UCSB LIBRAKt PAROCHIAL AND CATHEDRAL SERMONS. PAROCHIAL AND CATHEDRAL SERMONS BY THE REV. E. B. PUSEY, D.D. REGIUS PROFESSOR OF HEBREW, AND CANON OF CHRIST CHURCH, OXFORD. TEACH ME, O LORD, THE WAY OF THY STATUTES; AND I SHALL KEEF IT UNTO THE END. Psalm cxix. 33. SOLD BY PARKER & CO., OXFORD AND LONDON; AND RIVINGTONS, LONDON, OXFORD, AND CAMBRIDGE. 1882. PRINTED BY THE DEVONPORT SOCIETY OF THE HOLY TRINITY, HOLY ROOD, OXFORD. 1832. ADYEETISEMENT. THESE SERMONS, which the love of some friends wished me to collect, were preached at very different periods, and to very different congregations; some in the Parish Church of my native village ; some to a congregation chiefly intel- lectual, but in the early development of their intellects. Of all it is little to say that, if there is any good, it is not my own. Even Pascal, with his original genius, said, "We, authors, may well use the word, ' we;' for the best of what we have is not our own." Much more in the sacred office of Preacher, we could hardly think of drawing only from our own well. In the graphic description of his own teacher S. Ambrose, S. Augustine a pictures to us, how intently he studied the volumes of those before him, so as, in those intervals of rest, to be entirely unconscious of the presence of those who went in and out of the place where he was studying. S. Ambrose in part trans- lated, in part adapted language of S. Basil b . We know from a notary of S. Cyprian, that he never passed one day without reading him c whom he familiarly called, ' the master/ Tertullian. S. Gregory the Great, in his Com- a Conf. vi. 3. p. 88. Oxf. Tr. " See Bened. Pref. to the de Tobia of S.Ambrose T. i. p. 589, 590. c S. Jerome de Virr. 111. c. 53. on the authority of Paulus of Concordia, whom he himself had seen, and who had seen the notary of S. Cyprian. a il ADVERTISEMENT. mentary on Job, the Magua Moralia d , shews himself not unfrequently a diligent student and follower of S. Angus- tine. Bede (about A. D. 701-735) so used S.Augustine, that it has been thought that, where pieces of S. Augus- tine's Commentary have been lost, Bede would represent them. In later times, both Bourdaloue and Massillon were great readers of the Fathers. There is a saying of an Italian Canonico, ' No wonder that A. is a poor Preacher ; for he is no reader of the Fathers.' In the great French Manual for Preachers (the Bibliotheque des Predicateurs) there is on every subject, besides a selection of passages of Holy Scripture specially bearing upon it, one of French devout writers, another of sayings of the Fathers and ancient writers. It happened to the writer to see the copy of S. Chrysostom (Library of the Fathers) which had belonged to a popular extempore preacher of his day. Passages which he digested and made his own were marked throughout the volume, and indexed. A little slovenliness and want of definiteness has been observed of late in the writings of some who are in the main teaching the truth. They probably would see it themselves, if they should become accustomed to the clear definite exact language of S. Augustine. Nor would it cost much labour. If any would spend as much time in reading the Fathers as they do on daily or weekly papers, magazines, periodicals, and other ephemeral publications, they could in a few years enrich their life's blood by the marrow and fulness of the teaching of the Fathers. And d Translated, Library of the Fathers. ADVERTISEMENT. Ill it is to be remembered that a main part of the writings of very chief Fathers, as S. Chrysostom, S. Augustine, S. Ambrose 6 (whom S. Augustine reverenced as a Father), S. Cyril of Alexandria, has been commentaries on Holy Scripture. We do need in these days, when there are pitfalls on every side, very exact teaching ; and more exact teaching we could scarcely find than his, who taught in his Sermons the poor of Hippo, and while he was teaching, watched whether they understood him, and adapted himself to those among them who were rather slower to catch his meaning. It has surprised a very intellectual layman, to know that that condensed teaching of S. Augustine was delivered extempore. If I might leave one bequest to the rising generation of Clergy, who will have (what I have had only incidentally) the office of Preachers, it would be, 'In addition to the study of Holy Scripture, which they too studied night and day, study the Fathers, especially S. Augustine/ CHRIST CHURCH, * EASTER, 1882. The Commentaries of S. Ambrose on Isaiah and S. Paul, (which are lost) probably exceeded in size those on S. Luke and certain Psalms, which remain. So gladly did he dwell on the Psalms, that his Benedictine Editors observe that he takes occasion to introduce comments upon the 14, 41, 42, and 51st Psalms while treating on ' usury,' [de Tobia from S. Basil] ' the plaint of David ' [de interpella- tione David Lib. ii. c. 3 sqq.] and his first 'plea for David' [Apol. David, i. 8 sqq.J a 2 CONTENTS. SERMON I. FALSE PEACE. 1 COE. iv. 4. For I know nothing of myself; yet am I not hereby justi- fied : but He thatjudgeth me is the Lord." pp. 1 16. SERMON II. CONVERSION. S. MATT, xviii. 3. "Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the Jcingdom of heaven." pp. 17 28. SERMON III. PERIL OF DELAYING REPENTANCE. HEB. iii. 6, 8. " Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saithj To-day if ye will hear His Voice, harden not your hearts." pp. 29 44. VI CONTENTS. SERMON IV. PERIL OF RELAPSES. S. JOHN v. 14. " Jesus jindeth him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole ; sin no more, lest a worst thing come unto thee." pp. 45 60. SERMON V. BACKSLIDING. GAL. v. 7. " Ye did run well ; who did hinder you, that ye should not obey the truth." pp. 61 73. SERMON VI. NATURAL GOOD AND EVIL. ROM. xi. part of v. 24. " Thou wert cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and wert graffed contrary to nature into a good olive tree." pp. 7489. SERMON VII. LUKEWARMNESS. REV. iii. 1416. " These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God, I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot ; I would thou wert cold or hot. 80 then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold or hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth." pp. 90102. CONTENTS. Vll SERMON VIII. LOSS THROUGH LITTLE SINS. 1 COR. iii. 1113. " Other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foun- dation, gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble ; Every man's work shall be made manifest. For the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and thejlre shall try every man's ivork ofivhat sort it is." pp. 103117. SERMON IX. PERIL OF LITTLE SINS. ECCLUS. xix. 1. " He that despiseth small things, shall fall by little and little," pp. 118130. SERMON X. EVIL OF LITTLE SINS. S. LUKE xvi. 10. " He that is faithful in that which is least, is faithful also in much ; and he that is unjust in the least, is unjust also in much." pp. 131143. SERMON XI. GOOD OF LITTLE ACTS TO PLEASE GOD. S. MATT. x. 42. " Whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward." pp. 144 1<>0. Vlll CONTENTS. SERMON XII. SAINTLINESS OF CHRISTIANS. LEV. xx. 26. " Ye shall be holy, unto Me, for I the Lord am holy, and have severed you from other people, that ye should be Mine." pp. 161174. SERMON XIII. THE WITNESS OF THE SPIRIT. ROM. viii. 16, 17. " The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God ; and if children, then heirs ; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ ; if so be that we suffer with Him, that we may be also glorified to- gether." pp. 175184. SERMON XIV. BENEFIT OF TEMPTATIONS. S. JAMES i. 2, 3. "My brethren, count it all joy, when ye fall into divers temptations; knowing this, that the trial of your faith worheth patience." pp. 185 196. SERMON XV. CHRIST'S LOVE IN ACTS, THE CHRISTIAN'S MODEL. EPH. v. 1. " Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children, and walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us and hath given Himself for us, as an offering and sacrifice to God, for a sivect-smelling savour." pp. 197 214. CONTENS. IX SERMON XVI. CHRIST'S WORDS OF LOVE, THE REPROOF OF DETRACTION. S. LUKE iv. 22. And all bare Him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth." pp. 215234. SERMON XVII. CHRIST'S LOVING THOUGHTS, THE REPROOF OF CENSORIOUSNESS. S. LUKE vii. 39, and 48. " Now when the Pharisee which had bidden Him saw it, he spake within himself, This Man, if He were a prophet, would have known who and wliat manner of woman this is that toucheth Him ; for she is a sinner" "Jesus said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven" pp. 235256. SERMON XVIII. CHRISTIAN ZEAL. ROM. ix. 1 r3. / say the truth in Christy I lie not, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost, that I have great heaviness and continual sorrow of heart. For I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh" pp. 257 272. : CONTENTS. SERMON XIX. PRAYER. S. MATT. xxi. 22. All things whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive." pp. 273283. SERMON XX. THANKSGIVING. PHIL. iv. 6, 7. Be careful for nothing ; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding t shall keep your hearts and minds, in Christ Jesus." pp. 284299. SERMON XXI. GOD WITHDRAWS IN LOVING-KINDNESS ALSO. SONG OF SOLOMON v. 2 8. It is the voice of my Beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to Me, My sister, My love, My dove, My undefiled : for My head is filled with dew, and My locks with the drops of Hie night. I have put off my coat ; how shall I put it on ? I have washed my feet ; how shall I defile them ; my Beloved put in His hand by the hole of the door, and my bowels were moved for Him. I rose up to open to my Be- loved; and my hands dropped with myrrh, and my fingers with sweet smelling myrrh upon the handles of the lock. I opened to my Beloved : but my Beloved had withdrawn Himself, and was gone ! My soul failed tvhen He spake : I sought Him, but I could not find Him ; I called Him, but He gave me no answer. The watchmen that went about the city found me, they smote me, they wounded me ; the keepers of the walls took away my veil from me. I charge you, daughters of Jerusalem,, if ye find my Beloved, that ye tell Him I am sick of love." pp. 300318. CONTENTS. XI SERMON XXII. GOD ADVANCES HIS KINGDOM THROUGH MAN. S. MATT. vi. 10. " Thy Kingdom come." pp. 319333. SERMON XXIII. THE MINUTENESS AND INDIVIDUALITY OF GOD'S JUDGEMENT. HEB. ix. 27. It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the Judgement." pp. 334 344. SERMON XXIV. EVERY THOUGHT, WORD, DEED, SHALL BE JUDGED. ECCL. xii. 13, 14. "Fear God and keep His commandments: for this is the whole of man. For God shall bring every deed into judge- ment, with every secret thing, whether good or whether bad." pp. 345351. SERMON XXV. WHITHER ART THOU GOING? HAGGAI i. 7. . " Thus saith the Lord of hosts, Consider your ways." pp. 352362. Xll CONTENTS. SERMON XXVI. MURDER OF SOULS. S. MATT. xix. 18. " Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder." pp. 363368. v SERMON XXVII. COMPROMISES. 1 KINGS xxviii. 21. " And Elijah came unto all the people and said. How long halt ye between two opinions ? If the Lord be God, follow Him: and if Baal, follow him." pp. 369 376. SERMON XXVIII. LUKEWARMNESS. REV. iii. 1416. " These things saith the Amen, the Faithful and True Wit- ness, the beginning of the creation of God; I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot. So then be- cause thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of My mouth." pp. 377 390. SERMON XXIX. FASTING. S. MATT. iv. 1, 2. " Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil ; and ivhen He had fasted forty days and forty nights He was afterwards an hungred." pp. 391405. CONTENTS. Xlll SERMON XXX. GLORY OF THE RESURRECTION. JOB xix. 25. I know that my Redeemer liveth t and that He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth. 33 pp. 406 417. SERMON XXXT. TRUE PEACE AND FALSE PEACE. S. JOHN xx. 21. " Then said Jesus unto them again, Peace le unto you. 33 pp. 418 430. SERMON XXXII. FREE-WILL. 1 S. PET. ii. 16. ' As free, and not using your liberty for a clolce of malicious- ness but as the servants of God" pp. 431 438. SERMON XXXIII. THE LOVE OF GOD FOR US. 1 S. JOHN iv. 19. " We love Him, because He first loved us. 3 ' pp. 439450. XIV CONTENTS. SERMON XXXIV. THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST, THE SOURCE, EARNEST, PATTERN OF OURS. EOM. iv. 25. " WJw was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification." pp. 451 458. SERMON XXXV. GOD'S CONDESCENDING LOVE IN RESTORING MAN BY HIS OWN INDWELLING. 1 COR. iii. 16. " Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you ?" pp. 459 571. SERMON XXXVI. ACTUALNESS OF THE INDWELLING OF GOD. ROM. viii. 9. " Ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of God, he is none of His. pp. 472479. SERMON XXXVII. THE HOLY TRINITY. 1 S. JOHN iii. 2, 3. u We shall see Him as He Is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as He is pure." pp. 479492. CONTENTS. XV SERMON XXXVIII. THE MYSTERY OF THE TRINITY, THE REVELATION OF DIVINE LOVE. 1 S. JOHN i. 4. " Our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ." pp. 493503. SERMON XXXIX. THE BEING OF GOD IN WHOM WE ARE. ACTS xvii. 27, 28. " Though He be not far from every one of us, for in Him we live and move and are" pp. 503 512. SERMON XL. THE ADORATION OF HEAVEN. REV. iv. 8. " They rest not day and night saying, Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty, Which was, and is, and is to come" pp. 513524. SEKMON I. FALSE PEACE. 1 COB. iv. 4. lt I know nothing by myself; yet am I not hereby jus- tified : but he that judgeth me is the Lord" IT is then possible, that a man's conscience may be wholly at rest, may not have anything for which it reproaches itself, may think that all is well with it ; and yet all may be very ill. And if things are ill with it, the illness is most extreme, most hopeless, most irremediable. If a soul is displeasing God, while all the while it thinks that it is pleasing to God, how should it seek any remedy ? or how should it find or have, what it seeks not ? S. Paul had declined all judgements of men. One only can judge the heart, He Who made it, "Who holds it in His hand, Who knows it. Man can judge from the surface only. Man judges man from out- ward appearance only, from some outward acts. He sees not within. In the very plainest cases, he may be mistaken. Who would not have preferred the Pharisees', with their outward holiness and strict- ness, their zeal for the law, their long prayers, their B 2 False Peace. alms to the poor, their punctual payment of their dues, before the publicans and harlots ? The whole Jewish people did so. Yet what saith the Lord? " a The publicans and harlots shall enter into the king- dom of heaven before you." Outwardly they were worse : but their conscience was not blinded. They were nearer to repentance, and more open to it. They repented, and returned to their Father, and He received them as sons, and made them sons, and the Angels rejoiced over the lost and found. Human praise and human blame are mostly va- lueless, because men know not the whole which they praise or blame. " b Who knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him ?" But neither must man trust wholly his judgements of himself. " I know nothing by" or " of myself." " c Herein," S. Paul says to the Governor, "do I exercise myself to have always a conscience void of offence, both towards God and towards men." Yet he remembered, how it is written, " d Who can un- derstand his errors ? cleanse Thou me from secret faults ;" and " e every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord trieth the heart." He Who trieth the heart shall judge the heart. And then how many things, which seemed righteous now, shall be seen to have been sin ! How much, which lay concealed from the conscience, shall then be laid open ! How much, which from evil custom, or from compliance with the ways of others, or from want of thought, the soul never looked upon as sin ! But since even an Apostle said, that although he a S. Matt. xxi. 31. b 1 Cor. ii. 11. c Acts xxiv. 16. d Ps. xix. 12. e Prov. xxi. 2. Fake Peace. 3 " knew nothing of himself," he was not thereby jus- tified, what a vast abyss then must the unsifted, un- examined conscience of a sinner be ! If an Apostle, whose earnest care it was to keep his conscience void of offence towards God and man, was not sure that he wholly knew himself, how surely must one be ig- norant of his sin, who does not look narrowly into himself ! If he is surely ignorant, how much more deeply ignorant, one who looks not at all ! And what then is the depth of his ignorance, who wishes not to see himself, who shuts his eyes on himself, who " f flattereth himself in his own sight," so as not to see his sin and to hate it ! There are two sorts of peaceful consciences, and there are two sorts of troubled consciences. There is a good conscience which is peaceful, because it mourns its past sin for love of Him Who loved us ; it resists mightily present temptation, in His might Who overcame the Evil one ; it trusts in Him, Who never fails those who trust Him. This is a foretaste of Paradise, peace in Him Who is our Peace ; " g peace which passeth all understanding." But even the good conscience may be troubled, either if it roots not out strongly lesser faults, or if it dwells on the hardness of the struggle rather than on the greatness of the Eeward ; if it serves in fear, rather than in love ; if it dwells on its failings rather than on the boundless love of Jesus, or thinks of Him as the Judge more than the Eedeemer. But peace, as it is the blessing of the good consci- ence, so it is the curse of the bad conscience. A conscience at peace is the highest life, or the deepest f Pa. xxxvi. 2. 8 Phil. iv. 7. 4 False Peace. death. A troubled, remorseful conscience has life. Its remorse is the token of its life. There is hope of a man amid any sin ; I might almost say, amid any mass of sins, if he hates them, and does not hate them less than he once did. Nay, there is hope of him, if he has any real hatred still. No frequency or rapidity of falls, no habit of sin, not even relapses into sin again and again, after a breathing-time from sin, leave a case hopeless, so that a man does not justify his sin ; so that when the sin is past, he hates it and himself for doing it. In this too he may de- ceive himself. But any remorse of his soul for his sin, although it end in his seeking his sin again, is still God's Voice within him, pleading with him against his sin. God's long-suffering is not worn out yet. He only knows, whether His despised grace must be suspended for a time, lest it be refused and leave the soul worse off than before. But as yet He has not withdrawn it. He yet speaks to the soul. Though the soul be dead to love, it is not dead to fear ; although it has no heart for the love of God, it yet dreads His anger. The soul may " h hear the voice of the Son of God" still; and if it indeed hears, it will turn to Him and " live." A conscience wholly at peace and yet sinning, is not alive, but dead. The light which was in the soul is darkness. The eye of the soul is blind ; the ear has been stopped, until it can no longer hear; the heart has been drugged and stupified, until it can no longer feel. These are they of whom God says, ui their consciences are seared with a hot iron." The slightest touch of the hot iron is intensest pain. h S. John v. 25. i 1 Tim. iv. 2. False Peace. 5 If it remain long, it destroys all sense of feeling. The scorched part is dead; it can feel no more. Sharper than the piercing of a sword is the anguish of the soul on its first deep sin. If the soul feels the pain no more, it is that it is dead, unless God awake anew the soul again dead in trespasses and sins. How then may we know, my brethren, if, as we think, we have peace, whether our peace is the false or the true? The false is far more common than the true. The false peace needs but that a man should follow his passions ; that he should do what he, that is, his corrupt nature, desires, and stifle his conscience. True peace requires, that a man should have resisted and subdued his desires, and have obeyed his conscience. Both believe themselves to be right. Neither can be disturbed. True peace rests on the knowledge of God and the love of God. It comes from God, it dwells in God. False peace relies on ignorance of God and of itself. It is a "i spirit of deep sleep," the Prophet says. How can it be awakened ? It is something to see that there is such a thing as false peace. It is something to know that all is not, of necessity, well with a man, because he is at peace with himself. For this is his very delusion. ' I have nothing against myself; my conscience does not re- proach me. It must then be well with me.' But if there have been those, whose conscience did not re- proach them, and yet they were openly in sin, then it is no safety, that thy conscience does not reproach thee. How was David at rest, for a whole year after J Is. xxix. 10. 6 False Peace. those two heaviest sins of which human nature is capable, adultery and murder ! His conscience was alive as to the injustice of taking away a poor man's ewe-lamb ; it was dead to his own. The very para- ble of the prophet did not awaken him. 'Some,' he had thought, ' must die in the battle ; he did not kill Uriah ; he fell by the sword of the children of Ammon k ; and now his wife was a widow, and might be his wife.' Horrible deceitfulness of sin, which could commit murder, in order to hide the shame of one injured, and then make the murder the pathway to marriage ! Yet now too, " ! delicate women" will consent to murder in order to hide sin. How did Balaam blind his conscience, putting him- self continually close to temptation, and professing that he would not yield to it ! " m The word that God putteth into my mouth, that will I speak." " D His heart went after his covetousness ;" his speech was fair. Doubtless, he blinded himself, (as so many do now), because he used good words. He did speak God's words in his office as a prophet, while God still employed him. As a man, he straightway gave the devilish counsel to seduce Israel to idolatry by the beauty of the daughters of Midian, and fell in the battle P with the people whom, in the name of God, he had blessed. How did Simeon and Levi blind their conscience by their passion in their treacherous vengeance ! Yet they themselves had no doubt that they were justi- fied. They retorted on their father, " Should he deal with our sister as with a harlot?" k 2 Sam. xi. 23 25 ; xii. 9. * Deut. xxviii. 56. m Num. xxii. 38. n Ezek. xxxiii. 31. Num. xxxi. 16. P ib. 8.