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莱尔主教holiness-第126章

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   daily life; and to silence; if we cannot convert; a sneering world。

   V。 In the fifth and last place; the times require of us more regular
   and steady perseverance in the old ways of getting good for our souls。

   I think no intelligent Englishman can fail to see that there has been
   of late years an immense increase of what I must call; for want of a
   better phrase; public religion in the land。 Services of all sorts are
   strangely multiplied。 Places of worship are thrown open for prayer and
   preaching and administration of the Lord's Supper; at least ten times
   as much as they were fifty years ago。 Services in cathedral naves;
   meetings in large public rooms like the Agricultural Hall and Mildmay
   Conference Building; Mission Services carried on day after day and
   evening after eveningall these have bee mon and familiar
   things。 They are; in fact; established institutions of the day; and the
   crowds who attend them supply plain proof that they are popular。 In
   short; we find ourselves face to face with the undeniable fact that the
   last quarter of the nineteenth century is an age of an immense amount
   of public religion。

   Now I am not going to find fault with this。 Let no one suppose that for
   a moment。 On the contrary; I thank God for the revival of the old
   apostolic plan of 〃aggressiveness〃 in religion; and the evident spread
   of a desire 〃by all means to save some。〃 (1 Cor。 ix。 22。) I thank God
   for shortened services; home missions; and evangelistic movements like
   that of Moody and Sankey。 Anything is better than torpor; apathy; and
   inaction。 〃If Christ is preached I rejoice; yea; and will rejoice。〃
   (Phil。 i。 18。) Prophets and righteous men in England once desired to
   see those things; and never saw them。 If Whitfield and Wesley had been
   told in their day that a time would e when English Archbishops and
   Bishops would not only sanction mission services but take an active
   part in them; I can hardly think they would have believed it。 Rather; I
   suspect; they would have been tempted to say; like the Samaritan
   nobleman in Elisha's time; 〃If the Lord would make windows in heaven;
   might this thing be。〃 (2 Kings vii。 2。)

   But while we are thankful for the increase of public religion; we must
   never forget that; unless it is acpanied by private religion; it is
   of no real solid value; and may even produce most mischievous effects。
   Incessant running after sensational preachers; incessant attendance at
   hot; crowded meetings; protracted to late hours; incessant craving
   after fresh excitement and highly…spiced pulpit noveltiesall this
   kind of thing is calculated to produce a very unhealthy style of
   Christianity; and; in many cases; I am afraid; the end is utter ruin of
   soul。 For; unhappily; those who make public religion everything; are
   often led away by mere temporary emotions; after some grand display of
   ecclesiastical oratory; into professing far more than they really feel。
   After this; they can only be kept up to the mark; which they imagine
   they have reached; by a constant succession of religious excitements。
   By and by; as with opium…eaters and dram…drinkers; there es a time
   when their dose loses its power; and a feeling of exhaustion and
   discontent begins to creep over their minds。 Too often; I fear; the
   conclusion of the whole matter is a relapse into utter deadness and
   unbelief; and a plete return to the world。 And all results from
   having nothing but a public religion! Oh; that people would remember
   that it was not the wind; or the fire; or the earthquake; which showed
   Elijah the presence of God; but 〃the still; small voice。〃 (1 Kings xix。
   12。)

   Now I desire to lift up a warning voice on this subject。 I want to see
   no decrease of public religion; remember: but I do want to promote an
   increase of that religion which is privateprivate between each man
   and his God。 The root of a plant or tree makes no show above ground。 If
   you dig down to it and examine it; it is a poor; dirty; coarse…looking
   thing; and not nearly so beautiful to the eye as the fruit; or leaf; or
   flower。 But that despised root; nevertheless; is the true source of all
   the life; health; vigour and fertility which your eyes see; and without
   it the plant or tree would soon die。 Now private religion is the root
   of all vital Christianity。 Without it; we may make a brave show in the
   meeting or on the platform; and sing loud; and shed many tears; and
   have a name to live and the praise of man。 But without it we have no
   wedding garment; and are 〃dead before God。〃 I tell my readers plainly
   that the times require of us all more attention to our private
   religion。

   (a) Let us pray more heartily in private; and throw our whole souls
   more into our prayers。 There are live prayers and there are dead
   prayersprayers that cost us nothing and prayers which often cost us
   strong crying and tears。 What are yours? When great professors
   backslide in public; and the Church is surprised and shocked; the truth
   is that they had long ago backslidden on their knees。 They had
   neglected the throne of grace。

   (b) Let us read our Bibles in private more; and with more pains and
   diligence。 Ignorance of Scripture is the root of all error and makes a
   man helpless in the hand of the devil。 There is less private
   Bible…reading; I suspect; than there was fifty years ago。 I never can
   believe that so many English men and women would have been 〃tossed to
   and fro with every wind of doctrine;〃 some falling into scepticism;
   some rushing into the wildest and narrowest fanaticism; and some going
   over to Rome; if there had not grown up a habit of lazy; superficial;
   careless; perfunctory reading of God's Word。 〃Ye do err not knowing the
   Scriptures。〃 (Matt。 xxii。 29。) The Bible in the pulpit must never
   supersede the Bible at home。

   (c) Let us cultivate the habit of keeping up more private meditation
   and munion with Christ。 Let us resolutely make time for getting
   alone occasionally; for talking with our own souls like David; for
   pouring out our hearts to our Great High Priest; Advocate; and
   Confessor at the right hand of God。 We want more auricular confession:
   but not to man。 The confessional we want is not a box in the vestry;
   but the throne of grace。 I see some professing Christians always
   running about after spiritual food; always in public; and always out of
   breath and in a hurry; and never allowing themselves leisure to sit
   down quietly to digest; and take stock of their spiritual condition。 I
   am never surprised if such Christians have a dwarfish; stunted religion
   and do not grow; and if; like Pharaoh's lean kine; they look no better
   for their public religious feasting; but rather worse。 Spiritual
   prosperity depends immensely on our private religion; and private
   religion cannot nourish unless we determine that by God's help we will
   make time; whatever trouble it may cost us; for thought; for prayer;
   for the Bible; and for priva
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