PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
Horae Homileticae — Volume 4 of 21
Simeon, Charles, 1759-1836 · 223,595 words · 412 reading sections
409.] Praise To God For Redemption. 3^55
whole "Jam.v. 11. *Esth.vi. 1— 3. 360 PSALMS, ex. 1—7. [411. whole Jewish nation. Let nothing then be accounted small : but receive every thing as from God, and endeavour to improve every thingybr him : and then shall every thing enrich you with wis- dom, and inflame your souls with gratitude and love.] 2. Take …
325 wordsSECTION 302411.] The Person And Offices Of Christ. 361
Ps. ex. 1 — 7. The Lord said imto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool. The Lord shall send, the rod of thy strength out of Zion : rule thou in the midst of thine enemies. Thy people shall be u'illing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the u'oml of the…
738 wordsSECTION 303411.] The Person And Offices Of Christ. 361
And here it is worthy of notice, that we see in this appeal what was the interpretation which the Jews of that day put upon the psalm before us. They all understood it as relating to the Messiah : and all the attempts of modern Jews to put any other construction upon it are futile in the extreme. But by comparing …
293 wordsSECTION 304411.] The Person And Offices Of Christ. 363
sider how his victories are gained, namelj^ by his word and Spirit, and that it is by the illumination of men's minds that he subdues their hearts, we shall see that this part of the psalm may properly be un- derstood as relating to his prophetic character. Accordingly we behold him here represented as, 1 . A Pro…
763 wordsSECTION 305411.] The Person And Offices Of Christ. 365
Is it inquired. What sacrifice he had to offer ? we answer. His own body, which " through the eternal Spirit he offered without spot to God." And, having offered that sacrifice once for all, he now intercedes for us within the veil ; and will come again at the end of the world to bless his redeemed people, and to …
651 wordsSECTION 306366 Psalms, Cxi. 2. [412.
This is the test whereby you are to try the state of your souls before God ; for according to your experience of these things will be your sentence in the day of judgment ] 2. Wliat measure have ye of resemblance to him ? [God has ordained that all his people should " be conformed to ' Gen. iii. 15. to the image…
349 wordsSECTION 307412.1 The Great Work Of Redemption. 367
Ps. cxi. 2. The works of the Lord are great, sought out of all them that have pleasure therein. THIS psalm is one of those appointed by our Church for Easter Day: for which it is sufficiently appropriate, in that it celebrates that redemption of God's people from Egypt, which was typical of the Redemption wrought…
508 wordsSECTION 308368 Psalms, Cxi. 2. [412.
nature of our Lord in the womb of a pure Virgin, free from all the taint of our original corruption ; and enabling that body, so won- derfully formed, to bear the curse due to our iniquities, and to work out a righteousness adequate to the wants, and sufficient for the necessities, of a ruined world. View the trium…
486 wordsSECTION 309412.] The Great Work Of Redemption. 369
II. The respect paid to them by every true Chris- tian— The Christian is fitly represented as one " who has pleasure in these works" — [The generality of mankind have, alas ! no pleasure in these works, but rather put away the remembrance of them with ab- horrence But not so the Christian : he regards them with …
409 wordsSECTION 310The Greatness And Condescension Of God.
2. Endeavour more and more to make a suitable improvement of it — ["Hallelujah" stands as the introduction to the contem- plations of David. Let all your contemplations lead to, and terminate in, a similar acclamation. Such luill he the result of all the knowledge which we shall possess in heaven and such should …
399 wordsSECTION 311413.] Greatness And Condescension Of God. 3/1
motions and distances and mutual dependence of the heavenly bodies, how much of it would he understand ? It would be far above his comprehension: he could not embrace any part of the system. So, if we presume to speak of the greatness and incomprehensibility of Jehovah, we only " darken counsel by words without kn…
491 wordsSECTION 312372 Psalms, Cxiii. 5—8. [413.
heaven:" yes, if he deign to cast an eye upon the highest angels and arch-angels, it is an act of infinite condescen- sion : for, intelligent as they are in comparison of us, " he chargeth them with folly;" and pure as heaven itself is in com- parison of this earth, it is " not clean in his sight '".^ But He will …
535 wordsSECTION 313413.] Greatness And Condescension Qf God. 373
1. To adore him — [Frequently does this expression occur in the holy Scrip- tures, " O Lord, who is like unto thee?" And continually should the thought be in our minds. It is impossible to know anv thing of the condescension and grace of God, and not be lost in wonder and in praise. We say not that livelier emotio…
523 wordsSECTION 314374 Psalms, Cxvi. 1 /. [414.
who is infinite. As for his mercy, he most of all is grieved to have that disparaged, because it is the attribute in which he chiefly delights. Whatever then be your sins, or sorrows, or wants, or fears, cast them all on him, and know that you shall never be disappointed : for " as his majesty is, so also is his m…
306 wordsSECTION 315414.] Thanksgiving For Deliverance. 375
Ps. cxvi. 1 — 7. I love the Lord, because he hath heard my voice, and my supplications. Because he hath inclined his ear unto me, therefore ivill I call upon him as long as I live. The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me: I found trouble and sorrow. Then called I upon the name of …
548 wordsSECTION 316376 Psalms, Cxvi. 1 7. [414«
trouble and sorrow^" such as in our present state of carelessness and security we have no conception of. O that we cuuld but bring our hearers to realize that awful hour, when we shall look back upon our mis-spent hours with unavailing regret, and look forward to our great account with fear and trembling, wishing, …
468 wordsSECTION 3174,14'] Thanksgiving For Deliverance. 377.
heart in prayer : but God estimates his prayers, not by their flu- eiicV) but by their sincerity; and tliat which is offered in indistinct and unutterable groans, is as intelligible and as acceptable to him, as if every request were offered in the most measured terms. Prayer thus offered, shall never go forth in va…
668 wordsSECTION 318Grateful Recollections.
Address — [ We now revert to the resolution announced by the Psalmist at the very beginning of the psalm : " Because the Lord has in- clined his ear unto me, therefore will I call upon him as long as I live." This shews how justly he appreciated the Divine goodness ; that he regarded it as an inexhaustible fountai…
665 wordsSECTION 319Grateful Recollections.
But it may be that our souls are in a pardoned state ; and that God lias " taken a live coal from off the altar, and applied it to our lips, saying. Thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin is purged®." If so, what acknowledgments should we make? Verily there can be no circumstances whatever in which such per- so…
352 wordsSECTION 320415.] Grateful Recollections. 381
become occasions of the bitterest pains. If then we have been kept for any time in a good measure of peaceful serenity, we may well account it a rich blessing, for which we are bound to adore and magnify our God, It is not from the dust that either our trials or our comforts spring : and, if God have dealt to us an…
740 wordsSECTION 321415.] Grateful- Recollections. 38.3
3. In a cheerful obedience to his commands — [This is to walk before God in deed and in truth "^ : and to produce this, is the very end of all God's mercies towards us. Surely, if we are in any measure sensible of our obligations to God, we shall not account any of " his commandments grievous." We shall not wish s…
665 wordsSECTION 322How To Requite The Lord For His Mercies.
'Rom. 1,21. ' Ps. xxviii. 5. "Rev. xxi, 4. '^ Gen. xvii. 1, 8S4 PSALMS, CXVI. 12 — 14. [4l0^. Ps. cxvi. 12 — 14. What shall t render imto the Lord fur all his Venefits towards me P I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord. I will pay my vows unto the Lord now in the presence of all his…
362 wordsSECTION 323416.] How To Requite The Lord For His Mercies. 385
ami taste, and smelling, and of feeling also, far more exquisite than ours. But the endowment of reason elevates us far above them all, and puts them all, in some degree at least, in subjec- tion under our feet. In them indeed is instinct, and that too in such perfection as almost to border on the province of reaso…
788 wordsSECTION 324416.] How To Requite The Lord For His Mercies. 387
them to the utmost of our power'': but, in our present state of darkness and ignorance, it is rarely given to men so fully to behold all the wonders of God's love, as to have their organs of vision blinded by the overwhelming splendor of the light : we " see at present only in part :" we " behold things only, as i…
661 wordsSECTION 325388 Psalms, Cxvi. 12 — 14. [416.
of ^ 2 Cor. v. 14, 15. MThess. v. 23. ^Rom.xii. 1. e 1 Cor. vi. 20. '' Lev. vii. 12. Deut. xii. 6, 7, 17, 18. ' Ps. ixv'u 13—16. & cvii. 22. " Matt. xxvi. 27. ' 1 Cor. xi. 25. "'Heb. xiii. 15. " Ps. 1. 13, 14. with Hos, xiv. 2. of all the mercies we have ever received, and be taken by us as a memorial of God's u…
529 wordsSECTION 326The Gentiles Called To Praise God.
[Examine, I beseech you, the returns which you have made : do they not " fill you with shame and confusion of face ?" Are ye not perfectly astonished at your own ingratitude ? Oh ! see what need there is to walk humbly before God. But yet, do not despond. Your " God is able to make all grace abound towards you:" an…
803 wordsSECTION 327417.] The Gen-Tiles Called To Praise God. 391
Should not the whole universe adore our God for this ?] 2. The inviolabihty of his. truth — [Were his truth considered in reference to his threaten- ings, it would be an awful subject indeed : but we are called to notice it at present only in connexion with his promises. All the mercy which God was pleased to vouc…
804 wordsSECTION 328417.] The Gen-Tiles Called To Praise God. 391
Address— 1. Are there any amongst you who have no dis- position to praise the Lord ? [Alas 1 there are too many, who have no delight in this blessed work, and have never spent one hour in it in all their lives I Ah I wretched and ingrate ! What think ye of your- selves ? Are ve not blind, when ye cannot see the p…
372 wordsSECTION 329Ccccxviii.
THE EXALTATION OF CHRIST A GROUND OF CONFIDENCE, Ps. cxviii. 27, 28. God is the Lord which hath shewed 7is light : bind the sacrijice luith cords, even unto the horns of the altar. Thou art my God, and. I will praise thee ^ thou art my God, I will exalt thee. HOWEVER plainly this psalm refers to David, we are su…
751 wordsSECTION 330Ccccxviii.
'1. The sufficiency of his grace — [Even when our blessed Lord was on earth, the whole creation, animate and inanimate, terrestrial and infernal, were obedient to his will : how much more therefore, now that he is exalted to the right hand of the Majesty on high, and has all fulness treasured up in him for the ben…
716 wordsSECTION 331419.] How To Attain Divine Knowledge. 397
Address — • 1. To those who are yet in darkness — [Long was the night with which David was enclosed, inso- much that he sometimes feared he should " one day perish by the hands of Saul :" yet at last the day dawned upon him, and " God shewed him light." Dark also were the dispensations towards » I Chron. xxix. 2…
320 wordsSECTION 332398 Psalms, Cxix. 18. [419.
Ps. cxix. 18. Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law ! THE necessity of Divine teaching, in order to a spiritual acquaintance with the truth of God, is by many denied ; and all expectation of the Holy Spi- rit's influence for that end is derided as enthusiasm. But, however the profa…
576 wordsSECTION 333419.] How To Attain Divine Knowledge. 899
sent or eternal happiness s. And this is exactly such a salvation as is suitable to fallen man. If we were required to add any thing to what Christ has done and suffered for us, in order to render it sufficient for our salvation, what could we add ? What have we of our own, but sin ? The more any one knows of him- …
471 wordsSECTION 334400 Psalms, Cxix. 18. [419.
lean to their own understanding, he derides p, and will communi- cate to " babes the things which he conceals from the wise and prudent ''." True it is, that God uses both the written and preached word as the means of conveying instruction : but the due reception of that instruction he ascribes to the operation of …
450 wordsSECTION 335The Wisdom Of True Piety.
let me intreat you to seek above all things to behold the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ, even that glory which He only who commanded light to shine out of darkness can make known unto you^ ] 2. To those who, though incapable of entering cri- tically into the letter of the Scriptures, have yet, through …
362 wordsSECTION 336Vol. Iv. D D
402 PSALMS, cxix. 34. [420. ledge alone had been the end for which David desired a spiritual illumination : " Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law." But we see in our text, that he had far other ends in view : he longed for knowledge, only that he might have his soul the more enla…
408 wordsSECTION 337420.] Wisdom Of True Piety. 403
lower any command to the standard of man's opinion, or of our own wishes, is seen to be the most horrible infatuation : for, if we can deceive man, we cannot deceive God : " to him all things are naked and open/' As he knows the extent of his own com- mands, so he knows the precise measure of obedience which we pa…
760 wordsSECTION 338421.] Hindrance Of Worldly Vanities. 405
2. Those who profess to be endued with true wisdom — [If " God have given us an understanding," then we must evidence it by the purity of our hearts and lives. But many there are, who can talk very fluently and speciously about religion, who yet are very far from being wise in the sight of God. Hear the judgment …
255 wordsSECTION 339Ccccxxi.
THE VANITIES OF THIS WORLD AN OBSTACLE TO SPIRITUAL PROGRESS. Ps. cxix. 37. Titrn away mine eyes from beholding vanity ; and quicken thou me in thy luay. THE depths of the human heart are never more plainly disclosed, than when a man comes into the presence of his Maker. Then he opens all his wants, and supplica…
717 wordsSECTION 340Ccccxxi.
have. " Luke xxi. 34. •" Gal. v. 17. 421.} HINDRAlSrCE OF WORLDLY VANITIES. 407 have found to their cost, that one sinful idea, which they have either seen in a book or picture, or heard in conversation, has abode with them tlu'ough Hfe, when they have greatly desired to forget it ; whilst hundreds of sermons whi…
654 wordsSECTION 341Ccccxxi.
Christ has wrought out for us ) , and the blessedness of the end to which it leads. This will quicken us more than any thing else. Let us see the excellency of a life of faith; and that will make us despise the things of sense. Let us also get Pisgah views of the land of Canaan ; and we shall value nothing that ca…
383 wordsSECTION 342Ccccxxii.
SERIOUS AND Sl>EEDY CONVERSION TO GOD RECOM- MENDED. Ps. cxix. 59, 60. I thought on my ways, and turned my feet unto thy testimonies. I made haste, and delayed not to keep thy commandments. AT what period of David's life these words were written, we are not informed : if in his early youth, they relate to his fi…
732 wordsSECTION 343422.] Speedy Conversion Recommended. 411
In this however there should be no delay: we ■should all address ourselves to this work, JL With promptitude and decision — Next to utter thoughtlessness is the evil of pro- crastination— [There are none so blind as not to know that they have some occasion for repentance, or so hardened as to have formed a de- t…
662 wordsSECTION 344422.] Speedy Conversion Recommended. 411
2. Fidelity in acting — [Were a traveller, after long and laborious search, to find the true way to the place whither he was journeying, he would re- trace his steps, and proceed in the path which led to the place of his destination. It might be less pleasant than his former path ; but still he would walk in it. S…
254 wordsSECTION 345•423.] The Goodness Of God, 413
Ps. cxix. 68. Thou art good, and doest good : teach me thy statutes. THE perfections of God, if considered only in a speculative view, must excite our admiration ; but, if contemplated in reference to our state and con- duct. duct, tliey will be to us a source of unspeakable comfort, and a spring of incessant ac…
690 wordsSECTION 346The Benefit Of Affliction.
2. Our defects— [We are naturally averse to acknowledge our vileness and wickedness. But a sight of the Divine goodness softens the mind, and renders it ingenuous. Hence the more we are ac- quainted with God, the more we know of ourselves; and the more we have experienced of his love, the more we abhor our- selve…
856 wordsSECTION 347The Benefit Of Affliction.
3. It drives us to God in prayer — [Those who never called upon God in the time of their prosperity, are often stirred up to seek him in a season of adver- sity. " In their affliction," says God, " they will seek me early '^ :" and to the same effect the Prophet testifies, *' Lord, in trouble have they visited the…
592 wordsSECTION 348Vol. Iv. E E
418 PSALMS, cxix. 71. [424. Divine perfections, regret the sufferings which had been overruled for that end ? Did he not rather abhor himself for having judged too hastily respecting the designs of God ; and cordially approve of those dispensations, which in his haste he had been ready to condemn ? Thus shall we a…
695 wordsSECTION 349Vol. Iv. E E
2. To those that are under any great affliction — [The rod under which you suffer, has a voice, to which you should listen with all possible attention'". It is sent to you in love and mercy. God designs to teach you, by means of it, many things which you would not so well learn without it. It may be that you are a…
306 wordsSECTION 350The Loving-Kindness Of God.
420 PSALMS, cxix. 76. [425>i' ccccxxv. Ps. cxix. 76. Let, I pray thee, thy merciful kindness he for my comfort, according to thy word, to thy servant ! THE peculiar construction of this psalm forbids us to look for much connexion between its several parts. It is composed of short detached sentences, committed to…
341 wordsSECTION 351425.] The Loving-Kindness Of God. 421
compared with religion in point of efficacy. That may silence murmurs, and produce a reluctant submission ; but this will turn trials into an occasion of joy and glorying**.] 3. That a comfortable sense of it is the privilege of all the Lord's people — [God promises " his Holy Spirit unto all them that ask him." …
421 wordsSECTION 352The True Test Of Religion In The Soul.
3. Because, if it be not to our comfort, it will be, in a most awful manner, to our discomfort — [It is no light matter to abuse the merciful kindness of God. The day is coming, when every mercy we have received, must be accounted for ; and when " it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah than for those" wh…
338 wordsSECTION 353426.] True Test Of Religion In The Soul. 423
Now the genuine fruit of piety is as clearly exhi- bited in the words before us, as in any part of the Inspired Volume: and the passage is peculiarly worthy notice, because in the writer of it were combined the fullest conviction of the understanding, together with the strongest affections of the heart : in his j…
349 wordsSECTION 354424 Psalms, Cxix. 128. [426.
various classes of Protestants also will manifest an ardent zeal for the support of their respective tenets, and be almost ready to anathematize each other, as not giving sufficient weight to those particular pas- sages, on which they severally found their respective differences. They not only esteem their own gro…
378 wordsSECTION 355426.] True Test Of Religion In The Soul. 425
and temper, his conversation and conduct, *• walking in all things as he walked." Nor does he particularly affect those precepts which require much self-denial. " To crucify the flesh with the affections and lusts," and to root out from his soul every evil, though it be dear to him "as a right eye," or necessary …
743 wordsSECTION 356426.] True Test Of Religion In The Soul. 427
Nor is the true Christian less dehghted with the moral moral precepts, not one of which would he desire to have relaxed or moderated in the smallest degree. Instead of wishing them to be lowered to the stan- dard of his attainments, or regarding them as grievous on account of their purity, he loves them for their…
759 wordsSECTION 357426.] True Test Of Religion In The Soul. 42^
Christ Christ as his only hope, and to watch and pray the more diligently, that he may be preserved from evil, and be enabled by Divine grace to endure unto the end. Now this description of the Christian's character reflects, (as we proposed in the lid place to shew,) The most important light on the Gospel of C…
346 wordsSECTION 358430 Psalms, Cxix. 128. [426".
into our text, and see what David's principles were : Of all the Old-Testament saints, there was not one who more determinately sought to be justified by the righteousness of Christ without any works of his own, than he. Hear what is said of him by St. Paul, in confirmation of the very sentiments which Paul him- …
360 wordsSECTION 359426.] True Test Of Religion In The Soul. 431
** professed to know God, but in works denied him/* And it must be expected, that, corrupt as human na- ture is, such characters will be found in every age. But is such conduct the necessary result of these principles ? Was it so in the Apostle's days ? or is it so at this day ? If justification by faith alone be …
832 wordsSECTION 360426.] True Test Op Religion In The Soul. 433
the the law that it is good :" and again, " I delight in the law of God after the inward man !" He does, it is true, speak of himself as " dead to the law ;" and of the law as dead with respect to him ; and from thence, that the marriage bonds, by which the law and we were formerly united, are for ever dissolved.…
776 wordsSource & rights
Public domain historical edition (1819); scan/OCR from Internet Archive.
Project Gutenberg source record →
Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.