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THE

CHRISTIAN SPECTATOR.

No. I.]

JANUARY, 1821.

Keligious Communications.

For the Christian Spectator. On using the world as not abusing it. MAN sustains a most important relation to this world, and the use which he makes of it, decides his present and future well-being. The influence of the world is felt not merely in our sufferings and enjoyments as sensitive beings, but in the formation of our character, as beings who are destined soon to leave our present state,and enter one of eternal retribution. It becomes then a point of enquiry, well worthy of examination, what is the true and proper use to be made of this world; how are the duties of religion and the business of the world to be united and to be made alike subservient to our spiritual, our highest inter

ests.

[VOL. III.

sand things, which are lawful, which are proper, which are necessary; that there are duties pertaining to this world, that the constitution of the world evidently demands a high degree of solicitude and toil in its concerns, in order to fulfil the duties of life, and that we are not so to undervalue the things of this world, nor to be so absorbed with those of another as to disqualify us for the enjoyments to be found in our present state of existence.

Which of these two classes is in the right, it might be difficult to decide were we to concede to them their own premises. For if the duties of man which result from his relation to this world, are incompatible with those which arise from his character as anaccountable and an immortal being,each opinion, it would seem has a warrant, and between the different courses proposed, we are fairly at liberty to But it is not take our own choice. difficult to shew, that the opinion which assumes, that religion is incompatible with the duties and business of the present state, is founded on an utter misapprehension of the nature either of true religion or of the proper business of the world.

The subject becomes still more important if we reflect, that the opinion is not uncommon, and the practical estimate still more frequent, that the duties which arise out of man's condition in this world, are incompatible with that spiritual frame of mind, which the Scriptures constantly in culcate. There are those who plead for a species of indifference to this world, and a kind of sublimated devotion, which are not only inconsistent with the active business of life, and with a lawful measure of worldly enjoyment, but with usefulness to their fellow creatures. The propensity, however, of most men, is not to go to excess, in obeying those precepts of the gospel, which require abstraction from the world. To enfeeble the obligation of Christian self-worthy of God, surely becomes every denial, and to extend the limits of other being, who is capable of makself-indulgence, we are told of a thou- ing it the end of his actions. This

True religion may be said to consist in habitual obedience to the comprehensive precept "whether, therefore ye eat or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” His own glory, is the end of all the works of God and the only end worthy of himself. That end which is

end, man, as an accountable creature, is qualified to propose to himself and to accomplish. There is nothing in his faculties, nothing in the nature of the world that surrounds him, nothing in the structure of his physical constitution, which necessarily interferes with rendering the world in the use he makes of it, subservient to this exalted end of his creation. The end therefore, for which man is to live, is the glory of God. This law is of universal obligation throughout the intelligent kingdom of Jehovah.

The way or manner in which the end is to be accomplished by the voluntary subjects of that kingdom, varies according to the different circumstances in which they are placed. In heaven, this end is pre-eminently accomplished by direct acts of worship, and by the affections and the delights which are inseparable from such employments in the unveiled presence of God. On earth too, the method of honouring God by direct acts of worship and their appropriate emotions and joys, is not denied to man, but made his privilege and his duty.

As a constituent part of the same great end, man is to propose to himself, his own present and eternal wellbeing, and that of his fellow men.— To aim at the glory of God as the ultimate end of all our actions, involves the loss of no real good, either to ourselves or to our fellow creatures.

God, in his wisdom and good ness, has not only required us to glorify him, but has established a perfect coincidence between that end, and our own best good. Amid all the varying scenes and duties of life, the alternative can never arise, when one real interest of man, must be sacrificed to the divine glory, or one particle of that glory, to the real interest of man. The anthem sung by the heavenly hosts, when the Saviour was born, may be repeated, till time shall be no longer, "glory to God in the highest, peace on earth and good will to men."

The rule by which this great end is to be promoted, is contained in the

laws and precepts which God has given us in his word. Had man been competent to decide on each specific act or course of action by which God would be most honoured, he had been safely left to pursue this end in conformity with his own judginent. But it must be obvious, on a little reflection, how much embarrassment, and perplexity, and errour, would have attended the decision of the endless diversity of questions, which in that case would have arisen.— From these evils. God has graciously exempted us, by giving to us his laws and precepts, as the guide of our conduct. Omniscience has decided for us. Under such guidance we may walk in a sure and safe path to the great end for which God has given us an accountable and immortal existence.

Such being the nature of real religion, we are led to enquire, whether its habitual power, and its practical ascendency are incompatible with the true business of the world, or with any of the duties which arise from our present condition. An inspired Apostle has taught us to use this world as not abusing it. To abuse the world, is to turn it from a good to a bad purpose. None will doubt that the world formed by infinite wisdom and goodness, is capable of answering a good end to the creatures for whose habitation and benefit it was made. If then, we can ascertain how that end may be defeated on the one hand, and how secured on the other, we shall also ascertain what it is to use the world as not abusing it, and whether the true use of the world is at all inconsistent with the duties of religion.

1. We are not to regard this world as of no value to our happiness, but duly to appreciate it as the means of present good. "There is nothing better for a man than that he should eat and drink and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labour." "Every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving." The

world then which God has appointed us to inhabit, is not to be regarded with absolute aversion, nor even with indifference. If we use the world as of no worth, we virtually declare its insufficiency to administer to our present comfort, we contemn its blessings, we impeach the goodness of our Maker. The bounties of heaven that are scattered around us to be enjoyed, are despised; every emotion of gratitude for them to our divine Benefactor is stifled, and the very means of supporting our bodies while employ ed in the duties of religion, are neglected. This use of the world is a palpable abuse of it, and no less palpably inconsistent with the claims of that religion which we have described. That religion which teaches us to make the glory of God the end of all our actions, requires also that we seek our own and our neighbours well being, as well as honour God by acts of praise and thanksgiving. Some degree of worldly enjoyment therefore, as inseparable from the subsistence of man, so far from being incompatible with that religion, is indispensable to its existence. These blessings, are given to us as the means of furnishing us with strength and activity, in the performance of personal and relative duties; of exhibiting to us the perfections of the invisible Creator, of exciting our lively gratitude to that unwearied Benefactor who provides so liberally for our comfort and our happiness, and in this way to prepare us for the song eternal; and thus we see a divine harmony between using the world as not abusing it, and the duties of that religion which the gospel inculcates.

2. If we would use this world as not abusing it, we must not regard it as the means of perfect happiness.A single glance at the structure of the soul; and at the nature of the world, forces the conviction on every mind, that the world cannot make man happy. The amount of good which it can afford, much as it exceeds what we have reason to expect,

yet compared with that of which the soul is capable, is justly denominated vanity and vexation of spirit. Under what a lamentable practical mistake, then, are a great majority of men! In youth, in manhood, in old age, happiness from the world is the great object of pursuit. Though it perpetually eludes the grasp, yet disappointment only serves to renew the ardour of pursuit, or to change the path of search; never persuades to abandon the object. Now is this use of the world conformed to the true design of him that made it for man? If the whole world were gained, would the object aimed at, be secured? Would present happiness be enjoyed? Is not God the only satisfying portion of the soul? Is not man a pilgrim on earth, and in the midst of his journey; and does either his present or his future happiness require that he look for his home, his rest, his complete enjoyment, while on his way to eternity? Surely he is not subserving the end of his present condition, by using this world to satisfy the desires of that spirit which pants for immortality, and which can be satisfied only with the fulness of God. Reason tells us, that the good things of our earthly pilgrimage are given as mere refreshments by the way, to cheer our progress and animate our steps toward our Father's house; while the experience of six thousand years, decides, that to fix the heart on this world as our portion, is to tread the path of disappointment, of anxiety, of sorrow, of sin and of ruin. What then is there in the true and proper use of this world that is inconsistent with the demands of religion? Is the religion, which requires us to estimate this world according to its true value in comparison with another, which would awaken us from the wretched dream, that to feed on ashes is the perfection of our immortal nature, which would check us in the pursuit of empty visions, which surrounds us with the substantial realities of eternity, and which directs us to fix the desires of the

soul on the only object that can fill and satisfy them, is such a religion an enemy to human happiness? Does it bring disorder into the affections of the soul or defeat the end of our being, or does it prescribe to us that very estimate of the world, and that very use of it, which will alike contribute to our happiness here and hereafter? If then we would not pervert the world by direct and palpable abuse, if we would use it for the end designed by the Creator, let us yield implicitly to the authority of that religion, whose demands conform so exactly with the real good of man.

3. Another remark closely allied with the former, is that if we would use this world as not abusing it, we must not make it the occasion of exeiting or gratifying our animal appetites or selfish passions. That the true and proper use of the world is not to pamper the body with food, or drink, or other sensual indulgence, is obvious in its effects on the present well being of man. Contemplate the drunkard, wasting by the poison that he loves; listen to the oaths and blasphemies he utters, and mark the crimes he perpetrates. Follow him to his home, witness his broken hearted wife, and his starving children, see them terrified by his fury, or overwhelmed in anguish by his vices, behold his bloated visage, his trembling hands, his enfeebled frame; see his remorse and conscious degradation in the moments of sobriety, or what is more common, his restlessness to repeat his brutal indulg. nce; consider thus minutely any course of sensual indulgence, and say, is this to use the world as not abusing it? Consider these things again, and say, is the religion which proscribes intemperate indulgence, incompatible with that use of the world, which reason approves? Surely he who was formed to be the companion of angels, is not doomed so to use the world in which he is placed, as to sink himself below the beasts that perish.

Similar remarks apply to the selfish passions of man. Anger, revenge,

discontent, envy, pride, aud avarice, are the appropriate operations of a selfish spirit, as that spirit is excited and put in action by the world.— Counteract that influence of the world which excites the spirit of selfishness, and none of these passions would invade the breast of man.

That the indulgence of these passions are necessary to the present well being of man, in any condition in which he can be placed, none will affirm. Will anger make him happy? Will discontent or fretfulness, or an open contest with God under adverse events, make him happy? Will pride, or envy, or revenge, make him happy? Will avarice which hoards or desires useless wealth, make him happy? Will any one, or all of these selfish passions as continual or occasional inmates of the bosom of man, secure 66 the soul's calm sunshine?" Every one's own heart tells him, that the real sacrifice is not to renounce these tempers, but to cherish them, that to use the world as the occasion of their excitement is to abuse it, and that in all the diversified conditions of man, there is no way of deriving an equal measure of enjoyment from the world as by cultivating meekness, humility, forgiveness, submission, compassion, benevolence. What then, in this department of life, are the requisitions of true religion? Are we ill-treated by our fellow men, we are to think of the bright example of him, who when he reviled, reviled not again; and are to render good for evil, blessing for cursing. Are we called to endure adversity and affliction, we are to reflect on the vanity of the world, reminded that all that befalls us is of God's appointment, summoned to a cheerful submission to his will, made to reflect that we need correction, and urged to profit by the strokes of our heavenly Father's hand. Are we blessed with prosperity, we are to check our expectations from it, to consider of how little consequence is all earthly good, to guard against its power on our hearts, to awaken grat

itude to our divine Benefactor, and to be quickened in pursuit of that higher and nobler good, which is secured by the covenant of his promise. Are we applauded and caressed by the world, we must see to it, that we are not overcome by this most dangerous temptation, and cherish a higher regard for the favour of God than for the honour that cometh from man. Do we possess wealth, talents, influence, or other means of doing good in this world of sin and suffering, we are taught that these are entrusted to us by that God whose stewards we are, to be used for the glory of him who has said, "occupy till I come;" that we are not to bury one talent, lest we incur the doom of that servant, who ventured on the awful experiment; that neither pride nor avarice nor sensuality, are to measure our beneficence, nor appropriate our possessions; that we are not to amass useless wealth, for posthumous distinction, or as the means of indulgence and ostentation to our children, that we are to open our hand wide to the poor, to be rich in good works, willing to distribute, ready to communicate, and that it is more blessed to give than to receive. These instances are sufficient to shew, what are the demands of Christianity, in all the conditions in which men are placed in the world, and to enable us to decide whether its claims come into competition, with any real interest which the world creates. They shew us that if we can be satisfied to use the world as not abusing it, to use it in such a manner as to derive from it under every condition of life, the highest measure of good which it can afford, we shall instead of finding our path crossed by the requisitions of religion, find ourselves walking in the very path which God has marked out

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and of the wants of those who are dependant upon us, cannot be rationally denied.

To say nothing then, of the incongruity of supposing that God should require a portion of time to be allotted to prayer and other exercises of devotion, and that he should place us in a world, where our own comfortable subsistence, necessarily prevents obedience to his requirements; the point of enquiry now is, whether a true and proper use of the world, necessarily occupies the whole of our probation. If the only proper use of the world, is to pursue with insatiable eagerness, its honours and its riches, to despise a low situation though amply comfortable, and to grasp at all the possessions that the utmost effort can accumulate, then indeed man has no time for religion. But to justify such a use of the world the plea of necessity cannot be made. Indeed reason and experience both decide that a moderate indulgence of the good things of this life, is the part of true wisdom. To sit loose to the world in our affections, is the surest way to derive from it the highest measure of good. All beyond is the vexation of care, and the torment of anxiety: and having food and raiment, and the ordinary portion of other worldly comforts, we have not only reason for contentment, but for gratitude.

"Man wants but little here below,
Nor wants that little long."

It becomes every one who pleads the press of occupation, the calls of business, and the cares of life, to enquire, why his time is thus engrossed. Is it a matter of absolute necessity? If not, it is a matter of choice without necessity; and what right has any man to involve himself in a multiplicity of useless cares, to bind around him the chains of incessant occupa-. tion, and plead that he cannot exempt himself from the bondage, which neither God nor nature has created ?— Let him farther enquire, does he find no time for unnecessary relaxation or

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