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Christ Is All
by Stephen Tyng
Chapter V
Hope In Christ
The man in Christ, we have already considered, as deeply serious
in a retrospection upon his life past, and truly happy in
the enjoyment of his present condition. From a consideration
of these facts, we will pass on to remark upon some other
attributes and facts which mark his present state. In the
present view of him, I would exhibit him as animated by a
lively and glorious hope. This is an entirely new fact
in his history. He has been begotten again for the enjoyment
of a lively hope, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ
from the dead. It is a hope which sustains him in every
conflict and trial; and which gives him a cheerful, peaceful
spirit, in the midst of all his hours of darkness and
distress. Literally perhaps, in the actual exercise of hope,
he is not peculiar. There is probably no living man wholly
without hope. An utter destitution of hope, -- a state of
actual, unmixed despair, is the characteristic of the
sinner's last abode of recompense. There alone, hope comes
not, which comes to all who are not inhabitants of that deep
abyss. On this side the grave, all men cherish for
themselves some kind of hope. Man could not live without it.
Whether this hope be real and substantial, or only imaginary
and delusive, in its character and objects, it is still the
sweetest solace of human life; and whatever may be man's
burden of cares and labours, it is still found in a great
degree sufficient to uphold the spirit of a man, and to urge
him forward in the path of effort in his earthly concerns,
with alacrity and cheerfulness. In the pecuniary
embarrassments which often press him down, he hopes for
subsequent, returning prosperity, and still works on with
ardour and confidence. In sickness, while he feels the load
of pain, he still hopes for returning health, and endures
with patience the burden which he is required to bear. In
relative sorrows, the hope of future rising peace in his
earthly condition, still encourages him to cling to his
passing life, and to bear with submission, the yoke which is
placed upon his neck. This is the universal property and
characteristic of man.
If his eye here and there a thin cloud may behold,
Hope plays on its edges, to tinge them with gold.
The difference between the man in Christ, and other men
who are without Christ, is not, that he alone entertains or
enjoys, an actual hope of some description, and derives
habitual comfort from it; -- but in the remarkable diversity
between the objects of their different hopes, and in the
opposition of the several grounds upon which they rest them.
If it may be said of all men, that they are not destitute of
some kind of hope in their present condition, -- it may
still be said of the man who is in Christ, that his
condition is emphatically a state of hope. He is saved by
hope. He rejoices in hope. Hope is an anchor to his soul,
both sure and steadfast. And this is so peculiarly his
condition, that it is justly said of those who are without
Christ, that they have no hope, -- that is, no real,
well-grounded hope, -- no hope of things which are truly
permanent and unfading. The true Christian, who is dead
indeed to the world, and whose life is hid with Christ in
God, -- is in actual possession of this most precious
comfort of life, and is able to give a sufficient reason for
it to others.
The hope of the man in Christ, may be considered chiefly
in its objects. These objects are various. But they
are all contained within the terms of the divine promise;
and they are therefore all secured to him, by the word of
God, who cannot lie.
The man in Christ is animated and encouraged by a joyful
hope in regard to all the concerns of his present life.
But these earthly hopes are to be carefully
discriminated, lest we give countenance to that secret,
sinful spirit, which looks more to the things which are seen
and temporal, than to the things which are unseen and are
eternal. It is not hope of mere earthly treasures and
dignities, though he is not shut out from these. God may
bestow them upon his chosen servants; and the voice of
humble, spiritual prayer may be heard, and the evidences of
holy, living devotion to God may be seen, amidst all the
circumstances of grandeur, which adorn the highest possible
station in human life. But these things are not the subjects
of divine promise under the Gospel, and therefore the man in
Christ fixes no hope upon the possession of them. Did he
possess them, they would perhaps be the occasions and
instruments of his severest conflicts and temptations, and
he might justly long for the lowest vale of earthly
humiliations in their stead.
It is not hope either, of freedom from personal cares
and sorrows. The servant of God is plagued like other men;
-- some times chastened every day; -- and sorrows from a
full cup are poured out for him. Sickness and grief,
temptation and affliction, mingle themselves in his
experience, as they do in the experience of others, and
often in a higher degree of suffering. He often realizes in
such conditions, that if in this life only, he had hope in
Christ, he should be of all men most miserable. This freedom
from earthly sorrow, is not a subject of divine promise.
Nay, God rather speaks of chastisements here, as the portion
of his people, chastening those whom he loveth, and
scourging every son whom he receiveth. These are not,
therefore, the objects of earthly hope to the man who is in
Christ.
But he hopes for perfect security in all the possible
changes of this present life. All things work together for
good, to those who love God, who are called according to His
promise. He is perfectly defended by divine power, from the
possible injury to which he is exposed, while he is a
follower of that which is good. His earthly advantages may
lie very small, and his trials may be accumulated and great.
But nothing can separate him from that love of God, which is
in Christ Jesus the Lord. Every tongue that riseth against
him in judgment, he is able to confound; and darkness is
made light, and crooked things become straight, in his path.
Nothing which can be made to promote his ultimate happiness,
can be withdrawn from him. The hairs of his head are
numbered, and angels bear him in their hands, lest he dash
his foot against a stone. This perfect security from the
evil power of trials and enemies, is his portion as a member
of Christ, by the certain provisions of a divine covenant.
God is a wall of fire about him, by day and night.
He hopes for certain benefit to himself, and equally
certain glory to God, as the result from every suffering
and loss which he is required to bear. His present
dispensations in whatever shape they come, are instruments
of personal gain to him, by the same assurance of the divine
promise. Peaceable fruits of righteousness must be gathered
from the bitter roots of present sorrow. And he learns to
look for these, with confidence, and without fear. He is to
be stablished, strengthened, and settled, by the operation
of the very temptations, in the midst of which he is often
in heaviness. His spirit will grow more humble, his mind
more heavenly, and his affections more spiritual, under the
training which often seems so grievous, that his wounded
spirit can scarcely endure its operation. He thus enters
upon every path of duty without fear; and upon every contest
without carefulness. All that he really possesses, and
really values, is always secure; laid up in the keeping of a
Being whose truth remaineth; and whose power cannot be
overcome. These two facts, which are the subjects of the
divine promise, and, therefore, of a proper Christian hope,
cover all the possible changes of the present life. The
power of harm is removed from every trial; and certain and
abiding benefit is to be brought by divine ability and
determination out of every painful dispensation. This is the
portion of the man who is in Christ, because he is there. It
is a result of the everlasting covenant, in all things well
ordered and sure, which God has there made with him. And
thus on the very journey to his home, while he has here no
continuing city, but is seeking one to come, he actually
enjoys more of the real comforts of the road, than any of
Chose who are without Christ can, though they have made it
their rest, and have said in the madness of their hearts,
"Here will I dwell, and this shall be my heritage forever,
for I have a delight therein."
The man in Christ is animated by objects of hope, which
are entirely peculiar to the condition in which he is
placed, and appertaining to his state as a member of Christ.
These are spiritual and invisible things. But
notwithstanding this, they are real, and inestimably
valuable. They are entirely secure, and wholly unfailing,
because they depend simply upon the power, and the promise
of an unchanging God. They are hopes, therefore, which
cannot be cut off; which are not affected by earthly
changes, and which remain imperishable, though all things
should seem to be against him to whom they are given.
He hopes for full and permanent victory over all that
is evil, both in the corruptions of his nature, and the
temptations of his state. Sin cannot have the dominion over
him, because he is under the protection and government of
grace. The sure promise of God secures to him a new heart,
and will make him, eventually, holy as God is holy.
Infirmities press upon him. Missions and tempers of an
unholy character rebel against him. Sin is mingled with the
very best services which he performs. The plague of his own
heart is brought out to his view, with a clearness of
exhibition, and a bitterness of influence, which fills him
with unutterable distress. But though, amidst this fearful
display of secret sin, his spirit is sometimes overwhelmed
within him, he still has a sure hope of victory through the
power of God which worketh in him, and which is promised to
him. This blessed hope supports and comforts him, while
struggling with many foes, and enduring much hardness as a
good soldier of Jesus Christ. When he mourns over past
deficiencies, -- when he grieves for his backslidings from
God, -- when he dare hardly deem himself a child, so
pressing and victorious seems to him the power of sin within
him, -- this sure hope of final triumph over sin gives him
encouragement and joy. God will make him at last, a
conqueror, because Christ, to whom he belongs, and in Whom
he lives and dwells, has already conquered. The hour will
yet come, when, with a perfectly pure and peaceful spirit,
he shall adore the grace which has sanctified him wholly,
and made the bones within him which have been broken, to
rejoice. With this hope he presses forward in the path of
duty, mingling songs of praise, with his cries and tears
beneath the burden of sin; so that it may be sometimes said
of him, as of the Israelites at the building of their second
temple, -- you can hardly discern between the noise of the
shout of joy, and the noise of the weeping. But of his riven
and contending soul it may be also said, as of that house,
and with equal certainty, "In this place will I give peace,
saith the Lord of hosts."
He hopes for a full and everlasting acceptance before
God.I say he hopes for this, -- for although he has it
now, by the certainty of the divine promise, yet its glory
has not been fully revealed to him, for his own present
actual enjoyment. But his confidence rests upon one who is
mighty to save Being one with Him, he has all, and abounds
in him, -- in reference to his full justification in the
sight of God, -- and he can look up to Him as to an
accepting Father, with undoubting confidence, and without
fear. He knows in whom he has believed. He is willing to
venture every thing upon the revealed sufficiency of a
divine Saviour. When God shall enter into judgment with his
soul, he knows that there is one who hath borne his burden,
and is near to justify him. In the perfect ability of that
Mighty Substitute, he is safe forever. And although it does
not yet appear what he shall be, he knows that when He shall
appear, he shall be like Him, and see Him as He is. This
blessed hope comforts and encourages him under a sense of
guilt, beneath which he truly mourns; -- amidst all the
accusations of his own conscience, and all the re
collections of his past folly and sin. This supports him,
when Satan tempts him to despair. This gives him a
sufficient answer, when many tongues rise against him in
judgment, and call for the condemnation of his soul. The
abundance of grace, and the gift of righteousness which he
has received, supply every want, and remove every fear. And,
comforted with the assurance of this hope, he endures
continually, as seeing Him who is invisible.
He hopes for a triumphant entrance into the presence
of the Lord Jesus Christ. His present term of being is
short, and coming rapidly to its conclusion. Its final hour
is fixed, how near he knows not. The Judge standeth at the
door. As he daily sleeps, and wakes again, he goes through
the daily semblance of his departure. He cannot but often
think of it seriously, and with a solemn calculation of its
results. But, though his heart is sometimes afraid, he has a
bright and blessed hope connected with this hour. When it.
comes, it will be an hour of liberty. The Saviour will
attend his departure from the earth; -- He will watch over
the operation of his dying hours, -- like the skilful
refiner who has placed his precious substance in the
crucible, and marks it with an intense interest and
observation, while he applies the proportion of heat which
is necessary to accomplish his design regarding it. The
chamber where the Christian meets his death, is indeed a
sacred spot; privileged beyond the common walk of virtuous
life, quite on the verge of heaven. There is no fear in such
a death; -- there are no bands of servitude in such a
departure. He is in the everlasting arms of a Saviour
omnipotent, and he will soon be with Him in His glory. The
dying strife will soon be over. The spirit's jubilee has
come. It is to be free from bondage forever. And however the
saint may suffer in the flesh, for a little time if need be,
in a moment he will be at home. Death is uniformly made an
occasion of peaceful joy to the man who is in Christ.
Through his whole life, he looks forward to this hour with
hope as the appointed time, when he shall receive an
abundant entrance into the everlasting kingdom of his Lord
and Saviour.
He hopes for a future glorious resurrection of his
body from the grave,in a spiritual and undying form and
nature. This is a peculiar and blessed hope which the Gospel
gives. With this hope, he parts with his mortal body, that
like a seed sown in the earth, it may go through its
appointed process of decay, to a future brighter and more
beautiful manifestation. Jesus, as a faithful Creator, will
watch over it, till His own appointed hour shall come. In
that hour, He will raise it from the dust of the earth
again, however apparently commingled and lost, and bring it
to the glory which He has provided for it. The man in Christ
confides in this hope, as founded upon a divine assurance,
and rejoices to contemplate the day, when the Lord shall
return with the archangel's shout, to be glorified in His
saints, and when those who are asleep in Christ, shall arise
to meet Him in clouds, when the uncounted myriads of His
people shall reflect the brightness of His own appearance,
and manifest the power of His grace, and the riches of His
glory.
He hopes for a crown of glory in the great day of his
account with God. When in body and spirit again united,
he stands before God in judgment, it will be to have his
full salvation there proclaimed. He shall shine as the sun,
in the kingdom of his Father. He shall be brought with
triumph to God as the reward of the travail of a Saviour's
soul. The crown which he receives, is the recompense of a
Saviour's merit. The righteousness which earned and deserved
it, was the righteousness of Christ. But it is by the grace
of Christ bestowed upon him, and secured to him, as his
eternal portion. Jesus has triumphed, and His servants and
people have triumphed in Him. Jesus has merited, and they
receive the reward which He has earned for them. To this
glorious day, the man in Christ looks forward, when the Lord
shall make up His jewels, and receive His servants with an
affectionate welcome, to His own abode.
Then he hopes to dwell with Christ forever. So shall he
be ever with the Lord. So! So raised, and sanctified, and
crowned; -- so accepted and welcomed, and triumphant. This
is the grand end of all his plans, and labours, and desires.
He asks for no heritage on this side Jordan. He looks for a
permanent abode with Christ. He looks for this, as the
final, crowning gift of grace. The life and principle of his
religion here, is personal union with the Lord Jesus Christ.
All his hopes spring from this union, and were given to him,
when this union was perfected in his conversion. But here,
the influence of this principle is but gradually developed.
He is drawn continually nearer to Christ, and enjoys more of
the presence of his Saviour in his soul. But yet, all that
he knows is but in part, and all that he sees, is through a
glass darkly. There, this union is exhibited in all its
glory, and bestowed upon him in its blessedness. He dwells
forever with Christ, and Christ forever with him. But who on
earth can speak of these glorious results of faith and hope
for those who are with Christ. It hath not entered into the
heart of man, to conceive the least part of the joys which
God has prepared for those who love Him.
Faith strives, but all her efforts fail,
To trace them in their flight;
No eyes can pierce within the veil
Which hides that world of light.
These are the precious hopes which belong to the man in
Christ. They are found by him, growing more dear and
precious to him every day. As years multiply upon him, and
cares press around him; these become more constantly his
light and his comfort, in the house of his affliction. They
literally save him. He is "saved by hope." He would
have perished without them, and utterly have fainted, had he
not believed to see the goodness of the Lord, in the land of
the living. In all these precious hopes, Christ is all.
They are founded upon His word, -- they depend upon His
power. They are composed of blessings in prospect, which He
only can give. He is himself the great object of them,
including all other objects of desire in His own person and
love. He is Himself the hope which is as an anchor to the
soul, both sure and steadfast. The man in Christ is a man of
trials and sorrows. He mourns over the darkness of the world
around him; -- he is grieved with the corruptions which go
under a Christian name; -- he is pained with the
inconsistencies of professed believers; -- he is deeply
anxious amidst the dangers and trials to which the truth is
exposed; -- he groans under the burden of sin, and over the
plague of his own heart. But, amidst all this pressure upon
him, he has still a bright and glorious hope; and in this he
cannot but rejoice, and he does rejoice.
How unspeakably precious would these hopes be to all!
How sad is the thought, my beloved friends, that many of you
first see their worth, in the consciousness of their final
loss; and behold too late, the unspeakable glories which you
have vainly and sinfully cast, away! O that you would think
of the importance of this! Here is the great concern for
you. How happy would it be for you, would you give half the
attention and care to this, which you are ready to devote to
the mere dead discussions of religion, or to the vanities of
a dying world! Here come, to the feet of Jesus, -- an
appointed and sufficient Lord, -- make Him the object of
your choice, and your confidence. You will find there, a
glorious hope, -- a comforting and satisfying hope. It will
watch around you as a ministering spirit from on high. It
will stand by you, as an angelic messenger of peace. It will
supply you with daily provisions of joy and strength. Why
will you not embrace it., and hold it fast? Who of you is
excluded from its offers? -- who is driven away from the
feast of joy which it prepares? Why stand you remote from a
blessing so free, and so precious? My friends, every
interest, for you, is involved in the possession of this
blessed hope; -- a possession which is imparted by no mere
ordinances or ministries of man, but by the converting and
transforming power of the Holy Ghost, forming Christ within
the heart. Seek, then, the blessing thus proposed. Seek it
sincerely, and with your whole heart. Seek it in a
self-renouncing, humbled spirit. Seek it with a
determination to find and to possess it, -- but seek it only
in Christ; -- in an acceptance of His offered pardon; in a
trust in His perfect and sufficient righteousness; in a
choice of His service, and a willingness to suffer and to
count all but loss, for His sake. Seek this blessed hope, as
the great business before you, to which every other object,
relation, and engagement in life, is to give away; resolved
to come out, and be separate from sin, and to walk in
newness of life, under a Saviour's guidance. Thus shall you
find yourselves sheltered and comforted in Christ, and built
up and protected in Him, for every duty, -- in every trial,
-- and for the enjoyment of His glory; filled by the God of
hope, with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may
abound in hope through the power of the Holy Ghost. |
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