"Excerpted text Copyright AGES Library, LLC. All rights reserved.
Materials are
reproduced by permission." - (here and
following):
HOLINESS, THE LAW OF GOD’S
HOUSE.
NO. 1618 DELIVERED ON LORD’S-DAY MORNING,
SEPTEMBER 11TH, 1881,
BY C. H. SPURGEON, AT THE METROPOLITAN TABERNACLE,
“This is the law of the house; Upon
the top of the mountain the
whole limit thereof round about shall be most holy. Behold,
this is
the law of the house.” — Ezekiel 43:12.
I SHALL not enter into the immediate meaning of Ezekiel’s
vision. I
believe that the house of which Ezekiel speaks is typical of the
church of
the
living God. In it I see not so much the visible church as that spiritual,
mystical
found in a state of grace on earth, and in full glory in heaven.
Below it is
the
holy church militant, above it is the holy church triumphant.
The church is the only thing upon earth which can properly
be called. the
house of God, for he dwelleth not in temples
made with hands, that is to
say
of this building. The finest architecture could never constitute a proper
shrine for Deity. Look to yon blue heavens, gaze upon the
spangled vault
of
night, and view the ever-flashing, wide, and open sea, and tell me if any
handiwork of man can rival the temple of nature. Peer into boundless
space
and
see what a temple is already builded; within what
walls would you
hope to house the infinite Jehovah? He has deigned, however, to choose
spiritual house, a habitation of God through the Spirit. He resides
among
his
people, according to his promise, “I will dwell in them and walk in
them.” Hence the church is the home of the Great Father, where he dwells
in
the midst of his family, and takes his rest. Hath he not said, “This is my
rest for ever: here will I dwell, for I have desired it”? As a man in his own
house takes his case and finds delight, so doth God take pleasure in them
that fear him; “His foundation is in the holy mountains. The Lord loveth
the gates of
The church is God’s house, for there he makes himself known, and
manifests himself as he does not unto the outside world. “In
known, his name is great in
taught of the Lord: none of them hath need to say to his neighbor “know
the Lord,” for they all know him as their Father, from the least even to the
greatest. What sweet familiarities are enjoyed in the church! What holy
intimacies between the great Father and his children, how tenderly does he
unbosom himself so that the secret of the Lord is with them that fear him.
His saints are a people near unto him: they have access to him at all times,
for they dwell in his house, and are his own dearly beloved children. What
more glorious thing can be said of the church than this — “God is in the
midst of her; she shall not be moved.” Of what but the church, the true
house of the Lord, could we read such words is these: “The Lord thy God
in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with
joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.”
The church is God’s house, and therefore he provides for it even as a man
cares for his own house spends his strength for it, exercises his wisdom on
its behalf, and is ever thoughtful over it. God doth lay out himself for his
people. For this his Son bath both died and risen again. For this the Lord
arranges the purposes of heaven; for this be works among the children of
men. The Lord’s portion is his people, Jacob is the lot of his inheritance, to
his chosen he has special regard. He will see to it that his spiritual house is
not suffered to decay, or to be short of anything which makes for its
comfort, security, and honor.
The Lord links his own name with the church as a man does with his
house. It is the house of the Lord, and he is the Lord of the house.
Beloved, it is the greatest honor that can happen to any man to be a
member of the household of God. There are great houses in the world of
long descent and of imperial rank, but what are they compared with the
household of God? The one family in heaven and earth named by the name
of Jesus has far more true glory about it than all the families of princes. I
had rather be the meanest saint than the greatest emperor. Such honor have
all the saints.
Now, brothers and sisters, if you and I have had the
privilege to be
admitted into God’s house, and to be made a part of his family, it
is
exceedingly necessary that we should know the law of the house. This
is
desirable at our entrance, and equally necessary as long as we
remain in the
house of the Lord. Paul wrote to Timothy with this design “that
thou
mayest know how thou oughtest to behave
thyself in the house of God,
which is the church of the living God.” To this end Ezekiel was
sent of
God to those who desired the favor of
God. He was to show them the
form of the house and the goings out thereof and the comings in thereof,
and
all the ordinances thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the laws
thereof: and write it in their sight, that they might keep the
whole form
thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and do them.
God’s house is not lawless. It is the abode of liberty, but
not of license.
They that dwell in God’s house are in his immediate
presence, and our God
is
a consuming fire. He had need be holy who dwells with the thrice holy
God. The Lord will be sanctified in them that come near to him, and if any
enter the house to misbehave themselves, they will find that
judgment
begins at the house of God. How terrible are those words: “If any
man
defile the
Come we, then, with great attention to look at our text, which will inform
us
as to the law of the house. O that the Spirit may cause us to understand,
and
then lead us to obey.
Let us first try to expound the law of the house; secondly,
let us examine
ourselves as to whether we have observed this law of the house;
thirdly, let
us
see the bearings of this law; and fourthly, let its take orders for having
this law of the house obeyed.
I. First,
LET US EXPOUND THE LAW OF THE HOUSE. Note the text
carefully. It begins and ends with the same words: “This is the law
of the
house: upon the top of the mountain the whole limit thereof
round about
shall be most holy. Behold, this is the law of the house.” These
words
make a frame for the statute; or a sort of hand on each side pointing to it.
“This is the law of the house: “why are the words mentioned
twice? Is it
because we are such wayward scholars that we need to be told
everything
twice at the least? Is it because we are so blind and dull that
unless we have
a
thing repeated we are not likely to notice it, or noticing it are sure to
forget it? Or was this posted up because of the peculiar law as
to going in
and
out of the temple? We read in the forty-sixth chapter, at the ninth
verse, “But when the people of the land shall come before the Lord in the
solemn feasts, he that entereth in by the way of the north gate to worship
shall go out by the way of the south gate; and he that entereth by the way
of the south gate shall go forth by the way of the north gate: he shall not
return by the way of the gate whereby he came in, but shall go forth over
against it.” When the worshipper entered he saw over the portal, “This is
the law of the house”; and when he went out, if be looked back at the gate
of his departure, he would see there too, “This is the law of the house.” Or
is it because this is the law of the house at the beginning of life, and this is
the law of the house at the end of it? This is the law of the house for the
young convert, and this is the law of the house for the most venerable
saint? At any rate, the alpha and omega of Christian conduct is contained in
the law of the house. You can go no higher than obedience to that law:
indeed, you may say of it “It is high, I cannot attain unto it.” Go as far as
you may, this still remains to the most advanced among us the law of the
house, for the Lord’s commandment is exceedingly broad.
And what is this law of the house? Why, that everything about it is holy.
All things in the church must be pure, clean, right, gracious, commendable,
God-like.
Everything that has to do with the
here are the words, “Upon the top of the mountain the whole limit round
about shall be most holy.” Observe that all must be holy; nay, observe
again, it must be most holy. In the old temple there was only one little
chamber in the center that was most holy; this was called the holy of holies,
or the holiness of holiness: but now in the
hall, and court is to be most holy. As was the veiled shrine into which none
ever entered save the high priest, and he but once a year and then not
without blood: — as was that august apartment in which God shone forth
from between the cherubim, such for holiness is the entire church to be in
every member and every service.
Observe that this law of the house is not only intense, reaching to the
superlative degree of holiness, but it is most sweeping and encompassing:
for we read, “Upon the top of the mountain the whole I limit thereof round
about shall be most, holy.” The outer courts, the courts of the Gentiles, the
walls, the promenades outside the walls, the slopes of the hill, every part
that had to do with the mountain upon which the temple stood, was to be
most holy. From which I gather that in the
her ministers that are to be most holy, but her common members; not her
sacraments only, but her ordinary meals; not her Sabbaths
only, but her
work-days, not her worship only, but her daily labor. All that which
surrounds our consecrated life is to be consecrated too. The secular
matters which touch our religion are to be made religious, — whether we
eat or drink, or whatsoever we do, we are to do all in the name of the Lord
Jesus. Not only are the bells on the high priest’s garments to be “holiness
unto the Lord,” but the bells of the horses are to be the same. The pots and
bowls or our kitchens are to be as truly sacred as the golden vessels with
which the priests served the altar of the Most High. Holiness should be far
reaching, and cover the whole ground of a Christian’s life. He should be
sanctified “spirit, soul, and body,” and in all things, he should bear evidence
of having been set apart unto the Lord. Paul prayed that the very God of
peace would sanctify us wholly. Amen; so let it be.
We notice, once again, that this holiness was to be conspicuous. The
church is not as a house sequestered in a valley, or hidden away in a wood,
but it is as the temple, which was set upon the top of a mountain, where it
could be seen from afar. The whole of that mountain was holy.
Conspicuous
holiness ought to be the mark of the
should be a peculiar people, distinguished by this as a race dwelling alone,
that cannot be numbered among the nations. We ought to be noted, not for
talent, not for wealth, not for loud professions, but for holiness. Somehow
or other true holiness is sure to be spied out and remarked upon. Like the
violet, it tries to hide itself, but it is betrayed by its perfume. Like the star,
it twinkles with modesty, but it is discovered by its light. Grace cannot be
put under a bushel. It would fain be sheltered from its enemies by its
obscurity, but the holy city evermore stands on a hill, and it cannot be hid.
Would God that whenever people speak of the church to which we belong
they may acknowledge its holiness! Would God that whenever they speak
of you or me they may have no evil thing to say of us unless they lie. The
world does not know how to name the thing which it both admires and
hates, but it soon perceives its existence and owns its power, — the thing I
mean is holiness, which is at once the glory and the strength of the people
of God.
What is holiness? I know what it is, and yet I cannot in a few words define
it. I will bring out its meaning by degrees, but I shall not do better than the
poor Irish lad who had been converted to the faith. When he was asked by
the missionary, “Patrick, what is holiness?” “Sir,” said he, “it is having a
clane inside.” Just so. Morality is a clean outside, but holiness is being
clean within. Morality is a dead body washed and laid in clean
white linen:
holiness is the living form in perfect purity. To be just to man is morality,
to be hallowed unto God is holiness. The
reputedly good, but really pure; she must not have a name for virtue, but
her heart must be right before God, — she must have a clean inside. Our
lives must be such that observers may peep within doors and may see
nothing for which to blame us. Our moral cleanliness must not be like that
of a bad housewife, who sweeps the dirt under the mats and puts away rags
and rottenness in the corner cupboards. We must be so clear of the
accursed thing that even if they dig in the earth they will not find an
Achan’s treasure hidden there. God desireth truth in the inward parts, and
in the hidden part he would make us to know wisdom.
We might instructively divide holiness into four things, and the first would
be its negative side, separation from the world. There may be morality, but
there can be no holiness in a worldling. The man who is as other men are,
having experienced no change of nature and knowing no change of life, is
not yet acquainted with Scriptural holiness. The word to every true saint is,
“Come ye out from among them. Be ye separate: touch not the unclean
thing.” If we are conformed to the world we cannot be holy. Jesus said of
all his saints, “They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.”
We are redeemed from among men that we may be like our Redeemer,
“holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners.” We are not to be
separate as to place, avoiding men with monkish fanaticism, for nobody
mixed more with sinners than did our Lord. “This man receiveth sinners
and eateth with them” is the old reproach, but yet our Lord was not one of
them, as everybody could see: nothing could be more clear than the
difference between the lost sheep and the Shepherd who came among them
seeking out his own. Every action, every word, every movement betokened
that he was another man from the sinners whom he sought to bless. So
must it be with us. As the lily among thorns so must we be among the mass
of men. My fellow-professors, are you different from those among whom
you dwell? Are you as different from them as a Jew is from a Gentile?
Now, a Jew may do what he likes, he may live in the same style as an
Englishman, a Pole, or a German, and he may in garb, in business, in
speech be like the people among whom be dwells, but the image of father
Jacob is upon him, and he cannot disguise the fact that he is an Israelite. If
he is converted to Christianity, still he does not lose his nationality, you can
still perceive that be is of the seed of Abraham. So ought it to be with the
real Christian; wherever he is, and whatever he does, men
ought to spy out
that he is of the sect which is everywhere spoken against, and not an
ordinary man. The title “the Peculiar People,” belongs to all the followers
of Jesus. They are strangers and sojourners, aliens and foreigners in this
world, for they have come out at the divine call to be separated unto the
Lord for ever. There is no holiness without separateness from the world.
Holiness next consists very largely in consecration. The holy things of the
sanctuary were holy because they were dedicated to God. No one drank
out of the sacred vessels except God’s servants the priests; no victims were
killed by the sacrificial knife, or laid upon the altar except such as were
consecrated to Jehovah, for the altar was holy, and the fire thereof was
holy. So must it be with us if we are to be holy: we must belong to
Jehovah, we must be consecrated to him, and be used for his own
purposes. Not nominally only, but really, and as a matter of fact, we must
live for God, and labor for God. That is our reason for existence, and if we
answer not this end, we have no excuse for living; we are blots upon the
face of nature, waste places, and barren trees which cumber the ground.
Only so far as we are bringing glory to God are we answering the end and
design of our creation. We are the Lord’s priests, and if we do not serve
him we are base pretenders. As Christians we are not our own, but bought
with a price, and if we live as if we were our own we defraud our
Redeemer. Will a man rob God? Will lie rob Jesus of the purchase of his
blood? Can we consent that the world, the flesh, the devil should use the
vessels which are dedicated to God? Shall such sacrilege be tolerated? No,
let us feel that we are the Lord’s, and that his vows are upon us, binding us
to lay ourselves out for him alone. This is an essential ingredient of
holiness: the cleanest bowl in the sanctuary was not holy because it was
clean; it became holy when, in addition to being cleansed, it was also,
hallowed unto the Lord. This is more than morality, decency, honesty,
virtue. You tell me of your generosity, your goodness, and your pious
intentions, — what, of these? Are you consecrated, for if you are not,
consecrated to God you know nothing of holiness. This is the law or the
house, that the church is consecrated to Christ, and that; every man that
comes into her midst must be the same. We must live for God and for his
glorious kingdom, or we are not holy. Oh to make a dedication of
ourselves to God without reserve, and then to stand to it for ever: this is
the way of holiness.
But this does not complete the idea of holiness unless you add to it
conformity to the will and character of God. If we are God’s servants we
must follow God’s commands: we must be ready to do as our Master bids
us
because he is the Lord, and must be obeyed. We must make the Lord
Jesus our example, and as Ezekiel says, “we must measure
the pattern.” It
must be our meat and drink to do the will of him that sent us. Our rule is
not
our judgment, much less our fancy, but word of God is our statute
book. We are to obey God that we may grow like God. The question to be
asked is What would the Lord have me do? or,
What would Christ himself
have done under the circumstances? Not, what is my wish, but what is
God’s law about this: not what will please me, but what
will please him.
Having been begotten again by God into the image of Christ,
and so having
become his true children we are to grow up into him in all things
who is the
head, being imitators of God as dear children, for so, and so only, shalt we
be
holy. Do understand, then, that with regard to the whole range of the
church, however wide her action, conformity to the character of
God is the
law
of the house. Likeness to Christ must be seen in every single member,
in
every act of every member, and in the whole body, and in all its
corporate acts. This is the law of the house.
I must add, however, to make up the idea of holiness, that
there must be a
close communion between the soul and God; for if a man could be,
which
is
not possible, conformed to the likeness of God, and consecrated to God,
yet
if he never had any communication with God the idea of holiness would
not
be complete. The temple becomes holy because God dwells in it. He
came into the most holy place in a most especial manner, and this
accounted for its being the holy of holies; even so special
communion with
the
Lord creates special holiness. God’s presence demands and creates
holiness. And so , brothers and sisters,
if we would be holy we must dwell
in
God, and God must dwell in us. We cannot be holy at a distance from
God. How is it with you? How is it with this church? Is God with us in all
our
services? Is he recognised in all our efforts? Does
he reign in all our
hearts? Does Jesus abide with us, for this is according to the
law of the
house that God should be everywhere recognised,
that we should in all
things conform to his will, in all things be consecrated to his
purposes, and
for
his sake in all things be separated from the rest of mankind. This is the
law
of the house.
II. Now,
secondly, I want your help while I say LET US EXAMINE
OURSELVES BY THIS LAW. Let each man question himself as
to whether be
has
carefully observed the law of the house.
Brethren,
the
principles and for holy purposes. She has been redeemed by a holy Savior,
with a holy sacrifice, and dedicated to holy service. Her great glory is the
Holy Spirit, whose influences and operations are, all, holy. Her law-book is
the holy Bible, her armoury is the holy covenant, her comfort is holy
prayer. Her convocations are holy assemblies; her citizens are holy men and
holy women; she exists for holy ends, and follows after holy examples.
Dear hearer, are you then as part of her “holiness to the Lord”? Ask
yourself questions, founded on what I have already said. Do I so live as to
be separated? Is there in my business a difference between me and those
with whom I trade? Are my thoughts different? Does the current of my
desire run in a different direction? Am I at home with the ungodly, or does
their sin vex me? Am I one of them, or am I as a speckled bird among
them? Search, brethren, search and see whether ye be holy in that sense or
no.
Next, let each one ask “Am I consecrated? Am I living to God with my
body, with my soul, with my spirit? Am I using my substance, my talents,
my time, my voice, my thoughts for God’s glory? What am I living for?
Am I making a pretense to live to God, and am I after all really living to
self? Am I like Ananias and Sapphira, pretending to give all, and yet
keeping back a part of the price?
The preacher would search his own heart, and he begs you all to search
yours.
Next ask the question, am I living in conformity to the mind of the holy
God? Am I living as Christ would have lived in my place? Do I as a master,
as a servant, as a husband, as a wife, or as a child, act as God himself
would have me act so that he could say to me, “Well done, thou good and
faithful servant.” He is a jealous God: am, I obeying him with care? If I am
not walking in obedience to God I am behaving disorderly, I am breaking
the law of the house, and that house the house of the living God. Ought we
not to take heed lest we insult the king in his own palace, and perish from
the way when his wrath is kindled but a little.
Then, again, do I live in communion with God? I cannot be holy and yet
have a wall of division between me and God. Is there a great gulf of
separation between me and the Lord? then I am a stranger to holiness. I
must have fellowship with him, or else I am living in a manner which is
sinful, dangerous, grievous, injurious. Brother, sister, let me put this
pressing question, — Do you walk with God? Do you abide in fellowship
with Jesus? I know there are some who would rather not give an answer to
that question. I have met with believers who have said, “If you asked me
whether I was drunken or dishonest, I should say ‘No,’ at once. If
you
asked me whether I have been upright and moral, I could say I
‘Yes,’ most
certainly. But when you say, ‘Are you walking in communion with the
Lord? are you enjoying habitual
fellowship with God?’ I am not prepared
to
give you an answer, for I am weak upon this point.” Are there not some
professors among you who do not see the face of God by the month
together, and seldom enjoy the presence of God at all? Their
nearness to
God is a thing of rare occasions, and not of everyday
consciousness. At a
meeting, when religious excitement stirs them, they are a little
warmed up,
but
their general temperature suits the North Pole rather than the Equator.
But, oh, dear friends, this will not do. We want you to
dwell near to God
always: to wake up in the morning with his light saluting the
eyes of your
soul; and to be with him while you are engaged in domestic concerns or
out
in the busy world. We want you often to have a secret word with the
Well-beloved during the day, and to go to bed at night
feeling bow sweet it
is
to fall asleep upon the Savior’s bosom. Brother, how sweet to say,
“When I awake I am still with thee.” Jealous hearts count
it a sorrow when
even their dreams disorder their minds, and prevent their thinking of the
Lord in their first conscious moment. I would to God we
were so
encompassed with divine love, so completely sanctified, so thoroughly
holy, that we never lost for an instant a sense of the immediate presence of
the
Most High. I leave that work of self-examination with yourselves in the
quiet hours of this afternoon. Do, not neglect it, for as
servants of the Lord
it
is incumbent upon you to, remember that holiness becometh
his house,
and
it will be ill for us to be walking contrary to his mind. “Measure the
pattern,” and measure yourselves by the law of the house.
III. Now,
thirdly, WHAT ARE THE BEARINGS OF THIS LAW OR THE
HOUSE? Those bearings of the law to which I now refer are these:
If the
greatest possible degree of the smile and favor of God. A holy
church has
God in the midst of her. The consequence of God’s presence is a holy
liveliness in all her members, for where God comes near to man,
lethargy
and
death soon fly away. Where the sacred presence abides sickness of soul
disappears. Jehovah-Rophi heals his people
among whom he dwells, and
the inhabitant shall no more say, “I am sick.” This again causes joy, and the
bones which were broken rejoice.
Where there is holiness God comes, and there is sure to be love, for love is
of the very essence of holiness. The fruit of the Spirit is love both to God
and man. That love begets union of heart, brotherly kindness, sympathy,
and affection, and these bring peace and happiness. Among the truly holy
there are no divisions, no heresies, no separation, into parties, but all are
one in Christ. Whence come wars and fightings? Not from holiness, but
from unconquered lusts. When we shall be perfect as our heavenly Father
is perfect we shall love as he loves. This, of course, leads to success in all
the church’s efforts, and a consequent increase. Her prayers are intense,
and they bring down a blessing, for they are holy and acceptable unto God
by Jesus Christ: her labors are abundant, and they secure an abundant
harvest, for God wilt not forget her labor of love. The holy church with
God in the midst of her is the place of brotherly unity, and consequently
wet with the dew of Hermon, and there God commandeth the blessing,
even life forevermore. Saints in such a state keep high holiday all the year
round, having foretastes of heaven. Their trials are sanctified, and their
mercies are multiplied; thus faith groweth exceedingly, and hope is
confirmed. To their assemblies angels come trooping down, and up from
them, by the way of the ladder which Jacob saw, they ascend to God. O
happy people! Thrice happy in their Holy God!
A holy church, my brethren, may we see it! A church most holy in all her
solemn services shall be “fair as the sun, clear as the moon, and terrible as
an army with banners.” The nations among whom she dwells shall hear the
fame thereof; they shall come from afar, and ask to see her prince, and they
shall be astonished at his glory. The sons of the aliens shall come bending
to her feet. Her converts shall be like flocks of doves, she shall herself
wonder whence they came. There shall be no languor, no defeat, no
disappointment, no doubt of eternal verities and no suspicious of infinite
love. In the power of the Holy Spirit she shall be bravely confident,
gloriously self-sacrificing, and so shall she go from victory to victory.
Mount but this white horse of holiness, O ye armies of the Lord, and Christ
shall lead the vail, and all of you clothed in fine white linen shall follow
him, and go forth conquering and to conquer.
On the other hand, imagine a church without holiness. What will come of
it? Without holiness no mail shall see the Lord; and if the
church cannot
even see her Lord, what is her condition? Go to
happens to God’s house when once defiled. Mark how the holy and
beautiful house was desolate and burnt with fire. Remember how God
loathed
sow with salt the very site on which she stood. Was there ever destruction
like to that which fell upon
brotherhood unholy men and women, and let us tolerate and indulge them,
and we shall soon see the anger of the Lord wax hot. Let us ourselves give
way to laxity of principle and practice, let us lose our consecration and our
communion, and what will soon be the effect? Probably first will come
heartburning, envy, and strife; next, divisions, schisms, false doctrines,
rivalries, contentions; or possibly the evil may take the form of lethargy,
inactivity, worldliness, want of love to Christ and souls; by-and-by there
will be diminished gatherings at the meetings for prayer, a cessation of all
earnest pleading and consecrated living; then a falling-off of congregations;
then a want of power in the ministry — a defect in the doctrine, perhaps,
or else in the earnestness of the speaker; and all the while no conversions
and no visits from the Lord. Shall it be, in years to come, that men will pass
by the Tabernacle, and ask, “What is that huge house?” and the reply will
be, it was built by an earnest, godly company in former years; but they are
dead, and things are changed. What is it now? There is a fine organ and a
polished preacher, but the multitudes have departed, and the few who still
keep together are of the cold, respectable order, who have no life or zeal.
Then will this house be a proverb, a byword and a hissing throughout the
whole earth. How often am I jealous about this with a burning jealousy; my
heart breaks when I hear of some of you that you live unholy lives. There
are some, I fear, among you who so walk as to dishonor the cross of
Christ; I mean not such as we can lay our finger on and say, “This man is a
drunkard, or unchaste, or dishonest,” else, as you well know, you would
not long be spared, — no, not a moment longer than was needful for the
proof of your wrong and of your impenitence in it; but I mean such as
cannot be thus dealt with, became their sins are not open, — the tares that
grow up in the wheat, the actions not yet discovered, because we cannot
cast the lot so as to light upon this man or that, and say, “It is he.” I
tremble lest there should be among us some utterly unknown to us, and
undiscoverable by the most vigilant eye, whose sin, nevertheless, like a
leprosy, should eat into the house, and make it unfit for the habitation of
God. Oh, that we may never be so fallen that God himself shall say, “Let
them alone.” It was an awful moment when, in the holy place
at
there was heard the moving of wings and a voice which said, “Let
us go
hence.” Then the glory will have departed. Woe, woe, woe! Let
the curtain
drop with a shower of tears upon it. God grant it never may be so.
IV. So
now, lastly, dear brethren, LET
US TAKE ORDER TO SECURE
OBEDIENCE TO THE LAW OF THE HOUSE. I believe that Jesus is always
working in his own way for the purity of every true church. “His
fan is in
his
hand” — see it moving continually — “and he will thoroughly purge his
floor.” God’s melting fire is not in the world, where the dross
contains no
gold, but “his fire is in
The lord will judge his people.” The Lord tries professors
and their
professions. I believe that there is a judgment going on over church
members that some are little aware of. Paul speaks of a church in
his day in
this manner, he notes their inconsistencies, and adds, “For this cause some
are
sickly among you, and many sleep.” A special jurisdiction is over the
palace of a king, a special rule pertains to a house which does
not apply to
people out of doors. Church members are tinder peculiar
discipline, as it is
written, “You only have I known of all the nations of the, earth,
therefore I
will punish you for your iniquities.” Our Lord Jesus often makes the
ministry to be as a great winnowing fail. Somebody is offended, and
goes.
What a mercy! You could not have compelled him to depart,
but he
removes of his own accord, and so the house is cleansed. The
breath of the
Spirit blows away much chaff. When our Lord preached his
usual doctrine
the
chaff kept with the wheat, but when he came to speak of eating his
flesh and drinking his blood the baser sort were offended, and
“walked no
more with him.” Did he grieve over that separation between the precious
and
the vile? I trow not. He
meant it should be so. A certain truth put in a
certain way, with a personally pointed application, perhaps not
intended by
the
preacher as to that particular individual, is nevertheless intended by
God for that case, and the cutting
word removes the rotten bough. Thus
the
purging work proceeds from day to day. We may expect our Master to
come among us every now and then with a scourge of small cords, and to
smite right and left to purge the
of
thieves. He is a jealous God, and he will not suffer defilement among his
own
people. Have you never seen great Christian communities at a certain
phase of their existence come into troubled waters and break up
like
wrecks? There must have been a secret reason; probably the one
assigned
at
the time was by no means the true one. Want of holiness led to want of
love, and unloving spirits soon found a pretext for dispute. Those who
should have met this with love, and quenched it by gentle wisdom, acted in
a harsh spirit, being themselves deficient in grace, and so flint met steel,
and sparks abounded; then came fire; then came general conflagration. The
open mischief was an effect rather than a cause, and it may be hoped was
even part of the cure. True, many a table of the moneychangers was upset,
and many a dove was seen to fly away in fright, but the scourge did not fail
to make a clearance. How much better would it have been had there been
no need for such a purging. If churches are not holy they cannot be
prosperous, for God afflicts those who break the law of his house.
Now, cannot we give earnest heed that this law is regarded among us?
“Yes,” say you, “take care that you who are pastors, elders, and deacons
are watchful and faithful. Guard well the door of the church, and see to it
that you do not admit the ungodly: be vigilant also in discipline, so that
when any are manifestly unholy they are put away.” Brethren, this is our
desire and labor; but after all, what can we do? With all our diligence what
can a small band of officers accomplish in a great church which is
numbered by thousands? Brothers and sisters, this must be taken up by you
all. Let every man bear his own burden. I would have every man sweep in
the front of his own door. I pray that each person who belongs to this
church may be jealous for its purity, and watch both over himself and his
brethren, lest any form of sin should be a root of bitterness to trouble us,
and thereby many should be defiled.
Let us set to this work at once. Here is the first exercise for us let us repent
of past failures in holiness. We shall never overcome sin till we are
conscious of it and ashamed of it. Hence the Lord said to the prophet,
“Thou
son of man, show the house to the house of
ashamed of their iniquities; and let them measure the pattern. And if they
be ashamed of all that they have done, shew them the form of the house,
and the fashion thereof.” The first step towards purity is penitence. Let us
bow our heads and lament before the Lord, the sins of our holy things, our
personal trespasses, our transgressions against love, our offenses against
the law of the house. He that is least ashamed will probably be the person
who has most cause to blush, and he who will be most humbled will be the
man who has least transgressed. In any case we have sinned as a church,
and come short of the glory of God, and an honest confession is due from
us.
Having owned our error, let us next make the law of God’s house our
earnest study that we may avoid offenses in the future. You will hardly
keep the law if you do not know it. Search the sacred word day and night.
Let the inspired page be your standard. Never mind what your minister
tells you, observe what the Spirit of God tells you. Get to your Bibles,
search them, and there see how you ought to behave in the house of God.
Be much upon your knees asking the Lord to teach you his mind and will,
and specially beseech him to write his law upon your hearts, for you will
never keep it in your life till it is written there.
When you have studied the law of the house, then next be intensely real in
your endeavor to observe it. How much of the religion of the present day is
a sham. Men talk of being holy, do they know what they mean? We speak
of consecration, and yet live as if we were mere worldings hunting for
wealth, or fame, or pleasure. Some sing of giving all to God, and yet their
contributions are miserably small. Some say they are living wholly for God,
but if they had lived wholly for themselves it would not have made any
particular difference in what they have done. Oh, let us be real. Do not let
us preach what we do not believe, nor profess to be believers in a creed
which is not true to our own souls. Get a grip of eternal things; hold them,
feel their solemn weight, and live under their influence. That which is
unreal is unholy. The bloated Pharisee is unholy; the empty formalist is
unholy; but the sincere penitent, the truly honest Seeker after holiness is
already holy in some degree. Thine eyes, O Lord, are upon truth.
Then let us cry for a sincere and growing faith in God concerning this
matter of holiness. Let us believe in Jesus, that by his Holy Spirit he can
make us holy. Do not let us believe that any sin is inevitable, rather let us
feet bound to overcome it. Let us not trust in our own strugglings and
strivings, but let us as much trust Christ to work in us sanctification as to
work for us justification. Let faith deal with the water as well as with the
blood, for they both flowed from the same fountain in the Savior’s riven
side.
And then, lastly, let us pray to be set on fire with an intense zeal for God. I
do not believe that there is such a thing as cold holiness in the world. As
soon as a bullock was dedicated to God, and brought to the altar, it had to
be burned with fire, and so must every consecrated life. You and I are
never the Lord’s while we are cold-hearted. We must be on fire if we are
to be sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. Get rid of zeal from the
church, and you have removed one of the most purifying elements, for God
intends to purge
burning. Oh, to be baptized into the Holy Ghost and into fire. Refining fire
go through and through our souls till all that defileth shall be utterly
consumed, and we shall be as ingots of pure gold, wholly the Lord’s.
Thus have we rehearsed in your ears the law of the house. May the Holy
Spirit enable you to keep it unto the end.
"Excerpted text Copyright AGES Library, LLC. All rights reserved.
Materials are reproduced by permission."