Part 2 (1/2)

Glory to G.o.d in the highest. That little babe, lying in the manger among the cattle, was showing what was the very highest glory of the great G.o.d who had made heaven and earth. Not to show His power and His majesty, but to show His condescension and His love. To stoop, to condescend, to have mercy, to forgive, that is the highest glory of G.o.d. That is the n.o.blest, the most G.o.dlike thing for G.o.d or man.

And G.o.d showed that when He sent down His only-begotten Son--not to strike the world to atoms with a touch, not to hurl sinners into everlasting flame, but to be born of a village maiden, to take on Himself all the shame and weakness and sorrow, to which man is heir, even to death itself; to make Himself of no reputation, and take on Himself the form of a slave, and forgive sinners, and heal the sick, and comfort the outcast and despised, that He might show what G.o.d was like--show forth to men, as a poor maiden's son, the brightness of G.o.d's glory, and the express likeness of His person.

”And on earth peace” they sang. Men had been quarrelling and fighting then, and men are quarrelling and fighting now. That little babe in the manger was come to show them how and why they were all to be at peace with each other. For what causes all the war and quarrelling in the world, but selfishness? Selfishness breeds pride, pa.s.sion, spite, revenge, covetousness, oppression. The strong care for themselves, and try to help themselves at the expense of the weak, by force and tyranny; the weak care for themselves in their turn, and try to help themselves at the expense of the strong, by cunning and cheating. No one will condescend, give way, sacrifice his own interest for his neighbour's, and hence come wars between nations, quarrels in families, spite and grudges between neighbours.

But in the example of that little child of Bethlehem, Jesus Christ the Lord, G.o.d was saying to men, ”Acquaint yourselves with Me, and be at peace.” G.o.d is not selfish; it is our selfishness which has made us unlike G.o.d. G.o.d so loved the sinful world, that He gave His only- begotten Son for it. Is that an action like ours? The Son of G.o.d so obeyed His Father, and so loved this world, that He made Himself of no reputation, and took on Him the likeness of a slave, and became obedient to death, even to the most fearful and shameful of all deaths, the death of the cross; not for Himself, but for those who did not know Him, hated Him, killed Him. In short, He sacrificed Himself for us. That is G.o.d's likeness. Self-sacrifice. Jesus Christ, the babe of Bethlehem, proved Himself the Son of G.o.d, and the express likeness of the Father, by sacrificing Himself for us.

Sacrifice yourselves then for each other! Give up your own pride, your own selfishness, your own interest for each other, and you will be all at peace at once.

But the angels sang, ”Good will toward men.” Without that their song would not have been complete. For we are all ready to say, at such words as I have been speaking, ”Ah! pleasant enough, and pretty enough, if they were but possible; but they are not possible. It is in the nature of man to be selfish. Men have gone on warring, grudging, struggling, competing, oppressing, cheating from the beginning, and they will do so to the end.”

Yes, it is not in the NATURE of man to do otherwise. In as far as man yields to his nature, and is like the selfish brute beasts, it is not possible for him to do anything but go on quarrelling, and competing, and cheating to the last. But what man's nature cannot do, G.o.d's grace can. G.o.d's good will is toward you. He loves you, He wills--and if He wills, what is too hard for Him?--He wills to raise you out of this selfish, quarrelsome life of sin, into a loving, brotherly, peaceful life of righteousness. His spirit, the spirit of love by which He made and guides all heaven and earth, the spirit of love in which He gave His only Son for you, the spirit of love in which His Son Jesus Christ sacrificed Himself for you, and took on Himself a meaner state than any of you can ever have--the likeness of a slave--that spirit is promised to you, and ready for you. That little baby in the manger at Bethlehem--G.o.d sacrificing Himself for you in the spirit of love--is a sign that that spirit of love is the spirit of G.o.d, and therefore the only right spirit for you and me, who are men and women made in the image of G.o.d. That babe in the manger at Bethlehem is a sign to you and me, that G.o.d will freely give us that spirit of love if we ask for it. For He would not have set us that example, if He had not meant us to follow it, and He would not ask us to follow it, if He did not intend to give us the means of following it. Therefore, my friends, it is written, Ask and ye shall receive. If your heavenly Father spared not His own Son, but freely gave Him for you, will He not with Him likewise freely give you all things? Oh! ask and you shall receive.

However poor, ignorant, sinful you may be, G.o.d's promises are ready for you, signed and sealed by the bread and wine on that table, the memorial of Jesus, the babe of Bethlehem. Ask, and you shall receive! Comfort from sorrow, peaceful a.s.surance of G.o.d's good will toward you, deliverance from your sins, and a share in the likeness of Him who on this day made Himself of no reputation, and took on Him the form of a slave.

VI--TRUE ABSTINENCE

FIRST SUNDAY IN LENT.

I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection.--1 COR. ix. 27.

In the Collect for this day we have just been praying to G.o.d, to give us grace to use such abstinence, that our flesh being subdued to our spirit, we may follow His G.o.dly motions.

Now we ought to have meant something when we said these words. What did we mean by them? Perhaps some of us did not understand them.

They could not be expected to mean anything by them. But it is a sad thing, a very sad thing, that people will come to church Sunday after Sunday, and repeat by rote words which they do not understand, words by which they therefore mean nothing, and yet never care or try to understand them.

What are the words there for, except to be understood? All of you call people foolish, who submit to have prayers read in their churches in a foreign language, which none, at least of the poor, can understand. But what right have you to call them foolish, if you, whose Prayer-books are written in English, take no trouble to find out the meaning of them? Would to Heaven that you would try to find out the meaning of the Prayer-book! Would to Heaven that the day would come, when anyone in this parish who was puzzled by any doctrine of religion, or by any text in the Bible, or word in the Prayer-book, would come confidently to me, and ask me to explain it to him! G.o.d knows, I should think it an honour and a pleasure, as well as a duty. I should think no time better spent than in answering your questions. I do beseech you to ask me, every one of you, when and where you like, any questions about religion which come into your minds. Why am I put in this parish, except to teach you?

and how can I teach you better, than by answering your questions? As it is, I am disheartened, and all but hopeless, at times, about the state of this parish, and the work I am trying to do here; because, though you will come and hear me, thank G.o.d, willingly enough, you do not seem yet to have gained confidence enough in me, or to have learnt to care sufficiently about the best things, to ask questions of me about them. My dear friends, if you wanted to get information about anything you really cared for, you would ask questions enough.

If you wanted to know some way to a place on earth you would ask it; why not ask your way to things better than this earth can give? But whether or not you will question me I must go on preaching to you, though whether or not you care to listen is more, alas! than I can tell.

But listen to me, now, I beseech you, while I try to explain to you the meaning of the words which you have been just using in this Collect. You have asked G.o.d to give you grace to use abstinence.

Now what is the meaning of abstinence? Abstinence means abstaining, refraining, keeping back of your own will from doing something which you might do. Take an example. When a man for his health's sake, or his purse's sake, or any other good reason, drinks less liquor than he might if he chose, he abstains from liquor. He uses abstinence about liquor. There are other things in which a man may abstain.

Indeed, he may abstain from doing anything he likes. He may abstain from eating too much; from lying in bed too long; from reading too much; from taking too much pleasure; from making money; from spending money; from right things; from wrong things; from things which are neither right nor wrong; on all these he may use abstinence. He may abstain for many reasons; for good ones, or for bad ones. A miser will abstain from all sorts of comforts to h.o.a.rd up money. A superst.i.tious man may abstain from comforts, because he thinks G.o.d grudges them to him, or because he thinks G.o.d is pleased by the unhappiness of His creatures, or because he has been taught, poor wretch, that if he makes himself uncomfortable in this life, he shall have more comfort, more honour, more reason for pride and self- glorification, in the life to come. Or a man may abstain from one pleasure, just to be able to enjoy another all the more; as some great gamblers drink nothing but water, in order to keep their heads clear for cheating. All these are poor reasons; some of them base, some of them wicked reasons for abstaining from anything. Therefore, abstinence is not a good thing in itself; for if a thing is good in itself, it can never be wrong. Love is good in itself, and, therefore, you cannot love anyone for a bad reason. Justice is good in itself, pity is good in itself, and, therefore, you can never be wrong in being just or pitiful.

But abstinence is not a good thing in itself. If it were, we should all be bound to abstain always from everything pleasant, and make ourselves as miserable and uncomfortable as possible, as some superst.i.tious persons used to do in old times. Abstinence is only good when it is used for a good reason. If a man abstains from pleasure himself, to save up for his children; if he abstains from over eating and over drinking, to keep his mind clear and quiet; if he abstains from sleep and ease, in order to have time to see his business properly done; if he abstains from spending money on himself, in order to spend it for others; if he abstains from any habit, however harmless or pleasant, because he finds it lead him towards what is wrong, and put him into temptation; then he does right; then he is doing G.o.d's work; then he may expect G.o.d's blessing; then he is trying to do what we all prayed G.o.d to help us to do, when we said, ”Give us grace to use such abstinence;” then he is doing, more or less, what St. Paul says he did, ”Keeping his body under, and bringing it into subjection.”

For, see, the Collect does not say, ”Give us grace to use abstinence,” as if abstinence were a good thing in itself, but ”to use such abstinence, that”--to use a certain kind of abstinence, and that for a certain purpose, and that purpose a good one; such abstinence that our flesh may be subdued to our spirit; that our flesh, the animal, bodily nature which is in us, loving ease and pleasure, may not be our master, but our servant; so that we may not follow blindly our own appet.i.tes, and do just what we like, as brute beasts which have no understanding. And our flesh is to be subdued to our spirit for a certain purpose; not because our flesh is bad, and our spirit good; not in order that we may puff ourselves up and admire ourselves, and say, as the philosophers among the heathen used, ”What a strong-minded, sober, self-restraining man I am! How fine it is to be able to look down on my neighbours, who cannot help being fond of enjoying themselves, and cannot help caring for this world's good things. I am above all that. I want nothing, and I feel nothing, and nothing can make me glad or sorry. I am master of my own mind, and own no law but my own will.” The Collect gives us the true and only reason, for which it is right to subdue our appet.i.tes; which is, that we may keep our minds clear and strong enough to listen to the voice of G.o.d within our hearts and reasons; to obey the motions of G.o.d's Spirit in us; not to make our bodies our masters, but to live as G.o.d's servants.

This is St. Paul's meaning, when he speaks of keeping under his body, and bringing it into subjection. The exact word which he uses, however, is a much stronger one than merely ”keeping under;” it means simply, to beat a man's face black and blue; and his reason for using such a strong word about the matter is, to show us that he thought no labour too hard, no training too sharp, which teaches us how to restrain ourselves, and keep our appet.i.tes and pa.s.sions in manful and G.o.dly control.

Now, a few verses before my text, St. Paul takes an example from foot-racers. ”These foot-racers,” he says, ”heathens though they are, and only trying to win a worthless prize, the petty honour of a crown of leaves, see what trouble they take; how they exercise their limbs; how careful and temperate they are in eating and drinking, how much pain and fatigue they go through to get themselves into perfect training for a race. How much more trouble ought we to take to make ourselves fit to do G.o.d's work? For these foot-racers do all this only to gain a garland which will wither in a week; but we, to gain a garland which will never fade away; a garland of holiness, and righteousness, and purity, and the likeness of Jesus Christ.”

The next example of abstinence which St. Paul takes, is from the prize-fighters, who were very numerous and very famous, in the country in which the Corinthians lived. ”I fight,” he says, ”not like one who beats the air;” that is, not like a man who is only brandis.h.i.+ng his hands and sparring in jest, but like a man who knows that he has a fight to fight in hard earnest; a terrible lifelong fight against sin, the world, and the devil; ”and, therefore,” he says, ”I do as these fighters do.” They, poor savage and brutal heathens as they are, go through a long and painful training. Their very practice is not play; it is grim earnest. They stand up to strike, and be struck, and are bruised and disfigured as a matter of course, in order that they may learn not to flinch from pain, or lose their tempers, or turn cowards, when they have to fight. ”And so do I,” says St. Paul; ”they, poor men, submit to painful and disagreeable things to make them brave in their paltry battles. I submit to painful and disagreeable things, to make me brave in the great battle which I have to fight against sin, and ignorance, and heathendom.” ”Therefore,” he says, in another place, ”I take pleasure in afflictions, in persecutions, in necessities, in distresses;” and that not because those things were pleasant, they were just as unpleasant to him as to anyone else; but because they taught him to bear, taught him to be brave; taught him, in short, to become a perfect man of G.o.d.

This is St. Paul's account of his own training: in the Epistle for to-day we have another account of it; a description of the life which he led, and which he was content to lead--”in much suffering, in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labours, in watching, in fastings”--and an account, too, of the temper which he had learnt to show amid such a life of vexation, and suffering, and shame, and danger--”approving himself in all things the minister of G.o.d, by pureness, by wisdom, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the spirit of holiness, by love unfeigned;” ”as dying, and behold we live; as chastened, and not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing all things.”--In all things proving himself a true messenger from G.o.d, by being able to dare and to endure for G.o.d's sake, what no man ever would have dared and endured for his own sake.

”But”--someone may say--”St. Paul was an apostle; he had a great work to do in the world; he had to turn the heathen to G.o.d; and it is likely enough that he required to train himself, and keep strict watch over all his habits, and ways of thinking and behaving, lest he should grow selfish, lazy, cowardly, covetous, fond of ease and amus.e.m.e.nt. He had, of course, to lead a life of strange suffering and danger; and he had therefore to train himself for it. But what need have we to do as St. Paul did?”