equally of progress in good or evil. ll'nto all. question-What does ab-ro,srefer to? It seems 'l'he H.T. re1Lcls ,raow for Iv ""'"" in the to me neceesBrily to refer to what immediatel11 '1'.R., which mBy be rendered either" to for, precedes, viz. 11<au.-tj Kai Tfi B,80.tT1CaA!11, and 'umo11g '] nil persons" or "in Bll things." eo to refer rather to lhe sense of the words Ver. 16.-7'0 for unto, A.V. (twice); thy than to the exact grarnme.r. The things teaching for the doctrine, A.V.; these things which he was to "take heed to" were his for lhem, A. V. : sa11e both for both save, A. V. own conduct and example (included in Take heed (t..-•x•); as in Acts iii. 5 (see too tT<avrtj) and the doctrine which he preached; Luke xiv. 1). Thy teaching. The A.V., and in e. steady continuance in these things the doctrine, 1;i the better rendering. though -faithful living and faithful teaching- the difference of meaning i. very slig-ht. he would save both himself and bis hearers. The use of -1, B,Ba111Ca>,.la in eh. vi. l and 3 The application of the words to the Tavra and Titus ii. 10 strongly supports the sense of ver. 15, or to all the things enumerated of "doctrine," i.e. the thing taugl,t (see from ver. 12 onwards, or, taken as a mascu- note on ver. 13). Continue in these things line, to the Ephesiiana, or the hearers, as (~,rlµ.•v• a~To,s); comp. Acts xiii. 43; Rom. variously proposed by eminent commentaton, vi. l ; :ri. 22, 23; Col. i. 23. It ie impos- seems alike impossible. sible to give e. satisfactory solution to the
HOMILETICS. Vera. 1-16.-Latter-day apostasies. The history of the Christian Church is the history of the sowing of tares as well as of the sowing of good grain; and it describes the work of seducing spirit~ as well as that of the Spirit of God. The work of heresy is not merely the denial of true doctrine, but it is the invention and propagation of a. multitude of false doctrines. Nor, again, are the false doctrines so invented and promulgated., on the face of them, necessarily ungodly doctrines. On the contrary, they often assume to themselves to be holier, stricter, more heavenly doctrines, than those of the Church of God. The Church of God is not holy enough for these spirit-taught separatists; the precepts of Jesus Christ do not attain a standard high enough for their exalted aspira- tions; the apostles do but grovel in the dust of co=onplace piety, while these self-sent teachers soar to the heights of the true knowledge of the Infinite! But not only does Church history record the rise, in a lamentable succession, of the various troublers of the spiritual Israel, the men who have done more to hinder God's work on earth than all. the persecutors and atheists put together have accomplished-the Cerinthuses, and Marcions, and Montanuses, and Manicheuses; and Socinuses, and countless other sectaries of later times-but the spirit of prophecy revealed beforehand for the Church's warning that so it should be. 'l'he Holy Ghost, in no obscure or doubtful words, made it known to the Church that there would be apostasies many and grievous from the faith once delivered to the saints, that the leaders of those apostasies would be seducing spirits-spirits of antichrist, as St. John ha.sit-and that some of them at least would put on the hypocritical appearance of greater holiness, for the purpose of the better deceiving the heart~ of the simple. Thus while Christ taught by his apostle that "marriage is honourable in all," these forbade to marry; while the Word of God declared that II every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received witl thanksgiving," these commanded "to abstain from meats," saying, "Touch not, taste not, handle not." The Word of God teaches that God gives us richly all things to enjoy; these enjoined every kind of austerity to the body-" bodily exercises" which profited little. The Word. of God bids us approach bodily to the throne of grace through the mediation of Jesus Christ; these would keep men back from God, and substitute, in the name of humility, the worship of angels. And that these pernicious doctrines were not confined to the first ages of the Church, the history of the Church too sadly teaches. The most opposite forms of heresy which have in all ages distracted the Church have always had this in common, that, pretending to improve upon the sound, sober, e.nd wise teaching of the Word of God, they haYe corrupted and forsaken it. Enforced celibacy for pure-minded chastity; artificial rules of abstinence for habitual temperance and self-restraint; grovelling saint and image worship for direct communion with the living God; self-righteous separation from the world for holy living in the world; bruising the body for mortifying the soul; pretentious rejection of wealth for aelf-denying use of it; leaving the state of life in which God ha.a placed II man, inste&l 12 THE FIRST EPISTLE Tu TIMOTHY. (0B, IV, 1-16,
,,_f Bdorning the gospel in it; making those things to be sine which God hM not made ~ms, and those things to be virtues which God has not made virtues •-theRe have ever been the characteristics of those "doctrines of devils," the purpose df which is to tum the simple a.way from the truth. "The good minister of Jesus Christ" must hold his cou!'Be boldly and straightforwardly in the teeth of all such false doctrine. He must not parley with the teachers of heresy, nor mix the wine of the gospel with the water of fe.le£hood. He knows that the Word of God ie purer, a.n,l holier and wiser and higher, than all the subt)eties of ~uman invention, an~ will _stand i~ its glory ~hen they a.re all sw~pt away mto nothmgnes,. And, knowmg this, be must give himself wholly to teaching_ the tru~h, whet~er men will hear or whether they will forbear, being fully assured that rn so doing he will both save himself and them that hear him.