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(Page 164)
I. Faith in the revelation of God is not made complete by simply believing. It has to be the beginning of much else; it does not end with knowledge, it must pass into practice; its first exercise is in the intellect, but it must thence be diffused over our whole life. Just as intelligence and free-will distinguish us in every one of our actions from the brute beasts, so should active faith characterize the life of every servant of God. We should live in an atmosphere of faith, and always act by its guidance. "The just man liveth by faith" (Heb. x. 38). "Faith, if it have not works, is dead in itself" (Jas. ii. 17).
We live by faith :
1. When we constantly feel the vivid reality of those things that we believe, and are absolutely certain about them, and value them more highly than all outward possessions or inward attainments.
2. When our action is in full accordance with our belief, and we carry out exactly the line of conduct dictated by the truths of revelation. The motives, and principles, and aims, and many of the actions of him whose life is guided by faith, will be perfectly different from those of the man who is guided by sensual appetites and worldly ideas. Consider your thoughts and words and actions. Are they in any way different from those of unbelievers and pagans? Is your life Christ-like and divine, or is it identical with the lives of those who believe only and desire only the things of this life? In what respect are you deficient?
II. To the eye of God, which sees all things according to their reality, there are two great classes of men, as noted by the Apostle, the spiritual and the carnal, the heavenly and the earthly, the supernatural and the natural. The fundamental distinction between them is the presence or the absence of a living faith; and the whole tenor of their lives varies accordingly. "A good man out of a good treasure bringeth forth good things, and an evil man out of an evil treasure bringeth forth evil things" (Matt. xii. 35). (Page165)
Faith, living and active, gives energy and success to the labours of apostles; it inspires the heroic courage and self-sacrifice of martyrs; it enables hundreds of thousands to resign the pleasures and possessions of life for the sake of serving the invisible Divinity; it helps the weakest to triumph over fierce temptations, whether in the form of terrors or allurements; it is the source of most of the beneficence practised on earth. On the other hand, it is the absence of faith that turns the balance to the side of evil, and makes passion and animal impulse predominant, and starts all anti-religious, anti-Christian and anti-social action. Almost all crime and misery may be traced back to the weakness, or confusion, or extinction of faith. Do not allow your faith to be forced into the background, or held captive by any low considerations. Let it be always a lamp to your feet and a light to your paths (Ps. cxviii. 105).
III. There are certain general principles suggested by faith, which should always be present to us and rule our lives.
1. We should remember that God is present as the witness and the judge of our actions.
2. We should think of Our Lord, not as an historical personage, but as an intimate friend with whom we can always converse face to face in His churches.
3. Sin must not be regarded as a trivial or an amusing thing, but as a treachery and outrage against God, which will have most tragical results.
4. In temptation we should remember the reward of heaven and the terrors of hell, as if they were to follow immediately on our decision.
5. As for riches and poverty, affliction and pleasure, humiliation and honour, labour and idleness, we should recall the words and example of Our Lord, and bear ourselves as He did.
6. We should remember that life is short, that death is close at hand, and the next life eternal; that this world is worth nothing except as a preparation for the next, that strict retribution awaits every action, and that God is the only worthy object of our service, desire and love.
