Ver. 15.-0redulity. It is the constant habit of religious teachers to encourage faith, and to regard scepticism and unbelief as evil things. Are we, then, to suppose that credulity is meritorious, o.nd that all doubt, inquiry, suspense of miud, and rejection of bold assertions are bad? According to this view, truth would be of no importance. It would be as well to believe error as truth, and to swallow superstition wholesale would be a mark of superior piety. There are not wanting critics who scornfnll_v ascribe habits of this character to Christia.us-identifying faith with credulity, a.ud 280 'l'BE PROVERBS. Lorr. xiv. 1-35.
charging the believer with folly. No doubt the extravagant utterances of some Chris- tian people have given much excuse for this libel; e.g. the assertion of Anselm," Credo q1:ia non intelligo." But such utterances are not justified by Scripture or Christian wisdom. I. OBSERVE THE NATURE OF 0REDULITY. When a person is too hasty in believing without sufficient reason, and especially when he accepts statements on slight authority in op~osition to a rati~n~l view, we call him c:edulous. Credulity is just a disposition to believe without sufficient ground. 1. It springs from mental wealcness. It is a. mark of childishness, while faith is a. sign of childlikeness. 'l'he feeble mind is credulous, Faith is virile, credulity anile. 2. It is favoured by prejudice. The credulous person is unduly ready to believe according to his desires. So men say, "The wish is father to the thought." 3. It is increased by fear, which paralyzes the reasoning faculties and inclines people to believe in the most absurd impossibility. The terrors of superstition ensnare the credulous. II. CONSIDER THE EVIL OF 0REDULITY. 1. It dishonours truth. When a. person shows indifference to the vital question as to whether what he believes is true or false, he displays a fatal disloyalty to truth. For truth will not endure an admixture of false- hoods. Therefore those very people who vainly imagine themselves to be the loyal and humble servants of the whole round of truths are the very persons who undermine the sanctity of truth itself. 2. lt tempts to fatal acts. Men act according to their beliefs. If they believe lies, they will have the practical side of their lives flung into confusion. Truth is a beacon-light; error sheds a false glare, like that of a wrecker's lamp on a rock-bound coast. It is dangerous to accept delusions of superstition with fatuous credulity. Life is real and earnest, and men need true lights to guiJe them Ea.fely. III. NoTE THE REMEDY OF 0BEDULITY. 1. This is not to be found in unlimited scepticism. The sceptic is often the slave of foolish fancies. Escapin:; from Christian faith, perhaps he falls into spiritualism or some other equally wild delusion. 2. Unbelief' is not the remedy; for unbelief is but the reverse of faith. Indeed, it is negative faith. It is believing the negative of those propositions concerning which faith believes the affirmative. 3. .Agnosticism is not the remedy; for a.gnosticism is more than a con- fession of ignorance; it is an assertion that knowledge in certain regions is unattain- a hlc. Thus it is dogmatic and possibly credulous. 4. The remedy lies in well-grounded faith. We must learn lessons of patience, and be willing at first to creep along step by ,;tep. We need not wait to say, with Abelard, "Credo quia intelligo," for we may accept mysteries which we cannot explain. But we need to be satisfied that we have good ground for doing so. Fundamentally, a. wise Christian faith is trust in Christ, resting on an intelligent ground of assurance-that he is trustworthy. Ver. 30.-.A quiet spirit. Translate the first clause of the verse thus: "The life of the body is a quiet spirit." I. THE CHARACTERISTICS OF A QUIET SPIRIT, The habit and disposition of quiet- ness need not be accompanied by torpor. There is, indeed, a quietness of sleep, as there is also a silence of the grave. But in the passage before us the quiet spirit is directly connected with life. The body may be busy while the spirit is quiet; nay, the mind may be nimble and alert, even full of activity, while yet the spirit is at rest. Observe, then, the marks of a quiet spirit. 1. Peace. '!'here is peace within the soul, and therefore quiet. The turbulent spirit is like a mutinous crew that may make tumult on board the ship while the sea is a.a still as glass, and the peaceful spirit is like a well-conducted crew that works in quiet while the sea is torn with tempest. 2. Patience. The quiet spirit does not complain under chastisement, nor does it angrily resent unkindness. The psalmist was "dumb" under calamity. Christ was led as a lamb to the slaughter (Isa. liii. 7). 3. Unostentatiousness. Some give more show than service, and make more noise than profit. Eager 1:0 ~ttrac_t. attention, the;y "_sound a trumpet before them" (Matt. vi. 2). Not so the quiet m spmt, who labour Ill silence, content to be obscure so long as they know they a.re not living in vain. II. THE BLESSEDNESS OF A QUIET SPIRIT, It is here set forth as a source of life. No doubt fretful restlessness wears out the life of the bad. Placidity makes for health. Moreover, the life that is dissipated in noise produces no good, and therefore does no, coiltct ihe meaus of its ow11 support, 'l'he quiet i11 spirit best make a livelihood. CII, XIV, 1-35,] THE PROVERB:,, 281