The Pulpit Commentary — 2 Corinthians — Section 21

God h&S holiness upon the heart-t.hrone. "Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts ; and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom . . . . Create in mo a clean heart, 0 God; and renew a right spirit within me" (Ps. Ii. 6-10). Holiness must begin In the heart; a holiness. tacked on to us goes for very little. Many com- mence with outward reformation, when what they need is inward. The holiness of not a few is very indiffei·ent fruit hung on to the branches of a dead tree. It is tho pushing round of the bands of a clock which has no works behind the dial-plate. Mere external holiness is of nothing worth; God looks upon the heart. External saint- ship is the most miserable of shams. II. HOLINESS IN THOUGHT. Some pass for holy livers who are very unholy thinkers. But i! the_ he:i,rt be pure t~e th_oughts are likely to be: Christ attached the same guilt to evil thmking as to evil domg (Matt. v. 28). It 1s not what we do, but what we want to do! Moreover, evil thinking is the father of evil doing. A child of God may be overtaken by a fault, sudden temptation may carry him away ; but to think evil to plan or purpose evil, is against the genius of his life. We should watch carefully our thoughts. III. HoLTh"ESS IN WOBD. No man could tame the tongue, so God came to tame it. The true saint is pure in speech. The true saint speaks holily, not cantingly. When- ever a man speaks after a sanctimonious, shuffling, canting fashion, he is speaking under the inspiration of the devil. Some religious talking is peculiarly unholy· it sickenB and disgusts; it is enough to turn the stomach of leviathan. But those ,~ho thus talk think they are infinitely pious, imagining probably that God Almiahty O measures bis people's faces to ascertain bow much grace there is in their hearts and accounts them holy in proportion to their ability to pour forth unmeaning, impertinent or pretentious twaddle. We should speak holily, and then we shall be as far removed as we possibly can be from speaking sanctimoniously. And we should remember the power of words. IV. HoLTh"ESS IN DEED. Onr actions will, as a general rule, show what we are, especially our unstudied actions. The true child of liod is not only holy in profession, but in practice. 'fhe good tree will bring forth good fruit. Men judge us chiefly by what we do. The saint desiring the honour of God will let his light so shine that men may see his good works, and thus be led to glorify the Father in heaven. We shall not persuade either man or God that we a,•e saints unless we act as saints. A secret holiness is no holiness. If we alone know that we are holy, we may be quite sure that we are unholy. V. HoLINEsB IN THE BPIBIT OF THE LIFE. The child of God is to have the fragrance of holiness pervading his life. The general bent of his life will be holy. To aid in the attainment of holiness we have : 1. A Pattern. Christ. Ho was "without fault." We are to seek to be like him. "As he which bath called you is holy, so be ye holy" (1 Pet. i. 15). 2. .A Helper. The Holy Ghost. To (1) dwell within ns ; (2) sanctify us; (3) aid us in every emergency. Without h,>liness our prospect is dark; for "without holiness no man shall see the Lord" (Heb. xii. 14).-H. Vers. 3-7.-True CMT1,jort. I. 1TB SOURCE. God. Some seek comfort in reflecting that their case is no worse than that of others, that things will improve, that "it can't be helped ; " in attempted forgetfulness; in exciting and dissipating pleasures; in unmeasured complaint and repining. But the child of God goeij to his Father. God is the God of comfort; be is "the God of all comfort" (ver. 3). All true com- fort is of him. From God as "the Father of mercies" (ver. 3). All mercies are of him, and this great mercy of comfort amongst others. Comfort is a mei·cy; it is of grace, not of right. Our sin has bred our sorrow, and we might have hecn left to it. But through the mercy of God we have abundant solace. As our comfort comes through mercy, we are not surprised to fin~ that it.comes" through C(iri~t" (ver. 5), the incarnation of the mercy of the Most High. It 1s of the God who 1s ' the Father of our Lord J1,sus Christ" (ver. 3). It is thus associ11ted with our redemption. It is fur those who can say "our Lord Jesus Christ ; " his Father is then their F11tber. God's children shall be comforted; for they are the children of the One who is the sole :-iource of all true comfort. IJ. ITS Bl!:~TOWAL. lt ll-Ome~ t9 us when Dl9St Qeiided, 1, In afflictirm, 'fPII cu. r. 1-24.] THE SECOND EPISTLE TO THE CORINTHIANS. 21