LECTURE I. THE IMPORTANCE OF AN ACCURATE KNOWLEDGE OF THE DIVINE LAW. Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.-PSALM CXIX. 18. 66 By the law of God, the sacred writer here means the whole revelation of the Divine will to man. He designates this divine revelation, in this psalm, by the various words, “Statutes, commandments, testimonies, judgments, precepts and law." They are all employed, to describe that connected and perfect system of instruction, which is contained in the 'Holy Scriptures, given by inspiration of God." In dwelling upon these communications of the will of God, the psalmist speaks the language of a heart that fervently loved his holy commands, and rejoiced to contemplate the excellence and purity of his character. In the extent of spiritual application which he perceived in these commands,-in the ardour of his prayers that they might be engraven upon his own heart; in the sorrow which he felt at witnessing the transgressions of them by others; in the eagerness of his desire to understand more clearly their excellence and perfection;—he has displayed his view of their importance, and the mind of the Spirit, in reference to the worth of a full understanding of them, to man. And we must unite with the same affectionate and earnest spirit, in the petition which he has set before us, "Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law." In our natural ignorance of the things of the Spirit of God, and in the sinful aversion of our affections from them, there is a veil of thick darkness concealing from us the blessed truths which God alone revenis. We discern them neither in their meaning, nor in the extent of their influence. We confine our views of the Divine precepts, to their application in the letter to our outward conduct, and do not perceive the extent of their demands upon the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And neither as the standard of required obedience, nor as the measure of actual guilt, are we willing to consider, or able to comprehend, that the divine commandment is exceeding broad. This veil of spiritual ignorance, the Holy Ghost alone can remove. He must enlighten our blindness, and unfold to us, the secret and unsearchable truths of his own word. And to him, therefore, we direct our prayer for illumination and guidance, in the good, acceptable, and perfect will of God, that we may be led, on the one hand, to obtain a full knowledge of our sin, and on the other, of the sufficiency, and application to ourselves, of the glorious, appointed Saviour, discerning the things which are freely given to us of God. The law, of which I purpose, by the divine help, to speak, is that one great moral law of God, all the commandments of which, are "holy, just, and good ;" an obedience to which, “is more to be desired than gold, yea, than much fine gold;" the purity of which is, to a holy mind, "sweeter than honey, and the honey comb;" by the guidance of which, the “servant of God is warned;" and in the "keeping of which, there is great reward." This law is a revelation to man of the will of God. It is a transcript and publication of his holy and perfect mind. It is the rule of angelic obedience. It was the guide given to man at his creation. It is the law, obedience to which, would have given him eternal life; the violation of which, subjected him to condemnation. It is the law, which has been fulfilled for the sinner's justification, by the Lord Jesus Christ, the constituted Mediator of the new covenant;-which is written again upon the heart of the justified and restored man, according to the provisions of this covenant, by the Holy Spirit;-and in cheerful and permanent obedience to which, he is to glorify and honour his redeeming Lord, in his eternal and heavenly kingdom. This is the law of which I speak; the law which requires in every intelligent creature, supreme love to God, and unqualified submission in the spirit of love, to all his commandments. An accurate knowledge and understanding of this divine law, lies at the very foundation of true religion, and of all instruction in the things of God. By this alone, can we be taught to appreciate and accept, the gracious provisions of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ; in whom, God has been pleased to do for us, what the law required, but could not do; and by whom, he has laid open for us unsearchable riches of grace, meeting all the demands of the law, "magnifying it, and making it honorable," so that he is revealed, as “the end (or perfection) of the law for righteousness, to every one that believeth." The importance to us, of a clear and distinct intelligence of this subject, cannot be overstated; and we may well take upon our lips, and utter from our hearts, the psalmist's prayer, "Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold the wondrous things of thy law." I. Here we gain all just conceptions of the character of God. His divine perfections are shining here. By his own revelation of himself alone, do we know any thing of him. "In his light, we see light." His holy law is a description of himself; the utterance in words, of his perfect, but previously concealed mind and will. Whatever be the character of our views of his law, will therefore be the description of our views of himself. The nature of his mind will be estimated by us, by our impressions of the nature of his commands. 1. Our apprehension of the purity and extent of the law of ENTERED according to the Act of Congress, by STEPHEN H. TYNG, D. D., in the year 1843, in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. ΤΟ THE MEMBERS OF THE CHURCH OF THE EPIPHANY, IN THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA. A PELOVED AND UNITED FLOCK, WHO, IN HIS TEN YEARS' MINIS- GLORIOUS LORD JESUS CHRIST, TO THE Philadelphia, November 1, 1843. |