Part 65 HOLINESS, the Only Way to Happiness
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Part 66 HOLINESS, the Only Way to Happiness
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O sirs, suppose a criminal, who is led to execution, should engrave his coat of arms upon the prison gate, would he not be accounted vain and mad? and yet such is the madness and vanity of the great ones of this world, that they endeavor with the greatest industry to leave monuments of their dignity in the prison of this world—but take no care to make provision for the eternal world, Psalm 49:10-15; and all this is out of the horrid pride and loftiness of their spirits. Psalm 10:4, "In his pride the wicked does not seek God; in all his thoughts there is no room for God." There is nothing which hinders a man from seeking after a holy God, and from pursuing after holiness, like pride. A proud heart is too stout to think of holiness, or to mind holiness, or to prize holiness, or to press after holiness. "Who is the Lord," says proud Pharaoh, "that I should serve him?" Exod. 5:2. Just so, says the proud heart, "What is holiness, that I should seek it, and press so hard after it?" As there is no sin that fortifies the heart against holiness like pride—just so, there is no sin that weakens and disenables the heart to pursue after holiness like pride.
O you proud and lofty ones of the world, who look upon holiness as a poor, low, contemptible thing; tell me, what are all your noble births, and great estates, etc.—but trifles which God bestows upon the worst and basest of men? "The whole Turkish empire," says Luther, "is but a crust which God casts to a dog." Tell me whether the fly and the worm, yes, the most contemptible creature—was not man's elder brother at his first creation; and if so, why then should vain man be proud? Oh, tell me whether you have ever laid to heart that soul-abasing and soul-humbling text, Psalm 39:5, "Truly every man at his best estate is altogether vanity. Selah." "Truly" lets that in, and "Selah" shuts that up; "truly every man"—not some man—but "every man;" all men are all vanity, or "every man is every vanity." Every man is a comprehensive vanity—every rich man is every vanity, and every great man is every vanity, and every mighty man is every vanity, and every noble man is every vanity. Yes, and that which is yet more, "every man at his best estate," not in his childhood or decrepit old age—but in his best estate, when he is best constituted and matured, when he is most firmly fixed and settled on his best bottom—yet even then he is vanity. The original runs thus, "every man standing," that is, as some understand it, standing a-tiptoe in all his gallantry and bravery, in all his beauty and glory, and in all his pomp and majesty—is vanity, yes, every vanity.
Well sirs, remember this, that as glow-worms make a glorious show in the night—but when the day appears they appear to be poor, despicable, base creatures—just so, though now the high, the great, and mighty ones of the earth shine and gloriously sparkle in the darkness of this world—yet in that day when the Sun of righteousness shall arise, and manifest the secrets of all hearts to the world, and strip the great ones of all their titles of honor, and their noble parentage, and their rich and royal robes, and their troops and trains, and their crowns and chains—then they will appear to be but base and despicable creatures. Then their poverty and misery, their nakedness and vileness will appear to all the world; then the world shall see that riches without righteousness, power without piety, and greatness without holiness, will do the great ones of this world no good. Oh, that you had now a heart to weep over that pride of heart, which keeps you from pursuing after holiness—so that you may not weep to all eternity in utter darkness! But,
[5.] Fifthly and lastly, I answer, That there are no people under heaven, who stand so much obliged to look after holiness, and to press with all their might to obtain holiness—as the rich, the great, the mighty, and the honorable of the earth.
For, first, why has God made them greater than others—but that they should labor to be holier than others? They are therefore higher than others, that they may be holier than others. The greatness of their outward glory calls aloud upon them to excel in sanctity; and woe to those who are resolved to be worse than others, because God has done more for them than he has for others.
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Part 66 HOLINESS, the Only Way to Happiness
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