14. True it is that the flesh is highly gratified when honored, courted, and praised, and when abounding in the riches and pleasures of this life; but the yoke of Christ, by which the flesh is mortified and subdued, requires us to prefer ignominy, contempt, and poverty, to affluence and honor; to account ourselves unworthy of these things, and freely to give up all that is great in the estimation of the world. It is here that the humility and life of Christ are most striking and apparent. This is the “yoke” and this the “burden,” which are easy and light to the spirit; this is the law of love, the commandments of which are not grievous but delightful. 1 John 5:3. What was the whole life of Christ but holy poverty, extreme contempt, and severe persecution? Is it not true that he “came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many”? Matt. 20:28.
15. It is the tendency of the natural man to desire to excel others, and to be thought of importance; but the spiritual man loves the humility of the Redeemer, and desires to be reputed as nothing in this world. The carnal man, that follows the propensities of corrupt nature, and has never learned of Christ's humility, meekness, and love, deems it folly to live as Jesus lived, and thinks those only are wise who indulge their appetites in security, and satiate themselves with every object which they desire; and when such a one most lives in the devil, he is so blinded by ignorance and darkness as to esteem his own life the happiest that can be desired, and to applaud himself in his own folly. And hence it is that these deluded wretches, following the false light of carnal wisdom, are not only deceived themselves, but are the means of involving others in the same ruin. They, on the contrary, whose minds have been enlightened by the true and eternal light, are struck with [pg 033] horror and surprise whenever they cast their eyes upon the pomps and vanities of this world, upon the ambition and pride, the wrath and revenge, the intemperance and voluptuousness, and the other fruits of the carnal life which universally abound. Their language is: “Alas! how far removed is all this from Christ! How far from true repentance and the knowledge of Jesus is the man that acts thus! How far from the nature and disposition of a child of God! Alas! he is still dead in sins, and a slave of the devil.” That man, therefore, who does not imitate the life of Christ, is an entire stranger to true repentance; he is not a Christian, nor a child of God; nay, he is wholly ignorant of Jesus Christ; for he who desires to know Christ savingly, both as the Saviour of the world and as the great exemplar of life, must know him to be pure meekness, gentleness, and love, and to be wholly composed of patience and humility. This living ensample of goodness and piety which the Lord hath set before him, he must carry in his heart, and must labor to be transformed into its image. The virtues that resided in Christ he must have within himself; and if he would ever effectually know him, he must love and admire them in his inward soul. As a plant discovers its nature by the fragrance which it diffuses around, so the knowledge of Christ discovers itself by the sweet and sacred odors which proceed from it. Then is acquired an experimental knowledge of the life, power, rest, and consolation which flow from the Saviour; which circulate through all the faculties of the soul, and quicken them by a kind of spiritual sweetness. Thus is man made to “taste how good the Lord is” (Ps. 34:8); thus is the truth known, and the supreme and eternal good apprehended and enjoyed. And thus is it certainly ascertained that the life of Christ is infinitely superior to every other life in goodness and sweetness, in dignity and in peace; yea, that it resembles life eternal itself, being indeed the foretaste of such a life upon earth.
16. As there is nothing more excellent than the life of Christ, nothing more delightful, more peaceful, or more satisfying to the soul, it ought to have no rival in our affections, but to be endeared to us above all things else. He who is destitute of Christ and of his knowledge, can form no conception of the rest and quiet of eternal life; or of the sovereign good; or of the everlasting truth; or of the imperishable word; or of the joy of the soul; or of the true light of love; for all these centre in Christ, and he who has him has them; because Christ is all these to the man who truly believes in his holy name. “Every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not, knoweth not God; for God is love.” 1 John 4:7, 8.
17. It is, therefore, most evident that the fruits and effect of the new birth do not consist in words, however sound, or in a form of godliness, however specious, but in an abiding substance, even in that love which is God himself. A son bears the image of him who begat him; and whoever is born of God should evidence it by love, for God is love; and hence it is clear that “he that dwelleth in love, dwelleth in God, and God in him.” 1 John 4:16.
18. The knowledge of God, in like manner, does not consist in words, nor in merely speculative and superficial knowledge, but in a vital, consolatory, [pg 034] and divine feeling, in a pure and unmixed pleasure, gently infusing itself into the heart by faith, and penetrating it with an unutterable and heavenly sweetness. This is a true, living, and efficacious knowledge of God; such as that which the Psalmist means when he says, “My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God” (Ps. 84:2); and again, “Thy loving kindness (as experienced in the divine sensations of my soul) is better than life” (Ps. 63:3); that is, this divine life infinitely transcends every other life; in which it is evident that he means that unutterable joy which is produced by an experimental knowledge of God, and which is infused into a believing heart. Thus man liveth in God, and God in man; and thus man knoweth God in truth, and is known of God.
Chapter XII.
The True Christian Dies Unto Himself And The World, And Lives In Christ.
Christ died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.—2 Cor. 5:15.