2 Chronicles 32:8 With him is an arm of flesh; but with us is the LORD our God to help us, and to fight our battles… And the people rested themselves upon the words of Hezekiah. How far are we right and wise in building upon words, upon the words of another? I. THE FOLLY OF RESTING ON THE USE OF FORMULAE. There are some sacred forms or phrases, theological or scriptural, which have been much urged upon men, as if they had some very special potency in them; as if we could be perfectly at rest, in regard to human souls, if they did but pronounce those particular phrases with their lips. Such superstition as this is pitiable and perilous. It is utterly without warrant, and it is likely to withdraw the soul from that true trust in which life is to be found. To believe in Jesus Christ can never be resolved into the use of any form of words, how~ ever excellent or scriptural such form may be. II. THE CONFIDENCE WHICH IS FATAL, viz. to rest upon the words of those who are unworthy of our trust. How many of the children of men have lost everything that is most precious because they have made this fatal mistake! Of those whose words should never be built upon are: 1. The ignorant, whose range of knowledge is very small, and who have not had the opportunity of learning the ascertainable truth and wisdom of God. 2. The prejudiced and obdurate, who will not learn, and therefore do not know and cannot counsel. 3. The superficial, who are contented with a knowledge which does not reach "the deep heart of truth." 4. The false, who only say what they think is palatable and profitable. 5. The fickle, who have one doctrine to-day, but may have a different one to-morrow. III. THE TRUST WHICH IS SOUND AND WISE. There are words on which we may build. When God speaks to us we know that we may rest on his Word absolutely; we know that we should heed his warnings, and that we may build on his promises. "Heaven and earth shall pass away," etc. But how shall we know when Christ is speaking to us? Many speak in his name who do not speak on his authority. 1. We should pay regard to the words of those who profess to speak for him, and whose character for purity and unselfishness sustains their claim (Matthew 7:15-20). 2. We should heed the words of those of his disciples who urge that which meets our spiritual necessities and accords with the deepest convictions of our nature. 3. We should consult the Master's own recorded words, always remembering that they are to be interpreted in the spirit, and not in the letter. If we do this we shall not only be "resting on words," we shall be building on the rock, for we shall be abiding in the truth; we shall be grounded on the very wisdom of God itself, or (we may say) on the Wisdom of God himself (1 Corinthians 1:24, 30). - C. Parallel Verses KJV: With him is an arm of flesh; but with us is the LORD our God to help us, and to fight our battles. And the people rested themselves upon the words of Hezekiah king of Judah. |
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