guide the government of the universe, and it gives directions for the regulation of man's every-day tempers and manners. It provides for the highest interests of the soul through eternity, and yet descends to point out the way, with wondrous minuteness of detail, in which most happiness may be attained by man during his short sojourn in the present state. Christianity not only transforms the character, but improves the manners. It is the greatest tamer of savage man, as well as the only purifier of depraved man. There are, indeed, men, we confess it with regret, rude with it, but they would have been brutal without it. 1 Let us show our regard for the Bible by making the intended use of all its revelations. Let us show our regard to Christianity as a universal remedy, by submitting the whole frame of our natures, intellectual and active, to its healing influence. Let us see to it, that this portion of Scripture given by inspiration, be indeed profitable to us. It will be so only in the degree in which we are what it commands us to be; courteous, kindly, and humble. "Wherefore, lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the ingrafted word, which is able to save your souls. But be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves; for if any man be a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: for he beholdeth himself and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty," one of whose precepts we have been expounding, and "continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the word, that man shall be blessed in his deed." III.--DUTIES OF CHRISTIANS UNDER PERSECUTION. It is now time for us to turn our attention to the third class of duties enjoined by the apostle; the duties of Christians in reference to their persecutors, viewed with a particular reference to the influence, which the performance of these duties is calculated to have on the character both of Christianity and of Christians among unbelieving men. § 1.—Abstinence from all resentful retaliation, and meeting injury and reproach by kindness both in conduct and language. The first duty, then, which the apostle enjoins on Christians, in reference to their persecutors, is abstinence from all resentful retaliation, and the meeting of injury and reproach by kindness both in conduct and language. The injunction and enforcement of this duty occupy the greater part of the paragraph from verse 9, down to the middle of verse 14. The duty, and the motives by which it is enforced, are then successively to be considered. The duty is thus described: "Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing, but contrariwise blessing." The motives are four-1. Christians are "called" 1 Binney. to the discharge of this duty; verse 9. 2. They are called to this, "that they may inherit a blessing;" verse 9. verse 9. These two motives are illustrated by a quotation from the Old Testament Scripture; verses 10-12. 3. This is really the way to escape with the least possible suffering; verse 13. And 4. If their peaceable, kind conduct, does not produce its proper result in others, still in thus suffering, Christians are blessed or happy; verse 14. Let us attend to these topics in their order. (1.) The duty explained. The duty enjoined is abstinence from all resentful retaliation, and the meeting of injury and reproach by kindness both in action and in words: "Render not evil for evil, nor railing for railing, but contrariwise blessing." This injunction plainly goes on the assumption that they to whom it was addressed were exposed to injurious treatment, and contumelious reproach. Their Lord and Master, when he was on earth, was most injuriously and unkindly treated, and his character and conduct were the objects of the most malignant misrepresentation and cruel obloquy. He was denied not only what, as an immaculately innocent, and absolutely perfect man, the greatest, the most disinterested, the most unwearied, the most successful, of all philanthropists and public benefactors, a fully accredited divine messenger, an Incarnation of the Divinity, he had the strongest claims to; he was denied the common rights of humanity, and was represented as a demoniac and blasphemer, a teacher of error, and a stirrer up of sedition; "a glutton and wine-bibber, a friend of publicans and sinners." And he distinctly warned his followers that they should meet with similar usage: "The servant," said he, " is not greater than his Lord. They have persecuted me; they will also persecute you. In the world ye shall have tribulation. They have called the master of the house Beelzebub; how much more them of his household? Ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake. Men shall hate you, and shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and shall cast out your name as evil for the Son of Man's sake." 1 "de These predictions were fulfilled to the letter in the case of the apostles and many of the primitive Christians. They were spised and buffeted, reviled and defamed, made as the filth of the world, and the offscouring of all things." "They were troubled, perplexed, and persecuted. They endured a great fight of affliction, they were made a gazing stock both by reproaches and afflictions.” Some were "tortured, others had trials of cruel scourgings; yea, moreover, of bonds and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword, they wandered about in sheep skins and goat skins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented; they wandered in deserts and in mountains, and in dens, and in caves of the earth." 2 They were everywhere spoken against as despisers of the gods, haters of the human race, and perpetrators of the most shocking impurities and barbarities. 1 John xv. 20; xvi. 33. Matt. x. 25; xxiv. 9. In succeeding ages comparatively few Christians have been exposed to such extremity of ill usage; yet in every age the apostle's declaration has been verified. They that will live godly," are determined to act out the principles and precepts of Christianity," must suffer persecution." No consistent Christian passes through this world without personal, experimental evidence that "this world is not his friend, nor this world's law;" and he who has never suffered in any way for his religion, who is an entire stranger to "the reproach of Christ," has some reason to read with alarm the words of our Lord: If ye were of the world, the world would love its own; but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you." 2 Whatever be the degree of ill usage, whatever the measure of opprobrious language to which the Christian may be exposed, his duty is not "to render evil for evil, or railing for railing." There is nothing inconsistent with christian principle and feeling in endeavoring, by using such means as law warrants, to disarm the man who has already wounded me, and who shows a disposition to repeat the injury to shut the mouth which has already calumniated me, and seems ready to pour forth additional torrents of abuse. Regard to society, and indeed to the poor infatuated individual himself, even more than a due respect to my own interests and feelings, may make this even my duty. But I must not seek to injure him. I must not inflict undeserved, nor even unnecessary suffering. Restraint, even punishment, may not be evil: it may be benefit to the individual as well as to society; but even in securing this I must avoid resentful feeling. I must not seek to avenge myself. And as to railing, reproachful, contumelious language, I may, in many cases I ought to, rebut false charges, which, if credited, might injure my reputation and lessen my usefulness; and in doing this, it may be absolutely necessary to state and substantiate what will necessarily lower the character of the railer; but I must make no statement, however true, of a disadvantageous kind, which self-defence or public duty does not require; and in making such statements, I must keep at the greatest distance from everything like abuse. I must not speak angrily, contemptuously, reproachfully, spitefully, provokingly. There are some men who seem to think that they have done their duty in this respect, when they have refrained from injuring those who have never injured them; from speaking evil of those who have never spoken evil of them; but that injury warrants injury, and evilspeaking sanctions evil-speaking in return. But as the good archbishop says, "One man's sin cannot procure privilege to another to sin in that or the like kind. If another has broken the bonds of allegiance to God, and charity to thee, yet thou art not the less tied by the same bonds still." Besides, to act thus is a trenching on the divine prerogative, as well as a violation of the divine commands. "Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord."4 But this is only the one part, and the least part, of the Christian's duty to him who, unprovoked, injures and maligns him: "Contrariwise 3 2 John xv. 19. 3 Leighton. * Rom. xii. 19. render blessing." To “ To "bless" is frequently significant of kindness generally-kindness embodied in deeds as well as in words. It is the duty of the Christian to render benefit for injury, blessing for railing. He is to "do good to those who hate him," to do whatever lies in his power to promote their real welfare, to go out of his way to do them a service, and, not satisfied with his own efforts to advance their happiness, he is to call in the aid of infinite power, and wisdom, and kindness, by the prayer which has power with God. He is to "pray for them who despitefully use him and persecute him." To" bless" here, however, does not seem to mean either generally to do good or to invoke the divine blessing, though to do both, as we have seen, is the Christian's duty to his enemy. It is the opposite of railing; it denotes the Christian's duty to speak courteously and kindly to, and, as far as truth will admit, well of, the railers. The duties here enjoined are just various modes of expressing of that love to enemies which our Lord requires from all his disciples. Without this love they cannot be performed. With this love this command will not be found a grievous one; for love can intentionally do no harm to its object; love naturally prompts to do all practicable good to its object. I may pity, I may blame, I may even punish, the object of my love; but I cannot do what is intended, what, in my view, is calculated, to injure him. There is nothing unreasonable, nothing impracticable, in the requisitions before us. We are not required to regard the wicked with the sentiments of complacent esteem, with which we regard the good. We are not required to regard the man who has injured us with the same feelings of grateful affection with which we regard our friends and benefactors; but we are required to cherish towards our enemies, however wicked and depraved and malicious, a sentiment of genuine good-will; to be sincerely desirous of their real welfare and happiness; never to lift up the hand against them, except self-defence or the public good require it; to forbid so much as a finger to move, a wish to stir, against them at the instigation of malice; to have no pleasure in any of their sufferings; to feel no joy when they stumble; to be ever ready to relieve them when in a situation which makes them the fit objects of rational benevolence; and not to be more backward to show towards them the offices of kindness, which man owes to man, than to those who have never done us an injury. If such is the conduct and the language by which a Christian should be characterized, in reference to his worst enemies, those who hate and persecute him because of his religion, what are we to say of those professors of Christianity, who treat those whom they call brethren with injustice and unkindness, and scourge them, unoffending and uncondemned, with malignant insinuation, railing accusations, and contemptuous abuse. The least we can say, is, with Archbishop Leighton, to remark, that they are "an unchristian kind of Christians;" to warn them to beware what spirit they are of; to bid them remember this is not the spirit of Him who, even "when reviled, reviled not again ;" and ponder the weighty truths, that "he who has not the Spirit of Christ is none of his ;" and that for brethren to bite and devour one 1 Matt. v. 44. another, for one servant to beat his fellow-servants, is neither becoming nor safe. The Great Judge obviously accounts such conduct immoral in no ordinary degree. When he is setting in order the sins of the forgetters of God, next after companionship with thieves and adulterers, he charges them with this, "Thou sittest and speakest against thy brother, thou slanderest thine own mother's son." i (2.) The duty enforced. This injunction is enforced by powerful motives. To this mode of conduct Christians are "called:" To this mode of conduct they are called, in order "that they may inherit a blessing:" This mode of conduct is of all others the best fitted to secure from suffering: And finally, in cases in which, after all, Christians are exposed to suffering, they are blessed in thus suffering. Let us shortly explain these statements, and show their force as motives. (1.) Christians are called to the course of conduct which the apostle has been recommending. "Hereunto ye are called." To no duty are Christians more explicitly called. Hear the words of our one Master in heaven: "Ye have heard that it has been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor and hate thine enemy." This was the doctrine of the scribes, and it was but too fully acted out in the conduct of their disciples, the Pharisees. But hear the law of the kingdom: "I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them who curse you, do good to them who hate you, and pray for them who despitefully use you, and persecute you; that ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them that love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? Be ye therefore perfect, as your Father who is in heaven is perfect." 2 The call of his word is seconded by the call of his example. He has left us a pattern that we should follow his steps. He has fully exemplified his own precept; and his call, in reference to this height of moral excellence, is not, Go up yonder, but come up hither.' When reviled, he did not revile again; when injured, with power to punish, he went on to bless. "Father," said he with his dying lips, in reference to his murderers, " Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." "When we were ungodly, sinners, enemies, in due time He died for us." 3 The call is repeated by one of his apostles, who had drunk deep into his spirit: "Recompense to no man evil for evil: bless them that curse you; bless, and curse not. Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head," which may melt his cold heart into ingenuous shame and grateful affection. "Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good." 4 1 1 Pet. ii. 23. Rom. viii. 9. Psal. 1. 19. Rom. v. 6, 8, 10. 2 Matt. v. 43-48. ↑ Rom. xii. 14, 17, 19–21. |