If the righteous do not know their own good works; if they do not recognise, in the sheaves which they reap at the resurrection, the seed which they have sown in tears on earth, they certainly cannot make these things the foundation of their hopes of heaven. Christ crucified is their sole dependence for acceptance with God, in time and in eternity. Christ crucified is the great object of their faith, and the centre of their affections; and while their love to him prompts them to live soberly, and righteously, and godly, in this present evil world, they cordially exclaim—“Not unto us, not into us, but to thy name, O Lord, give glory!” Amen.
“_Above all_, _taking the shield of faith_, _wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked_.”—Eph. vi. 16.
THE Christian is engaged in a warfare, “not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness”—or wicked spirits—“in high places;” who go about like roaring lions, seeking whom they may devour; assailing the servants of Christ even on their high places—their Pizgahs, their Tabors, their Olivets; swarming up from the sea of corruption within and around us, like the frogs in Egypt, and entering into our very bed-chambers and closets of devotion.
These spiritual adversaries must be opposed with spiritual armor; and the apostle has here given us a complete set of weapons for fighting, and a complete panoply for defence. The Roman armor consisted of several parts, all of which St. Paul makes use of figuratively, to represent the several Christian graces by which we resist our subtle, deceitful, and invisible enemies. As the articles to which he alludes constituted a complete coat of arms, and the soldier was not prepared for the field without the whole; so the Christian graces which they represent are all of them important, “that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto every good work.” Some of these heavenly qualities may appear brighter at particular times in one Christian than in another; but the whole list is indispensable to every spiritual warrior. Abraham may excel in faith, Moses in meekness, Job in patience, Daniel in courage, Peter in zeal, Paul in humility, and John in love; but each must have the entire armor, though different occasions may require the use of different articles in the catalogue. That you may be able to stand in the evil day, you must have the shoes of peace, to preserve your feet; the girdle of truth, to strengthen your loins; the helmet of hope, to defend your heads; the breastplate of righteousness, to cover your hearts; the sword of the Spirit, to cut your way through the columns of the foe; “And above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.”