SUNDAY BEADING.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LIX, Issue 143451, 11 March 1911, Page 6

SUNDAY BEADING.

NOTES OF SERMON preached by xViO Rov. J. G. CHAPMAN, in the Wesleyan Church, Now Plymouth. ‘‘That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold which pcrisiieth, though it ho tried by fire, might bo found unto praise, and honour, and glory at tho appearing of Jesus Christ.”—Peter 1, i—7. Faith occupies a large, place in scripture. It is a precious thing in tho sight of God, and is one of the most valuable possessions of the Christian. r J he simplest definition of it is trust. It is more than belief, it is rather belief in exercise. Vou may believe that Jesus calmed the troubled waters of tho lake, yet yon may not trust Him to calm your fears and to take care ol yell amid life's storms. Faith may he nothing mdro than assent of the mind, whereas trust is tho repose of the lie-art. The most beautiful expression of our faith is by obedience to the will of God. Where there is little faith then- is faltering obedience. Whore faith is strong obedience is prompt a: I willing. In ‘‘Cecil’s Remains" we have a beautiful illustration of hoiv he sought to develop this trait of obedience in his little daughter. One day his daughter was playing with som(' bends which she prised very highly. Her father i-'iu.mandcd her to throw them imo tin- fire. She look'd at him very earnestly as if she thought she niighl have a reason for such a cruel sacrifice. Then the tears began to gather in hi r eyes. ‘‘Very well, my dear," said her father, "no as you please, lint you know I have never toM you to do anything which 1 did int think would he good for you,” She look-‘.'l at her father for a lew mean ills longer, and flu’ll sumim ’ling up her fortitude, her breast heaving v. ilh ih" effort, she east tin* brads into the fire, ‘‘Let then) stay there.said her father, ‘‘yon shall hear more about them another time.” Some days after, her father bought her a Ih>x full of larger beads, and when he got home he .set them before her. She burst into tears with eestnoy. ‘‘Those are yours,” said the father, “because you believed me when I told yon it would bo better for yon to throw these paltry beads into the fire. Now, my dear, remember as long as yon live what faith is.” There you hn've faith manifesting itself in free, S PONT ANEO V S Oif E DIE NCE. And that is the kind of faith that God wishes to develop in ns; faith expressing itself in unquestioning obedience. And that is the reason for faith’s trial. Von know how we test; tilings, hut there is a difference between testing material things and testing faith. We test n_ boiler to see if it can stand the strain put upon it; we bring a pressure of so ninny pounds to the square inch to bear tijion it; if it stands the pressure we pass it. The trial has been successful. But when God tries our faith it is not to find out what strain it can hear, or the quantity of it; God knows that without anv testing. When faith is tried it is that it mav he strengthened and enlarged. Yon" cannot add strength to thi' larder when you test it, but faith is made stronger with each trial, so that it can boar a greater strain the next, time it is tried. Each victory of faith will help yon some other and greater victorv to win. Did not God test Abraham's faith to see how much it could stand, by commanding him to riav Ids son? Nothing of the kind. God does not do absurd things. God is omniscient, He knows nil things, and fie knew exactly to a thousandth jrart of an inch what strain Abraham's tnith co-dd stand without, putting it to the test,. Abraham was tried that his faith might he strengthened, and that he might have a nobler conception of Gird. And Abraham was a grander man after the trial ‘.ban ho was before the trial. The trial of our faith is not to eclipse faith, nor to discover its quality, but to increase its strength and enlarge its horizon. Don't murmur then when trial comes, and say. “Why is God dealing thus with mo?” If von want faith to grow from weakness to strength, look upon every trial as an invitation to enlargement. When trials aro absent faith is tempted to take a holiday. Jt will get sleepy and languish if it is not exercised. Notice what James says, “Count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations (or testings).” Those trials are facilities for faith’s exercise, and faith needs exercise as well as the body. Perhaps you have been in some school for

PHYSICAL CULTURE,

where a variety of exercises is employed. There 'is an exorcise tor the development of tho shoulders, another for the expansion of the chest, another for the muscles of the arm, yet another for the culture of the spine. Each part of tho body has its own distinctive exercise for its own distinctive culture; divers exorcises for the strengthening and perfecting of the body. So there arc clivers exorcises for tho culture of faith. “Count it all joy when ye fall into divers exercises”—different, temptations or trials, for the development of our complex nature. It may ho a sluggish conscience, a feeble affection, a wavering will; some part of our nature is undeveloped, infantile, feeble, incomplete. So God sends one of His divers testings to educate that particular part that is lacking. It may he a disappointment, a grief, a bereavement, a shaking of business; those are the testings of our faith in God, and if successfully borne develop character and beautify life. The Book of the Bible where the word faith most pre-eminent-ly abounds is tho Epistle to tho Hebrews. But that Epistle which so abounds in tho word faith also abounds in words like these—Meetings, scourgings, bonds,, imprisonments, they are stoned, were drawn asunder, wore tempted, slain, destitute, afflicted, evil intreated. When things are smooth, undisturbed, and no trial molests, no temptation assails us, then unseen things become unreal, mere dreams, castles in the air; but when trials and testings come then God becomes more real and touches our life, and we become mighty in our grip and apprehension of spiritual realities. Now the text shows us that the reason why tho testing of onr faith is so precious is been use it produces certain permanent results, which could not. l)e produced witlamt the testing. Take one result for instance. St. James says that the trying of cur faith produces patience. Did you ever think how precious a thing is patience? Impatience is the mother ’ of \ BLUNDERS AND MISTAKES. Barents get impatient with their children and thus mar the harmony of family life. Many persons are maimed for life because of the impatience of some doctors. Christians get impatient with tho slow workings of Providence.

“Tho wheels of God grhid slowly But they grind exceeding small.” Impatience blinds tho judgment and arrives al fatal conclusions. Patienceif> tho result of faith's testing. Then Ri. damns says further. “U;t patience have her perfect work.” Einishing or polishing work iiS the idea in those words. Patience when constantly exercised has an effect upon character like emery paper on marble. In the museum at Edinburgh there is a tall pillar of Aberdeen granite allowing the different stages it goes through from the time it is token from the quarry tip to the time when it becomes a beautiful stone perfectly refined and polished. At the base it is just a rough uncouth block of granite just out of the quarry, l ie next foot in tho pillar represent*? the first stage in the process of refining, then the next foot represents tho next sta.gr, and no on through oil tho procopses until thp topmost pillar represent.-- tho porlVotly finished and jwlishod produi't. The bn-e shows the utobo frrisli from the quarry-the uUimate tip nqinian ts tho granite after it has been subjected to the finest emery. Ano that is St. James’ moaning—“ Let patienco hare her polishing work,” her infilling work. Now God trains faith in tKrop’wajtJ at least, first by promise. Jt was thus that find trainee! Abraham’s faith, lie (vunmaiuiod him to leave his native land and journey to a country unknown, premising him the possession or ownership of that country where his offspring should fill the lard. On the strength of that premise Abraham left his fatherland and journeyed as a wanderer over the fac'd of the earth. Hero is a

SHY, NERVOUS OIRTy She clings to her mother in the presence of strangers. You ask the child in came to you, hut site clings closer lo le-r parent. Sin- in afraid of you, Du- lacks amfidenee in you. You ret v.nil..elf to v. li. her confidence. Freni 'your hr ‘ yen take a. pretty doll nicely dressed." ■ The child <VOS rpi'E-d'l- - to me. yen say. and 1 will give vm {hi s beautiful dell. The elnl.i s held of her m-Hi-r relaxes; she Ink- s a Men towards you: she is at ye.ur fide, ace ’and thin fhv child in actually ntting on yotir knee, all fear gene; you are no longer a in.-net'’! to (hot ehdd. You have won her confidence. ken have nr dneed faith. Hew? By the promise of the doll. The nremi-e trained her faith. And yon and I are hut children in the moral realm, shy and fearful of trusting Gad. He bids us do this and that, hut we hang hack So He has intursnerred His great message to US in the Bible with hundreds of promises, and the-e promises are there to insoire confidence and faith in Grd. We Jo His bidding and we get the fulfilment of the premise, and this .strengthens mir faith. Then God trainsfaith hv doubt. This is n stronger test, a heavier strain. God has some nrenon« gifts in His store-house which cim \\' obtained only by a strong fa it h, The Syrophoomrian woman asked Hirjrt ta cast tlk* demon out of her daughter. Jesus paw that her faith was inadequate to compass such a blessing, .so Ho set Himself to flux'd her 1 ivo faith. Her first request is met by a chilling silence. made it appear as though He didn’t notice her. This probably creattxl h doubt in her mind that site would get her request answered. He is too great a personage to listen to a poor* Gentile woman. But instead of eclipsing her faith it strengthened it. But she persevered. Her faith, though repulsed, gathers strength, and with a stronger faith she leaps the Iwrier which Christ erected round tho blessing she sought. But Jesus now sets a higher wall before her. “I am not sent hut unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” That wall seemed impassable. Jesus’ blessings vsnrc for .hevs. not for Gentiles. But though the blessing seems farther off than over, she falters not, hut falls on her knees in her helplessness and cries, •‘Lord help me.” And over this wall her heaven-aided faith hears her. With a

HIGHER BARRICADE still Jostia hedges round tho blessing slip socks: “U is not moot to take the children’s broad and to oust it to dogs” —"puppies” is tho word. That fence will surely stop the impertinent C’anaanito asking mercies uneovemuited. Is she offended by that term “puppy”? I.uok. She vaults over that barrier at a single bound, clearing its topmost picket on which she might have been imualed. “Truth, Lord; ynt the dogs eat the crumbs which fall from the master’s table.” Nobly baa she stood the test, and developed a faith strong enough to drive out the biggest demon outside of pandemonium. Jeans could withhold nothing from that faith. A faith trained by doubt. But faith’s severest test is by fire. Fire is a refining, purifying element. Faith that is trained by promise is elementary faith. Faith when trained by doubt is strengthened and carried into higher reaches; but faith tested and trained by fire is faith without alloy, pure, sweet, childlike. Job knew this testing of. bis faith by the fiery element. It licked up bis children, destroyed his property, annihilated his cattle, robbed him of friends, covered him with loathsomeness, and left him upon the dust heap. It was a fiery test—a painful training. Yet listen to him after the ordeal; “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him.” Such sublime faith was the outcome of that severe trial. Now the purpose of our faith’s trial, that “it might be found unto praise ami honour and glory at tho appearing of Jesus Christ.” The gold is well repaid for the fires that tested it when it is made into a crown that encircles the monarch’s brow. That trial which was so severe and hard to bear shall carry with it its due recompense of reward. To have one word of God’s commendation, to bo honoured before the angels, to bo presented blameless and faultless to the Father. Ah, this will more than repay for all. Your faith la priceless in God’s esteem. It is the root of all other graces: tho. germ of tho saintly life: the key that unlocks the divine storehouse; tho foot of the ladder whose top touches heaven. To make this faith strong in our Heavenly Father is a matter of extreme value to God. And since it can only grow strong by use and exercise and strain, don’t he surprised if Ho expose you to discipline graduated according to your power, until beneath His gracious tuition the faith which once styrered at sight of the shallows will plunge fearlessly into the deep and do business in mighty waters.