Holiness: Its Nature, Hindrances, Difficulties and Roots

My Lord and Master Jesus Christ can rebuke the devil's raging, can calm even your soul's misery, and say even to you, Peace be still. He can scatter that cloud of guilt which now weighs you down. He can bid despair depart. He can drive fear away. He can remove the spirit of bondage and fill you with the spirit of adoption. Satan may hold your soul like a strong man armed, but Jesus is stronger than he, and when he commands, the prisoners must go free. Oh, if any troubled reader wants the calm within, let him go this day to Jesus Christ, and all shall be yet well. But what if your heart be right with God, and yet you are pressed down with a load of earthly trouble? What if the fear of poverty is tossing you to and fro, and seems likely to overwhelm you? What if pain of body be racking you to distraction day after day? What if you are suddenly laid aside from active usefulness, and compelled by infirmity to sit still and do nothing? What if death has come into your home and taken away your Rachel, or Joseph, or Benjamin, and left you alone, crushed to the ground with sorrow? What if all this has happened? Still there is comfort in Christ. He can speak peace to wounded hearts as easily as calm troubled seas. He can rebuke rebellious wills as powerfully as raging winds. He can make storms of sorrow abate and silence tumultuous passions as surely as he stopped the Galilean storm. He can say to the heaviest anxiety, Peace be still. The floods of care and tribulation may be mighty, but Jesus sits upon the flood waters, and is mightier than the waves of the sea. Psalm 93, 4 The winds of trouble may howl fiercely round you, but Jesus holds them in his hand, and can stay them when he lists. Oh, if any reader of this paper is brokenhearted, and careworn, and sorrowful, let him go to Jesus Christ and cry to him, and he shall be refreshed. Come unto me, he says, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11, 28 I invite all who profess and call themselves Christians to take large views of Christ's power. Doubt anything else, if you will, but never doubt Christ's power. Whether you do not secretly love sin may be doubtful. Whether you are not privately clinging to the world may be doubtful. Whether the pride of your nature is not rising against the idea of being saved as a poor sinner by grace may be doubtful. But one thing is not doubtful, and that is that Christ is able to save to the uttermost, and will save you if you will let him. Hebrews 7, 25 5 Let us learn in the last place how tenderly and patiently the Lord Jesus deals with weak believers. We see this truth brought out in his words to his disciples when the wind ceased and there was a calm. He might well have rebuked them sharply. He might well have reminded them of all the great things he had done for them, and reproved them for their cowardice and mistrust. But there is nothing of anger in the Lord's words. He simply asked two questions. Why are ye so fearful? Why is it that ye have no faith? The whole of our Lord's conduct toward his disciples on earth deserves close consideration. It throws a beautiful light on the compassion and long-suffering that there is in him. No master surely ever had scholars so slow to learn their lessons as Jesus had in the apostles. No scholars surely ever had so patient and forbearing a teacher as the apostles had in Christ. Gather up all the evidence on this subject that lies scattered through the Gospels and see the truth of what I say. At no time of our Lord's ministry did the disciples seem to comprehend fully the object of his coming into the world. The humiliation, the atonement, the crucifixion were hidden things to them. The plainest words and clearest warnings from their master of what was going to befall him seemed to have had no effect on their minds. They understood not. They perceived not. It was hid from their eyes. Once Peter even tried to dissuade our Lord from suffering. Frequently you will see things in their spirit and demeanor which are not at all to be commended. One day we are told they disputed among themselves who should be greatest. Mark 9.34 Another day they considered not his miracles and their hearts were hardened. Mark 6.52 Once two of them wished to call down fire from heaven upon a village because it did not receive them. Luke 9.54 In the garden of Gethsemane the three best of them slept when they should have watched and prayed. In the hour of his betrayal they all forsook him and fled. And worst of all, Peter, the most forward of the twelve, denied his master three times with an oath. Even after the resurrection you see the same unbelief and hardness of heart cling to them. Though they saw their Lord with their eyes and touched him with their hands even them some doubted. So weak were they in faith. So slow of heart were they to believe all that the prophets had spoken. Luke 24.25 So backward were they in understanding the meaning of our Lord's words and actions and life and death. But what do you see in our Lord's behavior toward these disciples all through his ministry? You see nothing but unchanging pity, compassion, kindness, gentleness, patience, longsuffering and love. He does not cast them off for their stupidity. He does not reject them for their unbelief. He does not dismiss them forever for cowardice. He teaches them as they are able to bear. He leads them on step by step as a nurse does an infant when it first begins to walk. He sends them kind messages as soon as he is risen from the dead. Go, he said to the women, go tell my brethren that they go into Galilee and there they shall see me. Matthew 28.10 He gathers them round himself once more. He restores Peter to his place and bids him feed my sheep. John 21.17 He condescends to sojourn with them forty days before he finally ascends. He commissions them to go forth as his messengers and preach the gospel to the Gentiles. He blesses them in parting and encourages them with that gracious promise I am always with you even unto the end of the world. Matthew 28.20 Truly this was a love that passes knowledge. This is not the manner of man. Let all the world know that the Lord Christ is very pitiful and of tender mercy. He will not break the bruised reed nor quench the smoking flax. As a father pitieth his children so he pitieth them that fear him. As one whom his mother comforts so will he comfort his people. James 5.11 Matthew 12.20 Psalm 103.13 Isaiah 66.13 He cares for the lambs of his flock as well as for the old sheep. He cares for the sick and feeble ones of his fold as well as for the strong. It is written that he will carry them in his bosom rather than let one of them be lost. Isaiah 40.11 He cares for the least members of his body as well as for the greatest. He cares for the babes of his family as well as for the grown up men. He cares for the tenderest little plants in his garden as well as for the cedar of Lebanon. All are in his book of life and all are under his charge. All are given to him in an everlasting covenant and he has undertaken in spite of all weaknesses to bring everyone safe home. Only let a sinner lay hold on Christ by faith and then, however feeble, Christ's word is pledged to him, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee. He may correct him occasionally in love, he may gently reprove him at times, but he will never, never give him up. The devil shall never pluck him from Christ's hand. Let all the world know that the Lord Jesus will not cast away his believing people because of shortcomings and infirmities. The husband does not put away his wife because he finds failings in her. The mother does not forsake her infant because it is weak, feeble and ignorant. And the Lord Christ does not cast off poor sinners who have committed their souls into his hands because he sees in them blemishes and imperfections. Oh no, it is his glory to pass over the faults of his people and heal their backslidings, to make much of their weak graces and to pardon their many faults. The 11th of Hebrews is a wonderful chapter. It is marvelous to observe how the Holy Ghost speaks of the worthies whose names are recorded in that chapter. The faith of the Lord's people is there brought forward and had in remembrance, but the faults of many of one which might easily have been brought up also are left alone and not mentioned at all. Who is there now among the readers of this paper that feels desires after salvation but is afraid to become decided lest by and by he should fall away? Consider, I beseech you, the tenderness and patience of the Lord Jesus and be afraid no more. Fear not to take up the cross and come out boldly from the world. That same Lord and Savior who bore with the disciples is ready and willing to bear with you. If you stumble, he will raise you. If you err, he will gently bring you back. If you faint, he will revive you. He will not lead you out of Egypt and then suffer you to perish in the wilderness. He will conduct you safe into the promised land. Only commit yourself to his guidance and then, my soul for yours, he shall carry you safe home. Only hear Christ's voice and follow him and you shall never perish. Who is there among the readers of this paper that has been converted and desires to do his Lord's will? Take example, this day, by your Master's gentleness and long-suffering and learn to be tender-hearted and kind to others. Deal gently with young beginners. Do not expect them to know everything and understand everything all at once. Take them by the hand. Lead them on and encourage them. Believe all things and hope all things rather than make that heart sad which God would not have made sad. Deal gently with backsliders. Do not turn your back on them as if their case was hopeless. Use every lawful means to restore them to their former place. Consider yourself and your own infirmities and do as you would be done by. Alas, there is a painful absence of the Master's mind among many of his disciples. There are few churches, I fear, in the present day which would have received Peter into communion again for many a long year after denying his Lord. There are few believers ready to do the work of Barnabas willing to take young converts by the hand and encourage them at their first beginnings. Verily, we want an outpouring of the Spirit upon believers almost as much as upon the world. And now I have only to ask my readers to make a practical use of the lessons I have brought before them. You have heard this day five things. First, that Christ's service will not secure you against troubles. The holiest saints are liable to them. Second, that Christ is very man as well as God. Third, that believers may have much weakness and infirmity and yet be true believers. Fourth, that Christ has all power. And fifth, that Christ is full of patience and kindness toward his people. Remember these five lessons and you will do well. Bear with me a few moments while I say a few words to impress the things you have been reading more deeply on your heart. One, this paper will very likely be read by some who know nothing of Christ's service by experience or of Christ himself. There are only too many who take no interest whatever in the things about which I have been writing. Their treasure is all below. They are wholly taken up with the things of the world. They care nothing about the believers' conflict and struggles and infirmities and doubts and fears. They care little whether Christ did miracles or not. It is all a matter of words and names and forms about which they do not trouble themselves. They are without God in the world. If perchance you are such a man as this, I can only warn you solemnly that your present course cannot last. You will not live forever. There must be an end. Gray hairs, age, sickness, infirmities, death, all, all are before you and must be met one day. What will you do when that day comes? Remember my words this day. You will find no comfort when sick and dying unless Jesus Christ is your friend. You will discover to your sorrow and confusion that however much men may talk and boast, they cannot do without Christ when they come to their deathbed. You may send for ministers and get them to read prayers and give you the sacrament. You may go through every form and ceremony of Christianity. But if you persist in living a careless and worldly life and despising Christ in the morning of your days, you must not be surprised if Christ leads you to yourself in your latter end. Alas, these are solemn words and are often sadly fulfilled. I will laugh at your calamity. I will mock when your fear cometh. Come then this day and be advised by one who loves your soul. Cease to do evil. Learn to do well. Forsake the foolish and go in the path of understanding. Cast away that pride which hangs about your heart and seek the Lord Jesus while he may be found. Cast away that spiritual sloth which is palsying your soul and resolve to take trouble about your Bible, your prayers and your Sundays. Break off from the world which can never really satisfy you and seek that treasure which alone is truly incorruptible. Oh, that the Lord's own words might find a place in your conscience. How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? And the scorners delight in their scorning and fools hate knowledge. Turn you at my reproof. Behold, I will pour out my Spirit unto you. I will make known my words unto you. I believe the crowning sin of Judas Iscariot was that he would not seek pardon and turn again to his Lord. Beware, lest that be your sin also. This paper will probably fall into the hands of some who love the Lord Jesus and believe in him and yet desire to love him better. If you are such a man, suffer the word of exhortation and apply it to your heart. For one thing, keep before your mind as an ever-present truth that the Lord Jesus is an actual living person and deal with him as such. I fear the personality of our Lord is sadly lost sight of by many professors in this day. Their talk is more about salvation than about the Savior, more about redemption than about the Redeemer, more about justification than about Jesus, more about Christ's work than about Christ's person. This is a great fault and one that fully accounts for the dry and sapless character of the religion of many professors. As ever you will grow in grace and have joy and peace in believing, beware of falling into this error. Cease to regard the gospel as a mere collection of dry doctrines. Look at it rather as the revelation of a mighty, living being in whose sight you are daily to live. Cease to regard it as a mere set of abstract propositions and abstruse principles and rules. Look at it as the introduction to a glorious, personal friend. This is the kind of gospel that the apostles preached. They did not go about into the world telling men of love and mercy and pardon in the abstract. The leading subject of all their sermons was the loving heart of an actual living Christ. This is the kind of gospel which is most calculated to promote sanctification and meekness for glory. Nothing surely is so likely to prepare us for that heaven where Christ's personal presence will be all, and that glory where we shall meet Christ face to face as to realize communion with Christ as an actual living person here on earth. There is all the difference in the world between an idea and a person. For another thing, try to keep before your mind as an ever-present truth that the Lord Jesus is utterly unchanged. That Savior in whom you trust is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He knows no variableness nor shadow of turning. Though high in heaven at God's right hand, He is just the same in heart that He was 1,900 years ago on earth. Remember this and you will do well. Follow Him all through His journey to and fro in Palestine. Mark how He received all that came to Him and cast out none. Mark how He had an ear to listen to every tale of sorrow, a hand to help every case of distress, a heart to feel for all who needed sympathy. And then say to yourself, This same Jesus is He who is my Lord and Savior. Place and time have made no difference in Him. What He was, He is, and will be forevermore. Surely this thought will give life and reality to your daily religion. Surely this thought will give substance and shape to your expectation of good things to come. Surely it is matter for joyful reflection that He who was 33 years upon earth and whose life we read in the Gospels is the very same Savior in whose presence we shall spend eternity. The last word of this paper shall be the same as the first. I want men to read the four Gospels more than they do. I want men to become better acquainted with Christ. I want unconverted men to know Jesus, that they may have eternal life through Him. I want believers to know Jesus better, that they may become more happy, more holy, and more meet for the inheritance of the saints in light. He will be the holiest man who learns to say with St. Paul, To me to live is Christ. Philippians 1.21 Chapter 13, page 216 The Church which Christ builds Upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Matthew 16.18 Do we belong to the church which is built upon a rock? Are we members of the only church in which our souls can be saved? These are serious questions. They deserve serious consideration. I ask the attention of all who read this paper while I try to show the one true holy Catholic Church and to guide men's feet into the only safe fold. What is this church? What is it like? What are its marks? Where is it to be found? On all these points I have something to say. I am going to unfold the words of our Lord Jesus Christ which stand at the head of this page. He declares, Upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. There are five things in these famous words which demand our attention. One, a building, my church. Two, a builder, Christ says, I will build my church. Three, a foundation, upon this rock I will build my church. Four, perils implied, the gates of hell. Five, security asserted, the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. The whole subject demands special attention in the present day. Holiness, we must never forget, is the prominent characteristic of all who belong to the one true church. Number one, we have firstly a building mentioned in the text. The Lord Jesus Christ speaks of my church. Now what is this church? Few inquiries can be made of more importance than this. For want of due attention to the subject, the errors that have crept into the world are neither few nor small. The church of our text is no material building. It is no temple made with hands of wood or brick or stone or marble. It is a company of men and women. It is no particular visible church on earth. It is not the Eastern Church or the Western Church. It is not the Church of England or the Church of Scotland. Above all, it is certainly not the Church of Rome. The church of our text is one that makes far less show than any visible church in the eyes of man, but is of far more importance in the eyes of God. The church of our text is made up of all true believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, of all who are really holy and converted people. It comprehends all who have repented of sin and fled to Christ by faith and been made new creatures in Him. It comprises all God's elect, all who have received God's grace, all who have been washed in Christ's blood, all who have been clothed in Christ's righteousness, all who have been born again and sanctified by Christ's Spirit. All such of every name and rank and nation and people and tongue compose the church of our text. This is the body of Christ. This is the flock of Christ. This is the bride. This is the Lamb's wife. This is the Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church of the Apostles' Creed and the Nicene Creed. This is the blessed company of all faithful people spoken of in the communion service of the Church of England. This is the Church on the Rock. The members of this church do not all worship God in the same way or use the same form of government. Some of them are governed by bishops and some of them by elders. Some of them use a prayer book when they meet for public worship and some of them use none. The 34th article of the Church of England most wisely declares, It is not necessary that ceremonies should be in all places one and alike. But the members of this church all come to one throne of grace. They all worship with one heart. They are all led by one spirit. They are all really and truly holy. They can all say Alleluia and they can all reply Amen. This is that church to which all visible churches on earth are servants and handmaidens. Whether they are Episcopalian, Independent or Presbyterian, they all serve the interests of the one true church. They are the scaffolding behind which the great building is carried on. They are the husk under which the living kernel grows. They have their various degrees of usefulness. The best and worthiest of them is that which trains up most members for Christ's true church. But no visible church has any right to say, We are the only true church. We are the men and wisdom shall die with us. No visible church should ever dare to say, We shall stand forever. The gates of hell shall not prevail against me. This is that church to which belong the Lord's gracious promises of preservation, continuance, protection and final glory. Whatsoever, says Hooker, we read in Scripture concerning the endless love and saving mercy which God showeth towards his churches, the only proper subject thereof is this church, which we properly term the mystical body of Christ. Small and despised as the true church may be in this world, it is precious and honorable in the sight of God. The temple of Solomon in all its glory was mean and contemptible in comparison with that church which is built upon a rock. I trust the things I have been just saying will sink down into the minds of all who read this paper. See that you hold sound doctrine upon the subject of the church. A mistake here may lead on to dangerous and soul-ruining errors. The church which is made up of true believers is the church for which we, who are ministers, are specially ordained to preach. The church which comprises all who repent and believe the gospel is the church to which we desire you to belong. Our work is not done and our hearts are not satisfied until you are made a new creature and are a member of the one true church. Outside of the church which is built on the rock, there can be no salvation. I pass on to the second point to which I propose to invite your attention. Our text contains not merely a building, but a builder. The Lord Jesus Christ declares, I will build my church. The true church of Christ is tenderly cared for by all the three persons in the Blessed Trinity. In the plan of salvation revealed in the Bible, beyond doubt God the Father chooses, God the Son redeems, and God the Holy Ghost sanctifies every member of Christ's mystical body. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, three persons and one God, cooperate for the salvation of every saved soul. This is truth which ought never to be forgotten. Nevertheless, there is a peculiar sense in which the help of the church is laid on the Lord Jesus. He is peculiarly and preeminently the Redeemer and Savior of the church. Therefore, it is that we find him saying in our text, I will build. The work of building is my special work. It is Christ who calls the members of the church in due time. They are the called of Jesus Christ, Romans 1.6. It is Christ who quickens them. The Son quickeneth whom he will. John 5.21 It is Christ who washes away their sins. He has loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood. Revelation 1.5 It is Christ who gives them peace. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you. John 14.27 It is Christ who gives them eternal life. I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish. John 10.28 It is Christ who grants them repentance. Him hath God exalted to be a Prince and a Savior to give repentance. Acts 5.31 It is Christ who enables them to become God's children. To as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God. John 1.12 It is Christ who carries on the work within them when it is begun. Because I live, you shall live also. John 14.19 In short, it has pleased the Father that in Christ should all fullness dwell. Colossians 1.19 He is the author and finisher of faith. He is the life. He is the head. From him every joint and member of the mystical body of Christians is supplied. Through him they are kept from falling. He shall preserve them to the end and present them faultless before the Father's throne with exceeding great joy. He is all things in all believers. The mighty agent by whom the Lord Jesus Christ carries out this work in the members of his church is without doubt the Holy Ghost. He it is who is ever renewing, awakening, convincing, leading to the cross, transforming, taking out of the world stone after stone and adding to the mystical building. But the great chief builder who has undertaken to execute the work of redemption and bring it to completion is the Son of God, the Word who was made flesh. It is Jesus Christ who builds. In building the true church the Lord Jesus condescends to use many subordinate instruments. The ministry of the gospel, the circulation of the scriptures, the friendly rebukes, the word spoken in season, the drawing influence of afflictions, all, all are means and appliances by which his work is carried on and the Spirit conveys life to souls. But Christ is the great superintending architect, ordering, guiding, directing all that is done. Paul may plant and the polis water, but God giveth the increase. 1 Corinthians 3.6 Ministers may preach and writers write, but the Lord Jesus Christ alone can build. And except he builds, the work stands still. Great is the wisdom wherewith the Lord Jesus Christ builds his church. All is done at the right time and in the right way. Each stone in its turn is put in its right place. Sometimes he chooses great stones and sometimes he chooses small stones. Sometimes the work goes on fast and sometimes it goes on slowly. Man is frequently impatient and thinks that nothing is doing. But man's time is not God's time. A thousand years in his sight are but as a single day. The great builder makes no mistakes. He knows what he is doing. He sees the end from the beginning. He works by a perfect, unalterable, uncertain plan. The mightiest conceptions of architects like Michelangelo and Wren are mere trifling and child's play in comparison with Christ's wise counsels respecting his church. Great is the condescension and mercy which Christ exhibits in building his church. He often chooses the most unlikely and roughest stones and fits them into a most excellent work. He despises none and rejects none on account of former sins and past transgressions. He often makes Pharisees and publicans become pillars of his house. He delights to show mercy. He often takes the most thoughtless and ungodly and transforms them into polished corners of his spiritual temple. Great is the power which Christ displays in building his church. He carries on his work in spite of opposition from the world, the flesh, and the devil. In storm, in tempest, through troublous times, silently, quietly, without noise, without stir, without excitement, the building progresses like Solomon's temple. I will work, he declares, and who shall let it? Isaiah 43, 13 The children of this world take little or no interest in the building of this church. They care nothing for the conversion of souls. What are broken spirits and penitent hearts to them? What is conviction of sin or faith in the Lord Jesus to them? It is all foolishness in their eyes. But while the children of this world care nothing, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God. For the preserving of the true church, the laws of nature have oftentimes been suspended. For the good of that church, all the providential dealings of God in this world are ordered and arranged. For the elect's sake, wars are brought to an end and peace is given to a nation. Statesmen, rulers, emperors, kings, presidents, heads of governments have their schemes and plans and think them of vast importance. But there is another work going on of infinitely greater moment for which they are only the axes and saws in God's hands. Isaiah 10.15 That work is the erection of Christ's spiritual temple, the gathering in of living stones into the one true church. We ought to feel deeply thankful that the building of the true church is laid on the shoulders of one that is mighty. If the work depended on man, it would soon stand still. But blessed be God, the work is in the hands of a builder who never fails to accomplish his designs. Christ is the mighty builder. He will carry on his work though nations and visible churches may not know their duty. Christ will never fail. That which he has undertaken, he will certainly accomplish. Number three. I pass on to the third point which I propose to consider, the foundation upon which this church is built. The Lord Jesus Christ tells us, upon this rock will I build my church. What did the Lord Jesus Christ mean when he spoke of this foundation? Did he mean the Apostle Peter to whom he was speaking? I think assuredly not. I can see no reason if he meant Peter why he did not say, upon thee will I build my church. If he had meant Peter, he would surely have said, I will build my church on thee. As plainly as he said, to thee will I give the keys. No, it was not the person of the Apostle Peter but the good confession which the Apostle had just made. It was not Peter, the erring, unstable man, but the mighty truth which the Father had revealed to Peter. It was the truth concerning Jesus Christ himself which was the rock. It was Christ's mediatorship and Christ's messiahship. It was the blessed truth that Jesus was the promised Savior, the true surety, the real intercessor between God and man. This was the rock and this the foundation upon which the church of Christ was to be built. The foundation of the true church was laid at a mighty cost. It needed that the Son of God should take our nature upon Him and in that nature live, suffer, and die, not for His own sins but for ours. It needed that in that nature Christ should go to the grave and rise again. It needed that in that nature Christ should go up to heaven to sit at the right hand of God having obtained eternal redemption for all His people. No other foundation could have met the necessities of lost, guilty, corrupt, weak, helpless sinners. That foundation once obtained is very strong. It can bear the weight of the sins of all the world. It has borne the weight of all the sins of all the believers who have built on it. Sins of thought, sins of imagination, sins of the heart, sins of the head, sins which everyone has seen and sins which no man knows, sins against God and sins against man, sins of all kinds and descriptions. That mighty rock can bear the weight of all these sins and not give way. The mediatorial office of Christ is a remedy sufficient for all the sins of all the world. To this one foundation every member of Christ's true church is joined. In many things believers are disunited and disagreed. In the matter of their soul's foundation they are all of one mind. Whether Episcopalians or Presbyterians, Baptists or Methodists, believers all meet at one point. They are all built on the rock. Ask where they get their peace and hope and joyful expectation of good things to come. You will find that all flows from that one mighty source, Christ, the mediator between God and man and the office that Christ holds as the high priest and surety of sinners. Look to your foundation if you would know whether or not you are a member of the one true church. It is a point that may be known to yourself. Your public worship we can see but we cannot see whether you are personally built upon the rock. Your attendance at the Lord's table we can see but we cannot see whether you are joined to Christ and one with Christ and Christ in you. Take heed that you make no mistake about your own personal salvation. See that your own soul is upon the rock. Without this all else is nothing. Without this you will never stand in the day of judgment. Better a thousand times in that day to be found in a cottage upon the rock than in a palace upon the sand. Number four. I proceed in the fourth place to speak of the implied trials of the church to which our text refers. There is mention made of the gates of hell. By that expression we are meant to understand the power of the prince of hell even the devil. Compare Psalm 9 verse 13 Psalm 107 verse 18 and Isaiah 38 verse 10. The history of Christ's true church has always been one of conflict and war. It has been constantly assailed by a deadly enemy, Satan, the prince of this world. The devil hates the true church of Christ with an undying hatred. He is ever stirring up opposition against all its members. He is ever urging the children of this world to do his will and to injure and harass the people of God. If he cannot bruise the head he will bruise the heel. If he cannot rob the believers of heaven he will vex them by the way. Warfare with the powers of hell has been the experience of the whole body of Christ for 6,000 years. It has always been a bush burning though not consumed. A woman fleeing into the wilderness but not swallowed up. Exodus 3, 2 and Revelation 12 verses 6 and 16. The visible churches have their times of prosperity and seasons of peace but never has there been a time of peace for the true church. Its conflict is perpetual. Its battle never ends. Warfare with the powers of hell is the experience of every individual member of the true church. Each has to fight. What are the lives of all the saints but records of battles? What were such men as Paul and James and Peter and John and Polycarp and Christosome and Augustine and Luther and Calvin and Lattimer and Baxter but soldiers engaged in a constant warfare? Sometimes the persons of the saints have been assailed and sometimes their property. Sometimes they have been harassed by calumnies and slanders and sometimes by open persecution. But in one way or another the devil has been continually warring against the church. The gates of hell have been continually assaulting the people of Christ. We who preach the gospel can hold out to all who come to Christ exceeding great and precious promises. 2 Peter 1.4 We can offer boldly to you in our Master's name the peace of God which passes all understanding. Mercy, free grace and full salvation are offered to everyone who will come to Christ and believe on Him. But we promise you no peace in the world or with the devil. We warn you on the contrary that there must be warfare so long as you are in the body. We would not keep you back or deter you from Christ's service but we would have you count the cost and fully understand what Christ's service entails. Luke 14.28 A. Marvel not at the enmity of the gates of hell. If ye were of the world the world would love his own. John 15.19 So long as the world is the world and the devil the devil. So long there must be warfare and believers in Christ must be soldiers. The world hated Christ and the world will hate true Christians as long as the earth stands. As the great reformer Luther said King will go on murdering Abel so long as the church is on earth. B. Be prepared for the enmity of the gates of hell. Put on the whole armor of God. C. The tower of David contains a thousand bucklers all ready for the use of God's people. The weapons of our warfare have been tried by millions of poor sinners like ourselves and have never been found to fail. D. Be patient under the enmity of the gates of hell. It is all working together for your good. It tends to sanctify. It will keep you awake. It will make you humble. It will drive you nearer to the Lord Jesus Christ. It will wean you from the world. It will help to make you pray more. Above all, it will make you long for heaven. It will teach you to say with your heart as well as lips Come Lord Jesus, thy kingdom come. D. Be not cast down by the enmity of hell. The warfare of the true child of God is as much a mark of grace as the inward peace which he enjoys. No cross, no crown. No conflict, no saving Christianity. Blessed are ye, said our Lord Jesus Christ, when men shall revile you and persecute you and say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake. If you are never persecuted for religion's sake and all men speak well of you, you may well doubt whether you belong to the church on the rock. Matthew 5, verse 11 and Luke 6, verse 26 Number 5 There remains one thing more to be considered, the security of the true church of Christ. There is a glorious promise given by the builder, the gates of hell shall not prevail. This Reformation audio track is a production of Stillwater's Revival Books. 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And remember that John Calvin, in defending the Reformation's regulative principle of worship, or what is sometimes called the scriptural law of worship, commenting on the words of God, which I commanded them not, neither came into my heart, from his commentary on Jeremiah 731, writes, God here cuts off from men every occasion for making evasions, since he condemns by this one phrase, I have not commanded them, whatever the Jews devised. There is then no other argument needed to condemn superstitions than that they are not commanded by God. For when men allow themselves to worship God according to their own fancies, and attend not to His commands, they pervert true religion. And if this principle was adopted by the papists, all those fictitious modes of worship in which they absurdly exercise themselves would fall to the ground. It is indeed a horrible thing for the papists to seek to discharge their duties towards God by performing their own superstitions. There is an immense number of them, as it is well known, and as it manifestly appears. Were they to admit this principle, that we cannot rightly worship God except by obeying His word, they would be delivered from their deep abyss of error. The prophet's words then are very important when he says that God had commanded no such thing, and that it never came to his mind. As though he had said that men assume too much wisdom when they devise what he never required, nay, what he never knew.