Part 22
One more plea would we regard, that is health. How many, when aroused to the importance of attending to matters spiritual, will seek to soothe the clamors of conscience by the reflection: It is true, I must be renewed and holy, or I will perish. I cannot go to heaven as I am, but I hope to be better before I die. I will look after these things when I get sick; then I shall have leisure for reflection. With nothing else to do then, I will repent and make my peace with God. Oh! the folly and the wickedness of such reasoning! Not only does it reflect on God's religion, as if it were a tyranny and a grievous yoke that one puts off as long as it is possible, not only is it God-dishonoring, giving unto the devil and to the world, the Lord's foremost rivals, the best fruits of one's days, and turning over to Him the stubble and the dregs left in the cup of life, but who knows the time of his death, the time appointed when he shall go hence, and whether occasion shall be left for any reflection? Like a lightning flash it may summon us into the presence of the Almighty. And even granted that everything shall be propitious in that respect, have you ever seen persons on a sick- or death-bed? Their pulse feverish and their body weak; their senses so impaired that they seem utterly unable to collect their thoughts; and this is the time that people want to select for religious reflection? Then, too, when does the Bible say that a man can convert himself at any time that he chooses? The Bible speaks of only one solitary case of death-bed, or eleventh-hour repentance, and that is the instance of the dying thief on the cross. And there is a tremendously wide difference between him and the people who offer up that plea. The dying malefactor had never deferred his conversion to his dying day; he had never put religion off until then. So his case does not belong under consideration at all, though it is always quoted by such delinquents. No, there is only one convenient season, and there is only one course to pursue in view of it. That one convenient season is now, and the only one course to pursue in view of it is to seize hold upon and attend to its demands.
We have all seen mottoes on the walls of business offices: "Do it now," "Never put off until to-morrow what can be done to-day," "Now or never," "Make hay while the sun shines." And as you see them at their worldly interests, they follow those mottoes; they are up and about, straining every nerve, using every moment to gain an advantage. Yes, as you study the whole working creation of God, you will discover that everything is on time: The birds know when to fly southward; the stars of heaven meet all their appointments; the earth is believed to make a circuit of five hundred millions of miles and back again at the winter and spring solstice on the second, yes, on the millionth part of a second. There is only one who wastes time, and that in the most important matter, and that creature is _man_.
Observe in this the terrible delusion of procrastination. And it cheats us all, more or less; or how--to make the application to ourselves who are church-members--how is it that we can hear the things which we hear Sunday after Sunday, and on many other occasions, things which, so far from denying or contradicting, we like to hear, we would be uncomfortable not to hear, and agree with them and still go on living and doing as if they were mere words and meant nothing, if it were not that we fancy to ourselves a time when it will suit us not only to agree with them, but actually to put them in practice,--a time when we shall pray in earnest, though we are careless about praying now,--a time when we shall take up the reading of the Bible, though we neglect it now,--a time when we shall be gentle, and loving, and heavenly-minded, and pure, whatever to the contrary we may be now? But is it not a delusion? If you are putting off saying your prayers regularly and earnestly because it is not convenient now, do you really think that the time will come when it will be easier, and more natural for you to do this? If you are still putting off, as so many have, and are putting off for years, what yet they acknowledge to be a Christian's bounden duty, employing the much-needed means of grace, the coming to the Lord's holy Sacrament, can you really expect that anything will happen to you which somehow or other will be the opportunity you cannot find now of hearing the Gospel and drawing near to that blessed communion?
Reflect! Felix waited for a convenient season. It never came; it will never come where he is now. Let him be a lesson to us. The convenient season is just now,--and let us beware of trifling with it.
Of all sad words of tongue or pen, The saddest are these, It might have been.
And of all devices by which the devil throws a loop around the sinner's neck, the most effective is this: "A more convenient season!" "Not yet."
My dear hearers, I have again, like my great predecessor, the apostle, made an appeal to you to accept the faith as it is in Christ Jesus. What say you? With Felix: "Not now," or, "I will"? O for the right choice! God gives you the opportunity to make it now. Will you not seize it? Amen.
THIRD SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY.
And as Jesus passed forth from thence, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the receipt of custom; and He said unto him, Follow me. And he arose and followed Him. And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with Him and His disciples. And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto His disciples, Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners? But when Jesus heard that, He said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick. But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice; for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.--_Matt. 9, 9-13._
The text just heard contains much of interest and importance--first, for the history which it gives, and secondly, for the Gospel which it preaches. We shall consider both for our encouragement and instruction.
It was in Capernaum, the capital of Galilee, on the borders of Lake Tiberias. Jesus was walking by the seaside when He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the receipt of customs, collecting the duties, or taxes, on goods landed from the vessels. To all human appearance this collector of customs, or publican, as they were called, was a very unlikely person to become a convert, much less an apostle. Publicans, or taxgatherers, in those days were held in very ill repute. One reason for this was that they were in the employ of the Roman Government, and no patriotic, loyal-hearted Jew would permit himself to be employed by these despised and oppressive Gentiles. Another reason was that those who were thus employed generally managed to make it profitable for themselves. By practicing fraud and distortion upon their own countrymen, overcharging and collecting more than was due, they succeeded in accumulating means, and many, like Zaccheus, a large fortune. There is nothing to show that Matthew was guilty of such extortion and fraud, but he was by office and occupation connected with this odious and unprincipled set of men; nor is it necessary for us to believe that he was altogether free from the taint that attached to them. And yet, out of the ranks of these base and detested publicans, Jesus did not disdain to take at least one of those twelve men whom He chose to be the heralds of His Gospel, the great leaders of His kingdom to a perishing world. Good men, let us learn from this, often come from despised and unworthy classes. Outward circumstances do not always prove as unfavorable nor as adverse to piety as we are apt to imagine. There is often a wide contrast between outward appearances and inward realities. It may be that Matthew inwardly was very much disposed to follow Jesus when addressed by Him. It is not for us to discern what is going on in the inner man. We may hear the blasphemer uttering a vile oath and pass him by as one on the verge of perdition, while the heart of the poor wretch at the very moment may be bursting with anguish and filled with self-reproach, and one word of kindness might melt him into contrition and love. We see another amid the wild whirl of earthly dissipation and pleasure, and may suppose that it would be casting pearls before swine to waste a word on religious topics with him, while he may be aching with a sense of the emptiness of the world, and a single expression of Christian kindness may draw from him a confession of the vanity of all his pleasures, and the inquiry, Who will show me any permanent and real good? Never let us judge of the hopelessness of man's salvation by the mere outward appearance.
No den of infamy is so vile, no hall of skepticism, or haunt of worldliness is so impenetrable, no prison cell so deep or polluted, but that Jesus can gather thence gems that shall shine in His crown. Who was ever a more devoted follower of Christ than Mary Magdalene?--and yet she once had seven devils. Who was more voluptuous, depraved, and infamous in his course as a young man than Augustine, who became the great bishop of Hippo and one of the most illustrious doctors of the Church? And what did Jesus see in any of us to lead Him to visit us with His salvation? Was there any such native excellence in your character, or such a purity in your conduct, when out of Christ, that God was attracted thereby and stooped from heaven to save you, because it was a pity that so much worth and goodness should be lost forever? Oh, no, not for our merits, but of His own infinite mercy does He save us, and if we feel aright, we shall never think that we deserved to be saved, while the vile sinner deserved to be damned, but that all of us are sinners worthy of God's wrath and curse, and that none have reason for boasting. Viewed in that light, we shall not wonder that Christ chose an apostle from that most ill-favored class of men known in Palestine at the time.
And the call was not unheeded. It is not necessary to assume that the call came to Matthew as a clap of thunder out of a clear sky. Matthew, as a dweller in Capernaum, where our Savior was preaching and performing some of His most noted miracles, and as a man who daily had to do with people of all classes, could not have been without some knowledge of what was going on. In all likelihood he had seen and heard Christ, and so was not wholly without preparation for what happened when the great Teacher and Wonder-worker came into his office and said to him, "Follow me." And what was the decision? Our text informs us: He left all, rose up, and followed Christ. Promptly, cheerfully, he surrendered his worldly interests, unites his fortune and his future with the Master. It was not so in every instance. We know that the same call was extended to others, who at once propounded something else to be attended to. The one remarked, "Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father;" another, "Lord, I will follow Thee, but let me first go bid them farewell which are at home at my house," and still another, it says, "went away sorrowing," because he was not willing to separate himself from his great possessions. It is so to this very day and hour.
To every one that hears the Gospel the word is: "Follow Me." There are those who heed it like Matthew. Then others who hear the same call make a thousand excuses, but never reach the point of honest decision. Obedience, as it is the first virtue of a child, in a soldier, or a servant, so it is the first virtue in a Christian. When you hear the blessed Savior's voice, asking you to take up the obligations of a Christian faith and life, then respond like Matthew, instantly, promptly.
And not only was it prompt and ready obedience, it was steadfast, persevering. It was not a spirit of momentary enthusiasm that presently died away. Never again did he return to his old profession. With unfaltering devotion did he cling to our Lord, and finally laid down his life in His cause. There are those who, when they hear the merciful call of the Savior, are prompt enough sometimes to follow. They are greatly captivated with the Christian profession. They like the distinction it gives them, the new attitude and surroundings in which they are placed, the gaining of new friends, sympathies and credit with which it invests them. But when it comes to the serious side,--and Christian discipleship has a serious side,--it does not mean only wearing a bright uniform and carrying a flag, but standing on guard, enduring hardships as a good soldier of Christ. Then the cross becomes too heavy for them, and by and by they are offended, their zeal expires, and their once flaming devotion dies. Matthew was not of that class; his decision was as honest, thorough, and enduring as it was prompt, and in this he is an example for us.
Nor was this all. Not only did Matthew follow the Savior, but the subsequent verse informs us that he made a great feast for the Master. We can easily see the motives of the man in making this feast. "My Lord has had mercy on me," he would say, "and I wish to do something to testify my love and gratitude to Him. I will make an entertainment in His honor, and I will invite my old friends among the publicans to it, for it may be that His words of power may reach their hearts as they did mine, and turn them from their sins." That, my beloved, is one of the strongest evidences of a truly converted soul--anxiety and concern for the soul of others. A person that has found the Savior is anxious that others should find Him, too. Christianity is not like gold, which every one wishes to secrete for his own use, but it is like a full fountain--it runs over; like the sun--it must shine forth. And so we behold the Savior now seated in the midst of a large company of publicans and sinners.
But have you, my dear hearers, ever known of a noble and holy work, no matter what it is, that did not meet with some criticism? Some carping voice is bound to be always heard, and so here. That Jesus was found in such company, and agreed to be a guest with such society, was a scandal in the eyes of the ceremonial, self-righteous Jews, and "He it was who claimed to be the long-expected Messiah." It was conclusive evidence to them that He was a sheer impostor, a glutton and wine-bibber, equally as bad as those whom He met on such familiar terms. Nor were they slow in making known their conclusions. They uttered their malignant feelings, not to Jesus Himself, but to His disciples. When Jesus learned their cavils, it does not appear that He was ruffled in the least. He knew His mission, for what purpose He had come into this world, and so with all firmness we hear Him setting forth His association with these ill-reputed people as in accord not only with the best principles of common sense, but with the whole spirit and intent of His Messiahship. "But when Jesus heard that, He said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick." Sin is a sickness, a disease, and these publicans and sinners were very deeply under the power of this disease. Now, where should a physician be but with the sick and the dying? Is a doctor to be blamed for entering a hospital full of suffering invalids? Is it not rather a blessed demonstration of His fidelity to his profession to go to such ailing people? Well, then, what right had these self-constituted saints and judges to find fault? They claimed to be good and holy people. They kept the Law. They were _whole_. They had no need of a physician to make them better,--so they thought. Why, then, was the great Healer of souls to confine Himself to them? Thus upon their own principles and common sense, Christ amply justified His conduct.
There is a double lesson to be drawn from our text. First, if you have always maintained a good moral character, through the restraints of a religious education and of God's grace, be thankful for it; it is, indeed, a great mercy to have been kept from gross sins, and it will be a great help to you in a life of godliness. But be careful that you do not rest salvation upon it, make a Savior of your own goodness, and so refuse Christ, without whom you will be damned as surely as the vilest transgressor. Beware that your outward decency of character does not puff you up and make you think that such as you can never be lost. There is no other name but that of Christ whereby you can be saved, and you must come to Him weary and heavy-laden, just as the vilest sinner does, if you would find rest to your soul.
On the other hand, if there be one present who has fallen into gross transgression, so that it seems almost too much for him to hope to be forgiven, let him hear the words of Jesus, "I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance," and let him be encouraged. Is there any wound this great Physician cannot heal? Is there any sin the grace of Jesus cannot pardon, or His blood wash away? Doubt not His infinite compassion, doubt not His almighty power. Lay your soul in His hands. Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. Oh! that, like Matthew of old, we might yield ourselves to His gracious summons, go down to our houses, humble, obedient believers in Him who came into this world to call sinners to repentance. Amen.
FOURTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY.
And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.--_Matt. 16, 19._
Fixed in our Church calendar for the 29th of June is Saint Peter the Apostle's day. We do not, as a rule, observe these days, or minor festivals, as they are styled. And it may be asked why we have them given in our Church calendar and observe them at all. In answer we would say that we do not, like the Romanists, regard the saints as mediators, do not address prayers to them, nor ask them to pray for us. And we differ further from the Romanists in that we place none in our Church calendar as saints save such as are clearly set forth in that character in the Word of God. Rome is continually adding new saints to her list. Any one who has been eminently holy--in the odor of sanctity--is canonized by the pope, and his or her name placed in the calendar; and there are instances on record where other influences besides piety placed it there. We place the word "saint" before none but those who, we are sure from God's Word, are deserving of it. Nor even all of these do we thus honor. Enoch and Elijah were translated into heaven and are assuredly among God's saints. The same is true of Abraham and Moses, Joseph and Daniel. But we never speak of St. Abraham, St. Moses, and the like. In this matter we follow our Lord's rule: "He that is least in the kingdom," meaning the Church He came to establish, "is greater than he," and select for our list only New Testament persons; and here, again, those especially near to Him, such as the evangelists and apostles, and so we speak of St. Peter, St. Matthew, St. Paul. These we honor because Christ honored them. On his birthday each year we extol the virtues of a Washington; on Reformation Day we speak on the character and life-work of a Luther. Why should we not, therefore, on one day of the year, especially when it falls on a Sunday, note for our instruction what God in His Word has recorded of these favored servants? Only ignorance and prejudice could ever find fault with such an observance of these days and minor festivals which the Church in her wisdom purposes, and so from the lesson of this day would we regard the latter part. An important truth is it, a truth which has given rise to endless controversy, that this line sets forth to us. We shall inquire, _I. What is the office or the power of the Keys? II. How is it exercised?_