It is not by the power of human eloquence that he must prevail —
[Human eloquence is good in its place : but it can add nothing to the truth of God. On the contrary, it rather takes from the power of God's word, than adds any thing to it ; just as any efforts of man to augment by paint the brilliancy of a diamond, would only, in the issue, obscure its lustre. There is a majesty in the word of God, which we may ener- vate, but can never augment.]
It is by the simple statement of the Gospel, as revealed in the sacred records —
[The words of Scripture have a power which no words of man can attain. And, though it is not necessary that they should be used on every occasion, they must always be the foundation of what we assert, and must always be referred to in confirmation of it. St. Paul " compared spiritual things with spiritual :" he had to unfold spiritual truths ; and he referred to what the Spirit of God had previously revealed, as containing the substance of all that he promulgated. Did he set forth Jesus as the Messiah ? He referred to the prophe- cies which had announced his advent, and were fulfilled in him. Did he expatiate upon the work and offices of Christ? He referred to those typical institutions which had been appointed to shadow them forth. Thus, in like manner, must we do ; particularly pointing out the spiritual provisions of the Gospel as suited to the spiritual necessities of man. It is this kind of statement which alone succeeds to any great extent. God might, if he pleased, render more partial statements effectual; and on some occasions he does: but for the most
* £(£ ov iraptCodfjre tvttov ^iSa-)(rjg. Rom. vi. 17.
92 1 CORINTHIANS, ii. i2, IX [J^^l.
part, it is by an exhibition of the Gospel as a remedy, that he chief y ivorks for the sahation of man. The state of man, as fallen, must be fully opened : his guilt and danger and help- lessness must be set forth with all fidelity : then must the Saviour be proclaimed, as making a full atonement for our sins, as bringing in for us an everlasting righteousness, and as supplying out of his own fulness all that our utmost necessities can require. This is the doctrine to which the Holy Ghost bears testimony, and which he uses as a seal, to stamp the diviue image on our souls. A striking instance of this may be seen when Peter opened this Gospel to the Jews^; and again, when he also first opened it to the Gentiles. On the latter occasion, when he had said, " To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins," it is particularly noted, "Tf7ie7i Peter spake these tvords, the Holy Ghost fell on all them that heard the word^." And we also can bear testi- mony, that he does yet set his seal to these blessed truths, and make use of them for the consolation and salvation of those who hear them.]
From this subject we may learn,
1. How to judge of our knowledge of divine things — [A /ieac?-knowledge of them may be obtained from books: but a heart-knowledge, if I may so speak, can be acquired only by the teaching of the Holy Spirit. We should care- fully inquire, therefore, of what kind our knowledge is. If it be such as man can impart, it is not that which will prove of saving benefit to our souls. But it may be asked, ' If the subject matter be the same, how shall I distinguish between human teaching and divine V I answer, The distinction can be known only by experience. Suppose a person who had constantly seen the sun, but never felt its beams, were told, that a man exposed to the action of its rays had a totally dif- ferent perception of the sun from any which a mere sight of it would produce : he could not enter fully into the distinc- tion, as the person could, who felt the genial warmth of the sun : and so a person, unacquainted with the operations of the Spirit upon the soul would have a very inadequate idea of the experience of one who felt them, even though we should labour ever so much to make him comprehend it. But yet, methinks, you will not be altogether at a loss to comprehend the distinction, if I say, that the truths of the Gospel, when received from man only, abide in the mind much in the same way as any speculative subject does ; whereas, when applied to tiic soul by the Spirit of God, they produce a feeling