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SERMON XVII.

THE EXAMPLE OF THE ANCIENT SERVANTS OF GOD.

BY THE HON. GERARD T. NOEL, M. A.

“That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” Heb. vi. 12.

In this fallen world every thing good | evils, every degree of comfort, and every is acquired with difficulty, and retained mitigation of evil, which we now enjoy, with danger. Many fatigues, anxieties, and sorrows, make up that amount of effort which realizes even the objects of earthly ambition. In spiritual and heavenly pursuits, the same labour is essential, and the same peril attends enjoyment; but then that enjoyment is not subject to the same ultimate forfeiture. These are objects of pursuit, at once of high intrinsic excellence, and of perpetual duration; but still they are difficult of acquirement. In reference to this difficulty of attainment, the apostle requires that we be "not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises."

is the free and gratuitous gift of grace. We are criminals in a state of condemnation and forfeiture; but as such we are the objects of God's compassion. The promise of mercy consoled the first transgressors; and this promise has been always guarded from oblivion, and in every succeeding age has become the source of hope to the world. The great value of this promise respected a Mediator, by whom the tremendous effects of sin are averted from the penitent. Repentance, indeed, and the renewal of the heart to holy love, are among the most valued blessings conferred by this mediator. During many a long year this promise of

Let us with God's blessing contemplate pardon, and peace, and eternal life, was here, in the first place,

I. THE IMPORTANT FACT, THAT MANY OF OUR FELLOW-CHRISTIANS HAVE THROUGH FAITH AND PATIENCE inheriteD THE PROMISES OF GOD; and

made known to a very limited number of mankind; but when at length the Mediator came in human flesh, who was none other than "God over all, for ever blessed;" and when he had finished his work of

II. THE VALUE OF THEIR EXAMPLE TO mercy and of atonement, he commissioned

OURSELVES.

I. Let us first consider the assurance of the apostle, THAT MANY HAVE ATTAINED THE PROMISES of God.

To those who are familiar with the Scriptures, I need not say that every thing good and productive of happiness in this world, is the free gift of God. By this I do not simply mean that the original grant of life, with all its blessings, was to us a free benefit from God; but beyond this, that sin, having deprived us of that benefit, and exposed us to the most aggravated

his disciples to go into all the world, and to tell the tale of mercy to every creature ; to preach the assurance of remission of sins through his name, and the restoration of all, and more than all to man, of which sin had robbed him. "I am come, that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." Since the day in which this commission was given to the disciples, thousands and tens of thousands, in various countries, have believed the promises of God, and through Christ, the great subject of these promises, have

found rest unto their souls. They have corrupt propensities. "Out of many a relied on his efficacious atonement. They depth they called upon God;" amidst have been renewed by his Spirit, com- many a swelling wave they besought him forted by his grace, borne triumphantly to lead them to "the rock which was through the perils of the world, and we higher than they." Thus they endured doubt not have reached that perfect secu- a great "fight of affliction," and patiently rity and joy which is prepared for those held on their way; expecting no rest on who have been faithful unto death. earth, but knowing that if "they endured to the end, they should be saved;" and they were saved. They were led forward by hope, and it "never made them ashamed." It was to them "the helmet of salvation," and it "covered their heads in the day of battle."

Surveying then the crowded pathways of human life, and marking the guilt, and sorrow, and degradation which is every where apparent, it is a high consolation to think of the clear escape which these at least have made from suffering and sin. These have actually inherited the pro- II. But let us, secondly, consider THE mises. They "sleep in Jesus." They VALUE OF THEIR EXAMPLE TO OURSELVES. are with Christ." They are made" And we desire," says the apostle," that "perfect in love." They are placed be- every one of you do show the same diliyond the hazards and the pains of this gence to the full assurance of hope unto lower world. the end. That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises." With some shades of difference, we are substantially placed in the same circumstances with those who now "rest from their labours." We inhabit, as they did, a world of sin and sorrow, with hearts prone to yield to the one, and to repine against the other. We are surrounded with incessant temptations, exposed to fearful enemies, allured by sense, indisposed to act by faith, ready to prefer present advantage to future recompense. We need, as they needed, pardon and peace with God; reconciliation through the great atonement; the renewing influence of divine grace; "the setting our affections upon things above;" the guardianship of Christ; the victory over the world; the patient allegiance which is "faithful unto death." We possess the same assurances with them, of the certainty of attaining these great and enduring blessings. All the strength, the courage, the faith, the resolution, the endurance which they exhibited, we require, and are invited to receive, at God's hand. No single promise connected with the great victory over sin, death, and the world, is repealed. These promises still live upon the pages of revelation, like beacon lights to direct the feet of the wanderer through the wilderness of time.

It is however very material to remark, that the attainment of the promises was the result "of faith and patience." It was no light struggle which they were called to endure. Oftentimes against the evidence of external sense; oftentimes amidst the scorn and contempt of men, they clung to the sayings of God. Exposed to the most cruel temptations, they yet believed the record of God, and through the aid of his arm of strength, they rendered to him the sacrifice which his wisdom claimed at their hands. They believed his assurances, that ultimate felicity would be found in allegiance to him; in the denial of the flesh; in purity of affections; "in the grace of Christ, in the love of God, and in the fellowship of the Spirit." They learned by this faith to esteem the "reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt;" to "seek a city to come, whose builder and maker is God;" to confess themselves to be "pilgrims and strangers upon earth," and to expect the trials which belong to such.

Nor were such trials of faith few or momentary. These men found the necessity for patience as well as for faith. "They had respect to the recompense of reward;" and with that reward in view, they "endured many a cruel mocking," many a bond, many a dreary captivity, and many a severe struggle with their own

To us then, thus situated and exposed,

the example of the godly men of those Are we, my fellow Christians, painfully elder days is of unspeakable value. The conscious of our own inherent weakness? precepts of Scripture are very valuable; the promises of God are very refreshing; but the imbodying those precepts, and the accomplishment of those promises, in the actual victory and salvation of God's servants, are yet more stimulating and effective to our support. They give actual evidence of the practicability of godliness. They are trophies erected in the enemy's country; monuments of a courage, and constancy, and a success, calculated to refresh the weary and the faint, who are combating in the same noble strife, and are anxious to win the day.

We have indeed the high and bright example of the great Captain of our salvation, "who endured the cross, and despised the shame ;" and he ever lives before our eyes, at once the model, the leader, and the source of victory. But it is still auxiliary to our efforts to ascertain the efficacy of his strength, in the actual result of their lot, who once confided in his name. They, like ourselves, were once depraved, worldly, selfish, inconsistant, weak; but, united unto him, they became possessors of a divine nature." They adopted the cause of truth and righteousness as their own. They linked their sympathies and their lot to those of their Master. They clung to his principles, and made them the luminous way-marks to their own conduct. They estimated the things of time by the standard which he had erected, and they were borne away from the decision of his law, by no current of human opinion, nor by any costliness of present sacrifice. They lived for eternity. They consecrated their all to God's glory. The love of Christ constrained them, and they thus judged," that if one died for all, then were all dead; and that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him that died for them, and rose again." They continued in this temper, and their patient expectation was not cut off." They had peace in their life, and hope in their death, and they have entered into

rest.

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Are we then at any time harassed by temptation, and beat down by conflicts? VOL. I.-22

Have we already discovered by bitter experience the deceitfulness and desperate wickedness of our hearts? Have we, in a life of varied occupation, and repeated calamity, and incessant struggle, found no single spot where we may repose in quietness and safety? Have we, after innumerable failures, perceived that in ourselves there is neither wisdom, nor integrity, nor truth, nor faith, but rather inconstancy and double-mindedness, and mistrust and folly? Are we wearied with repetition of effort, and repetition of disappointment? Does the combat seem almost vain, and the full victory as far removed as ever from our hearts? It may, under such circumstances, console and strengthen us to trace the footsteps of our fellow combatants, and to hear the history of their conflicts. They went through the same difficulties, and endured the same fatigue. The sword was ever in their hands, and they expected rest, not on earth, but in heaven. They were militant here to the last sigh they drew. They cast their aching eyes towards the future glory, and then threw themselves afresh into the battle, and fought their way to Zion. Oh! let it be recollected, that he who upheld their faith and patience, "is the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever." Salvation is of grace, and God has connected the manifestation of his own glory with our ultimate rescue from all the severities of our condition.

Let then our weakness, our guilt, our inconstancy, produce humility, but not despair. "Greater is he that is for us," than those "who are against us." He will glorify himself in our redemption. He permits us to discern our own insufficiency, that we may rely upon his strength: he gives us the sentence of death in ourselves, that we may be incessantly indebted to him for life and vigour. Through him we shall be made more than conquerors," for "all power is in his hands." " He has overcome the world." The sceptre of rebellion lies broken at the foot of the cross. Satan and the world are vanquished foes. Those who have reached the higher world, fully compre

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hend his victory. Let us wait, and we too shall share their conviction and their triumph; and the cause is worthy the struggle. The result of the victory will fully attest the wisdom of the strife.

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It may further confirm our confidence to remember, that if we shrink from God's trials, we expose ourselves to those of our enemies. We cannot stand on neutral ground. If, like Jonah, we refuse in any instance the service of the Lord, we so far take up the service of sin and Satan. Now, while their ultimate wages are ruin and death, their immediate results are affliction. Remorse, and shame, and selfcontempt, and the "grieving the Spirit," are the unavoidable results of wilfully deserting, in any degree, the standard of God and of truth. Oh, better far, my fellow Christians, to combat still with pride, and passion, and ease, and worldliness; better far to go down into the grave with many a wound, and with our faces turned to the heavenly world, than to lull ourselves for a fatal moment amidst the dreams of sensual joy, only to wake amidst the terrific images of bitter contrition. "Yet awhile. and he who placed us in this scene of conflict will call us forth from the strug

I have already remarked, that every thing valuable requires a struggle. "They do it," says the apostle, "to acquire a corruptible crown, but we an incorruptible." Let not then our expectations be inconsistent. Let us not be slothful. We are, indeed, little aware of the real nature of our spiritual dangers; but then we are as little aware of the value of eternal felicity, or of the might and compassion of our gracious Saviour and Redeemer. We require to increase our knowledge and our faith. We require to become "patient" followers of the saints. It is ours to contemplate more steadily eternal realities; to examine more closely the records of our religion; to search more deeply into the character of God; to expand our sympathies over the whole surface of heavenly truth; to gather courage from God's promises; to ply the throne of mercy with incessant prayers; "to quit ourselves like men;" "to be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might;" to raise the up-gle;" yet a little while, and he that "shall lifted hand of resolution, in order to cut off the offending member; in short, "to deny ourselves; to take up the cross, and to follow Christ."

This is indeed a struggle. I would not disguise the truth, that it is "through much tribulation we must enter into the kingdom of God." God may call us to years of toil, and faith, and patience. We may be often ready, like Jonah, to fly from duty; like Joshua, to lie upon the ground in despondency; like David, after many an heroic effort, to cry, "I shall perish by the hand of Saul;" or, like the once intrepid Elijah, to retreat into solitude, and exclaim, "what good shall my life do me?" But, like these saints of old, let us also rally again to the spiritual combat. God refreshed their fainting spirits, and he will refresh ours likewise.

"His arm

come will come, and will not tarry:" for to those "that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation!" "Who then art thou that walketh in darkness, and hath no light, let him still trust in the Lord, and stay upon his God." "Hast thou not known? Hast thou not heard that the everlasting God, the Lord the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? He giveth power to the faint, and to them that have no might he increaseth strength: even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall; but they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary, and they shall walk and not faint."

But while we are looking to the elder is not shortened that it cannot save, nor times for high examples of courage and of allegiance, it ought likewise to be our anxious endeavour to offer similar exam

his ear heavy that it cannot hear."

Let

us then "not be slothful, but be followers of the saints." "Seeing we are compassed ples to others in our own faith and paabout with so great a cloud of witnesses, tience. It ought to be our prayer, that

"our light may shine" with steady bril- just consideration, and live in habits of watchfulness and prayer!

There are, however, those who are called Christians-who are yet giving the strength of manhood, or the growing de

liancy upon the path of others. It ought not to content us to receive good; it ought to be our generous effort to do good. Many generations may yet succeed us in the struggles of life. With this reference,bility of age, exclusively to the pursuits it ought to be our desire to cheer and to invigorate those who are feebler in faith than ourselves.

of pleasure or of gain; and the young mark in such a fatal example of earthliness which they too well love to follow. Let me speak then, in conclusion, to Now such men are the abettors of a systhose who, through the grace of God, have tem of sin and of delusion which, if purtaken their place in the world, and who sued, will rob them eternally of God's have adopted a decisive course of desire regard and of their own peace. I would and of pursuit. I would say to such, My earnestly say to such, "Has the gospel brethren in Christ, you are on the Lord's of Christ hitherto exerted no benign inside. Through grace you have remem-fluence over your souls? Has the Rebered your vows of youth, and the early deemer's love carried no healing balm to sign of the cross upon your foreheads. It your bosoms? and is the disease of sin is your desire to be faithful to the obliga- still raging unhealed, and has no wish been tions under which Christianity has placed solemnly felt, much less expressed, for a you, and to evince yourselves to be good cure? And it may, perhaps, aggravate "soldiers of the cross, fighting manfully your guilt that you are parents, or the under the banner of Christ, against the guardians of others. For what example world, the flesh, and the devil." Upon are you offering to your children? You these principles, are you then examples have never felt towards them the godly to those who are but commencing the con- solicitude of Christian parents. Their flicts of life? Are your maxims of con- conduct towards God-their spiritual duct the clear and recorded decisions of character, has never been the subject of God? Is your estimate of truth and error solicitude dear to your hearts. You are derived entirely from the Scriptures? Is still careless of your own souls, and are the honour, the glory, the cause of Christ, still walking before your children in the asdear to you at one moment as at another? broad path to destruction. Your examples Are you growing in his grace, and know- have never drawn them one step towards ledge, and love? Is there with you no God. Your lives are no friendly beacons false shame before the world? No flinch- to warn them of evil, and to illuminate the ing before the frown of man-no compro- way to true felicity. But think, my bremising of truth amidst the bold claims of thren, how awful must be the wo ultifalsehood? Are you seeking, with con- mately due to him who shall use the sistent effort, the full salvation of your authority of age, the counsels of maturity, souls and is Jesus Christ, in very deed the lessons of parental influence, or the and reality, your honoured Master and attractions of fond affection; who shall your gracious friend? Is it your joy to use these advantages as instruments of uphold the wavering, to animate the timid, moral power against the honour of God. to encourage the faithful servant of your and against the spiritual character of his Lord? Have you given up every faculty children? On the other hand, think of of body and soul in holy consecration to the blessing which he shall receive, who, Him who shed his blood for you? Are under the benign teaching of heavenly you advancing towards the close of life, wisdom, shall prefer the interests of the as a light to the benighted, a staff to the soul to those of the body; the spiritual weak, an example to the inexperienced welfare of his offspring to their earthly and the tímid? Are you "followers of fortune? Estimate his eternal recomGod and the Lamb;" humbly anxious to pense who shall bequeath to his children, be found "faithful even unto death?" in his dying hour, the rich memorials of Give these questions, I beseech you, their his faith and hope, and who shall descend

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