64

with his servants,62 rewarding some and punishing the rest. The wise virgins were admitted, and the foolish virgins excluded, in the same place where the feast itself was prepared.63 Were it necessary, many more instances of the kind might be quoted, but these suffice to fix the reference of punishment with all requisite clearness and certainty. The parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus is not opposed to the views here presented. Let it be admitted that the imagery employed is taken from the prevailing notions of the Jews concerning hades, still the thing represented is entirely distinct from the figure; and the connection of the parable shows conclusively that the legal and gospel dispensations, and not the present and future life, were had in view.

7. The parables have a direct bearing on the ultimate destiny of mankind. The final restitution of all men is not only intimated, but, in some of the parables, it is clearly revealed. Those that indicate the salutary nature and final termination of punishment have already been noticed. Those, of course, point to a favorable issue of the divine government. If, in all cases where punishment is spoken of, its tendency and termination are not distinctly recognized, the reason is that the object of the Saviour did not require this. On the other hand it may be affirmed, with perfect safety, that in none of the parables is punishment revealed as final and unlimited; while in some it is clearly regarded as having an end. Besides, if all men are not to be redeemed, how are we to interpret the means employed for human redemption, so often recognized in the parables? The owner of the sheep sought for the lost animal till he found it.65 The good woman, who had lost a piece of silver, swept the house and sought diligently 66 till she recovered the lost coin. "How can one enter

into a strong man's house and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man, and then he will spoil his house," 67 was spoken under circumstances that plainly intimate the Saviour's power to destroy Beelzebub and his works. Christ says, "Other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring; and there shall be one fold and one shepherd." 68 What this can mean,

62 Luke xxi. 15.

66 Luke xv.

8.

63 Matt. xxv. 1.
67 Matt. xii. 29.

64 Luke xvi. 19.
68 John x. 16.

65 Luke xv. 4.

unless it be the redemption and salvation of all be difficult to conjecture. The parable of th points to the same result, the whole meal sha ened.

Under the mission of Christ, "every valle filled, and every mountain and hill shall be bro and the crooked shall be made straight, and ways shall be made smooth; and all flesh sh salvation of God." 70

THE relative importance of faith and works, is of no small moment to all who aspire to be the lowers of Jesus Christ. Upon no subject, per the world been more prone to go to extremes th this. On the one hand, there are many who ma value of faith, and hold it up as the "all in all gospel; and who make it the great end of all the to induce a belief in their creed or formula of On this they think the salvation of the soul is sus and to depart, but the breadth of a single hair, standard of a sound orthodox faith, is an offence serious magnitude. So widely has this view p that for ages the Christian church, as an organize has been mainly engaged in efforts to procure a ity of faith, and save from errors of opinion. A acquaintance with the facts of Ecclesiastical Histo satisfy any man that, both before and since the R tion, far more labor has been put forth by the chu all creeds, to keep the people sound in faith, than gage them in actual good works; and that an opinion has been visited with punishment muc 69 Matt. xiii. 32. 70 Luke iii. 5, 6.

severe than that which has been awarded to the offender in practice. The sinner of deepest dye has found little difficulty in obtaining forgiveness; but pardon has come reluctantly and tardily to the luckless wight who has been so unfortunate as to be guilty of a mistake in opinion. In short, the murderer has been forgiven often; the heretic rarely, if ever.

So deeply is the world imbued with this error, that, even in the present day, the great object proposed in the organization of churches is not so much to unite and concentrate human effort and augment power for the promotion of works of practical benevolence, as to propagate and defend a creed, and keep the people sound in faith, without taint or suspicion of heresy.

On the other hand, there are those who clearly enough perceive that this matter of faith has been greatly overestimated, and that an importance has been attached to it which it cannot justly claim. Having taken this turn, they rarely pause until they have gone to the opposite extreme; and, from every thing, faith comes to be nothing; and they are ready to dispense with it altogether. Whereas others maintain that eternal consequences are suspended upon having a correct faith, these affirm that it is of no consequence whatever. It is no matter, say they, what a man believes, so that his life is right. Acting upon this principle, they either scout the idea of a church organization entirely; or, if they consent to it, they insist upon the proviso that it shall have no cognizance of matters of faith, but open its doors alike to men of every creed, or no creed.

These are the two extremes, and it is presumed in this case, as in many others, the truth is somewhere between them. Probably they may both quote Scripture in favor of their respective positions; and there are, no doubt, isolated passages which would seem to favor one side and the other of the question. Unquestionably, the Scriptures often and earnestly insist upon the importance of a living faith; and it is equally certain that they also insist upon the importance of good works. The fact is, both are necessary to the perfection of the Christian character, and we have but to consider their relation to each other in order to perceive that neither can be dispensed with in the divine life, or in the church of Christ. Faith is the instru

ment by which good works are produced. The one is an end, the other the means by which that end is attained. The great end proposed, in the Christian religion, is to save from sin, and make men holy, just and true, in practice. If it be true, as an apostle asserts, that "faith works by love, and purifies the heart," then, evidently, faith has an important part to perform. It must be regarded as the main spring of all purity in practice. At the same time it is manifest that this importance consists not in the fact that it is an end, in religion, but that it is the means by which a higher end is obtained. If the faith fails of securing this end it is dead, and good for nothing. But in proportion as it tends to purify the heart, and direct men's hands to the performance of good works, it is useful and should be cherished. What avails it, that a man has all faith? What boots it, if he believe all and singular the articles of a creed which is orthodox to the core? If it does not make him a better man, or quicken him to the performance of works of love and duty, it is of little use. He might as well be a heretic as a staunch believer. And so of a whole community. It may be never so sound in faith, and no word or thought of heresy heard or indulged in all its borders, but if its members are not engaged in good works, what is their faith worth? It is but "sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal." But let justice and righteousness be done in that community; let the countingroom, the ware-house, and the work-shop, become temples where men shall show their allegiance to God by faithfulness to one another; let the hand of charity be opened wide to the poor and distressed; let the widows no longer pine in want, nor their children cry for bread, and then we shall see the fruits of faith, and there shall go up to heaven an incense more pure than if sacrifices were offered in huge hecatombs on the altar. So far as faith tends to these results, so far is it useful; and in behalf of the faith of the gospel, we must be allowed to insist that it exerts a powerful influence in this direction, and therefore it should not be disregarded.

To us, then, the case appears to stand thus. The true standard of a man's character is his works; by them he is to be justified or condemned, in the sight of God. As a means of leading to the performance of these works,

faith is valuable, and should be cherished; but as a test of character, or an end, in religion, it is false and deceptive. Having thus assigned to faith its true position in the economy of Christianity, and shown the importance of works, relatively considered, it comports with our present object to consider the peculiar and precise nature of those works to which we have alluded. What kind of works are they, which thus constitute the essential element in the Christian life?

The common error is in the idea that our religious duties are something extra, apart from, or over and above, the ordinary duties of life. The supposition is, that men are never serving God, or performing religious works, unless they are in the church, praying, or praising God, or in some way, engaged in direct efforts for saving souls. No mistake the world has ever made is more fatal than this. These prayers and praises, these fastings and acts of devotion, are well enough, and, if observed with a sincere heart, may be useful, as a means of improvement in the divine life; but they are not the end proposed, nor are they the works of a true religion. If they were so, the old Pharisees would stand high in the catalogue of saints, for they abounded in works of this sort. The truth, to which the world has been so long blind, and which the Christian church needs, above all things, to know, is, that the eternal God is infinitely above being benefited by our labors, and has no need of our aid. To man alone can we do good; and as man is a child of God, so service done to the child is recognized by the Father as done to him, in the same manner that an earthly parent will consider a kindness done to his son as a favor bestowed upon himself. And this is the true method of serving God. To works of this kind the Saviour alludes, as forming the standard of justification and acceptance with him. "Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was a hungered, and ye gave me meat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink; I was a stranger, and ye took me in; naked, and ye clothed me; I was sick, and visited me; ye I was in prison and ye came unto me." (Matt. xxv. 34-36.) These are the works which the Saviour required; and in relation to the manner of their performance, he added (v. 40) "In