The Christian's Glorious Inventory
(No. 2589)
A SERMON INTENDED FOR READING ON LORD'S-DAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 1898.
DELIVERED BY C. H. SPURGEON,
AT NEW PARK STREET CHAPEL, SOUTHWARK, ON A LORD'S-DAY MORNING, IN THE
YEAR 1856.
"Therefore let no maun glory in men. For all things are yours; whether
Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things
present, or things to come– all are yours. And you are Christ's, and
Christ is God's." 1 Corinthians 3:21-23.
IT appears, from this Epistle, that the Christians at Corinth were very
much divided on account of certain ministers who had, at different
times, preached the Word of God among them. Some of them felt a deep
attachment to Paul and they said, "We are of Paul." Others preferred
Cephas and they cried, "We are of Cephas," while another portion
followed after Apollos and declared, "We are of Apollos." So that the
Church, which ought to have been one body, was sadly torn and divided
by several parties who followed different leaders. Paul wrote this
first Epistle to the Corinthians in order to remove their strifes and,
if possible, to bind them, again, in the bonds of love and unity–to
make of them one Church, serving one Master, striving together for the
faith once delivered to the saints.
Now, Beloved, the same thing that occurred in Corinth has happened in
London and elsewhere many a time. It is but right that persons should
feel an attachment to those who preach the Gospel to them. But when
this grows to an overwhelming adoration–when it becomes almost a
worship and persons are led to despise all other ministers and will
hear none besides that one man whom they believe to be sent from
God–then, indeed, they need a solemn reproof as did these
Corinthians–and it is requisite to say to them, "Therefore, let no man
glory in men. For all things are yours." To love the man by whose means
we are brought to know the Truth of God, to have respect to him who
speaks wondrous words, as God makes utterance by him is, indeed,
nothing but natural and just. But if we at any time exalt that man
above the level he ought to stand, or put him above all others, so that
we despise them and say, "I am of Paul and will not hear Apollos," or,
"I am of Apollos and, therefore, cannot hear Cephas"–then it becomes a
sin and iniquity, a transgression against God, against His Church and
against His ministers. And the Apostle's solemn reproof comes home with
an emphasis–"Therefore let no man glory in men. For all things are
yours; whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or
death, or things present, or things to come."
Paul was a wise reprover and he did not reprove too sharply. After he
had said, "Let no man glory in men," mark how he reproved them–"For
all things are yours." He used no hard words. We have heard of
ministers who are perpetually whipping and scolding their hearers. It
is an old saying of those who understood horses as well as men, "The
best way is to put the whip in the manger." Feed people well and they
will work well. Give them plenty of sound Doctrine and it will make
them practical It is not the way to make a practical people to be
always talking about practice. Feed them with the manna that comes down
from Heaven–and with some of the honey out of the rock–and they will
always be willing to strive for their Master and to labor for His
cause.
Now, Christian, rise and walk through the length and breadth of the
land, this morning, and view your possessions! Nothing will tend so
much to lessen your undue reverence for men, or to check your glorying
in them, as a vision of what you are, yourselves, worth! If you see
your own property, your own possessions, you will not, then, be so much
inclined to place too high a value upon one certain thing, though it
may be, in itself, exceedingly precious.
First of all, we have before us an inventory of the Christian's
possessions. "All things are yours." Secondly, we have the title deed.
"You are Christ's and Christ is God's." And, thirdly, we have the
conduct expected from a man who is so exceedingly rich. "Let no man
glory in men."
I. First, I said, we have AN INVENTORY OF THE CHRISTIAN'S POSSESSIONS.
The Apostle sets down at the top the total of the whole, and then he
proceeds to mention the possessions one by one. The sum total is "all
things," but as these two words are said very quickly and are very
general in their meaning, he particularizes, and gives each of the
things in its proper place. First he says, "all things," and then he
gives us a list which includes "all things."
And, first, he says that all ministers are yours. As a Christian, all
kinds of ministers are yours, "whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas."
All preachers are not Pauls. All are not like Apollos and all cannot
speak like Cephas. But ministers of all kinds are yours–they are not
their own, they belong to the Church at large. There is Paul. He has a
clear, logical mind. He preaches good doctrine and proclaims it
powerfully. He is yours, go and hear him! There is Apollos who preaches
with eloquence. He is not so much a logician as an orator. He cannot
reason, perhaps, but he puts his thoughts into beautiful shapes and
delivers them well. Go and hear Apollos! There is rough Cephas, a
plain, blunt, honest, outspoken man. He never minces matters. What he
says, he says out of his heart, "con amore"–his whole soul goes with
every word. Do not despise him. You may like Paul, better, and Apollos
may be more to your taste, but Cephas has his work to do as well–and
all are yours–their talents, their station, whatever they possess–all
are yours!
You sometimes speak of "my minister." Yes, you have a particular
minister, but then all ministers are yours–not only that special one,
but all who are called of God! Whatever may be their peculiar mode of
preaching, they are yours to profit by, if, indeed, they are God's
servants. There is Boanerges–he preaches in a thundering manner of the
wrath to come. His sermons alarm you. He drags a harrow across your
soul. He speaks as if he had just come from the top of Sinai where the
thunders of God were pealing and the lightning flashing beneath his
feet! He speaks like a man impressed with solemn awe, as if he had, for
a while, traversed the Lake of Fire and Brimstone, and had descended
into the abyss of Hell and seen the horrid pits where the wicked lie
and bite their bonds. Hear him, he is yours.
Here is another, a Barnabas who speaks words of gentle comfort. You
seldom hear thunder from him. His preaching is like the soft evening
breeze. He is like the sun that has healing beneath its wings, gently
he speaks to the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. You love to
hear him. He is quite as useful as Boanerges and Boanerges is as useful
as Barnabas–and they are both yours. One is a loving John, sweet in
his disposition. You can read love in his eyes. He has leaned his head
on the bosom of Jesus and when he speaks, he says, "I beseech you, love
one another." Another is like Peter. He speaks terribly of the last
days wherein shall come scoffers–and of the fire which shall consume
the ungodly. Both Peter and John have their special province–and they
are both yours.
When God has blessed a man, when there is an unction from the Holy One
resting on him, when he can trace his descent from the Apostles by
being a follower of the Apostles and preaching Apostolic Doctrine in an
Apostolic manner, then, indeed, you may say he is yours, for, "all are
yours, whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas." "Then how little and
narrow-minded I am," perhaps the Christian will say, "that I have not
cared for this or that man because he was not exactly after my mode!" O
dear Creatures, would you have the making of God's ministers? A sorry
lot they would be if you had! God makes them as He pleases, and sends
them into the world after His own fashion, each with his own work to do
in his own manner–but they are all yours! There is a minister who
preaches very sweetly. Well, he is yours, he is your servant, your
waiting-man! He is not a lord and master over you, but your servant.
"Ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake." Whoever he is, if he is a
true minister of God, he will profess himself to be the servant of the
Church, your positive property. Make all the use you can of him, then.
Try and remember all the good things he may say–whatever choice
utterances, whatever golden sentences and silver words come from his
lips, treasure them up–for they are all yours, whether they are the
words of Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas. This is the first entry in the
inventory.
And, next, "the world"is ours. This great world, considered naturally,
the home wherein we live, is all ours. Men have carved it out for
themselves. Worldlings have said, "So much is mine, and so much is
yours. Yonder fields belong to that rich man. And the houses there and
that park belong to such another." They may call it theirs if they
like, but the world is yours! It is yours as much as if you had a legal
title to it here below. It is yours, not in imagination, or conception,
but in reality. Do you ask me how it is? I tell you, the world only
exists for you! If you and all your fellow Christians were gone out of
it. If the righteous were departed, the world would at once be a
desert. "You are the salt of the earth"–the conservers, the preservers
of it–it abides for your sake! Take you away and the world would be
turned into rottenness and perish! The world is but the scaffold of
your soul's salvation–it is but the place where you prepare yourselves
to enter into the world above. This world would have been consumed by
fire long ago if it had not been for the righteous. God bids the flames
tarry till He has taken all His children Home! He only keeps the world
in existence for the sake of His elect! It is a debased world, the
trail of the serpent is all over it. It is spoiled, its beauty is
marred, it is a fair world but a false one, its glory is departed. God
would utterly destroy it but that He intends His Church to be fostered
in the wilderness and He will not sweep the wilderness away till He has
carried His people through it. This world is yours– there is not a
speck of it which is not yours! The whole of it is yours, from the East
to the West, and from the North to the South. The lands of virgin snows
are yours. The wide, expansive ocean is yours. Yon blue sky with all
its gems of stars is yours. "All things are yours." One man says of a
certain part, "That is mine!" He knows not what he says–it is yours!
It is let to him for a little while. He occupies it as a tenant. He is
only the man who takes care of your house for you. It is your house,
though he lives in it and enjoys the comfort of it. He stretches
himself on the couch, but the house is yours– and it shall be yours,
by-and-by, when Jesus Christ shall come a second time, without sin unto
salvation, and shall reign gloriously upon the earth with His ancients!
Then shall you wear a crown and shall be made a king and a priest unto
your God, and shall reign with Christ upon the earth for a thousand
years!
This world is yours now. "No, but," you say, "I am poor and have but
little of it." It is yours, notwithstanding, only you are not yet come
of age. The son, before he is of full age, is as truly the heir of all
the property as he will be when he comes into full possession of it. He
has enough for his necessities, but not more, but still, he says, "It
is mine. And when the day shall come that I am twenty-one, I shall have
it all." So, Christian, you are at present only a child, and it would
not do to give you all your property at once. You are not come of age,
but when you have passed through your time of probation, you shall say,
"It is mine." But did I hear you say that you have not enough of this
world's necessities? Hush, be silent, or else the promise is broken,
"Bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure." I know you have
enough. Or, if you have not enough at present, yet it is coming to you.
God will not leave you! If He brings you ever so low in poverty, still
trust Him, for His promise is engaged to supply your needs. "The young
lions do lack and suffer hunger: but they that seek the Lord shall not
want any good thing." Try your Lord by faith. If you have no
employment, no means of providing for yourself, yet ask Him and He will
give you all you need. If you have no place to lay your head, God will
provide it for you. However deep your distresses may be, He will never
let you perish. His honor is engaged on your behalf and He will take
care of you. Poor as you are, this world is yours! Draw, then, on your
Heavenly Banker–go and ask your God for what you need–and as truly as
He is God, He will hear the cry of the destitute and will not despise
your prayer.
And next, "life" is ours. Have you ever heard a person say, "Oh, if I
might but die, and depart, and be with Jesus"? And you have heard him,
sometimes, repeat the Psalmist's wish, "Oh, that I had wings like a
dove!" Now, if he had wings like a dove, what would he do with them?
Where would he put them? "Oh," he says, "that I had wings like a dove,
for then would I fly away and be at rest." No, you would not be at
rest, for if you were to fly away before your work was done, you could
not rest even then! But when your work is done, then you will be at
rest without needing the wings of a dove. Therefore do not make such a
silly request any more, but be content to wait and tarry the Lord's
time. Moreover, look not upon life as an evil thing–it is one of the
good things we possess. It is a glorious life, after all, when a man
knows how to enjoy it and how to improve it. What? Be ashamed to live
here when you have such means of doing good and glorifying God, and
such pleasant seasons of communion with Jesus, and such preparations
for eternity? What? Count life nothing? It is one of the greatest
blessings we possess! And to stay here till our portion of labor shall
be done is a blessing–nor would we wish to have our lives shortened by
a single hour, for God has predestinated the time for its end.
I think that man who does not reckon life a blessing has morbid views.
With all its trials and sorrows, it is still a precious gem–it may be
set in a ring of iron–but it is still a gem! Life may be hidden in the
depths, like a rare pearl, but he that, by faith, can act the part of a
diver, will fetch the pearl up and see its value. I think an angel in
Heaven might be glad to live on earth for the good he might do. If I
may be the means of saving souls from Hell. If I can wipe away the
mourner's tears. If God shall help me to bind up the broken in heart
and to set free the prisoner. If my fellow man, by my means, can be led
in the paths of righteousness. If souls can be snatched from Hell and
heirs of earth be made heirs of
Heaven by my staying here, then, O God, let me live! I think the life
of Methuselah were well purchased, and that we might well tolerate even
such a long delay from Heaven if we could serve God better by staying
here. Do not look upon life as a curse, Christian! Count it a blessing
and seek to make it so. It will be full of weeds and thistles to you if
you do not plow it. But if you plow life with persevering industry and
earnestness, you will make it like a garden of the Lord. You can make
the wilderness blossom like Eden and the desert shall be a very Carmel
for joy, so that the mountains and hills shall break forth before you
into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands!
Yes, Paul was right when he wrote of life as a blessing, for a blessing
it certainly is.
The next thing does not seem to be of any value at all–"or death."
But, Beloved, what would life be worth if it were not for death? There
are some books that have only plain black letters till you come to the,
"Finis," which is illuminated. So it is often with life–it is printed
in black letters till you come to the last leaf–but that page is lit
up with glory, for that page is death! O Life, I would call you a curse
if I could not see Death behind you! To live here always–who would
wish it? To walk perpetually upon this earth and to dwell here absent
from the Lord, and present in the body–that were, indeed, a curse! But
life is a blessing because after life comes death. Yes, death, itself,
is a blessing to the Christian! Usually, we look at death, not so much
as what it is, as what it appears to be. Death is an angel, the fairest
in creation! But Death sometimes dresses itself in terrible garments.
It appears to be terrible, but it is not. Moreover, we think death to
be dreadful because we do not see the whole of death. You know why
Belshazzar trembled when he saw the handwriting on the wall–it was
because he could see nothing but the hand–he could not see the body.
That is why we are afraid of the hand of death, because we see nothing
but the hand. If we could see the whole of death, we would count it a
cherub! Death, indeed, is not a dreary thing to those who believe in
Jesus–those who know how to commune with death from day to day will
never be afraid of talking or thinking of it. It is the gate to endless
joy–and do we dread to enter there? What is it? The grave is a bath
where my body shall, like Esther, bathe itself in spices until its Lord
shall say, "Awake!" And I shall rise from my grave, clothed in
immortality and glory, to dwell with Him forever!
Death, I have often trembled at you! In midnight hours I have thought
it must be terrible to die, and I have shaken at your pale apparition.
O Death, your ghastly appearance has sometimes frightened me! I have
tried to run away from you, but you are now my slave and I will not
tremble at you any more. Death, you are mine! I write you down among my
goods and chattels, a part of my property. Take heed how you try to
make your master tremble–you are not my master, Death–I am yours!
Come here, give me your hand, O Death! Be it mine to talk with myself
every day and to talk with you, too. It does us good to see the
crossbones and skull and to note in the graveyard the remnants of
mortality. It is beneficial to our spirits to look down and see that,
however high our powers, our heads must be laid low. However lofty our
appearance, we must bend down and our body must become a carnival for
worms and must be scattered like the dust of the highway to the four
winds of Heaven! It is good to think of that and then to think, with
all its gloom, with all that is dismal about it–death is ours!
Oh, it is pleasant to think well of death! I have heard of a good
Christian who was asked if she was afraid to die. She replied, "I have
dipped my foot in the river Jordan every morning before breakfast for
these 40 years and I am not afraid of the current." It is good to die,
at last, when we know what it is to die every day. Paul said, "I die
daily." Well, if we die every day, it will not be hard to die in our
last day. You will not be afraid of death if you love the Lord. If you
knew death, Believer, you would not be afraid of it, but you would feel
it to be a joyous thing. You are thinking of that lonely chamber where
the friends stand by your side when you bid them all adieu–you are
thinking of the pains and groans and strife–and the dread solemnity of
that last hour. But think not of such things! Think, instead, that the
Lord will come to meet you, for He will come and your soul will stretch
its wings in haste and fly away to Heaven! Would you be afraid to die
with Jesus? You would not be afraid if you stood where I sometimes
stand, by the bedside of the dying saint. I have taken the hand of such
an one and he has said to me, "Brother, this is the place to prove that
the Lord is gracious. I am going to be with Jesus! My heart and
strength fail me, but He is the strength of my life and my portion
forever." And his eyes have flashed with the very fire of Glory! His
lips have breathed sonnets, his looks spoke volumes, his heart seemed
overflowing with the bliss of eternity–and his whole soul radiant with
immortality! Oh, it is a cheering thing to stand by when a Christian
dies, to see him stand on the precipice of life, clapping his wings
before he takes his flight, not into a vast unknown, but into a sea of
light and love in which he floats until he reaches the gates of
Paradise! It is doubly sweet and blessed to witness such a spectacle
ofjoy. Death is ours, then, so we will not fear it, for it is, indeed,
a privilege to die one day!
Then, next, "thingspresent" are ours. Come, Beloved, let us see what
are our "things present" today. One says, "Prosperity is one of my
things present. The Lord is blessing me in this world and I have many
joys, many comforts, nothing to complain of, everything to be thankful
for." Well, that is yours, but take care, my Brother, that you make it
yours to profit by. Alas, prosperity has something of the same effect
upon the soul which the holidays of Capua had upon the Roman
soldiers–it weakens the soul and takes away its power. Do not let it
be so with you! It need not be so, for if, by the working of God's
Spirit, you are sanctified, prosperity may be of use to you, for it is
one of the things present that is yours.
"Ah," says another, "adversity is present with me. I am suffering
excruciating pain in my body and my circumstances are not what I wish
them to be. I am exceedingly pained and driven to and fro. I am like a
poor seabird, lost in the wide ocean, tossed up and down from the base
of the waves to the billows' crown." Adversity is yours. It will do you
good, Brother–it will help to gird up your loins and brace your nerves
and sinews–it will strengthen you for labor. God has put you in the
furnace, "your dross to consume, and your gold to refine." Look on
adversity as a blessing. In everything give God thanks, as much for
your trials as for your joys, as much for your temptations as for your
deliverances, as much for the bitters in your cup as for the sweets,
for the same loving hand that put the one there, mingled the other! All
"things present" are yours.
Then there is Providence. That is always present and it is yours. "All
things work together for good to them that love God." Then there is
justification. That is a present mercy–"Therefore, being justified by
faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." That is
yours. Then here is the Bible, that is a present thing, and it is
yours. There is not a precious promise in it, from Genesis to
Revelation, but it is yours–there is not a single choice sentence in
it, but it is yours. All "things present" belong to you. What else is
there? Why, there is adoption, for you are now children of God. That is
yours. There is final perseverance, which God promises even now. He
will keep His children and preserve them to the end. That is yours, and
whatever you can conceive that is glorious, which is present with you
now, is yours!
But now comes the climax– "things to come."These are also yours! What?
Are you trembling at the "things to come"? Are you saying, "I dread the
future. My poor ship has borne so many storms, I fear to go forward"?
Oh, tremble not, the future is yours and, if it should be a future of
storms and hurricanes, and tempests and rocks, and quicksand and
shoals, it is yours, but your Captain will steer you through! Let death
be in the future, with its shade and gloom, it is yours. It is one of
the "things to come." Then, after death, the lying in the grave for a
time is yours. The resurrection, when you shall arise from the grave,
is yours. The awful trumpet blast that shall startle the world, the
books that are to be opened, the blazing lightning, the terrific
thunders are yours. The trembling universe, with all the dread
accompaniments of judgment, is yours. The Judge, Himself, is
yours–your Brother, your Friend!
And the great conflagration, the flying away of Heaven and of earth,
the falling of the stars from Heaven like withered fig leaves from the
tree–all these are yours, too. The rocking of creation, the tossing to
and fro of matter, the earthquake, the trembling spheres, the shaking
universe, the dissolving orbs–all these are yours–all that is
terrible, majestic, sublime, terrific! All is yours. Let your
imagination gather around it all the dread things which are to come.
All these are yours. Your soul, enshrined in immortality, shall say,
"It is all mine." The great dread drama which shall receive its
terrible consummation after death is yours. If there is a Hell that is
horrible to the wicked–as there most assuredly is–it is not for you!
But if there is a Heaven, glorious and great as it is, it is for you!
There is a harp in Heaven which is yours. A crown in Heaven which is
yours. Think of the streets of gold, they are yours, for they are
"things to come." Think of the Most High God, Himself–He is yours! And
you shall feel Him to be so. O Christian! Heaven is yours! Try,
Beloved, to picture Heaven to yourself. I think I hear you say, "Is
this Heaven, and am I there? Have I a crown upon my head? Am I clad in
white? O glorious world! I never conceived Heaven to be like this! I
had pictures, I had dreams, I had imaginations, but this far outshines
all that I ever conceived! O wondrous Heaven, how glorious you are! And
there is my Christ!"
I know not what you will say of Him–it were almost blasphemy to try to
utter words about Him–but when you are with Him, lying on His breast
forever, feeling His heart palpitating against yours and knowing that
the God-Man has loved you with an everlasting love, and feeling that
His heart is forever yours by the sweetest tie of blessed
relationship–then you will find that "things to come" are yours, for
Heaven has become your actual possession! This, then, is the
Christian's glorious inventory! He is rich, indeed, who owns all these
things and who can take up this language– "all things are mine whether
Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or life, or death, or things present, or
things to come."
II. Now, we come to THE TITLE DEEDS. They are drawn up in the name of
Christ–"you are Christ's and Christ is God's."
As I am, by nature, apart from Christ, none of those things are
mine–they are all against me. Death would not be mine without
Christ–it would be, indeed, a terrible doom! Life is not mine without
Christ–that were dangerous, indeed, to live here without Him. All I
have comes to me through Jesus. Come, then, let me look at the title
deeds and see if I am interested in them. They consist of two parts.
First, "you are Christ's," and secondly, "Christ is God's."
"You are Christ's." Come, Christian, soliloquize thus with
yourself–"My Soul, are you Christ's? Can you say that you are His in a
threefold sense? Are you Christ's by the Father's donation of you to
Christ? Are you Christ's by the purchase of His blood? And are you
Christ's by your own consecration of yourself to Him? Am I Christ's by
eternal donation because God the Father gave me to the Son? Can I look
back and see my name written in life's fair book? Can I, with holy
faith, look back and see the roll of destiny and read my name therein?
Have I a humble, holy faith that I was given to the Lord long before
the foundations of the earth were laid, or the pillars thereof were
piled? Am I His? Can I say, "This Covenant, made of old, stands forever
fast"? Can I say that I was given to Him? Do I rejoice in that
sovereign electing love which gave me to the Savior for no reason
whatever in me, but simply of His own Grace? If so, that is one proof
that I am Christ's!
"But again, my Soul, can you look back and see yourself to be Christ's
by the purchase of His blood?When you go to Gethsemane, do those drops
of gore fall upon the ground for you? When you go to Gabbatha, can you
think that ignominy and plucking of the hair was for you? And at
Calvary, can you feel that all its agonies and terrors were for you?
Do you feel, dear Friends, that you are Christ's by the purchase of His
blood? At a Primitive Methodist prayer meeting, a Brother was not able
to pray and somebody else, further down in the meeting, according to
their rather disorderly manner, called out, "Brother plead the blood,
plead the blood! Then you will be able to pray!" The Brother understood
well enough–he began pleading the blood of Jesus and then he could,
indeed, pray! O my Soul, can you plead the blood? My hearer, can you
plead the blood? My Brother, my Sister, can you say that the Sacrifice
of Jesus was for you? Do you feel that He bought you and paid for you,
that His Sacrifice was made for your guilt, that He died especially for
your sins? Can you appropriate Jesus to yourself? If so, you can
appropriate everything, since "you are Christ's, and Christ is God's."
But, further, we are Christ's by consecration. Beloved, are you thus
Christ's? "Do know the place, the plot of ground, where you met Jesus?"
Ah, some of us can look back and tell to an inch, the spot where we
first gave our hearts to Jesus! Many of the Lord's people cannot do it
and it is not necessary that they should, but yet they can, each one,
say, "I am my Lord's and He is mine." Do you feel, this morning, that
you have given yourself to the Lord Jesus. That you are not your own,
but, being bought with a price, you have willingly given yourself to
Him? Have you taken Christ for your All-in-All and have you given up
all to Christ? If Christ were to walk up this aisle and come to each
one of you, and say, "Sinner, do you love Me?" What answer would you
give Him? If He were now to step from pew to pew and look at each of
you, showing you His scarred hands with the print of the nails, and
asking, "Will you give yourself to Me?" What would your answer be? Do
you wish to give yourselves up wholly to Christ? Have you done so?
Then, "all things are yours" because you are Christ's! By consecration
you have given yourselves to Him.
If you consecrate yourselves to Jesus, you will never find Him a hard
Master. I have known Him some little while and He has been exceedingly
kind to His unworthy servant. I have nothing in which to find fault
with Him, but much with myself. He is a blessed Master. O youth, or
maiden, if you would love Him, you would find Him worthy of your love
in all respects! Why, I think His very name is enough to make you love
Him! "My Master! How sweetly does 'my Master' sound! Yes, He is my
Master and your Master if you have become His servant and have given
yourselves to Him. But, if you are not Christ's, you have nothing–you
are a poor miserable creature! How can you live if you are not
Christ's? How will you face grim death? How will you stand before
Christ when He shall sit on His Throne? Do you think that you shall be
able to hear His thundering voice say, "Depart, you cursed"? Are your
ribs of steel, and bones of brass? If they are, they will be broken
when He speaks in His wrath! O then, Beloved, "Kiss the Son, lest He is
angry, and you perish from the way, when His wrath is kindled but a
little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in Him."
I must only hint at the other portion. In order to link us thoroughly
with God, there is something else besides our being Christ's, and that
is, "Christ is God's. "With one hand Christ links Himself to men, with
the other He is joined to God. And thus God and men are united. Oh,
think of this! There is a link between you and the Godhead! The God
that you cannot conceive of–the hem of whose garments are dark with
ineffable light, too splendid for man to view–that mighty God, filling
immensity, the Infinite, the All Things in One, is linked with you!
Christ gives you His hand–He is your Brother, flesh and blood like
yourself–and He gives God His hand, for He is the equal of the
Eternal, the infinite God, very God of very God, and yet, very Man of
very Man! Oh, what a glorious thought, that my deed is stamped by the
Father and by the Son! It has the seal of Them both! "You are Christ's
and Christ is God's." And having Christ and being Christ's, I have all
things in Him. "All things are yours. For you are Christ's and Christ
is God's."
Before I come to the third point, let me ask you, dear Friends, to put
this question to your conscience. Are you Christ's?Oh, how many there
are who attend God's House and never feel any personal application of
the Truth of God! How many are there of you who sit Sunday after
Sunday, and weekday after weekday hearing sermons and never getting any
profit from them? O Sirs, preaching is not child's play! Some persons
say, "I will go and hear Mr. So-and-So," and they go–just to amuse
themselves! Do you think that a true minister will preach to amuse you?
Is it his business to do so? Oh, believe me, it is solemn work to stand
and speak for God and in His name! Did you ever think what it is to
preach God's Word? Oh, if at the Last Great Day it shall be shown that
we have not preached faithfully to you, if we have not declared the
whole counsel of God, you, indeed, must perish, but your blood will be
required at our hands!
And then, do you know what solemn work it is to hear? Oh, if the damned
spirits in Hell could come to earth, they would let you know what
solemn work it is to hear the Gospel! Think not that you can hear the
Gospel without having your salvation or damnation affected–there is
not a Word of the Gospel that ever enters into man's ear for which he
shall not be brought to account! I beseech you, as you believe in the
Bible, as you believe that there is no salvation out of Christ, to lay
these things to heart! They are not trifles, they are not imaginary
things, they are not that which concerns your body–they concern your
eternal existence! You are rich, or else you are poor. You are Christ's
or the devil's! You are on the road to Heaven or to Hell–which is it?
Oh, let the question ring through your ears–which is it, Heaven or
Hell? Which is it?HEAVEN OR HELL? Oh, let not that question, if it is
ever so harshly spoken, be rejected by you! Answer the question to your
soul and if you are honestly obliged to say, "I fear I am on the road
to Hell," then remember, if you feel that–if you confess your sin,
Jesus Christ has come into the world to save sinners–"This is a
faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came
into the world to save sinners." Not everybody, but, "sinners"–all
those who will acknowledge and confess that title shall be saved by
Divine Grace! If you are a sinner and you trust Him, He will most
assuredly and certainly save you!
III. Now, lastly, WHAT IS THE DUTY OF A MAN WHO HAS SUCH LARGE
POSSESSIONS? "Let no man glory in men. For all things are yours."
If a man has everything, he has no need to glory in some one little
thing. If a man has only one gold ring, you will see him wearing it on
his finger every day–and putting his hand in such a position that
everybody may see it. But he who has far more, need not be particular
about just one ring being seen! Does the Queen care that other people
know what plate and jewels she has at Windsor? Everybody knows that she
is rich, that she has an abundance and, therefore, it is not necessary
that she should display a portion of it. Whenever you find a person
glorying in some little thing, you may be sure he is acting contrary to
what he should be. I cannot conceive how a Christian man, who has
everything, can be proud because he has a little talent, or a little
wealth, or position, or station! Do not be proud of that, but say,
"That is one stone in my estate–it is one little pebble that lies in
one of the brooks in my large domains. True, it is mine, but it is
nothing to boast of." "Let no man glory in men. For all things are
yours." Do not be boasting, then, about one thing when all things are
yours! The little child, when it has a present, shows it to every
person who comes into the house, but when the child becomes a man, he
shows not everything that he has, yet he has more possessions than he
had before. Thus the worldling may glory in his riches and boast of his
strength, but, Christians, you are too far advanced for this–you are
too wise, "for all things are yours"–and surely you will not attach
undue importance to one.
Now, what does this subject say practically to you? One of you has lost
a friend. You are weeping and saying, "I have lost everything." No, you
have not–"for all things are yours." He may have been a precious
friend, a most loving one that you have lost. It may be a deep trial,
but think what you have. You have God! Your sins are forgiven! You have
the righteousness of Christ! You have not lost that. It is only some
pennies which are gone–your gold is safe, your jewels are not taken
away. "But I have lost my jewels," you say. Have you? Ah, then, you do
not know Christ, for you would not venture to call anything a jewel
except the precious Lord Jesus! Is it not wrong for you to bemoan and
weep so perpetually when "all things are yours"? Another one is
expecting such-and-such a relative to be taken away and is weeping over
an expected loss. Now you have no promise to help you, for you weep
before your trouble comes! God does not promise that He will help you
who manufacture your own troubles. Remember, you cannot lose the title
deeds of your possessions. If you have lost your copy, you can get
another, for the old deed is up in the ark in Heaven!
Now, by way of a practical hint, I might say, if "all things are
yours," how willing you ought to be to give something to the cause of
God! A man who is poor and has nothing is never expected to give. But a
man who has "all things," should give like a prince! There are many
princes in Israel who have all things in their possession and I am sure
I may ask them to give something for the Lord's cause.
But I again come back to this all-important question–we must not put
it away. We must give an answer to it, either now, or at God's bar–Are
we Christ's?Some of you, I fear, are not Christ's. You are none of His
because your conversation is carnal, your actions are worldly, your
behavior is inconsistent and your lives are reproachable. Then, you are
not Christ's. Some of you are not Christ's because you are trusting in
your own righteousness and not leaning on the blood and righteousness
of Christ alone. But we hope that there are some of you who have
stripped yourselves of everything and have taken Christ for your
All-in-All. If, devoid of all goodness, you make Christ your
goodness–if, devoid of everything, you take Christ for all, then He is
yours. Hence, you may revel in delights and let your heart leap for
joy! Let your melancholy be dissipated and your tears be all dried up!
You may rejoice with unspeakable joy and full of glory, for this world
is yours, the world to come is yours and Heaven shall be your happy
home forever!
The Lord grant that it may be so with all of you when He shall make up
His jewels! Amen.