Hence, therefore, a child of God should refuse to be yoked with an unbeliever, whether for a domestic, a commercial, or a religious object, simply because God tells him to be separate, and not because of his own personal holiness. The carrying out of this principle in matters of religion will necessarily involve much trial and sorrow; it will be termed intolerance, bigotry, narrow-mindedness, exclusiveness, and such like; but we cannot help all this. Provided we keep ourselves separate upon a right principle and in a right spirit, we may safely leave all results with God. No doubt the remnant in the days of Ezra must have appeared excessively intolerant in refusing the co-operation of the surrounding people in building the house of God, but they acted upon divine principle in the refusal. "Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the children of the captivity builded the temple unto the Lord God of Israel, then they came to Zerubbabel, and to the chief of the fathers, and said unto them, 'Let us build with you; for we seek your God as ye do; and we do sacrifice unto Him, since the days of Esar-haddon, king of Assur, which brought us up hither.'" This might seem a very attractive proposal--a proposal evidencing a very decided leaning toward the God of Israel; yet the remnant refused, because the people, notwithstanding their fair profession, were, at heart, uncircumcised and hostile. "But Zerubbabel and Jeshua and the rest of the chief of the fathers of Israel said unto them, 'Ye have nothing to do _with us_ to build a house unto _our_ God; but _we ourselves together_ will build unto the Lord God of Israel." (Ezra iv. 1-3.) They would not yoke themselves with the uncircumcised--they would not "plow with an ox and ass"--they would not "sow their field with mingled seed"--they kept themselves separate, even though by so doing they exposed themselves to the charge of being a bigoted, narrow-minded, illiberal, uncharitable set of people.
So also in Nehemiah we read, "And the seed of Israel _separated themselves_ from all strangers, and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers." (Chap. ix. 2.) This was not sectarianism, but positive obedience. Their separation was essential to their existence as a people. They could not have enjoyed the divine presence on any other ground. Thus it must ever be with God's people on the earth. They must be separate, or else they are not only useless, but mischievous. God cannot own or accompany them if they yoke themselves with unbelievers, upon any ground or for any object whatsoever. The grand difficulty is to combine a spirit of intense separation with a spirit of grace, gentleness, and forbearance; or, as another has said, "to maintain _a narrow circle_ with _a wide heart_." This is really a difficulty. As the strict and uncompromising maintenance of _truth_ tends to narrow the circle around us, we shall need the expansive power of _grace_ to keep the heart wide, and the affections warm. If we contend for _truth_ otherwise than in _grace_, we shall only yield a one-sided and most unattractive testimony. And on the other hand, if we try to exhibit grace at the expense of truth, it will prove, in the end, to be only the manifestation of a popular liberality at God's expense--a most worthless thing.
Then, as to the object for which real Christians usually yoke themselves with those who, even on their own confession, and in the judgment of charity itself, are not Christians at all, it will be found in the end that no really divine and heavenly object can be gained by an infringement of God's truth. _Per fas aut nefas_[20] can never be a divine motto. The means are not sanctified by the end; but both means and end must be according to the principles of God's holy Word, else all must eventuate in confusion and dishonor. It might have appeared to Jehoshaphat a very worthy object to recover Ramoth Gilead out of the hand of the enemy; and moreover, he might have appeared a very liberal, gracious, popular, large-hearted man, when, in reply to Ahab's proposal, he said, "I am as thou art, and my people as thy people; and _we will be with thee_ in the war." It is easy to be liberal and large-hearted at the expense of divine principle; but how did it end? Ahab was killed, and Jehoshaphat narrowly escaped with his life, having made total shipwreck of his testimony.
[20] By any means.