A Purged Conscience
1912 111 Happy, truly happy, is the man whose conscience has been purged by the precious blood of Christ. Scripture speaks of many kinds of consciences — good and evil, pure and defiled, weak consciences, and others — "seared as with a hot iron," convicted consciences, and others again, void of offence toward God and man"; but a "purged conscience" belongs only to the one who has come into real, personal, touch with God Himself. Such an one, awakened from its carnal ease by God's "Where art thou?" has discovered its guilt, danger and sin, in the light of the cross on which Jesus died. There also has it learnt the complete ruin and hopeless impotency of all that belongs to the old man, and with the sad discovery of its utter vileness in God's sight has found out that the terrible distance sin has made between the creature and the Creator can only be bridged by faith in the redeeming blood which has fully atoned for sins and put out of God's sight as an offence to His holiness.
Such an one has personally proved the power and sweetness of the words, "How much more shall the blood of Christ, who, through the eternal Spirit, offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" The spotless Saviour, having become for the sinner that believes, his divine Substitute, has made Himself responsible, Godward, for all that he was, as well as for all that he has done. Sin's guilt and judgment have thus been fully borne, and exhausted, by the One "who knew no sin," and the believer's conscience is now purged through faith in that precious blood. What the blood of hulls and goats, and the ashes of an heifer could never accomplish, the blood of Jesus does; and every one who, in truth of heart, rests on the finished work of a dead and risen Christ is entitled to know and enjoy settled peace with God. Brought out of darkness into marvellous light, and from the shadows of a dead Judaism into the presence of the living God, the believer now rejoices in the Lord, and in quiet rest of soul is privileged to sing: —
"Clean every whit, Thou saidst it, Lord,
Shall one suspicion lurk?
Thine surely is a faithful word,
And Thine a finished work."
A Worshipping Heart
All the types and shadows of the past were only figures of the true, but "the Holy Ghost signified that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing." Every claim of truth and justice having, however, been fully satisfied, there rernaineth no more offering for sin; the veil is rent, a risen Christ sits at God's right hand, and an indwelling Spirit is the abiding power for the purged worshipper to draw near and worship the Father in spirit and truth, "for the Father seeketh such to worship him." The new and living way is open into heaven itself, and the worshipper is now privileged to enter with a true heart and in full assurance of faith into the very presence of God. Apart from all the rites and ordinances of a bygone dispensation, and standing in the unsullied light of the glory of God that shines from the face of a risen and glorified Saviour, the purged worshipper's heart is free to delight itself in all the peerless worth of Him at whose blessed feet all the heavenly hosts prostrate themselves in ceaseless praise and adoration.
As the countless glories of Him who sits upon the throne pass in spirit before the happy worshipper, the Spirit strikes the chord of praise to God's beloved Son, and the heavenly anthem rings out through heaven's courts from the whole of the redeemed family, "Unto him that loveth us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, and made us kings and priests unto his God and Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. Worship must needs flow without an effort from the heart that is really satisfied with Jesus, and that has found its true rest in sweet communion with the Father and the Son, by the power of the indwelling Spirit. Just in proportion as self is forgotten, and the never-ending glories of Christ ravish and captivate the heart, so is God magnified in His saints, and His heart refreshed and gladdened. The fragrance of that precious name that is above all others is as ointment poured forth, and its sweet savour ever abides before God in the heavenly sanctuary. This is but a foretaste, however, of that bright eternal day when,
"Heaven's vault with praise shall ring,
Louder, and yet more loud;
Millions of saints His worth shall sing,
Each heart in worship bowed.
"The tide shall still roll on,
That tide of endless praise,
Till every creature to Thy throne
Its voice in blessing raise."
A Contented Mind
Scripture declares that "godliness with contentment is great gain," but in passing through a world of constant unrest and ever increasing excitement, where God is forgotten and pleasure and carnal ease everywhere abound, how rare a thing is it to discover a contented mind. Yet, truth to tell, neither prison bars nor Nero's chains could rob the beloved apostle of the Gentiles of his own abiding joy in the Lord, nor could prison fare or his being cut off from active service for his Master produce in him a discontented mind. With Christ as his life, his pattern, his object, and his strength, he bursts forth into song ""Rejoice in the Lord alway, and again I say, Rejoice." Paul's preaching and his practice were in unison. The manner of his life, as well as the language of his lips, alike testified that he had learned, in whatever state he was, to be content. "I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound; everywhere, and in all things, I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need."
No change of circumstances moved his stedfast mind, and the peace of God which passeth all understanding kept both heart and mind through Christ Jesus. He who had been beaten with rods, aid stoned, who had thrice suffered shipwreck, a night and a day had been in the deep, who had passed through all kinds of perils, yea, had suffered weariness and painfulness; in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold, and nakedness, with, besides other things, the care of all the churches, was manifestly no ordinary traveller in "the path of sorrow and that path alone" which "leads to the land where sorrow is unknown"; yet had he learnt through grace, in whatever state he was, to be content. With a mind fixed on heavenly things, nothing moved him, and hence he could send that sweet message to the Hebrew saints, "Be content with such things as ye have, for he hath said, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee, so that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear; what shall man do unto me?"
The gold, seven times purified in the furnace of affliction, only shone all the brighter to the praise of God's glory, and he who had fought the good fight, who had finished his course, and kept the faith, could look forward with a contented mind to the crown of righteousness which the Lord, the righteous Judge, should give him in the coming day. The storm may roar, the billows rage, but the divine anchor that steadies the ship is a living Christ in glory. The child of faith can surely sing, "My Father knows," and whatever may cross our path, it is but the hand of love drawing us nearer and closer to Himself.
Come storm, or come sunshine, prosperity or adversity, all, all is well with the believer. Soon will the Morning Star arise, the day break, and earth's shadows flee away; and how it will gladden the coming Bridegroom if we can meet Him with not only a purged conscience and a worshipping heart, but with a contented mind "In the "little while "that lies between, the pilgrim's song should surely be:
"The heart within us leapeth,
And cannot down be cast,
Since with our God it keepeth
Its never-ending feast.
The sun, which smiling, lights us,
Is Jesus Christ alone,
And what to song incites us
Is heaven on earth begun." S.T.