Lecture XXIII · Wise Choice of Examples

THE apostle has been impressing upon his readers the needfulness of having clear views. with regard to the importance of personal holiness, and of persistent effort to maintain a practice accordant with such views. In the passage ~ before us, continuing his observations on this subject, he directs their thoughts to the influence of example. He points out to them that many to whom, as assuming no little prominence in ~ the church, they might naturally look for practical illustration of the moral principles of Christianity, lived in a way wholly — opposed to the spirit of the gospel; and calls upon them to shun taking such persons as models, and, instead, to imitate his own — character, and that of others who, like him, plainly strove to— follow ‘ whatsoever things were true, and honourable, and just, and pure, and lovely, and of good report.’ Of the immoral ἣ teachers he gives a description, in some detail, in the 18th and ¥ 1gth verses ; and we shall perhaps best attain a clear view of what is said in the 17th.

‘Many walk, the apostle says, ‘of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies Ὁ]

i } the cross of Christ: whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.’ You feel that the word ‘ wa/k’ sounds somewhat oddly in its connection here. You expect to find an adverbial phrase attached to it,—‘ wickedly,’ for example, or ‘in such a way as to prove themselves enemies of the cross.’ Paul probably intended at first to construct his sentence so, but, by the relative clause he inserts, was led to express himself a little differently.

The Philippians doubtless had no difficulty in knowing to whom Paul referred in this description. During his visits to them he had ‘ /o/d them often’ of this class of men; and the intensity of feeling with which he writes on the subject—for he ‘now tells them even weeping, —suggests a likelihood that the perversities which had pained him formerly, had grown yet more pronounced and notorious. We can only conjecture who these men were ; but the probabilities, as it seems to me, tend all in one direction. They were plainly persons whom, from their position, Christians might not unnaturally be expected to regard as models of character. They had some prominence in the church therefore, and in all likelihood, as indeed I have already assumed by using the designation a little ago in speaking of them, were teachers who itinerated among the churches. The apostle’s language suggests also that the class he alludes to was a well defined one, probably by peculiarities of doctrine. Now the Judaizing opponents of Paul, whom he mentions so frequently in his letters, and to whom he has referred in the beginning of this chapter in terms of just and indignant severity, do not answer to the description here. Arrogant, self-seeking, unspiritual they were ; but we have no reason to think of them as men of flagrantly immoral lives, such as the verses before us appear to ascribe to the class of teachers here meant. One can scarcely doubt, all things considered, that the reference is to abusers of the doctrines of grace, who said, ‘ Let us do evil, _ that good may come.’ As has been pointed out to you in pre-

vious lectures, these seem to have been before the apostle’s mind from the 13th verse. His beloved flock at Philippi was exposed to the attacks of two bodies of ‘ grievous wolves, — these who would have them look on keeping God’s law as, to some extent, a means of earning eternal life as their wages; — and those who would have them disregard the law as a rule of _ conduct. Their watchful shepherd, endeavouring lovingly to guard them against both, passes most naturally and wisely from the exposure of legalism in the beginning of the chapter to the exposure of antinomianism here.

Now, my brethren, you and I are not likely to encounter persons exactly of the kind described by the apostle in these verses. Immoral teachers of religion there may be, though— thanks be to God for it !—very greatly fewer than our fathers knew. Much defective and even false theology, too, is taught from the pulpit and the press ; the ultimate tendency of which, no doubt, as of everything which turns away the soul from the pure gospel of Jesus Christ, is towards immorality. But direct and conscious teaching of immorality, under the name of Christianity, must in our day be altogether exceptional, if it exist at all. Still, dear friends, this most melancholy statement, by one of Christ’s inspired servants, respecting the character of many professing Christians of his time; and his solemn declaration of the awful end to which that character, if maintained, would certainly bring them,—have most impressive teaching for us. If we have ears to hear, the apostle is heard — warning us of the need of prayerfulness, self-study, and spiritual vigilance ; seeing how little the mere profession of religion — ensures an elevated morality, or a well-founded hope of eternal life. ‘These men—persons plainly of considerable mark in the — church, and possessed of attractions of some kind, such as — might not improbably gain them a number of admirers, even in a pure and intelligent Christian community like that of Philippi —lived a life not only divergent from that which the gospel, understood and believed, is calculated to form; but in many a a ‘

respects, as we shall immediately see in detail, directly opposed to it. Let us ‘watch and pray, that we enter not into temptation.’

The men of whom Paul speaks, differed, he tells us, from genuine Christians with regard to the very first principle of religion. Zhe object of their worship was not the same.

The true believer has taken the living God—the God who made him, who sustains him, who sent His Son to save him—/o be his God. It was not so once. By nature he had grievous misconceptions of the divine character. According to his temperament and his training, he regarded God as stern and cold, destitute of pity and tenderness, a Being whom it was impossible to please or to love; or as weakly indulgent and placable, ready, because of His boundless mercy, to overlook misconduct in His creatures, and welcome them all at last to peace and heaven. On either view, there was no motive to think of God with interest and reverence, or to endeavour to do His will. But, having ‘learned Christ,’ the believer sees God in Him to be the Infinitely Admirable, the ‘Altogether Lovely.’ He counts it most reasonable that, with all his energies, he should serve the God who gave him those energies,—the supremely True, and Holy, and Kind. The love and fellowship of his heavenly Father are felt by him to satisfy all his capacities of happiness ; and therefore, while many say, ‘ Who will show us any good ?’ his cry is, ‘ Lord, lift Thou up the light of Thy countenance upon us. Whom have I in heaven but Thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside Thee. My flesh and my heart faileth ; but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.’

But of the men—professing Christians—to whom the apostle here refers, he says that their ‘god is their belly.” Sensuality had dominion over them. The living God expresses His will that we should be ‘temperate in all things,’ and should ‘have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them ;’ and declares that ‘no drunkard, nor unclean

person, shall inherit the kingdom of God.’ But the desires of — the flesh invite to self-indulgence,—to gluttony, revelling, — drunkenness ; to gaudiness, extravagance, immodesty of dress ; — to impurity of speech and conduct. This call these persons — habitually obeyed, thus clearly showing that practically, whatever their professions, bodily appetite was their god, their — supreme ruler. The heathen whom the King of Assyria — settled in central Canaan, after he had removed the ten tribes ~ to the far east, were troubled and terrified by lions ; and, with a view to propitiate Him who had sent the wild beasts against — them, petitioned their king for the services of a priest of Israel, _ to ‘teach them the manner of the God of the land.” ‘Then — one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Bethel, and taught them how they should fear the Lord. Howbeit every nation made gods of their own, — and put them in the houses of the high places.’ So ‘they feared the Lord, and served their own gods.” Ah, my brethren, would that we could think of this conjunction of formal ‘fear- — ing’ of Jehovah with ‘serving,’ by the devotion of heart and life, men’s ‘own gods,’ as having belonged only to old days! Would that we could regard Paul’s sketch of nominal Christians, ‘ whose god is their belly,’ as having suitableness merely to the past !

Again,—a true Christian has learned to look with any measure of satisfaction, as regards his character, only on evidences of growing accordance with the will of God. His great hope is : that, ‘when Christ shall appear, he shall be like Him;’ and — meantime he rejoices greatly in any proof that he is being gradually changed by the Divine Spirit into his Saviour’s image. is That change he regards as ‘from glory to glory ;’ and he can esteem nothing in character as truly a grace, or a beauty, or a glory, which does not stand in vital connection with a holy will. Sin his heart loathes as shameful, the only really ful thing in God’s universe.

But the abusers of the doctrines of divine grace in

“κ΄. «ὦ =~ days felt ‘¢/ory in their shame. Alas, how many followers of these men we meet! The tradesman, ‘professing godliness,’ boasts of his ‘smart’ tricks in business—within the letter of his country’s law, but utterly opposed to the spirit of true rectitude; and marvels that any should not admire him, or should suppose the Sermon on the Mount to have anything to do with business. The husband and father, whose name is on a communion roll, associates by choice with godless companions, grows neglectful of the ordinances of religion, spends for the good of the publican what would feed and clothe his poor half-naked, half-starved wife and children ;—and exults that ‘ he is no bigot, but has a religion which lets a man enjoy himself.’ ‘These are raging _ waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame.’

Further,—the true Christian λας come to see—and this with a distinctness and vividness influencing powerfully his feelings and his life—‘hat man was made for an end higher than any which the pursuits, and speculations, and enjoyments of earth present. He feels that there are elements in his nature which, to a candid thinker, show as clearly that he was not meant by his Creator to live simply for this world, as that he was not meant to browse with the ox, or grovel with the serpent. The grand purpose of the Word of God he recognises to be, to show him the objects which are suited to occupy his loftiest powers, and to satisfy his capacities of spiritual happiness. Accordingly, he has ‘set his affections on things which are above,’ and lives more or less fully under ‘the powers of the world to come.’ Heaven is as real to his apprehensions as earth, and, in the proportion of his faith, more influential over his heart. In the business of this life to which God’s providence has called him he is diligent and faithful; and glad and grateful if he prosper in it. But he measures the worth of worldly prosperity, and the strength of the world’s claim to occupy his thoughts and his time, by other standards than those of earth. He knows that ‘ the world passeth away, and the lust thereof ; but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.’ Hence pro-

sperity of the sou/—prosperity as regards his relations to the unseen world—appears to him immeasurably the more important ; and he desires very earnestly that success in worldly matters may not injure him spiritually, but may be turned by him to such account as, in every way, to glorify God. Worldly adversity, bereavement, personal affliction, may give him pain, perhaps much pain ; yet he knows adversity to be very far from the worst thing which could befall him. He knows that the trial comes from Him who, ‘though He was rich, yet for our sakes became poor, that we through His poverty might be rich,’ —who, being ‘the Prince of Life,’ yielded Himself to suffering and death, that we might live for ever. Poverty and suffering sent by this Saviour to His people he cannot doubt to be sent in love, to contribute to spiritual and enduring wealth and blessedness.

Now the professing Christians at present before the apostle’s mind are said by him to ‘ mind earthly things.’ ‘This statement has a very wide range of reference. The form of expression in the original shows that the clause is not co-ordinate with the descriptions of character we have already considered,—as the third term in a series ; but rather stands by itself, as an exhibition of depraved thought and feeling generally, summing up the others, and including more. A vast multitude of professing Christians who can persuade themselves that the features previously mentioned are not found in their character—that it cannot be said of them, in any strict use of the words, that ‘their god is their belly,’ or that they ‘glory in their shame,’—will — find that they cannot speak boldly with respect to this feature. They are decorous livers, honest too, and kindly,—but they ‘mind earthly things,’—they have their thoughts and their affections occupied exclusively, or supremely, with the interests of this world. To make mohey, or to spend it,—to become learned, or famous, or influential,—to go through life peaceably and pleasantly,—to gain in one way or another self-gratification, —this is their aim, and nothing more than this, God, and

LL a -ὀ-ὄ-.:ὕὄ..ὕ holiness, and heaven, are ideas which have little power over them. They hear of them on Sabbath, and the words are prominent in the creed which they profess and imagine themselves to hold ;—but they ‘ mind earthly things.’ These it is that occupy their thoughts, and are the objects of their real desires. For these it is that they live, for these that they run risks, for these that they make sacrifices. It is of earthly advantages and joys alone that every one of this unhappy class of persons says to his soul—the soul which God made to be nourished by fellowship with Himself,—‘ Soul, thou hast much goods laid up ; take thine ease.’

All whose character exhibits the features we have been considering—all who are sensual and worldly—are, the apostle tells us, ‘enemies of the cross of Christ? They may declare their admiration of the Lord Jesus, and specially of His self-sacrifice for men. They may, in words, ‘ glory in the cross of Christ.’ They may, at the communion table, profess to ‘ show forth His death’ as the ground of their hope for eternity. Those immediately referred to by the apostle counted themselves the great assertors of the sublime power of the cross, as setting men free from the bondage of fear and superstition, and introducing them into ‘glorious liberty.’ Yet, in truth, they were its ‘ evemies.’ In the cross we have the most explicit and impressive declaration which even God could give, of His hatred of sin. The grand purpose of the Lord Jesus in His self-devotion to death for us—a purpose most distinctly made known by Him, and obvious to every gospel hearer who is willing to allow the truth to enter his soul—was ‘that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.’ He has most distinctly taught us that every man who desires to be saved through Him, must himself, in a sense, ‘ take up the cross, and bear it after Him,’—must ‘know the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed unto His death.’ Now such persons as those whom Paul describes here, show by their lives that they have

no sympathy with these lessons of the cross,—no spiritual apprehension of them, nor desire for any. Instead of dying with the Saviour to sin, they manifestly live to sin. Boasting of liberty, they are, in truth, ‘the slaves of corruption ; for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage.’ Instead of denying themselves, and, for the glory of God and the eternal interests of the soul, bearing the cross of self-restraint with respect to the seductions of this world, they give up their hearts to this world, ‘ minding earthly things.’ There can be no doubt, therefore, that they hate the spirit and the teaching of Calvary. They are ‘enemies of the cross of Christ.’ Nay more. The cross has many other foes,—multitudes who denounce, deride, and in every way avowedly oppose it. But its worst enemies, in the eyes of God, the most influential for evil, the least likely ever to become its friends, are professed believers in the doctrines of the cross who yet ‘mind earthly things.’ This fact is brought out by the apostle in the little word ‘ the, —‘ the enemies of the cross.’ These are the enemies by pre-eminence. None do such harm to the cause of the cross—the cause of truth and love and peace,—as those who, calling themselves Christians, live for this world only. ‘What are these wounds in Thine hands?’ ‘Those with which I was wounded in the house of My friends.’ Men who, with the lip, ‘glory in the cross of Christ,’ but, with the voice of their lives,

‘glory in their shame,’ ‘ crucify the Son of God afresh, and put Him to an open shame.’

And if they persist in their hostility of heart to that cross, through which alone is salvation, then, says the apostle, their

‘end is destruction. God hates sin, and will overthrow it. His grace, if we will accept it, will overthrow the sin in us by which we are oppressed; and thus save us. But if we resolutely cleave to our sins, then not even the grace of God can save us, Consistently with His own nature and with ours, God cannot make us happy without making us holy. And no doom will — be so awful as that of the professed friend of the cross who is

really its enemy. Wherever the gospel comes, it comes as a power ; and if a man will not open his heart, that, entering in, it may show itself in his case as ‘the power of God unto salvation,’ then his acquaintance with it cannot but render his ‘ destruction’ more terrible. The word of God is a/ways ‘quick and powerful.’ It makes the heart tender, humble, and contrite,—or harder. It brings into a state of acceptance with God,—or it renders the condemnation more awful. If a man will resolutely dwell in darkness, he must, of necessity, selfdestroyed, go out at last into the ‘outer darkness, where shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

There were ‘many’ professing Christians, the apostle says, who ‘ walked’ in the way he has described,—journeying on, in the paths of worldliness and sensuality, towards the ‘ dark mountains’ where men’s feet ‘stumble.’ Consideration of the position in which the church is placed in our age and country, my brethren—when some degree of Christian profession is helpful to social respectability, and somewhat aids a man to get rich— might lead us to think it likely that, if inconsistency of life was not uncommon in the despised and persecuted church of the first days, it will be yet more sadly common now. Any spiritually-minded observer will find deplorably conclusive evidence that with such an anticipation the facts accord. The very liveliest Christian charity cannot refuse to see that, of members of the church of Christ, ‘many walk as enemies of the cross of Christ.’ Hence arises a great peril for the beauty and stability of the character of other professors. The proverbially powerful influence of example is not felt merely where models are definitely chosen. We are all apt to take colour from association, even where no intention is further from our minds than that of imitating. To mingle daily with persons who call themselves servants of Christ, partake with us of the symbols of the Lord’s dying love, profess to seek the guidance of the same Divine Spirit to whom we look for direction, and to cherish the same ‘blessed hope’ which sustains

and stimulates us—and who yet maintain a conformity to the principles and practices of ‘them that are without,’ by ‘ minding earthly things,’—it is impossible, my brethren, that this can be without serious spiritual danger. Intercourse with low-toned professors will inevitably lower our own tone of feeling, unless, conscious of the hazard, we set ourselves to resist, by earnest prayer for strength and wisdom, and by thoughtful consideration of the principles which express themselves in the lives of those around us.

It is of very high importance, too, that, by choice and attention, we bring the influence of good examples to act upon us. You know that our calling, as Christians, is to be in character like God, like Christ. This supreme example, then, it becomes us to have habitually before our minds, according to the constant injunction of Scripture: ‘Be ye followers (imitators) of God, as dear children, and walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given Himself for us.’ It is exceedingly helpful also, however, to study the example of eminent servants of Christ, men conspicuous for devotedness and wisdom, energy and patience. In all merely human examples there are defects, and therefore they need to be compared always with the perfect standard:of holiness in the character of the Lord Jesus. But the very fact that a man, obviously of high spirituality, has reached that spirituality through severe struggle, and has still to maintain a warfare with depraved tendencies, gives his example a certain peculiar power and suitableness for us. Hence such Scripture exhortations as ‘ Be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises ;’ ‘Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example.’

The apostle’s mind, then, being full of the thought of the many bad examples by which the Philippians were liable to be influenced—the example of men ‘ whose end was destruction,’ —nothing was more reasonable or natural than that he should say to them, ‘ Mark (as an example) the perfect man, and be- — —— a? τ eee ee ee . «- “αἰ να ee 4 A : —_- =

hold the upright, for the end of that man is peace.’ But when he says, ‘ Be followers together—a body of imitators— of me, and mark—for imitation—‘hem which walk so, as ye have us—myself and my companions—/for an ensample;—a little difficulty may perhaps be felt as to how the selection of himself as an example is altogether consistent with the profound Christian humility by which he was distinguished. A very slight consideration of the circumstances of the case will remove any such difficulty. Christian humility does not imply blindness to what the Spirit of God has wrought in our character. On the contrary, the voice of this sweet grace enters in to bear a most important part in the harmony of the believer’s song of grateful praise for increasing evidence of enlightenment, and purity, and usefulness, through divine teaching and support. The summary of a Christian’s judgment of himself, if he be in real spiritual health, will always be, as good John Newton has it: ‘I have ever to confess, with sorrow, that I am far from being what I ought to be, and far from what I wish to be ; but also—blessed be God’s name !—to testify that I am far, very far, from what I once was.’ Whilst, however, we not merely may, but should, with gladness and gratitude, recognise the success which, ‘ through Him that loveth us,’ we have in our struggles with sin; it is commonly, for reasons which every student of his own heart knows well, wisest and safest to speak of our knowledge on this head to God only. But even of this there is ‘a time to speak’ to our fellow-men. In some circumstances a reference by a Christian to what God has wrought in his character, and an appeal to others to ‘be followers together of him,’ may be signally wise, and perfectly accordant with profound humility. Such were the circumstances in which the Apostle Paul was placed, when writing to the Philippians, Corinthians, Thessalonians, and other churches he had been the instrument of raising among the heathen. In the society among which the members of these churches lived, immorality was universal—and this, shameless, flagrant, loath-

some, beyond what persons brought up as we have been can almost conceive. Moral truths which to us are elementary, were to those Christians wholly new and strange. They needed to be taught morals as children; and as pictureteaching is commonly most effective with children, so with them—exposed not merely to the influences of a frightfully corrupt world, but to the misleading doctrines and example of many wicked professedly Christian teachers, such as those whom Paul describes in the passage now before us—no lesson on the Christian life could well be in every way so satisfactory, - so easily understood, so full, so likely, from the great love they had for the apostle, to be welcomed and thoroughly learned, as this picture lesson, ‘Be ye followers together of me, and mark for imitation those which walk so, as ye have us for an ensample.’ ‘For many of the details of duty, each of you must be left to think out prayerfully for himself what it is that his position specially requires ; but, as regards all the d7oad outlines of duty, 1 can safely urge you to imitate me. Admitting, with sorrow and abasement, the existence of many flaws and faults of character, still I know that the And of life I lead—and Silas, and Timothy, and Luke, and the other dear brethren whom you have seen associated with me—is on the whole that which faith in Christ legitimately produces, and on which He looks down with approval. Think of our mode of life, then, as you remember it ; and take note of those among yourselves, or among teachers who visit you, that walk so as ye have us for an example or type,—an example, I say, for in all of us the type is truly one, the image of Christ, reflected in each more or less fully.’

If ever a mere man lived who could, without misleading, point to himself as an example of holiness, it was the Apostle Paul. The beauty and grandeur of his character are illustrated everywhere in his history and his letters. It is most manifest — that he ‘gave all diligence to add to his faith, virtue; and to virtue, knowledge ; and to knowledge, temperance ; andtotem- EE Δικ δον ee oe ee en SE ἊῚ “Ὁ -

perance, patience ; and to patience, godliness; and to godliness,

brotherly kindness ; and to brotherly kindness, charity.” At every point his life contrasted most markedly with that of the men

described in the 18th and 19th verses. It is beyond all question that the diving God, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, was his God ; and that his bodily appetites were his servants, not his lords. He ‘kept under his body, and brought it into subjection.’ ‘So fought he, not as one that beateth the air.’ His whole life was eminently and most obviously that of a spiritual man,—to whom ‘earthly things’ were important chiefly in their bearings on the heavenly. Having renounced for Christ’s sake the most attractive prospects of distinction and wealth among his countrymen, he pursued with unswerving devotion the great work of glorifying God through the extension of the Redeemer’s kingdom ; and in his work was enabled even to ‘glory in his infirmities, that the power of Christ might rest upon him.’ No candid observer could entertain a moment’s doubt that for Paul ‘to live was Christ.” It was plain, too, that in his judgment the central fact in the history of Christ’s mediatorial work was His death. The apostle Joved and giloried in the cross ; and meekly accepted a// its teaching. How exquisitely the spirit of horror of sin and at the same _ time tender pity for sinners—the same spirit which led Jesus to the accursed tree for us,—breathes from this very passage, where we see Paul ‘ even weeping’ over men’s sins!* May you and I, my brethren, have ears to hear him saying to us, ‘ Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ !’

‘In his Life of Dr. John Duncan (p. 197, note), Dr. David Brown, speaking of good Dr. Kidd of Aberdeen, says: ‘I remember him once meeting in the street 2 person who made a religious profession, in 2 State of intoxication, and the laughing-stock of a crowd. The Doctor marked one fellow jeering at a great rate ; and, holding up his staff before him, cried out in the hearing of the crowd, who were awed by his commanding look,—‘“* Many walk of whom I have told you often, and now tell you—not /eughing, sir, not LAUGHING, but—weepimz, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ.” ’