The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Peter — Section 148

must try to please him and to do his will. His will is that we should love one another that we should speak no guile, that we should follow after peace. Let those wh~ w011ld l!ve a ~odly li~e try daily to bring home. to their hearts the thought that the eye of God 1s readmg their souls; that thought will make us humble aud contented, will ~a Ye us from the countless temptations that surround us, will keep us from breaking, by word or deed, the holy law of love. That searching eye is upon the ricrhteous and the wicked; it found among the crowd of guests the one unhappy man wh~ had not on a wedding garment; it pierces through the outside of pretence and hypocrisy down into the very heart. Let us not shrink from bringing this grcat truth to bear upon our lives; let us v,alk before God, as Abraham did, knowing that our whole inward life of thought, as well as the outward life of word and action, lies mapped out clear and plain to bis all-seeing eye. That thought will give solemn meaning, depth of purpose, dignity to the most commonplace life. And it will give strength; for the Lord'::1 ear is open to the prayer of the righteous; he hears those who come before him in that righteousness which is through faith in Christ; in answer to tp.eir prayer he gives his Eol~ Spirit, and mth that Holy Spirit comes the gift of a higher life, the gift of strength and energy, and that best g,ft of all, holy heavenly love. III. THE DUTY OF PATIE~CE ~ SUFFERING. 1. The true Christian cannot be really hurt by external troubles. If we are zealous of what is good, no one can harm us. In truth a man can be really hurt only by himself, through his own consent; for those who suffer for righteousness' sake are blessed; their suffering does them no real harm; it is turned by the grace of God into a blessing. Suffering is a test of our religion; it shows what it is worth. The mere outward semblance of religion fails under it; deep spiritual religion grows brighter and more refined in the furnace of affliction. But only true religion can endure that searching fire. True religion is zealous, fervent, gromn~; it cannot be lukewarm; it zealously seeks everything that is really good, zealously supports every good work. The true Christian cannot be hurt by external troubles, for they will only deepen and purify that religion which is the life of his soul, the joy of his heart. Sickness, pain, poverty-any trouble meekly borne, is blessed to the soul's inward happiness; but especially blessed is that suffering which is borne for righteousness' sake. When a man is content to suffer voluntarily in the cause of truth and righteousness, he is brought very near to Christ the Lord, for he is imitating his example, sharing bis cross. The kingdom of heaven is his, for he is very near to the King; and the King dwelleth in bis heart, filling him with his sacred presence. 2. .Advice to suffering Christians. (1) Jn their relations to God. '!'hey must not fear, they must not allow themselves to be distressed and agitated by surrounding troubles. Restless excitement is destructive of that tranquillity which is the characteristio Christian temper. And the antidote to anxious fear is the hallowing presence of the Lord within us. The apostle bids us, especially in times of trouble and anxiety, to sanctify the Lord Christ in our hearts. 'l'he Christian heart should be a sanctuary, cleansed and purified for his indwelling by the gracious influences of the Holy Spirit. 'l'here Christ dwelletb enthroned; doubts and fear vanish when the Christian soul falls down and worships him, crying, "My Lord, and my God!" Therefore we are bidden to sanctify him, to regard him as alone holy, the Most Holy One, holiest of holies; to hallow his holy Name, to reverence his most sacred presence within us, and in all awe and love and thankfulness to offer unto him the deepest adoration of our hearts. Outward worship is not enough; outward forms of reverence have their value wheri they are the expression of the in ward reverence of the heart; but it is in the heart that we must sanctify the Lord Christ, if we are to be blessed with that holy tranquillity of spirit which results from hie sa.cred presence. As we sanctify him, he sanctifieth us; the more we learn to regard him with a deep, awful, loving reverence, the more does he shed his sanctifying grace throughout our soul, cleansing it from all that is unworthy, and creating it anew after bis own image. When our heart is bis sanctuary, "he shall be for a sanctuary" to us; he dwelling in us and we in him; and then we need not fear. "Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death," said David, "I will fear no evil, for thou art with me." He.who fears God aright fears nothing else but God; he who sanctifietb the Lord Christ in bis heart bath a sacred presence there which keeps him calm and tranquil amid dangers and anticipations of coming troubles. ( 2) fa their relations to men. As t!iey must live for Christ, so they must, whe~ on. m. 1-22.J THE l!'IRS'l' EPISTLE GENERAL OF PETER 143