CHAPTER III.
An enquiry into the first and chief reason, why the generality of christians fall so far short of the holiness and devotion of christianity.
SINCE christian devotion is nothing less than a life wholly devoted unto God, and persons who are free from the necessities of labour and employments, are to consider themselves as devoted to God in a higher degree; it may now reasonably be enquired, how it comes to pass, that the lives even of the moral and better sort of people, are in general so directly contrary to the principles of christianity? I answer, because the generality of those that call themselves christians, are destitute of a true living faith in Jesus Christ; for want of which they never effectually intended to please God in all the actions of life, as the happiest and best thing in the world.
To be partaker of such a faith, is every where represented in scripture, as a fundamental and necessary part of true piety. For without a living faith in the righteousness of Jesus Christ, our persons cannot be justified, and consequently none of our performances acceptable in the sight of God. It is this faith that enables us to overcome the world, and to devote ourselves without reserve to promote the glory of Him, who has loved and given himself for us. And therefore it is purely for want of such a faith, that you see such a mixture of sin and folly in the lives even of the better sort of people: It is for want of this faith, that you see clergymen given to pride, and covetousness, and worldly enjoyments: It is for want of such a faith that you see women who profess devotion, yet living in all the folly and vanity of dress, wasting their time in idleness and pleasures, and in all such instances of state and equipage as their estate will reach. Let but a woman feel her heart full of this faith, and she will no more desire to shine at balls and assemblies, or to make a figure among those that are most finely dressed, than she will desire to dance upon a rope to please spectators. For she will then know that the one is as far from the true nature, wisdom, and excellency of the christian spirit, as is the other.
Let a clergyman be but thus pious, and he will converse as if he had been brought up by an Apostle; he will no more think and talk of noble preferment, than of noble eating, or a glorious chariot. He will no more complain of the frowns of the world, or a small cure, or the want of a patron, than he will complain of the want of a laced coat, or of a running horse. Let him but have such a faith in love for God, as will constrain him to make it his business to study to please God in all his actions, as the happiest and best thing in the world, and then he will know, that there is nothing noble in a clergyman, but burning zeal for the salvation of souls; nor any thing poor in his profession but idleness and a worldly spirit.
Further, let a tradesman but have such a faith, and it will make him a saint in his shop; his every day business will be a course of wise and reasonable actions, made holy to God, by flowing from faith, proceeding from love, and by being done in obedience to his will and pleasure. He will therefore not chiefly consider, what arts or methods or application will soonest make him greater and richer than his brethren, that he may remove from a shop, to a life of state and pleasure; but he will chiefly consider, what arts, what methods, and what application can make worldly business most conducive to God’s glory, and his neighbour’s good; and consequently make a life of trade, to be a life of holiness, devotion, and undissembled piety.
It was this faith that made the primitive christians such eminent instances of religion; and that made the goodly fellowship of the saints in all ages, and all the glorious army of confessors and martyrs. And if we will stop and ask ourselves, why we are not as pious as the primitive christians, and saints of old were? our own hearts must tell us, that it is because we never yet perhaps earnestly sought after, and consequently were never really made partakers of, that precious faith, whereby they were constrained to intend to please God in all their actions, as the best and happiest thing in the world.
Here then let us judge ourselves sincerely; let us not vainly content ourselves with the common disorders of our lives, the vanity of our expences, the folly of our diversions, the pride of our habits, the idleness of our lives, and the wasting of our time; fancying that these are only such imperfections as we necessarily fall into, through the unavoidable weakness and frailty of our nature; but let us be assured that these habitual disorders of our common life, are so many demonstrable proofs, that we never yet truly accepted of the Lord Jesus and his righteousness by a living faith, and never really intended, as a proof and evidence of such a faith, to please God in all the actions of our life, as the best thing in the world.
Though this be a matter that we can easily pass over at present, whilst the health of our bodies, the passions of our minds, the noise, and hurry, and pleasures, and business of the world, lead us on with “eyes that see not, and ears that hear not:” yet at death, it will set itself before us in a dreadful magnitude; it will haunt us like a dismal ghost, and our consciences will never let us take our eyes from it, unless they are seared as with a red hot iron, and God shall have given us over to a reprobate mind.