and not on our emotions regarding it. Hence, they who roundly affirm that if a man be walking in darkness, and finding no light, he cannot be a Christian, are making salvation depend, not on God’s work for a man and in time, but simply and entirely on his own emotions. Moreover, they forget some of the best-known passages in the history even of the most eminent saints (Psalms 42; 1 Peter 1:6).
But while despondency furnishes no valid reason for calling the genuineness of one’s religion in question, it is very far from being a comfortable thing in itself. He should be encouraged to get out of it as soon as possible; for it puts everything about him into shadow. For his own happiness, and for the good of others, it is in every way desirable that he should be brought out of the darkness into the light.
It may contribute to this result if we consider—
I. THE CAUSES OUT OF WHICH DESPONDENCY MAY SPRING.
1. Natural temperament. However it may come, whether through heredity, or on the principle of special characteristics being given directly by God to every man, it is the fact that each of us is born with a certain predisposition to joy or sadness, to irascibility or patience, to quickness of action or deliberateness of conduct. And it is also true, that while conversion may Christianise that temperament, it does not change it.
There are some men to whom, Christianity apart, it comes as natural to be joyful as it does to the lark to sing. And there are others, alas! whose disposition inclines them always to look on the darker side of things. In the former case there is no merit in the gladness, just as in the latter there is no blame in the sadness. We are often shamefully unjust in our estimates of our fellows; we don’t know what is restrained, we only know what comes out. And the same thing holds in this matter of despondency. But Christ knows. And He will not be unjust like men: He will give you honour in proportion to your effort to get above it.
2. Disease. The connection between the soul and the body is intimate and mysterious; they act and react upon each other. Lowness of spirits is very often the result of some imprudence in diet, or some local disturbance. Not all spiritual depressions can be resolved into the consequences of physical states; but in all ordinary cases the sound body is necessary to the sound mind. A Christian physiologist might render great service to many desponding spirits by preparing a work which should treat of the effects of different diseases on religious experience.
See the relief which this affords. It removes from religion the responsibility for the depression of such a man as Cowper; while on the other hand it removes from Christianity the reproach for the hypocrisy of men who, on seeming deathbeds are saints, but get well again to transgress afresh; for there, too, the exhilaration was owing to the peculiar character of the malady. When we can trace our despondency to such a cause, it will cease to be a thorn to us. One, while he lay dying, had Psalms 77 read to him, and when he heard Isaiah 50:10, “And I said, This is my infirmity,” he broke in with the words, “That’s my liver. My soul and body so act one upon the other. With the liver wrong, the mind gets clouded, and I feel as though God had swept me out of His house as useless; but after He has taken so much trouble to mould the vessel, He will not throw it aside.” The sufferer recognised the spiritual effect of the disease.
3. Trial. One affliction will not usually becloud the horizon; but when a whole series comes in succession, the effect is terrible. First, it may be, comes sickness; and we are getting round when business difficulties overwhelm us; then, these are scarcely arranged before bereavement comes. For years, it may be, we are like the sailor who for weeks is seeking to round a stormy cape, and still the same weariful headland frowns drearily on him. The same effect may be produced by the mere monotony of our labour, without any special affliction.
“Love adds anxiety to toil,
And sameness doubles cares;
While one unbroken chain of work
The flagging temper wears.”
Mothers and housekeepers know what is meant by the assertion that “sameness doubles cares;” and it is when such a burden is lying most heavily upon the heart that the words of the text come to us with their soothing influence.
4. Mental perplexity. The spirit of inquiry and bold independent criticism is abroad in our age. The sacred things of our faith are assailed. When your children, now young men, are wrestling their way through the peculiar mental difficulties of this age, do not upbraid nor blame them, but help them by entering into their difficulties, and removing, if you can every stumbling-block from their path. And let those who are thus walking in darkness take to themselves the comfort of the text, and walk on in the full assurance that there is light beyond.
II. THE COUNSELS TO THE DESPONDING GIVEN OR SUGGESTED BY THIS TEXT.
1. The oppressed spirit must keep on fearing the Lord and obeying the voice of His servant. Whatever happens, these must not be given up. Nothing whatever can furnish any proper reason for ceasing to practise them; while, on the other hand, the neglect of them will only deepen the darkness already over you. The tunnel may be long, but it will come to an end at last, if only you will go through it. Whatever you feel, let no evil be wrought by you, but keep steadily in the path of rectitude. Amid all doubts you must accept some things as certain; hold by these, then, and act up to them, so will you prove that you are a docile learner, and put yourself into a position where you will catch the first glimpses of returning light. Only by acting up to the level of our present convictions can we rise to higher things. Sometimes an evil life has led to a shipwreck of the faith; but always a good character clarifies the spiritual conception (John 7:17). Keep your conduct abreast of your conscience, and very soon your conscience will be illumined by the radiance of God.
2. Keep on trusting God. What a blessed privilege it is to be permitted to do that! When we cannot see, it is an unspeakable blessing to have some hand to cling to; and when that hand is God’s, it is all right. But let us take the full comfort of this saying, “Let him trust in the name of the Lord.” What is that name? It is “Jehovah, God, merciful and gracious; long-suffering; forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin; and who will by no means clear the guilty.” Therefore I need not despair about my guilt, for there is forgiveness with Him. It is Jehovah Tsidkenu—the Lord our righteousness. Therefore we may in Him have “boldness in the day of judgment.” It is Jehovah Ropheka—the Lord that healeth thee. Therefore I may bring all my spiritual maladies to Him for cure. It is Jehovah Jireh—the Lord will provide. Therefore He will give me that which is needful. It is Jehovah Nissi—the Lord my banner; and in it I may see the symbol of His protection. It is Jehovah Shalom—the Lord of peace; and so, beneath His sheltering wing, I may be for ever at rest.
3. Fail not to note the deep meaning of that word “stay.” It does not bid you only take a momentary grasp of God’s hand, it encourages you to lean your whole weight upon Him, and to do that continuously. Acquaint yourself with God through Jesus Christ, so shall you know that there is something better even in the Christian’s despondency than there is in the unbeliever’s joy.—W. M. Taylor, D.D.: Limitations, &c., pp. 312–326.
This text is applicable to believers under all circumstances of trouble. The Lord is always the same; and faith must not wait until trouble is removed, but stay upon Him, lean upon Him when trouble is deepest. We have
I. A SKETCH OF CHRISTIAN CHARACTER.
“Who is among you that feareth the Lord, that obeyeth the voice of His servant?” Those terms contain the universal elements of Christian character as an inward affection and in outward manifestation.
1. As an inward affection. The soul has been made alive to God by the power of the Holy Spirit. Man possesses a capacity of affection which can fix on God as its object. But fallen man is alienated from Him; dead to Him. God’s regenerating grace quickens into life that capacity of affection; so that there is the loving, childlike fear of God the heavenly Father, instead of the previous indifference to Him.
2. As an outward manifestation. It is characteristic of Christians that they obey the voice of Christ. When He called them to repent and believe in Him, they obeyed. And, however imperfectly, they endeavour in their daily walk to obey Him. His revealed will is the accepted rule of their lives. He is their Master, their King.
II. A GLIMPSE OF CHRISTIAN EXPERIENCE.
“That walketh in darkness, and hath no light.” This is not the normal experience of believers. They are “children of light, and of the day.” God has called them “out of darkness into His marvellous light” (2 Corinthians 4:6). The light, revealing pardon, acceptance, sanctification, future glory, causes us to walk in calmness and conscious security. Yet it may not shine with uniform clearness. The sun in the heavens is sometimes obscured by passing clouds; but it is shining, all the same. The normal day has the sun shining so that we see clearly the objects around us, and are able to pursue our avocations without interruption
Again, while these seasons of darkness are variations from the usual experience of believers, some are visited by them more than others. The causes are also various. Some spiritual, some physical No Christian’s experience must be made the measure, in all respects, of another’s. When you have mentioned a few things, you have exhausted the essential things of the spiritual life; and even these are experienced variously according to the constitution of the different minds. Some are exercised with dark experiences, from which others are exempted. Luther seemed at times to himself to fight with Satan as a personal power, living, visible, audible. John Bunyan describes similar experience in the story of his life in the book entitled “Grace Abounding.” The reflex of that experience is in his description of the Pilgrim in the Valley of the Shadow of Death.
Let no one be deterred from entering the Christian course under the apprehension that he must have an experience like this. Nor let any one afflict himself with the idea that he is not a Christian because he has had no such experience. Few natures are so strong and intense as to be capable of it. God dealt with Luther and Bunyan according to their natures, and thus prepared them for the great work they had to do. And with most, even after seasons of conflict and victory, there is danger of reaction in the direction of spiritual darkness. Unbelief may represent the difficulties of the way. Despairing fears and presumptuous hopes alike may draw you from the narrow path. Thoughts, passions, words of evil which you have repented and which you hate, may struggle for indulgence and expression against the resistance of your better nature. It is one of the most terrible facts about sin, that, even though repented and forsaken, old sins so imbed themselves in the nature that their expulsion is the work of time and of many a struggle. Traps and perils lie on every hand, with their opportunities and inducements to the indulgence of sin. If backsliding of the heart has not preceded its commission, its commission may compel backsliding of the heart.
And as there may be spiritual darkness in the soul, there may be the darkness of uncertainty as to the way of God’s providence. There may be bereavement, sickness, disappointment, loss, a state of things with regard to worldly affairs pregnant with anxiety, through which no way can be seen. Your heart is heavy. You fear the worst.
III. A REMINDER OF CHRISTIAN PRIVILEGE.
“Let him trust in the name of the Lord, and stay upon his God.” It is the Christian’s privilege to trust in God at all times. Observe, you are not to wait until the darkness has cleared away and then trust; but to trust now, in the darkness. For this is always possible, inasmuch as He in whom we trust is ever the same, notwithstanding any danger that may occur in us or in our circumstances.
Be instant in prayer. When enveloped in darkness you can keep hold of your Father’s hand. He will guide and help. He has promised to keep the feet of His saints. Cry to Him out of the darkness. Trust Him. Prayer is the believing cry of the heart that is satisfied that, however dark and dreary the way, He is leading us by a right way to a city of habitation. So long as He is there, what can we fear?
Be careful as to your walk. Knowing the perils of darkness, you cannot afford to be careless in your conduct. The path is narrow and difficult to find. You may miss it and fall on either side.
You are not alone in the darkness of sorrow. Christ has been there before you. He will be with you. Prayer shall be heard. Faith shall be honoured. The light of God’s countenance shall be lifted upon you. The day shall dawn and the shadows flee away.—J. Rawlinson.
I. The godly man’s character.
1. He feareth the Lord.
2. He obeys the divine commands.
II. The godly man’s trouble. “Walketh in darkness, and hath no light.” Providential darkness.
III. The godly man’s best course in trouble. “Let him trust,” &c.—I. E. Page.
ENCOURAGEMENT FOR THE DEVOTED AND OBEDIENT
Isaiah 50:10. Who is among you that feareth the Lord, &c.
The encouragement here is for the people of God, and for them only. It is sometimes appropriated by those who are merely His people in profession; and in view of it, they are confident that though they have no satisfactory evidence of the Divine favour, all will be well with them in the end. They make a terrible mistake. The darkness of which they are conscious, is the result of the hiding from them of “the light of God’s countenance,” a calamity that never befalls those who are truly His people. [1554] But God’s people may be in darkness of another kind, in which they need all the cheer here offered them. For example, in the preceding Chapter s, Isaiah speaks of the Babylonian captivity, and of the oppressions of the Israelites during that dark period of their deliverance and restoration to their own land. Such, however, was the strength and resources of the Chaldean empire, and to such a state of imbecility and wretchedness had the Israelites been reduced, that the fulfilment of the prediction appeared impossible, or in the highest degree improbable. Therefore, knowing how dark and discouraging the prospects of His people would be in this state of captivity, God reminds them of what He had done for their ancestors in times past; how He had delivered them from the bondage of Egypt by the most extraordinary interpositions; and He tells them that they were still His covenant people, and would not be forsaken by Him (chap. Isaiah 49:14-16). Lest in their despondency they should doubt His ability to accomplish their deliverance, He refers them to the works of creation and providence as illustrative of His power (chap. Isaiah 40:12-17; Isaiah 40:25-28; Isaiah 50:2-3). Our text appears to form part of the expostulations intended to dispel the fears and to revive the hopes of His desponding people. There was a pious remnant who answered to the description contained in it; and he tells them, in effect, that though they had no light as to the manner in which He would accomplish their deliverance and restoration, yet they might confidently trust His power and faithfulness.
[1554] What can be meant by the phrase, “the light of God’s countenance,” but an expression of the Divine approbation? When a father is pleased with the conduct of his son, approbation is expressed in his countenance. If the son behaves amiss, he soon observes a change in the expression of his father’s countenance towards him, and is generally conscious that he has done wrong. It at any time he should observe such a change without at once knowing the cause, he will immediately suspect himself, and will ask, What have I done to offend my father? So, when the children of God walk in His fear, and in obedience to His commands; when their supreme object is to glorify Him in all that they do, they enjoy the light of His countenance, i.e., the expression of His favour (Psalms 37:23; John 14:21; Hebrews 11:5). When He frowns upon any man, it is an expression of His displeasure, telling them by the darkness which rests upon their minds that something is wrong, and that they ought to examine their heart and conduct, and to compare both with His word, in order to ascertain where the fault lies (2 Chronicles 15:2; Deuteronomy 31:16-17; Isaiah 64:7; Ezekiel 39:23-24). These passages, and others which relate to the subject, cannot be reconciled with the supposition that the text was intended for the encouragement of those from whom the light of God’s countenance is deservedly withdrawn, and who are walking in darkness as to religious enjoyment, and as to any evidence of the Divine favour and acceptance. To them He does not say, “Trust in My name, and stay yourselves upon Me, for the darkness will soon pass away, and all will end well.” No; when He frowns it is an unequivocal declaration of His displeasure; it is a signal of alarm; a call to repent, and to do works meet for repentance.
Through the whole economy of grace comfort is connected with the active and faithful performance of duty. This fact has not been generally recognised. Hence the perversion of the text; and hence the low state of religious enjoyment in the Church. Indolent and inconsistent professors appear not to understand the reason why they are left to walk in darkness. Instead of ascribing it to their neglect of duty, to their sins, they resolve it into “human imperfection,” “moral necessity,” “divine sovereignty,” “an expedient to try their faith,” or “to make them humble;”—anything, in short, but the true cause. They say “it is the common experience of Christians to walk in darkness sometimes, and we cannot expect to be always on the mount;” and thus they satisfy themselves, without the present exercise of right feelings towards God or their fellowmen, and without a disposition to do their duty. They are serving, not God, but themselves; they are devoted to this world; its objects and pursuits engross their thoughts; while they are doing little or nothing for that Saviour who laboured and died for sinners. It is unreasonable, nay, presumptuous for such persons to expect or hope that God will lift up the light of His countenance upon them.—Walton.
Specimen cases to which our text might also be profitably applied.
1. Any case like that of Joseph, while lying under the reproach of a crime which he never committed, and which he abhorred. We know what a great trial it was to his pure mind, how he stayed upon God, and what was the happy result.
2. The situation of David during the lifetime of Saul. God had promised that he should be king over His people; and yet he was obliged to fly for his life, to wander among the mountains, and to hide himself in dens and caves of the earth. Thus he was walking in darkness as to any prospect of relief, except from a Divine interposition. But walking in darkness in this sense was perfectly consistent with the most vigorous exercise of gracious affections, and with the fullest assurance of Divine favour; and judging by his psalms composed during this period, we can have no doubt of the spirituality of his mind, or of his confidence in God. While he feared the Lord and obeyed His voice, he was authorised to trust in Him for the full accomplishment of His promises; and doing so, he was finally delivered from all his enemies, and raised to the throne of Israel. From this result, we see that it was not necessary for him to use any unlawful means, either for self-preservation, or for the attainment of the object which had been promised him. It was only necessary that he should trust in the Lord and obey His voice. And this is the Christian’s duty and privilege in circumstances of the greatest trial (H. E. I. 155–165, 169–177).
3. The case of the Church at the present day, when looking at the moral condition of the world in connection with the prophecies. The conversion of the world is predicted in the Bible with as much certainty as was the deliverance of the Jews from the Babylonian captivity; and the obstacles which oppose the accomplishment of this prediction are far greater than those that darkened the prospects of the captive Jews. The disparity between Jonathan and his armourbearer and the army of the Philistines was not so great as that which exists between the army of Christ now in the field and the hundreds of millions who fill the ranks of the enemy. Therefore the Church may be said to be walking in darkness with respect to the conversion of the world; she does not see how the immense obstacles are to be removed. But clear predictions have been given that the world shall be converted, and in Him who made them the Church should trust, obeying His voice by diligently employing all the means He has already entrusted to her, assured that He will as certainly verify these predictions, as He did those which related to the restoration of Israel from the captivity of Babylon (H. E. I. 1161, 1162).—William C. Walton, A.M.: American National Preacher, vol. 4:285–292.
I. THE ESSENTIAL FEATURES IN A GODLY MAN’S CHARACTER.
1. Feareth the Lord. An intelligent and an affectionate principle—the fear of the affectionate child and loyal subject.
2. Obeyeth the voice of His servant. Great test of godly sincerity.
II. THE SUPPOSED CONDITION OF THE GODLY MAN.
1. This is not the ordinary condition of the Christian. He is a child of the light, &c. He has the light of the divine
(1) knowledge in his understanding,
(2) truth in his judgment,
(3) hope in his soul,
(4) joy in his experience,
(5) holiness in his life. He is not of the night nor of darkness.
2. Yet this is sometimes the condition of the best of saints. It is the result of
(1.) Providential trials.
(2.) Nervous depression.
III. THE REMEDY WHICH THE TEXT PRESCRIBES.
1. The name of God must be our trust. It cannot alter, change, deceive.
2. The soul must be stayed upon God. We are apt to stay the soul on other things—friends, means, experience, frames, and feelings. God in His relationship to us as our God, must be the basis of our confidence and hope. Trust in His wisdom, power, grace, love—His promise never to forsake.—J. Burns, D.D.
COUNSEL AND COMFORT FOR THE AFFLICTED
Isaiah 50:10. Who is among you that feareth the Lord, &c.
God’s government of man as a moral agent presents many evident marks of wisdom and design; yet it is everywhere so replete with enigmas, that the best and wisest of men have often found themselves involved in the deepest perplexity. We know that providence superintends and controls all events, that all the Divine proceedings are the result of unerring wisdom and unbounded goodness, and that God invariably connects His own glory with the happiness of His creatures; but when we attempt to apply these general principles to many particular cases, we find ourselves baffled and confounded. We know not why it was that evil was permitted to enter into the world, &c. With respect to individual cases, we know not why the young are often cut off in the flower and vigour of their days, &c. Such are some of the difficulties which present themselves when we attempt to investigate the ways of God.
I. Reason, however, if duly exercised, will suggest a variety of causes why they assume this mysterious character, and why we ought to suppress in ourselves the workings of unbelief, dissatisfaction, and despondency (H. E. I. 4031–4056; P. D. 1432, 1435–1437, 1441, 2268, 2537, 2538, 2895, 2896, 2902).
1. Much of the mystery which pervades the dispensations of providence arises from the feeble and limited character of our comprehension.
2. As the general principles of the Divine conduct are thus placed beyond our apprehension, so are the occasional motives of His dispensations; those motives which arise from His perfect acquaintance with the characters of men, and His accurate perception of their real wants and true interests.
3. The moral defection of our nature renders us incapable of discerning the ways of providence.
4. Much of the obscurity of providence arises from the unwillingness of men to censure themselves. For often those things which confound them are only the natural consequences of their own misconduct.
5. We also err by judging prematurely. In any complicated work of human art it is found necessary to be acquainted with the whole design, in order to judge of the fitness of the parts. In a scheme so complex as that which Divine providence is pursuing, where all the parts refer to one another, and where what is seen is often subordinate to what is invisible, how is it possible but our judgment must often be erroneous?
II. At present man is thus incapable of exploring the mysteries of providence. Instead of lamenting our ignorance and incapacity, let us consider how it may be improved; what duties it suggests, and what wise ends it was intended by providence to promote. It should teach us—
1. Submission. How unreasonable, how ungrateful to repine, when we know that infinite wisdom and goodness have the management of all our concerns. There is an end, a design, in every movement of providence, and that design will ultimately be found every way worthy of God.
2. Patience. It cautions us against being too precipitate in our decisions, or too anxious to know until it is God’s pleasure to reveal. We are not doomed to perpetual ignorance and uncertainty (H. E. I. 154, 3675–3706).
3. It furnishes a stimulus to duty and perseverance. Let no one say,—Since I am surrounded with darkness, as there are nothing but difficulties, I shall therefore sit down and leave it all, &c. Such a conclusion would be equally unwise and prejudicial. On the contrary, if there be an all-wise providence, what an argument is this for the exercise of faith, patience, hope, prayer, and perseverance. The darkness which surrounds us is intended both to call forth our inquiries and to enforce our dependence on the gracious aid of the Almighty.
4. It should inspire a desire of Heaven.
5. It should induce gratitude for the clear revelation which God has made known of the things that belong to our peace. He has thrown an air of obscurity over a thousand things, but not over the means of attaining light and salvation; here all is day. He hath clearly taught us what we must do to be saved, &c. Apply, therefore, your heart and conscience to the plain, undeniable declarations of revelation. What is revealed is of far more importance to you than what is not revealed. God has withheld the less and given us the greater. There is no knowledge of any kind that will bear a comparison with the excellency of the knowledge of Christ. You are called upon, by believing on Him, to lay hold on eternal life; have you done this?—J. H. Walker: Companion for the Afflicted, second edition, pp. 249–270.
SPARKS OF OUR OWN KINDLING
Isaiah 50:11. Behold, all ye that kindle a fire, &c.
There is no more intelligible image, none more interwoven into the texture of thought and phraseology, than that by which Light is made to express joy and felicity, while Darkness, and other kindred terms, are used to denote discomfort and misery. The inspired writers sanction and adopt it (Psalms 97:11; Esther 8:16; Psalms 88:6; Isaiah 59:11).
Happiness is the reality of which light is the symbol; and the Gospel teaches us that its chief ingredients are peace with God, and communion with Him. Nothing more is needed to constitute a truly happy man, than that the avenues of intercourse between God and the soul, which have been obstructed and blocked by sin, should once more be reopened—a work which can be effected only by the reconciliation of God to man by the work of the Son, and of man to God by the work of the Holy Spirit. Into the enjoyment of this true happiness we must enter now, if we are ever to know it. The bliss of saints in a state of glory is not (as to its chief elements) different in kind from that of saints in a state of grace. The happiness of the gracious soul is the germ—that of the glorified soul is the bright and perfumed flower, expanded out of the germ by the agencies of genial climate and bright sunshine. The pursuit of happiness is natural to us as men, but we seek it in wrong directions, and again and again we are disappointed in our search; like the meteor, which the ignorant traveller mistakes for a light, and follows across the marsh, happiness, just when we seem to have secured it, escapes from our grasp: another tempting resource offers itself, promises as fairly, excites apprehensions as bright as the preceding, and shortly afterwards ends in disappointment as distressing. In our text, the many fictitious sources from which men seek to derive happiness are compared to a fire kindled, and sparks struck out, by way of relieving the darkness of the night. It is, of course, implied in the metaphor, that true happiness, the real and adequate complement of man’s nature, resembles the divinely created and golden sunlight.
I. This comparison does not lead us to deny that pleasure and gratification of a certain kind are derivable from worldly sources. Just as man can relieve himself in great measure from the discomfort and inconvenience of natural darkness by kindling a fire and surrounding himself with sparks, so can he alleviate, to a certain extent, the instinctive sense of disquietude and dissatisfaction, so irksome to him at intervals of leisure, by the various enjoyments which life has to offer. It is a mistake to deny this, in the interests of religion. In artificial pleasures, in displays of personal skill, in gratification of sensual appetite, or in the researches of natural curiosity, many find that excitement which, for the time being, dissipates the thought of their uneasiness. Indeed, even as some fires of man’s kindling shed around them a more dazzling lustre, and a richer, redder glow than the sunlight itself, so some of the qualifications of time and sense glisten more brightly, and blaze more brilliantly, than the peace and pleasantness experienced in wisdom’s ways.
II. But connected with all earthly pleasures, there are drawbacks.
1. Those gratifications are the taper lights, by whose bright shining the moths of this world are attracted, and in whose radiance they flutter,—lights which gleam brightly for a moment, but will fade and die down before the sobering dawn of Eternity (H. E. I. 4975–4989, P. D. 2730).
2. At the beginning of the festival, Satan and the World set forth the good wine, and, when men have well drunk, “that which is worse” (Luke 15:13; Luke 15:16).
3. Worldly enjoyments (even those of the highest order) pall by degrees upon the jaded appetite (H. E. I. 4974). [1557]
[1557] How strongly contrasted this with the Divine principle of recompense, according to which every forward step which a man makes in conformity to God’s Image, and obedience to God’s commands, is attended by an increase of joy and peace—an increase sometimes very sensibly felt at the close of a Christian’s career, when, as his tempest-tossed bark nears that haven of rest where he would be, a mighty spiritual refreshing breathes in upon his heart, like perfumed gales from the shore of a land of spices. His bliss is not merely an abiding, but also an increasing bliss. It not only endures, but also enlarges itself with the dawn of eternity.—Goulburn.
4. Unsatisfactoriness inheres in their very nature, inasmuch as they are all (more or less) artificial. They are miserable substitutes which man has set up to stand him in stead of that true happiness which is congenial to his nature and adapted to his wants. During the sun’s absence, he can replace its light by the sorry substitute of torch and taper; but the glare which these shed around is not like the genial, cheering light of the sun itself. It exercises no quickening influence on vegetable life,—its clear shining brings not out the bloom and perfume of the flower, nor the verdure of the tender grass, nor sends a thrill of joy through the whole realm of nature. So, though out of the abundant materials constituting God’s universe, man can construct for himself varied sources of pleasure and luxury, these amount, after all, only to a light that is rather dazzling than comforting,—a light whose cold unfructifying ray reaches only to the surface of the soul—penetrates not to the depths of his conscience, nor to the moving springs of his character!
5. The enjoyment derived from worldly sources is fitful. The glow of a kindled fire is not equable. It casts a flickering and uncertain light, now mouldering beneath the fuel which feeds it, now bursting forth into bright and vivid flashes. Thus it presents us with a lively emblem of worldly joy, which is subject to repeated alternations of revival and decay, and whose high pitch can be sustained only for a short time. Anon it bursts into ecstasy, and having blazed a while with peculiar brilliancy, sinks again, as suddenly as it broke forth, into despondency and depression of spirits (Ecclesiastes 7:6). Not so the peace and pleasantness derived from walking with God. If it be not a light so dazzling as that which is sometimes shed abroad by the kindled firebrands of worldly joys, it is at least subject to no such variations of lustre. It pervades the soul, as the sunlight pervades the world, with a serene and equable ray,—diffusing a genial and comfortable temperature through the whole spiritual system.
6. A fire requires to be continually fed with fresh fuel, if its brilliancy and warmth are to be maintained. Hence it becomes an apt emblem of the delusive joy of this world, which is only kept alive in the worldling’s heart by the fuel of excitement. As soon as the excitement subsides, the gratification of this world’s votary is at an end. Then he must set off again on a fresh voyage of discovery, in quest of new expedients for self-forgetfulness. But these expedients have their limits. Our tenure of the resources which procure them, and on which they are dependent—health and wealth—is exceedingly precarious. But the true happiness is in no way dependent for its maintenance upon excitement or external resources. [1560]
[1560] It is not indeed denied that Christians may be, and often are, placed in a desolate and uncomfortable worldly position. But we maintain that the circumstances of their condition cannot affect or modify that peace and joy, whose seat is internal, and its source heavenly. The children of God, when suffering from outward sources of disquietude, have been compared to a person in vigorous and strong health, reposing upon a rough and hard pallet. The physical discomfort of such a person arises exclusively from his position. Health, however, enables him, in great measure, to triumph over the uneasiness. The prosperous worldling, on the other hand, admits of comparison to an invalid, laid upon a bed of down, in the lap of luxury and comfort. All his outward resources, his purple, and fine linen, and sumptuous fare, cannot send through his frame the thrilling glow, the delightful sensation of health. The Christian has that possession of moral health which the votary of this world lacks, even at the zenith of his prosperity; and from this possession he cannot be disinherited, however unfavourable may be the turns which his temporal circumstances may take.—Goulburn.
7. But perhaps the chief drawback of the worldling’s so-called happiness is that it is accompanied by so much anxiety—that it is subject to frequent intrusions from alarm, whenever a glimpse of the future breaks in upon the mind. Possibly this feature of it, too, is symbolised in the prophetic imagery here employed to denote it. It is in the night time, when the kindled fire glows upon the hearth, and man pursues his employments by the light of the torch or taper, that apprehensions visit his mind, and phantom forms are conjured up that scare the ignorant and the superstitious. Forebodings more terrible still intrude upon the worldling,—phantoms and presages of judgment to come flit across the darkness of his mind. He wishes they were equally groundless with the fears of the superstitious; but he knows they are not so, and that knowledge mars his merriment!
III. Observe the solemn irony with which the devotees of worldly pleasure are warned of their folly. It is but seldom that the Word of God adopts the instrumentality of irony. But when it does so, we may be sure that the sinful or worldly courses, commented on in such a strain, are proofs of a desperate and almost insane folly in those who pursue them (cf. 1 Kings 22:15, and Ecclesiastes 11:9). The pitiful and biting irony of our text—“Walk in the light of your fire, and in the sparks ye have kindled!”—has in it more of sorrow than of anger, and is vented in the fulness of the Divine compassions, if perchance it might warn some careless soul to bethink itself of judgment, and so might reclaim it from its folly. [1563]
[1563] “This shall ye have at My hand.” So runs the solemn admonition; “Ye shall lie down in sorrow.” As if the Lord had said, Though now ye run to and fro in search of fresh stimulants, and engage yourselves ardently in pursuits which may divert the mind from the consciousness of its own desolate and empty state, a time must come when the spirit of enterprise, which has urged you to these pursuits, must cool—when failing health and a breaking constitution shall make it impossible for you to escape any longer from a calm survey of that which is before you. Sooner or later you must lie down perforce upon a deathbed, where both prospect and retrospect shall fill you with dismay. Then shall the torchlights of worldly enjoyments, in whose brightness ye have walked, pale their ineffectual fires before the sobering dawn of Eternity. They shall be viewed in all their vanity, as mere temporary expedients,—sorry substitutes indeed for heaven’s sunlight in the soul. Bitterly shall ye deplore and accuse yourselves for your folly in having been attracted by their delusive brilliancy. And so, while My servants have hope in their end, your lying down shall be in sorrow.—Goulburn.
As you would avoid the thorns of self-recrimination and alarm with which the deathbed of those who have their portion in this life is so thickly set, be persuaded, while yet it is within your reach, to seek that true happiness which shall stand you in stead when you are driven out of all creature resources, and when heart and flesh faileth.—E. M. Goulburn, D.C.L.: Sermons, pp. 428–454.
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN TRUE AND FALSE CONVERSION
Isaiah 50:11. Behold, all ye that kindle a fire, &c.
I. The natural state of man is a state of pure selfishness, i.e., the unconverted have no Gospel benevolence. Selfishness is regarding one’s own happiness supremely, and seeking one’s own good because it is his own. He who is selfish places his own happiness above other interests of greater value; such as the glory of God and the good of the universe. That mankind, before conversion, are in this state, is evident from many considerations.
II. In a converted state, the character is that of benevolence. Benevolence is loving the happiness of others, or rather, choosing the happiness of others. Benevolence is a compound word, that properly signifies good-willing. This is God’s state of mind. We are told that God is love; that is, He is benevolent. Benevolence comprises His whole character.
III. True conversion is a change from a state of supreme selfishness to benevolence. It is a change in the end of pursuit, and not a mere change in the means of attaining the end. A man may change his means, and yet have the same end, his own happiness. He may do good for the sake of the temporal benefit. Now, every one can see that there is no virtue in this. It is the design that gives character to the act, not the means employed to effect the design. The true and the false convert differ in this.
IV. Some things in which true saints and deceived persons may agree, and some things in which they differ.
1. They may agree in leading a strictly moral life. The difference is in their motives.
2. They may be equally prayerful, so far as the form of praying is concerned. The difference is in their motives.
3. They may be equally zealous in religion. One may have great zeal, because he sincerely desires and loves to promote religion, for its own sake. The other may show equal zeal, for the sake of having his own salvation more assured, and because he is afraid of going to hell if he does not work for the Lord, or to quiet his conscience, and not because he loves religion for its own sake.
4. They may be equally conscientious in the discharge of duty; the true convert because he loves to do duty, and the other because he dare not neglect it.
5. Both may pay equal regard to what is right; the true convert because he loves what is right, and the other because he knows he cannot be saved unless he does right.
6. They may agree in their desires in many respects, but with different motives.
7. They may agree in their resolutions, but with different motives.
8. They may also agree in their designs. They may both really design to glorify God. One chooses it as an end, the other as a means to promote a selfish end.
9. They may agree in their affection towards many objects:—the Bible, God, Christ, Christians; but with different motives.
10. So they may both rejoice in the same things.
11. Both may mourn and feel distressed at the low state in the Church. 12. Both may love to attend religious meetings.
13. Both may find pleasure in the duties of the closet.
14. They may both love the doctrines of grace.
15. They may both love the precepts of God’s law.
16. They may be equally liberal in giving to benevolent societies.
17. They may be equally self-denying in many things.
18. They may both be willing to suffer martyrdom. In all these cases, the motives of one class are directly against the other. The difference lies in the choice of different ends. One chooses his own interest, the other chooses God’s interest as his chief end.
Here is the proper place to answer an inquiry, which is often made: “If these two classes of persons may be alike in so many particulars, how are we to know our own real character, or to tell to which class we belong? I answer—
1. If we are truly benevolent it will appear in our daily transactions.
2. If you are disinterested in religion, religious duties will not be a task to you.
3. If selfishness is the prevailing character of your religion, it will take sometimes one form and sometimes another.
4. If you are selfish, your enjoyment in religion will depend mainly on the strength of your hopes of heaven, and not on the exercise of your affections.
5. If you are selfish in your religion, your enjoyments will be chiefly from anticipation. The true saint already enjoys the peace of God, and heaven has begun in his soul.
6. Another difference is, that the deceived person has only a purpose of obedience, and the other has a preference of obedience.
7. The true convert and the deceived person also differ in their faith. The true saint has a confidence in the general character of God, that leads him to unqualified submission to God. The other has only a partial faith, and only a partial submission.
8. If your religion is selfish, you will rejoice particularly in the conversion of sinners, where your own agency is concerned in it, but will have very little satisfaction in it, where it is through the agency of others (H. E. I. 327–334).
V. Answers to some objections made against this view of the subject. Objection
1. Am I not to have any regard to my own happiness? Answer. It is right to regard your own happiness according to its relative value. And again, you will, in fact, promote your own happiness, precisely in proportion as you leave it out of view.
Objection
2. Did not Christ regard the joy set before Him? And did not Moses also have respect unto the recompense of reward? And does not the Bible say, we love God because He first loved us? Answer
(1.) It is true that Christ despised the shame and endured the cross, and had regard to the joy set before Him. Not His own salvation, &c. Answer
(2.) So Moses had respect to the recompense of reward. But was that his own comfort? Far from it. The recompense of reward was the salvation of Israel. What did he say? “If Thou wilt forgive their sin,” &c. Answer
(3.) Where it is said, “We love Him because He first loved us,” the language plainly bears two interpretations; either that His love to us has provided the way for our return and the influence that brought us to love Him, or that we love Him for His favour shown to ourselves. That the latter is not the meaning is evident, because Jesus Christ has so expressly reprobated this principle in His Sermon on the Mount: “If ye love them which love you, what thank have ye? Do not the publicans the same?” If we love God, not for His character, but for His favours to us, Jesus Christ has written us reprobate.
Objection
3. Does not the Bible offer happiness as the reward of virtue? Answer. The Bible speaks of happiness as the result of virtue, but nowhere declares virtue to consist in the pursuit of one’s own happiness, &c.
Objection
4. God aims at our happiness, and shall we be more benevolent than God? &c. Answer. This objection is specious, but futile and rotten. God is benevolent to others. And to be like Him we must aim at, that is, delight in His happiness and glory, according to their real value.
Objection
5. Do not the inspired writers say, “Repent, and believe the Gospel, and you shall be saved?” Answer. They say, The penitent shall be saved, but it must be disinterested repentance and submission.
Objection
6. Does not the Gospel hold out pardon as a motive to submission? Answer. That depends on the sense in which you use the term motive.
CONCLUSION.—
1. We see, from this subject, why it is that professors of religion have such different views of the nature of the Gospel.
2. We see why some people are so much more anxious to convert sinners, than to see the Church sanctified and God glorified by the good works of His people.—C. G. Finney: Lectures to Professing Christians,” pp. 133–145.