IF a man’s learning is combined with piety, devotion, and consecration to Jesus Christ, and he is possessed with the humility and meekness inculcated in Christianity, and his learning enables him to unfold the unsearchable riches of Christ, with the simplicity, sincerity and devotion necessary to commend it to the hearts and consciences of men, it is of great value. If the Lord dwells in a man, if the great matters of the kingdom of God fill his soul, and if his learning is used in presenting the simple gospel of Christ in meekness, it may be of great service to him; but, it requires much care to keep the Lord in front of it, so that the hearers will see nothing but him. The more gifted the man, the more learned and powerful, the better, if all his powers are engaged in setting forth and honoring the Lord, sanctifying Him in the eyes of the people. At the same time, he should rely upon not learning only, or talent, or power that he possesses, but upon the Lord, upon his gospel—the power of God unto salvation, to every one who believes. He must look to heaven for the means to move men to repent; he must appeal to God, keep God and his works before his audience, and in this way show that his confidence is in Christianity itself, and the author of it, and not in himself, not in man. Whether men have what the world calls learning or not, they must know God, and have the love of God in their hearts, if they would induce others to love him and turn to him.
[THE BIBLE INFALLIBLY SAFE.]
CAN men lead the people astray by insisting upon their adhering strictly to the law of God, uniting upon it, living in peace and love? Let the Lord reign. Let his law be the supreme authority. The Bible is right if anything is right. All led by it are led rightly; all under its influence are under proper influence; all opposed to it are wrong—all the way wrong.
There is not one ray of light from heaven that has ever reached the abodes of men in any creed, any book, or any man that is not in the Bible.
If the man who honestly reads the Bible to know his duty or the will of God, and does it to the best of his ability, praying daily for the divine aid, both in understanding and doing, is not safe, infallibly safe and right; no man in this world is safe.