Rom. viii. 9. If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is
none of his.
THE Jewish religion, by the express command of its Divine Author, would not admit of any relaxation of its principles, or any departure from its established ordinances. Not only did it prohibit any connexion with idolaters, but it forbade even the mention of the name of any false god. In all its appointments, it formed so broad a line of separation between the Jews and the rest of the world, that it was considered by the Gentiles as inspiring its followers with an utter hatred of all the human race. The New Tes- tament has, to a certain degree, shared amongst the heathen the same universal antipathy, and upon the same grounds. If the religion of the Lord Jesus would have admitted of any union with idolatry, he would have been readily received amongst the objects of worship which the Romans venerated ; and his religion, instead of being universally proscribed, would have been judged worthy of general respect. But the Apostles were commanded to preach the Gospel every where, as requiring an exclusive regard; and to enforce it with this authoritative declaration, that " all who believed and embraced it should be saved, but that all who embraced it not should be damned*." Its doctrines were inculcated as so sacred, that "if even an angel from heaven should attempt
a Mark xvi. lfi.
22i ROMANS, VIII. 9. [1864.
to establish any position contrary to them, he should be held accursed V This inflexible spirit pervades the whole of our religion, so far as it relates to its fundamental truths. Every man must yield to it at his peril : and not to those parts only which are commended to us by our reason, but to those parts also which depend entirely on revelation, and to which reason is constrained to bow. Not to mention innumerable other passages which partake of this unbending character, I will take that which forms the subject of our present series : " If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." Here is a declaration so broad, so explicit, so determinate, as to admit of no qualification, no exception whatever. To it every child of man must submit ; and " who- ever shall stumble over it as a rock of offence, shall be broken ; and on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder0." Taking for granted that you have, agreeably to my request, examined carefully for yourselves my text in connexion with the context, and that you see my interpretation of it to be cor- rect (for " the Spirit of Christ," mentioned in my text, cannot by any possibility be understood as meaning the disposition of Christ), I proceed, with all humility, to the further consideration of the awful truth which I have undertaken to develope.
Now, whether we could shew the reasonableness of this declaration or not, it would be our bounden duty to receive it with implicit confidence, and to regard it as the avowed and unalterable determination of the Most High. But I think it may be clearly shewn, that this is by no means an arbitrary appoint- ment, resulting merely from the sovereign will of God. It appears to be rather a declaration founded on the actual state of man as a fallen creature. When man was in his primeval state of holiness, in himself complete, he needed neither a Saviour to work out a redemption for him, nor the Holy Spirit to apply that redemption to him. But, as a fallen creature, he stands in need of both. A Redeemer is necessary for
b Gal. i. 8, 9. c Matt. xxi. 44.