Female Scripture Biography, Volume II / Including an Essay on What Christianity Has Done for Women

by F. A. Cox

But let not the enchanting annals of Roman literature or Grecian wisdom detach our minds from the nobler records of inspiration, or diminish the conviction which religion must ever inspire, that the birth place of benevolence and piety is more illustrious than the birthplace of genius and philosophy. On this principle we look with admiration upon the town of Joppa, which, if it cannot boast a prodigy of valour, talent, or learning, is nevertheless conspicuous as the residence of one "of whom the world was not worthy." She was not, indeed, rich in wealth, but in good works. She was not a conqueror of nations or a distributor of crowns, but a giver of alms. She had no name on earth beyond the limits of a small Christian church, but her record was on high, and her memorial has not perished with her.

Joppa was the nearest seaport to Jerusalem on the Mediterranean. It was situated in the tribe of Dan in a fine plain, and has acquired the modern name of Jaffa. This place is frequently mentioned in Scripture. The materials for the construction of Solomon's temple were sent thither in floats, by Hiram, the king of Tyre, whence they were easily conveyed by land to Jerusalem. Jonah, in his flight from the presence of the Lord, embarked at this port, and gave occasion to the mythological fable of Andromeda. Here the apostle Peter enjoyed that remarkable vision, in which he saw heaven opened, and a great sheet descending to the earth, which seemed to contain every variety of beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air; intimating to him the abolition of the Mosaic law, and the removal of those distinctions which had so long separated the Jews and the Gentiles. It is probable Philip preached the Gospel here in his progress through various cities to Cesarea; but the history of Dorcas, or, as she was originally called in the Syriac dialect, Tabitha, has given it peculiar prominence in the sacred page.

The memorial of this excellent woman is short, but replete with instruction. Her character is sketched at a stroke, and by the introduction of an incident as full of significance and interest as can well be imagined. Dropping those minute details and accidental circumstances which are not necessary to character, and which the New Testament so seldom mentions, the most instructive part of her story is preserved and set in the most brilliant point of light.

She is simply announced, in the first place, as "a certain disciple," or one that embraced the faith of Christ, and professed it by baptism and a public union with his church. Whatever might be her situation in other respects was of little consequence; this was her best, her most substantial distinction. It invested her with a real glory, which however overlooked by those who are chiefly attracted by exterior splendour, surpassed every vain and glittering honour of the world. It raised her to the dignity of a name in the volume of inspiration, and the unfading distinction of a place in the annals of eternity.

How poor and how perishable is human fame; and yet with what eagerness is it universally sought! What is it but like a bubble, excited by some accidental cause, to sparkle for a moment on the stream of passing ages, and then to disappear for ever! And yet the love of fame has been called, and perhaps with propriety, the ruling passion; for so much does it blend itself with human motives, that there are comparatively few of our actions, at least such as are visible to the public eye, which may not be traced to this feeling, or which do not receive a tone from its influence.

But how shall we describe that faith which is often mentioned in the New Testament, which so marked the character of Dorcas, and which, perhaps, may not be inaptly called the principle of discipleship?

This term is of various import, and of very extensive application in Scripture. It signifies belief, and refers to testimony either human or divine; but is restricted in its evangelical use to the latter. Revelation in general is the object of faith: and those invisible realities which it discloses to the mental eye are seen with equal distinctness, and believed with equal conviction, as if they were capable, from possessing some material quality, of impressing the corporeal senses. Faith glorifies its great Object and Author by paying an implicit deference to his authority. It asks no other bond than his promise, no other evidence or attestation than his veracity. It not only ranges through worlds which mortal eye could never explore, but which human reason could never discover: and as by transgression man has fallen under the dominion of his senses, it delivers its happy possessor from this state of degradation and wretchedness.

But though this be a general signification of the word, its more precise and appropriate use in the Gospel is expressed by the phrase, "believing that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God." Here the general and the particular use are necessarily blended. Faith is belief--but belief in "the truth as it is in Jesus." To believe, in the ordinary sense, is to admit a fact, to assent to the statement of an accredited or respectable witness; to believe in Jesus as the Son of God, is to acknowledge his real character, to perceive his true dignity, to view and to love him, not only as distinguished by perfect excellence; but as specifically the Saviour of lost sinners; for "whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ, is born of God." Faith comprehends what he is, contemplates him in all his glorious offices, and from the manger of meanness traces him to the throne of power, relying upon what he has suffered and said as the infallible pledge of what he will accomplish. It is not only well informed, but humble. It resided in his heart who exclaimed, "Lord, save me!" It dictated his language who cried out, "Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom." It gave efficacy to the prayer of that humble petitioner who said, "Speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed." It is pleasing to God, essential to salvation, and his own gift: for "Enoch had this testimony, that he pleased God"--"a man is justified by faith"--and "by grace ye are saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God."

Faith is not dormant, but active and operative. It resembles good seed sown in the cultivated soil, which expands, and grows, and produces fruit. This holy vegetation exists in very different degrees of vigour, according to the diversities of Christian character, but it is apparent in all--the mark of true religion, the pleasing verdant hue that covers the whole surface of the spiritual creation. We cannot point to every pious person as a Dorcas, who presents a singular fertility of some of the noblest graces; but of all it may be said, "the root of the matter is found in them," and "their root shall not be rottenness, nor their blossom go up as dust."

It is the nature of genuine faith to stimulate to the most laborious duties, to sustain amidst the most poignant sufferings, to produce the greatest purity of character, to communicate the noblest kind of happiness of which a creature in the present state can be susceptible, to nerve the feeblest arm with strength, to give the dullest eye perception, above all, to "work by love." For these reasons, and because of its transforming influence, we denominated it the principle of discipleship. It operates by love to its object and to all its subjects, as well as to the divine commandments in general; and influences its possessor to practise universal philanthropy. To the latter our particular attention is now directed by the example of Dorcas; but it must not be forgotten, that though the particular specimen of her excellence be taken from the common offices of kindness and the act of almsgiving, the existence and proportionate vigour of the great principle from which her minor charities resulted must be presupposed, as by observing the fertility of a branch, or the verdure of a twig, or even the greenness of a leaf, we infer the growth of the tree, its root, its stem, and all its various ramifications. While we contemplate this flourishing plant of grace, we know that it was deeply "rooted and grounded" in faith.