II. Admonition and Warning. (Verses 14-17.)

      The lesson opens with the exhortation to "follow after peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no man shall see the Lord." We are children of peace. Jesus is the Prince of Peace. The final result of his work will be that "they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more." (Isa. 2:4.) A Christian cannot obey his Master and engage in carnal warfare at the same time. The parents who are educating their sons for a military [177] career are preparing them unto a life of disobedience to Christ. If Christ is going to ultimately bring peace on the earth and to teach the nations to cease war, it is evidently absurd to maintain that a follower of Christ may take part in the very things Jesus came to abolish. In private affairs also, "as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men;" for all that engenders strife--envy, malice, hatred, jealousy, unkindness, lack of patience, ungoverned temper, uncontrolled tongues, vengefulness--these are works of the flesh. (James 4:1.) Jesus calls us to be meek and lowly in heart; to meet insult and injury in love to man, committing ourselves unto Him that judgeth righteously, and who will not fail to vindicate us and our cause. "Vengeance is mine, I will repay." Read carefully what is written on this subject in Rom. 12:18-21; 1 Pet. 2:19-22. Jesus taught his disciples the doctrine of nonresistance to evil. (Matt. 5:38-42.) But if, as in Jesus' case, all this good will of God is obeyed, and yet men hate and oppose us, we are not guilty, for "as much as in us lieth" we have lived for peace. Jesus' life and work occasioned much strife. But that was not Jesus' fault. "Blessed is he whosoever shall find no occasion of stumbling in me." So likewise if we faithfully live for Christ, we shall meet with opposition and strife; [178] for all that would live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.

      On this subject much is spoken and written that is wrong and hurtful. Neither is the mistake all on one side of the controversy. Let us learn first that all Christians are sanctified through Christ's sacrifice and blood. (Heb. 10:10; 13:12.) Even the weak Corinthian Christians who were yet carnal (1 Cor. 3:1, 3) and guilty of divisions, envyings, strife, and several other evil practices for which Paul rebukes them, are addressed as the "sanctified in Christ Jesus" (1 Cor. 1:2; compare 6:11). Just as God claimed all the firstborn of man or beast for his own, because he had saved them through the blood of the passover lamb, so does he claim all those who through the blood of Jesus Christ have been redeemed as his own. They are thus "sanctified," "set apart" unto God. (Ex. 13:2, 12.) But "sanctified" not only means "set apart" to God's service, but, by implication, "pure," "clean," "undefiled." Any one by taking a concordance can verify that without difficulty. Therefore the same blood that set us apart also washed us whiter than the snow. Now here is the chief item for our consideration: When first we became Christians, God [179] gave us a clear title to sonship, but afterwards tells us that on certain conditions we shall be children of God. (2 Cor. 6:17, 18; Rev. 21:7.) When we were baptized, we put on Christ (Gal. 3:27); yet long afterwards he exhorts us to "put on the Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom. 13:14). When we obeyed the gospel, we received the perfect righteousness of God by free gift and imputation; yet he exhorts us to "follow after [pursue] righteousness." (1 Tim. 6:11.) What does it mean? Simply that these gifts, which in name and standing we fully enjoy as soon as we are in Christ, must be actually worked and lived out day by day, so that our "state" may correspond with our "standing" before God, that the righteousness and sanctification we have in Christ may be verified and vindicated in our daily lives, and the power of this faith in him may be manifest to the world. To those, therefore, who already have been sanctified in Christ Jesus it is commanded to pursue after "the sanctification without which no man shall see the Lord." The pure in heart shall see God. "Having therefore these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God." (2 Cor. 7:1.)

      Very many Christians never so much as attempt that. "Why, we can't do that; we can't [180] live sinless lives," they say; and so they lay that aside as an impossibility, ridiculing the very thought of it. Moreover, much valuable time, breath, and space is wasted, both in pulpits and papers, in trying to prove that we cannot live without sinning, and disparaging those who would aim at it. Now this is an extreme at least as bad and harmful as that presented by the so-called "sanctificationists." "Zeal without knowledge" is hardly worse than compromise with sin. It is not our business, in the first place, to determine what we can or cannot do in this matter. When God commands, it is for us to "trust and obey." It is to such that God gives grace and strength. That colored preacher who said, "When the Lord leads me to a brick wall and tells me to jump through, it is my business to jump and God's business to make the hole," had the right idea of faith. The Duke of Wellington ordered a bridge built across a ravine. The chief officer of the engineering corps came to him with representations concerning the extreme difficulty of the task. "I did not ask your opinion, sir," replied the Duke; "I gave my orders, and expect them to be obeyed." If such is the standard of respect and subordination required among men, how much more should it be so toward the God who is over all, who demands nothing unreasonable [181] of his children, and is able to make all grace to abound toward us in all things, and make us perfect in every good work, working in us the things that are well pleasing in his sight!

      Note, then, that this sanctification we are to follow after is nothing short of entire consecration and purity of heart and life. "Every one that hath this hope set on him purifieth himself, even as he [Christ] is pure." (1 John 3:3.) Is this your aim and daily motto? Then you are following "the sanctification without which no man shall see the Lord." Again see how that will affect your conduct: "As children of obedience, not fashioning yourselves according to your former lusts in the time of your ignorance: but like as he who called you is holy, be ye yourselves also holy in all manner of living; because it is written, Ye shall be holy; for I am holy." (1 Pet. 1:14-16.) Examine the contexts of Lev. 11:44; 19:2; 20:7, whence Peter quotes the last clause above, and see that there, too, the chief idea is purity of life. There are other passages to the same effect. Can you afford to ignore them?

      Do not now begin to split hairs and make fine points as to what constitutes "absolute sinlessness," and such like. Neither set up a straw man, and, having named him "Sinless Perfection," proceed to knock him over. That is [182] subterfuge, and irrelevant. Paul said he knew nothing against himself (can you say that?), from which, however, he did not conclude that he had time to sit down or no more room for growth. (Read 1 Cor. 4:4.) Neither did he claim perfection on that score. (See Phil. 3:12-14.) Let it be our sole aim to live free from all known sin, and then to follow a yet higher walk as we grow in understanding and knowledge of Jesus Christ. By following after sanctification day by day the churches at Smyrna and Philadelphia (Rev. 2 and 3) arrived at a state in which Jesus found nothing to reprove. So also the members of the church at Sardis, who "did not defile their garments." "And they shall walk with me in white; for they are worthy. He that overcometh shall thus be arrayed in white garments; and I will in no wise blot his name out of the book of life, and I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith to the churches." (Rev. 3:4-6.)

      Look carefully. This is addressed to all for a safeguard. Some evils come unobserved. Like the tares, you cannot easily recognize them in the seed or in the bud; but only when they have fully established themselves do they show [183] their true nature and fruits. For illustration, behold how a few apparently harmless innovations, a few slight additions and changes here and there in the things of God, issued in the enormous perversions of the Church of Rome. And that history is constantly repeating itself. Many roots of bitterness spring up unnoticed, unsuspected. Sometimes a bad or foolish man, sometimes a false doctrine, sometimes a wrong practice, becomes a scourge and plague unto the church. Look carefully. A fire is much more easily quenched at its beginning than after the whole house is ablaze.

      Esau stands diametrically opposite in character to his father, Abraham. Even as Abraham lived for the unseen and sacrificed temporal advantages for the unseen promise, so Esau lived for the things that appeal to sense, and sacrificed his share in the promise for a very trifling temporal good. For the momentary gratification of his appetite he willingly gave up his birthright. He is the type and father of all the "men of the world, whose portion is in this life." (Ps. 17:14); and their name is Legion.

      Esau was not utterly bad. Probably he had all the qualities that go to make the "jolly good [184] fellow" that is everywhere welcome. He was of a forgiving turn of mind, even magnanimous. See how kindly, almost tenderly, he received Jacob, who once by guile had taken advantage of him. His fatal fault was that he had no aspiration beyond the flesh, no appreciation of things unseen. He had no faith, wanted no faith. This world was good enough for him. God's promise was very good as far as promises go, but a bird in the hand was, to him, worth two in the bush. O, the Esaus in the world to-day--men almost exemplary as citizens, neighbors, husbands, fathers--brave, kind-hearted, liberal, sympathetic, charitable, hospitable, obliging--yet bound to the earth and to the flesh, self-complacent, not desirous of higher good, with only a distant respect for spiritual things; men whom for their loveableness we hold dear, and the thought of whose perdition makes our hearts ache!

      Yet not only in the world, but even in the church, Esau is represented. Moses, the man of faith, chose rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; but these are allured by the pleasures of sin and forsake the lot of God's people. He esteemed the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt, for he looked unto the recompense of reward; but these know [185] no greater reward than treasures of gold, and forsake the cross of Christ at the call of Mammon, honor, popularity, or fleshly gratification. It is the same conflict between faith and sight, the things seen and things unseen.

      We have a birthright. Glorious as that of Esau or Jacob was, ours is greater. We are sons of God by faith in Christ Jesus, and belong to the general assembly and church of the firstborn whose names are in heaven. Take heed that you sell not this infinite privilege and blessing for any of the trifles and vanities of the world, the flesh, and the devil. You cannot have both. Take Christ, and you crucify the flesh; follow the flesh, and you crucify to yourself afresh the Son of God. There is an "afterwards" both to the life of faith and the sensual life. As some one said regarding the prodigal son: "Every 'when' has its 'then:' 'When he had spent all, then a mighty famine arose in that country.'" So here. When he desired to inherit a blessing, then there was no longer any possibility of it; and he "cried with an exceeding great and bitter cry." (Gen. 27:34.) After the sowing time comes the reaping; and as sow one thing or another we must, even so must we reap what we have sown: "He that soweth unto his own flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth unto the Spirit [186] shall of the Spirit reap eternal life." (Gal. 6:8.)

      Great and dreadful are thy words, O Jehovah our Father; and the lessons we have learned to-day cut us to the heart. We are not such as thou wouldest have us to be; for neither have we ever earnestly endeavored to follow after holiness, and to be pure as Christ is pure, holy as thou art holy; but, on the other hand, we have too often entertained the spirit of Esau. But now in this day of salvation we come to thee for forgiveness and healing and help. Lord, increase our faith. May we by thy grace have boldness to refuse Satan all quarters, and make no allowance for sin, no provisions for the flesh to fulfill the lusts thereof. Thou wilt be with us in the conflict if we truly trust. We can do all things through Christ that strengtheneth us. Keep us from the power of darkness and temptation, and preserve us until we shall obtain the promise of the eternal inheritance, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

      Note each point of contrast between the two covenants here given. Why greater responsibility on us? What awful revelation of God in his attitude toward the rebellious? [187]

[LOH1 177-187]