severe. But let any one examine all its prohibitions and all its commands, and he will find them all amounting in fact to these two; "Do thyself no harm;" and, "Seek to be as happy as thy heart can wish." If there be any thing in the Gospel which bears a different aspect, it is owing entirely to our ignorance of its real import. The more thoroughly the Gospel is understood, the more worthy of acceptation will it invariably appear.]
The only true reason is, that they " hate the light" —
[Till men are truly converted to God, " their deeds are
universally evil ;" yea " every imagination of the thoughts of
their hearts is evil, only evil, continually." Now the Gospel
is a light which shews their deeds in their proper colours.
It reproves their ways. — They have been " calling good evil, and evil good ; and putting bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter." In reference to these things, it undeceives them. It declares plainly, that they who do such things as they have done, and perhaps have accounted innocent, shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
It mortifies their pride. — It not only shews them that they are obnoxious to the wrath of God, but that they are incapable of averting his displeasure by any thing which they themselves can do. It brings down the proud Pharisee, and places him on a level with publicans and harlots. It requires every man to acknowledge himself a debtor to divine grace for every good thing that he either has or hopes for. All this is extremely humiliating to our proud nature.
It inculcates duties which they are unwilling to perform. — Humility and self-denial, renunciation of the world and devoted- ness to God, enduring of shame and glorying in the cross ; these, and many other duties, it enjoins, which to our carnal and corrupt nature are hateful in the extreme : yet the Gospel inculcates them with a strictness not to be lowered, a plainness not to be misinterpreted, and an authority not to be withstood.
These, these are the grounds on which the Gospel is rejected. If it would admit of persons following their own ways, or of their accommodating its precepts to their own views or interests, they would give it a favourable reception. But as it requires all to be cast into the very mould which it has formed, and will tolerate not the smallest wilful deviation from its rules, it is, and must be, odious in the eyes of the ungodly : " they love darkness rather than it ; nor will they come to it, lest their deeds should be reproved."]
A just view of these things will prepare us for contemplating, III. Their guilt and danger in rejecting it —
1(312.] men's hatred of the light. ^67
Doubtless every kind of sin will be a ground of " condemnation." But men's hatred of the light is that which chiefly, and above all other things,
1. Aggravates their guilt — ■
[The Gospel is a most wonderful provision for the salva- tion of fallen man. It is the brightest display of Divine wisdom, and the most stupendous effort of Divine goodness. The rejection of this therefore, especially as proceeding from a hatred of it, argues such a state of mind as no words can adequately express. The malignity of such a disposition rises in proportion to the excellence of the Gospel itself. We pre- sume not to weigh the comparative guilt of men and devils, because the Scriptures have not given us sufficient grounds whereon to institute such a comparison : but the guilt of those who reject the Gospel far exceeds that of the heathen world : the wickedness of Tyre and Sidon, yea, of Sodom and Gomorrha, was not equal to that of the unbelieving Jews : nor was the guilt of those Jews, who rejected only the warnings of the pro- phets, comparable to that of those who despised the ministry of our Lord. In like manner, they who live under the meri- dian light of the Gospel in this day will have still more, if possible, to answer for, than the hearers of Christ himself; because his work and offices are now more fully exhibited, and more generally acknowledged. And in the day of judg- ment the Gospel will be as a millstone round the neck of those who rejected it : not having been a savour of life unto their salvation, it will be a savour of death unto their more aggra- vated condemnation.]