withal shall I be clothed," may allow his mind to be so perplexed with these things, that they may turn him away from the consideration of eternal things, and he will become unfruitful. Our eyes may be obstructed from the light of the sun by two copper coins placed before us, quite as much as they may be by two pieces of gold placed before us, and if the cares of poverty become an obstruction between us and the light of divine truth, it as effectually darkens the soul as can the deceitfulness of riches. Therefore Christ warns here the man who has the cares of poverty, let him beware lest these may hinder him from coming to hear, or hearing, from giving heed to the word of everlasting life. How many souls have remained unfit because they were ashamed to come up to the house of God with poor clothing, and they remained away, not even hearing the word. How many under the burden of the perplexities of poverty are allowing their thoughts to wander away even while they are in the house of God, to run after the cares of poverty, instead of feeling that though they may be for a season poor, yet they shall indeed be rich, if they open their hearts to the unsearchable riches of Christ. But our blessed Saviour speaks not only of the cares of poverty, but of the deceitfulness of riches. Whatever hindrance to the soul poverty may be-and it is, if not prevented, a great hindrance-there is a far greater hindrance in the deceitfulness of riches. When a person is out of humour with his circumstances he is very apt to be out of humour with himself and everything around him; but when his circumstances are calculated to satisfy in a great measure the desires of his nature, then he is apt to get into that good humoured state of feeling that makes him look with comparative brightness at least, upon every thing around him. In this respect the rich man can appear to be religious much more easily than can the poor man; if he be moderately careful, he is not exposed to the temptations that the poor is; he may not be always in danger of losing his situation if he keep to his conscience; he is less dependant on his fellow men, and is better able to satisfy his desires; he may acquire a respectable character for religion by giving, with such moderate liberality to the cause of God, as does not deprive him of one single comfort; he may, with his increased goods, merely say, "Soul, take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry," and do no one open act of sin that will arouse his conscience; he may be able to fulfil, in the of the world, the duties of life; eyes he may be able to satisfy, in the low demands of the church, the demands of religion; he may go on thus with the deceitfulness of riches, not really giving heed to those words of Christ, "Except ye forsake all that ye have, ye cannot be my disciples." To him religion makes the word crucifixion a word without meaning; it makes the crown of thorns some past transaction, which, to him, is only matter of mere history; he knows nothing of the piercing of its prickles, he knows nothing of the burden of its sorrows yet he can go on with this sort of religion; he is to himself apparently bringing forth fruit, yet, in reality, the deceitfulness of riches may be choking the seed. The needful mortification of the flesh, the needful subjugation of the heart, the needful prostration of the spirit before God, he may never have learned, he is in danger of never learning the depth of truth that there is in these words, "He laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren." Oh! brethren, we should think of that word of Christ, "the deceitfulness of riches," and beware of setting our hearts upon them, which pierce the man of God through with many thorns. But there is another thing that our blessed Saviour presents to us as one of the hindrances of the same character, "The lust of other things." He does not say the lust of sinful things, but the lust of other things, because it is not so much by that which is sinful as by that which is not sinful, in itself, that Satan deceives souls, and the measure that we ought to have of the good that is in anything, is just in proportion as it brings us to Christ, as it realizes eternity to us, as it teaches us about heaven, as it is a ladder step by step raising us from earth to heaven. If it be the lust, the desire of other things—yes, if it be the love of a father or mother, or brother or sister, or husband or wife, or son or daughter, it will be that which is choking God's word within us, and making the soul unfruitful. These, then, are the three great hindrances that Christ warns us of, with respect to a heart that may be unprepared, not for want of natural capacity, but through neglect. Now, what are the means of removing these? This brings us to the fourth subject. us. IV. The means of removing these hindrances from 1. The first is easy enough; to prevent our hearts from being thrown open to every wayside traveller, and trodden down by utter carelessness, the foot of the world hardening where the seed of Christ ought to be sown. 2. The second would seem a more hopeless case; where there is a heart under the surface hard, with the upper surface soft; that is, where there are those who have the sympathy, but not the principle of religion about them. The remedy for this is, to bring our hearts to him who has promised, in his great mercy and grace, “I will take the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh." Oh! that we may indeed bring our hearts to him with a willing readiness, to suffer whatever it may be that is to soften our hearts, whatever it may be that is to break up our hearts—“ Is not my word like as a fire,” saith the Lord, "and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces-as a fire to melt down the stoniest and hardest human heart." This is a remedy which we may indeed apply, in earnest prayer, in constant watchfulness, against that hardness of heart which belongs to us all, to be removed by the hammer of God's word, in applying his truth so as to break up all that is hardened, and the fire of God's love softening and melting down all that is hard within us. Here is that only remedy which can do it, and we must, in this respect, count it all joy when we fall into divers temptations, and pray that we may have grace to let "patience have its perfect work," that our hearts may be softened, that our stony hearts may be melted, and that we may be fit to become the good ground, to bring forth fruit with patience. 3. Can we not remove the other hindrances by bringing our poverty, with all its cares, to him who was "poor for our sakes," that if we are ready to faint with the load, we may hear his words, " Come unto me all ye that are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest," and bring our riches, with all their deceitfulness, to the foot of his cross, who showed us how he became poor that we might be really rich; and who has stamped, on every piece of gold given to us, God's image-Christ's image, and on the other side, that solemn word, Steward ship-responsibility, that we may feel the truth of the words, "The silver is mine and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of hosts ;" and to look upon all other things as dangerous things, if abused-as blessed things, if used, that we may be able to bring them to the foot of the cross, and there enjoy them in Christ and with Christ? V. We have now to consider, in the last place, the profitable recipients of divine teaching. They are the good ground, the heart prepared by the Spirit of God --the heart disciplined by the chastening of God-the heart that is constant in its attention- the heart that is fervent in its love. There is no pathway of the world's passengers found in that heart; there is no rock of natural hardness found there;-there are no weeds growing up neglected there; this is the honest and good heart; the seed of the word is sown there, and it brings forth fruit, some sixty-fold-some thirtyfold-and some a hundred-fold. - Brethren, there is, indeed, a deep teaching in this variety of fruitfulness. All are not equally fruitful, and yet all might be equally fruitful. St. Peter tells us how an abundant entrance shall be ministered unto us, Giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to your virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly kindess; and to brotherly kindess charity for if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." Even of the good ground hearers some were only thirty-fold, compared with those who were an hundred-fold. And as the merchant-man in this world's merchandize is not willing to count thirty-fold for gain, |
