First part of Sermon LXIV. for the Seventeenth Sunday after
Trinity.
Eph. iv. 1-6. St. Luke xiv. 1-11.
I, therefore, the prisoner of the LORD,
beseech you, that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called,
with all lowliness and meekness..—EPH.
iv. 1-2.
THE strongest appeal which St. Paul makes to others in his own behalf
is by his sufferings. “Remember my bonds,” he says, as by those few words
implying very much; and in the Epistle for last Sunday, “Faint not at my
tribulations, which is your glory.” He often expresses his joy in bonds
and afflictions, not only because he counted it a privilege to suffer for
Christ’s sake; but because also his own chains and sufferings partook of
the power of the Cross, and most prevailed towards spreading his Master’s
Kingdom. Thus when his heart had been set on going to Rome, and God intended
that he should bear witness of Him with power in that great city, it was
brought about by his being sent there as a prisoner. And in speaking of
his success there he says, “My bonds are manifest in all the palace.” And
of the confidence it gave others, “Many of the brethren waxing confident
by my bonds.” And when he said to King Agrippa, “I would to God that thou,
and all that hear me this day, were such as I am, except these bonds,”
never were words spoken more powerful, because it was as if he had said,
“As to my sufferings, I am most desirous that none should suffer as I do;
but as to the blessings of the Gospel, I would to God that all might share
them with me.” When in bonds at Jerusalem, he made the governor tremble,
and amazed the king; when in bonds at sea, he bound the storm, and had
all the ship given into his hands; when in bonds in the island, he shook
off the serpent unharmed; when in bonds at Rome, he made the world captive
to the obedience of Christ. And here he alludes to his bonds, not only
to enforce his .testimony, but as showing also the very nature of the Christian’s
calling and duties, as humbling himself to all things for love’s sake.
I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you, that ye walk
worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, with all lowliness and
meekness, with long-suffering, forbearing one another in love. We may
observe how much force these words derive from one who was at the time
a prisoner for Christ’s sake: for what greater evidence of love could there
be in himself than this willingness to suffer ? He wished them to be bound
also, but by another chain, that of mutual love and forbearance; not the
iron bands on the feet and hands, but the golden chain of God upon the
heart itself, which bound them to one another and unto God. Of this he
proceeds to speak: Endeavouring, with all earnestness, to keep
the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. As our Blessed Lord Himself
prays for this union, “that they may be one as We are One.” As the
whole body and all its members are held together by one soul, one spirit
of life, so is it with the Church of God. There is one body and one
Spirit: one Spirit which animates and quickens that body, or else it
would be more bodies than one. Even as ye are called in one hope of
your calling. Here on earth, and in things temporal, nothing unites
men so much together as having one object to desire, one end to hope for;
how much more when that desire and hope is for everlasting union together
through the indwelling of God? One Lord, one faith, one baptism, one
God and Father of all, Who is above all, and through all, and in you all.
What greater bond is it possible to conceive than this ? It contains within
it everything which can hold men together in love in this bad world, whether
friends or relations of any kind. It might be likened to a chain of adamant,
or any substance which nothing can rend asunder; nay more, God Himself
is this chain, this chain of love, for God Himself is love. How then can
it ever be broken? It is indeed so; and in Heaven, where God is, it cannot
be severed; for there God is All in All, and this bond is strong as the
foundation of Heaven; but here on earth, although it may become ever more
and more strong, yet it is all easily broken and rent asunder by pride.
It is preserved only in humility, by each esteeming other better than himself;
but wherever pride comes in, alas, my brethren, it is but as the withy
bands, when Samson awakens: it is all gone. And what from poor fallen nature
is more inseparable than pride ? “It bindeth me about as the collar of
my coat,” as Job says (xxx. 18.) We shall not be divested of it,
till the old Adam be laid in the dust, and the new man be altogether within
us.
Let us now, therefore, turn to the Great Physician of body and soul,
to that gracious and blessed example which the Gospel for the day presents
to us, ....
.... (for the second part, on the
Gospel.)
