fli tianEv" JB8BbB$&& m I ■HHra ■ I illinMnT ■ ■ i& ; I ■ :-V&' ^H&COOPER .. tut Shnbgia; s PRINCETON, N. J. % Library of Dr. A. A. Hodge. Pi^esented. BL 240 .C66 1884 Cooper, John. Christian evolution, or The* divine process in human CHRISTIAN EVOLUTION OR THE DIVINE PROCESS IN HUMAN REDEMPTION WITH AN APPENDIX ON THE REVISION OF CREEDS BY REV. JOHN COOPER, AUTHOR OF "SCIENCE OF SPIRITUAL LIFE," "PROVINCE OF LAW," "CHRIST'S MODE OF PRESENTING HIMSELF TO THE WORLD," "SELF-SACRIFICE," ETC. EDINBURGH: MACNIVEN AND WALLACE. 1884. PREFACE. ' I A HIS volume is intended as a supplement to the Author's previous four volumes. If Christianity is to rise in these days to her true commanding position, it will be by bring- ing the essential truths of the Gospel into clearer prominence. Stronger emphasis must be given to the innate greatness of free agency, the evil character of sin considered as self- worship, and the true grandeur of self-sacrifice in reclaiming the rebellious spirit of man to the loyal devotion of Christian life. The Author would fain do what lies in his power to restrain, in some degree, the declension from the Christian profession which appears to be so lamentably prevalent at present. CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. THE CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE OF EVOLUTION. SEC. PAGE 1. Evangelical doctrine is capable of rational defence . 15 2. Christian devotion is not realized in mere feeling . 16 3. Heredity a principle in all natural operation . 17 4. Breaks in continuity evidence themselves in the de- velopment of law . . . . .18 5. Regeneration is a break in the order of sinful life . 18 6. Through atonement and regeneration sinful man is raised to the loftiest possible condition of life . 19 7. In struggling to rise superior to sin through self- sacrifice man acquires the lineaments of the divine life ...... 20 8. The peculiar and distinguishing difference of the Christian view from the purely scientific view of the Universe . . . . . .20 9. The highest of all power is involved in the creation of free agency . . , . .20 10. Incarnation is the infinite coming into the conditions of the finite . . . . . .20 11. The highest and most comprehensive combination of powers was manifest in the death on Calvary . 21 12. Christ's resurrection and ascension was His entrance upon His reign . . . . .21 13. Self-sacrifice is necessary to salvation . .21 6 Contents. SEC. PAGE 14. Christianity, while acting in harmony with ethics, science, and philosophy, does not conform its opera- tions to either . . . . .21 15. In God's dealings with man He displays the highest wisdom . . . . . .21 CHAPTER II. DIVINE ACTION : DIRECT AND INDIRECT. 1. Will is the movement of personality . . 25 2. Perfect unity of wills is possible . . . 25 3. The Son's glory is conspicuous in the perfect unity of His will with the Father's . . . .26 4. Diversity of wills is also possible . . .26 5. A new power is brought into existence by the finite entering into opposition to the infinite will . 28 6. There is no divine provision for the perversion of will in the finite being . . . . .28 7. Self-wilfulness is the necessary result of perversion of will . . . . . .29 8. Selfishness is the only possible explanation of the opposition of wills . . . . -29 9. The universal sinfulness and misery of man is the perversion of the human will . . . 29 10. The slightest mixture of a black colour with white mars its purity . . . . . -3° 11. And so of the action of sin or self-will in the universe of will . . . . . . 30 12. The misery of life was not brought about by any defect in the principles, laws, or forces of being . 30 13. When the will of the creature deviates in the least degree from the will of the Creator it becomes a disorganizing force . . . . . 31 Contents. \ SEC. PAG 14. Evil is solely the abuse of free agency . . 31 15. The Godhead assumed the responsibility of creating free will . . . . . 31 16. The creation of free will opens up the possibility of boundless varieties of conditions of life and the loftiest attainments in being . . . 32 17. Man has chosen the life of self-will in preference to that of loyal will . . . . . 32 18. Self-will is essentially evil — a rebellious and anta- gonistic force . . . . -33 19. Self-will can in no way be approved by God . . 33 20. God alone has the right of acting from His own will . 34 21. In discussions about divine decrees the distinction between God's direct and indirect action must not be overlooked . . . . -34 CHAPTER III. RECONCILIATION. 1. Recovery is different from evolution or development . 39 2. Man is a constituted being . . . -39 3. Human affections are suitably exercised only when supremely set upon God . . . -39 4. Man is the subject of a threefold consciousness . 40 5. He is not created for suffering . . .40 6. The idea and desire for justice are deeply imbedded in human nature . . . . 41 7. There never has been an individual family or nation of men without the idea of retaliation . . 41 8. Punishment is no satisfaction to law . . . 42 9. God is resolved to maintain all that He has made . 42 10. Temptation agitates the soul . . . .42 8 Contents. SEC. PAGE 11. Sin is the deliberate resolve to do the forbidden deed . 43 12. Man was not superior to temptation in Paradise 13. Fallen man can be raised only by self-sacrifice 14. Self-sacrifice in itself is not desirable . 15. Man must have something external to himself to rest upon ... 16. For undoing the effects of sin man is in himself powerless ..... 17. No penance or repentance can silence the accusing conscience ...... 18. The power that brings peace to the heart of man must be from God .... 19. The reconciling work must begin with God 20. Reconciliation cannot be effected by any display of wrath ..... 21. Nor can reconciliation be effected by mere authority 22. Self-sacrifice is the only ground of reconciliation 23. Eternal love, self-moved on behalf of fallen humanity, can save man ..... 24. The Godhead has manifested itself in self-sacrificing love on behalf of fallen man 25. When the hour had come, the Saviour of sinners met in awful conflict the enemy of God and man . 26. From the Cross goes the most solemn voice ever uttered in the hearing of the universe 27. The sinner, in the view of Calvary's manifestation, no longer dreads God .... 28. The believer can no longer enthrone self in his heart 29. Love is the reconciler .... 30. Christ is the substitute of sinners 31. Christ has expiated the guilt of human transgression 32. Christ is the propitiation for sin 33. Christ is our sacrifice 34. Christ is the vicarious sacrifice for sin . Contents. 9 SEC. PAGE 35. Christ is the atonement for human transgression . 54 36. Christ is our salvation . . . -54 CHAPTER IV. THE UNPARDONABLE SIN. 1. Sympathy with truth is necessary to the understanding of it 57 2. The enmity of the fallen heart may be inveterate . 57 3. Calvary's display necessary to slay the enmity of the carnal mind . . . . . • 57 4. Two unrighteous powers on earth, the ecclesiastical and the political, combined to destroy the Saviour . 58 5. The amazing grace of God is apparent by lodging the conviction of sin in the rebel heart of man . . 58 6. In the free will of man is grounded the necessity for the amazing long-suffering of God . . • 59 7. The Spirit of God bears in long-suffering with the per- verseness of the sinner while awakening in him " the gift of the Holy Ghost " . . . .59 8. The awful depth of the possible abuse of free will is apparent in the long-suffering of God . . 60 9. The unpardonableness of the sin against the Holy Ghost does not lie in any defect in the atonement . 60 10. Neither is the unpardonableness of this sin due to any failure in the striving of the Spirit of God . . 60 11. Nor is it traceable to any short-coming in the self- sacrificing love of God . . . .61 12. Defect in the atonement — in the striving of the Spirit, or in the self-sacrificing love — would render them powerless . . . . . .61 b i o Contents. SEC. PAGE 13. The unpardonableness of the sin against the Holy Ghost lies in its very nature . . .62 14. While this condition remains, forgiveness is in the very nature of things an impossibility . . .62 15. Forgiveness of sin while the sinner continues to resist the Spirit would involve a contradiction . . 63 16. Forgiveness lies in the regeneration of the soul . 63 17. While the sinner resists the regenerating operations of the Spirit he cannot realize the life of God in his soul 63 18. Still, the Spirit may return to His striving with the sinner, and render his after repentance a possibility 63 19. Justice reigns in all God's dealings with His creatures 64 CHAPTER V. THE ELECTION OF GRACE. 1. The perverting power of human prejudice manifests itself in corrupting Christian doctrines . . 69 2. Such power early appeared in the Christian Church . 69 3. Divine election is not of favouritism . . .69 4. The conception of election by grace is the grandest idea of the human mind . . . . 70 5. The election of grace includes all who have yielded themselves up to the quickening Spirit of God . 70 6. This yielding is the inevitable condition of the divine nature possessing the human nature . . 70 7. The descent of the love of God into the heart of fallen man illustrates its infinite depth and tenderness . 71 8. In the possibility of regenerating grace possessing the sinner lies the mystery of the fall . . . 7 J Contents. 1 1 BBC PAGK 9. The elect of grace stand to God in the nearest possible relationship . . . . . • 7* 10. Beyond man's creation in the image of God, the elec- tion of grace raises them above all other finite exist - ances . . . . . . 71 11. Above the other conditions of finite being the elect sustain the closest relation to the Father of all , 72 12. The elect not only sustain this relationship, but are brought into it by the most wonderful means . 73 13. This new relationship is secured through the quicken- ing of spiritual vitality . . . • 73 14. The elect occupy the most conspicuous position in the universe . . . . . , 73 15. The nearest fellowship with the Godhead is possible only to the elect . . . . 75 16. The employment of the elect in glory will correspond to their character .. .. . . • 75 17. They will afford to the universe the fullest revelation of the mystery of the creation of free agency . 77 18. The realization of suffering is inevitable to the abuse of free will . . . . . -77 19. The mystery of dying into life will then be disclosed . 78 20. The mystery of the creation of free will opens up the possibility of the grandest divine achievements . 78 21. The struggle involved in the transition from self-will to self-sacrificing obedience secures the most important experience possible to man ♦ . . • 79 22. The consummation of all will be " faith realized in ^ght" 79 1 2 Contents. APPENDIX. REVISION OF CREEDS. SEC. PAGK 1. The peculiar character of revelation . . .83 2. Human formularies are man's efforts to attain to a correct apprehension of Scripture truth . . 83 3. To alter the form of revelation would be presumptuous 84 4. No age is possessed of the right to impose its senti- ments on others . . • • .84 5. This was not the design of the framers of the formularies 84 6. The eminent framers of the Confession of Faith had no such intention . . . • .84 7. When divisions arise in the Church formularies become necessary . . . . • '85 8. Belief in formularies may become idolatrous . . 85 9. The Church must be progressive . . .86 10. A Church adverse to revision is inconsistent with itself 86 11. The plea of lack of men capable of undertaking revi- sion is unfounded . . . . -87 I. THE CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE OF EVOLUTION. CHAPTER I. THE CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE OF EVOLUTION. " I am set for the defence of the gospel." — St Paul. i. T^LSEWHERE we have shown that a J— <* reasoned Christianity is the want of the day. Rationalism is Pilate sitting in judg- ment upon Christ, asking Him, what is truth ? and refusing to hear His reply. The contro- versy between evangelical and evolutionary Christianity is already declared. By many eminent teachers in the Church, evolution is received as an infallible truth, and evangelical doctrines are held to be but corruptions of Christian myths, capable of any interpretation the teacher may choose to give them. To meet the plausible objections of such reasoners, the defenders of evangelical truth must present it in its spiritual rather than in its formal aspects. They must show that, while Christianity is not discoverable by the keenest powers of human reason, it is yet so adapted to the rational 1 6 Christian Evolution. nature of man as to fit in with every require- ment of his moral and spiritual being, and is capable of proving itself the sole power by which reason can attain to its loftiest and noblest de- velopment. In order to steer a straight course between scepticism on the one hand and super- stition on the other, Christianity must be presented as a system of truth addressed to man as a rational being. It is too sacred a thing to stand upon human tradition, ecclesi- astical authority, or human dogmas. It is the very light of heaven, adapted to the nature, wants, and circumstances of man. It is a light shining upon man direct from God, to enable him to see himself as he really is, and to show him the way of life. Christian devotion is not mere feeling, nor the blind apprehension of an unknown God. It is emotion awakened and fed by the intelligent apprehension of the Fatherhood of God. In His self-revelation, God addresses man as a reasonable being. Reason reads the character of God as it is disclosed in the light of revealed truth. In the perfect fellowship of heaven alone, faith gives place to sight. The blessed spirits in glory " know as they are known." 2. Were Christian devotion realized only in feeling, it would not be the communion of man's Doctrine of Evolution. iy entire nature with God. It would not have needed that Christ should come into the world ; the rites and ceremonies of the Mosaic system would have sufficed for all human requirements. But Christ not only reasoned with men ; He gave them such views of divine truth as meet the wants of the human understanding, and fire the heart with the purest emotions of grateful love. The light of heaven seen by the eye of reason is, to the believing soul, communion with the Father through the Son, and by the Holy Spirit with all its fellow-believers. 3. No intelligent student of Nature will ques- tion the scientific character of an enlightened conception of the possibility of evolution in Nature. The natural principles, powers, and laws which operate harmoniously in . the pro- duction of results, act with unerring certainty. In the ordinary operations of Nature and of human life, we can logically infer the character of the action from the motive, the effect from the cause. The principle of heredity acts in the production of like from like, and the habits are formed in accordance with the conditions of the life derived from its ancestors. By evolution we deduce the Cosmos from the original fire- mist, the speciality of life from the speciality of the bioplasm, the moral character from the i& Christian Evolution. sequence of invariable laws in the individual life. But can such reasoning be applied to the coming into existence of evil, or the descent of the infinite into the finite, or the regeneration of the human soul ? These are facts in the history of humanity as indisputable as the development of the Cosmos from the movements of the original fire-mist. The admission of these facts compels us to the admission of breaks in the order of human life, just as there are missing links in the evolution of Creation. 4. Are such breaks inconsistent with the principles, powers, and laws of human exist- ence ? Whilst they are obviously out of the order of development, are they inconsistent with the operations of law ? Plainly, the origin of evil was the violation of moral law. But this violation was in accordance with the regular operations of psychological law. The descent of the infinite into the finite, again, though not brought about by the operation of law, was yet in perfect accordance with the laws of human existence. Regeneration is in no way the result of self-will in man ; it is nevertheless produced in him in accordance with the laws of his moral life and nature. 5. Regeneration is a break in the order of sinful existence, effecting reconciliation with Doctrine of Evolution. 1 9 God. Sin is a deviation of the finite will from perfect accord with the infinite will. It is the greatest calamity possible for the finite life. Self-will is stubborn and rebellious — a restless will, incapable of calm serenity or self-restora- tion. Sin necessitates the sinner's eternal suffering, from the endless conflict with the very conditions of the sinner's own well-being. Scripture teaches that sin has been permitted, not for its own sake, but in order that from it God might take occasion, through His own self-sacrifice, to show the riches of His grace by raising the repentant sinner to the highest pos- sible condition of glory and happiness. 6. To this end God does all that is consistent with His own character to rescue the sinner from his sins. By this view of the awful mystery of sin alone are we able to justify God's ways to man. If, through atonement and regeneration, sinful man may be raised to a loftier condition of dignity and glory than would ever have been possible to him in an unfallen condition of being, we need but lightly regard this temporary errant state of shame and suffering. Through faith in Jesus we are able to display the heroism of Christian character, and to rise to the imitation of our great pattern, and to fellowship with Him. 20 Christian Evolution. 7. Struggling to rise superior to sin through self-sacrifice, we acquire the elements and linea- ments of the divine life. This view of the Gospel reveals to us a power constantly in action adapted, and adequate, to raise the sinner to the loftiest condition possible to his con- sciousness. 8. The peculiar and distinguishing difference of the Christian view from the purely scientific view of the universe is its manifestation of breaks in the divine order of Nature and of human life. In the salvation of man, for example, there is seen the operation of a power above Nature, and yet acting in accordance with Nature and law. Self-sacrificing love takes occasion from sin to display the profound depths of the essence of uncreated being. Through the operation of faith on the soul, God raises the repentant sinner from the abyss of sin to the loftiest ranks of the redeemed. 9. The creation of free agency involved the exertion of the highest creative power, called into action the profound and comprehensive wisdom of the Godhead, and opened new possi- bilities of being lying far beyond the conception of any finite existence. 10. The Incarnation was the Infinite coming down into the conditions of humanity, in order Doctrine of Evolution. 2 1 to confront all the results of the creation of free agency. 11. The conflict involved in the death on Calvary was the highest combination of free agency and omnipotent power ever exhibited to the universe. 12. Christ's resurrection and ascension was His entering into His reign of love in light. 13. The principle of conquest in the salvation of man is the principle of self-sacrifice in the Godhead. 14. Christianity does not conform itself in its operations to the conditions of ethics, science, or philosophy. Atonement, regeneration, and sanctification are not products of the wisdom of this world. Nevertheless they are originated and act in perfect accordance with the principles of philosophy, the requirements of science, and the teachings of ethics. 15. In all God's ways towards man there are the highest displays of wisdom, yet not the wisdom of this world. But this does not imply that human wisdom is in accordance with the divine wisdom ; its principle is self, whilst the principle of the divine wisdom is self-sacrifice. II. DIVINE ACTION, DIRECT AND INDIRECT CHAPTER II. DIVINE ACTION, DIRECT AND INDIRECT. I. T T TILL is the movement of personality. V V In the finite personality it is the action of the moment; in the infinite personality the action is eternal. In the former, the move- ment is in accordance with the inclination of the moment and in the direction of the object of supreme desire. Right volition will always be in submission to the supreme will, and in har- mony with the constitution of the universe; but selfish volition is in opposition to the supreme will, and in conflict with the divine ends. 2. A perfect unity of wills is possible, and its attainment presents the most sublime conception possible to the human mind. The finite will in complete oneness with the will of the infinite Father is the grandest conceivable moral ideal. To accept and co-operate with the infinite will is the noblest and most felicitous action of the finite being. It is not alone acting in accord- ance with the omnipotent will, but it secures for 26 Christian Evolution. the finite existence the perfection of its own well-being. It is the absolute perfection of free agency — the highest power of the finite being exercised in the grandest conceivable act. For, what nobler or more glorious purpose can be formed by any finite being than resolving to make the choice of the absolute will also its own ? What higher condition of conscious existence is, for it, conceivable ? 3. In this unity of wills was shown the glory of the Saviour's earthly life. His unbroken fellowship with the Father was the most con- spicuous feature of even His perfect character. "Verily, verily, I say unto you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what he seeth the Father do ; for what things soever He doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise ; for the Father loveth the Son and sheweth Him all things that He Himself doeth." " I can of Mine own self do nothing; as I hear, I judge; and My judg- ment is just, because I do not Mine own will, but the will of My Father which hath sent Me." These are words full of as profound meaning as any the Saviour ever uttered. They are His omniscient discernment of the true fundamental principle of all well-being and all righteousness of life. 4. But a diversity of wills is also possible. Divine Action, Direct and Indirect, 2 7 This possibility arises out of the freedom of the will — the personal choice — the individual responsibility. Were diversity not possible, there could be no freedom of personal choice or indi- vidual responsibility. There wouldbe nofinitewill at all — nothing but despotic necessity and iron fate. A diversity of wills is therefore an inevit- able possibility. But so long as the will of the creature is in accord with that of the Creator, there is unity of will throughout the entire universe — a oneness of power in all the move- ments of creation. Perfect harmony reigns in all the operations of cause and effect. When, conversely, the will of the creature trembles in the balance, hesitates in its choice of abiding in oneness with the supreme will, or resolves on the attainment of the forbidden object, then there is active disobedience to the primary law of life. A separation, an opposition and conflict of wills, at once arises. The supreme will and all loyal finite wills are moving in the harmonious opera- tions of law and power, whilst the disloyal and disobedient will is acting for the promotion of universal discord and conflict. The opposition does not originate in any absolute requirement of the will to test its freedom by an act of dis- obedience. Did such a requirement exist, it would prove the impossibility of freedom. The 28 Christian Evolution. slightest deviation of the will of the creature from the absolute will must be wrong — wrong as to spiritual action and spiritual relationship, and disastrous in the result. There is then a violation of the first principle of perfect existence. 5. In the opposition of wills a new power comes into existence — the power of dis- obedience by the perversion of choice. The perfect concord of wills is broken by the action of selfishness. There is no longer conformity with the perfect will. The creature in opposi- tion to the constituted order of the universe perverts the power of choice, disobeys the first law of life. Opposition to the supreme, all- perfect, benevolent, loving will must involve the selfish in indefinite suffering and misery. 6. For this perversion of the finite will there was not, and could not have been, any provision in the original constitution of the universe. It could not have the sanction or approval of the supreme will. If otherwise in any degree, there would not, in fact, have been any perver- sion of choice at all. Provision would have been made in the divine purpose for rebellion against the Creator ! This would be the beginning of that conflict of forces in the universe which tends to its destruction. Divine Action, Direct and Indirect. 29 7. The perversion of will, then, is the begin- ning of sin. Self-will is opposition to the very perfection of being, and is therefore sin in action. Two absolutely perfect wills cannot be at dis- cord with one another. The utmost deviation of the finite from the infinite will involves, of necessity, every possible phase of selfishness, wickedness, and misery. And every deviation of the will is possible, when it allows itself to be swayed for the possession of any external ob- ject in preference to its own inward peace and perfection. 8. Selfishness is the only possible explanation of the opposition of wills. Why should any finite will deviate from the supreme will ? It cannot be for any higher or more righteous end than that desired by the supreme will. It can only be for some lower and selfish end. But a selfish object, sought in opposition to eternal and infinite goodness, must be a bane, and not a blessing. 9. The universal sinfulness and misery of man is thus fully explained. It is impossible to gainsay the fact that man, as a rule, acts from self-will. The assertion of its personal will is the first conscious act of the human being. Why is the government of parent, master, magistrate, sovereign needful, if not because the bias to selfishness is universal in man ? 30 Christian Evolution. 10. A mixture of black with white destroys its purity ; a single harsh note destroys melody. A healthy body comes under the influence of infection, and disease begins to operate. The action of disease counteracts the beneficent ope- ration of the laws of health, and is intense just in the degree in which the abnormal principle prevails over the normal operation. There is sickness ; but by the aid of medical skill the balance is restored. When the abnormal principle absolutely overcomes the normal operation, death ensues. 11. And so of the action of sin in the uni- verse. At the creation, all wills were in unity with the supreme will. All principles, laws, and forces acted in harmony for the highest ends. Self-will intruded amidst the concourse of unselfish wills, and the fair Cosmos became a region in which the principles of conflict and destruction rule and operate. 12. This sad state of things was not brought about by any defect in the principles, laws, or forces of being, or by any operation of Nature, but solely by the introduction of the new and evil principle of self-will. All disorder, suffer- ing, death, is but the necessary operation of self- will intruding between the supreme will and the operation of its own laws. When self-will be- Divine Action, Direct and Indirect. 3 1 comes a factor amongst the operative forces of the universe, there is, and must be, the intro- duction of disorder and destruction. 1 3. When the will of the creature deviates in any degree from the will of the Creator, it be- comes a disorganizing force. It is destructive, because it is a rebellious force, working in oppo- sition to the supreme beneficent will. Hence spring all disorder, misery, and death. 14. Evil, then, is solely the abuse of free agency. There can be no other factor in its pro- duction than the perversion of the free will. Freedom is the highest possession of intelligent existence. The bringing of it into being was the highest act of creative energy. With rever- ence be it said, the Creator assumed to himself the highest responsibility in calling it into exist- ence. Thus much appears to be implied in the Mosaic account of the creation. The writer, in his narrative of the completion of the creative work, tells us of the Godhead in divine council over the creation of free agency — the production of a being in the very image of God — a creation containing in it the possibility of rebellion. But the responsibility then assumed was more than fully met in the atoning work of Christ. 15. The Godhead assumed all the respon- sibility of creating free agency ; and to man was 2,2 Christian Evolution. given the responsibility of exercising his free- dom for good or evil. Terrible, indeed, have been the results in time, but grand and glori- ous will be the final outcome in eternity. 1 6. Was freedom of will, then, called into existence because it was the loftiest act of creative skill, and because its existence opens up the possibilities of grander and nobler conditions of life for man ? Doubtless, the selfish existence is the most degraded and unhappy condition of conscious life ; but it possesses other and loftier possibilities. There is opened to our view the possibility of self-sacrifice even in the Godhead itself — the most God-like manifestation of the divine being. Through the self-sacrifice of the Godhead, moreover, there was rendered possible self-sacrifice in man. And this affords him the means of living the divine life in time, and of ascending to the loftiest heights of glory in the eternity to come. 17. Men choose the life of self-will, and yet dream of attaining to well-being. By prayers and supplications they labour to influence the infinite will, and to turn it from its fixed course of rectitude. They groan and suffer, with the vain purpose to induce the immutable will to rescue them from the woes which come of cling- ing to their own self-will. But they find the Divine Action, Direct and Indirect. ^ heavens above them as brass, and the earth beneath them as iron. The absolute will deviates not by a hair's breadth, while yet the Father surrenders His well-beloved Son, in awful self-sacrifice, to change the selfish will into a will of loyal devotion ! In this is mani- fested the grace of God and the glory of man. The struggles of humanity to overcome self, and to rise into oneness of will with God, is the grandest training which an immortal spirit can undergo. This view of the life of probation on earth opens up to the mind a wondrous vision of the inconceivable glories to come. 1 8. Self-will is the perversion of the loyal will of the child of God. It is essentially evil — a rebellious and antagonistic force, to God and to all well-being. It works only for evil. To the full extent in which it interferes with the operation of the eternal laws — the prin- ciples of existence — the laws of life — it works only for destruction. Intruding between the will of the Creator and its operations, self-will is a force acting for the overthrow of the divine government. To the utmost extent of its operation it interferes with the ends and pur- poses of the divine order of the universe. 19. In no way, therefore, can self-will be approved by God. He can only condemn and 34 Christian Evolution. restrain its operations. As of the surging ocean, so of self-will He says, " Hitherto shalt thou come, and no further, and here shall thy proud waves be stayed." Self-will being essen- tially evil, working only for evil and in conflict with eternal law, cannot be employed by the Creator. He can only permit its movements, and He does so not for its own sake, but only in order that He may take occasion from it to work out still higher divine ends. 20. The right of acting in and from His own will is the prerogative of the supreme God alone. It is so, because God is essential perfec- tion. This is the attribute which the Scriptures call the " glory of God " — the absolute perfec- tion of His being, manifested in the perfection of His actions — the honour which He cannot give to another. Self-will, on the contrary, is the idol which God will not suffer to mount into His throne. The controversy between God and man solely concerns the selfish will. His high and rightful prerogative He holds for Himself alone. 21. In discussions about the divine decrees, we must guard against overlooking the distinc- tion between the loyal co-operation of all obedient wills with the divine will, and the disloyal action of self-will for its own ends. Divine Action, Direct and Indirect. 35 Herein lies the distinction between the Cosmos and this world — between sin and holiness — between health and sickness — between misery and happiness — between the decree of God and the self-will of rebellious man. The glory of God is not " in ordaining whatsoever cometh to pass," but in upholding the supremacy of His own will, and in drawing all wills into perfect unity with it. The brightness of the Father's glory is the great Physician of souls, Who, in the manifestation of the divine self-sacrifice, accomplished, in accordance with the Father's will, the most stupendous of all the works of omnipotence, in order to bring the operations of the rebel will into the loyal obedience of filial will. We must be careful to distinguish between the direct and the indirect decrees of God. God cannot decree evil. The self-will of the sinner, coming in between the will of God and its operations, is the sole cause of evil in the universe. III. RECONCILIA TION CHAPTER III. RECONCILIATION. i. T~) ECO VERY is different from, or rather J- V is opposite to, development or evolu- tion. Restoration to health, or to friendship, have each their respective conditions. In the one, the vital forces within the body must co- operate with the medicine administered ; in the other, the affections must lay hold of the mani- festations of kindness. The reconciliation of enemies — the reclaiming of the rebellious will to loyalty — is the most difficult of all undertak- ings either to human or divine power. 2. Man, as a responsible being, forms part of a constituted order of existence, and stands in certain relations to God, to himself, and to the universe. He possesses powers and capacities out of which spring obligations to God, to him- self, and his fellowmen. In endowing him with these powers, and placing him in their various relations, God has set him under laws — within and over him — to which he is subject. 3. Man has affections which can only find 4 but for sin. Its purpose was the reconciliation of sinners to God. And it is fully adequate for the salvation of all sinners. 10. Neither is the unpardonableness due to failure in the strivings of the Divine Spirit. The Spirit is the agent of human regeneration, which is effected in opposition to the sinner's own inclinations and desires. Regeneration is The Unpardonable Sin. 6 1 wrought in the sinner by the spirit leading him to embrace the dispositions and desires of God as his own. But the change in the sinner is accomplished in strict accordance with, and in the full and unfettered exercise of, the powers and principles of his own free agency. In turning from the bondage of self to the freedom of Christ, the sinner, although acting in opposi- tion to selfishness, acts in perfect accord with the powers or principles of his own spiritual being. He acts thus because he is influenced by the spirit of God. 11. Nor is the unpardonableness of sin due to any short-coming in the divine self-sacrific- ing love. This love is of the inmost essence of the divine nature. It can neither be limited nor exhausted in its desires or its efforts. It is as boundless and eternal as the Infinite God Himself. It is in the very nature of self- sacrificing love to do all that is possible for the accomplishment of its own ends. No limits can be set to its operation. 12. The unpardonableness, then, of this sin cannot be due to any defect in the atonement ; for defect in the atonement would nullify its worth. Neither is it attributable to any failure in the strivings of the Holy Spirit ; for such failure would neutralize it wholly. There can 62 Christian Evolution. be no defect nor deficiency in the highest and most perfect of all God's works. Nor, again, can the unpardonableness be owing to any short-coming in God's self-sacrificing love ; for any such indifference would be fatal to the very existence of that love. 13. The unpardonableness of the sin lies, and only can lie, in the nature of the sin itself. This supreme sin differs in its very nature from all other sins that men commit. Its heinousness lies in quenching the operations of the Divine Spirit, striving with the sinner to bring him to a consciousness of the divine life. By this operation it is that the Spirit effects regeneration in the soul. The Spirit, in its enlightening grace, awakens in the sinner better and holier thoughts, feelings, and desires ; but the sinner resists and grieves the Spirit, and so renders it an absolute impossibility for him to receive the forgiveness of this sin. The for- giveness is, in fact, the realization of the divine life in the soul. But the sinner wilfully puts away from him the life of God, and deliberately chooses to continue in a state of spiritual death. 14. While this condition is maintained, for- giveness is, in the very nature of things, im- possible ; for the sinner's pardon, being realized in the consciousness of the divine life in the The Unpardonable Sin. 63 soul, in the enjoyment of reconciliation with God, and delight in doing His will, can never be known by him who resists the Spirit. 15. The forgiveness of sin, whilst the sinner continues to resist the Spirit, would involve contradiction. It would be the declaration of a pardon which is not real— a mockery on the part of God. It would be the existence of two opposite conditions of consciousness at the same moment — a condition of love to God, while the subject of this love was cherishing enmity in his heart — the consciousness of spiritual life, while the subject of it is under the power of spiritual death. 16. Forgiveness lies in the regeneration of the soul itself — in the revolutionizing of the disposi- tion and will. The spirit of self-sacrifice is sub stituted for the dominancy of selfishness. The consciousness of this change is the realization of forgiveness by the sinner. 17. While the sinner resists the regenerating operation of the Spirit, and quenches the risings in his soul of the new unselfish dis- position, he cannot by any possibility realize the life of God within him. He stands consciously unpardoned and condemned. 18. Does all this render the tf/ter-repentance of the sinner a blank impossibility? This might 64 Christian Evolution. readily be supposed, were there no self-sacri- ficing love in God. But if the self-sacrificing love of God embraces all mankind ; if the atonement was made for all sin ; if the Divine Spirit is grieved at the sinner's resistance and does not abandon him but with reluctance ; may He not at an after-period return again, and in other circumstances, under different conditions, effect the sinner's repentance ? Christ enjoined forgiveness not once, nor seven times, but to seventy times seven ; and His Spirit will not be less forgiving than He has enjoined it on His disciples to be. If the sin against the Holy Ghost be rendered possible only through the striving of the Spirit Himself, may not the repentance of even the most heinous sinner be regarded as an after- triumph of God's long suffering grace, that will thrill the heart of the entire universe ? If the greater the sin that is forgiven, the purer is the consciousness of the forgiven one, the more fervent his love, the deeper his devotion, the loftier his aims, will not self- sacrificing love do all within the vast compass of its power to lead even such a sinner to repentance ? 19. Justice reigns in all God's dealings with His creatures. But as mercy has been raised above, although not at the expense of, justice, The Unpardonable Sin. 65 may not the repentance of even the chief of sinners — the most obstinate rebel against grace — be the crowning act in man's redemption, the most stupendous display of self-sacrificing love ? There is no unwillingness in the Spirit of all grace to use all means to recover even the chief of sinners from destruction. Self-sacrificing grace comes in the form of bleeding love to win sinners to reconciliation ; and whilst realizing in the keenest anguish of His soul the enmity of the carnal mind against God, He exclaims, " Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do ! " Is there anything too hard for such love ? The very chief of sinners has been made the chief of saints on earth, for the very purpose that God might show forth in him the long-suffering of His grace. " To whom much is forgiven, the same loveth much." The pro- founder the depth of sin out of which the sinner is raised, the more glorious is the work of his salvation. This is the underlying fact in the experience of the great apostle of the Gentiles. And there may be in the distant vista of future ages visions of ever-brightening glory — visions disclosing in fuller measure a loftier power — the highest wonders of self-sacrificing love ; wonders which will delight the souls of angels and beatified spirits, as they learn more and 66 Christian Evolution. more of the achievements of redeeming grace. This earth is the sphere of selfishness, of enmity and revenge, where it is felt to be hard to for- give, to love enemies, to bless them that curse, to do good to them that hate, and pray for them that despitefully use and persecute us. But in the loftier realms of being it will not be so. We shall learn to become like, and to imitate, our Father in heaven ; and so to become perfect even as He is perfect. V. THE ELECTION OF GRACE. CHAPTER V. THE ELECTION OF GRACE. i. 'T^HE perverting power of human prejudice -A- has in none of its misconceptions of revealed truth been more apparent than in connection with the doctrine of the election of grace. The Jews clung to an election of mere divine favouritism. Their cherished notion was that God had chosen them to be His peculiar people. But in cherishing this false conception they excluded themselves from the election of grace. 2. The same perversion of the doctrine appeared early in the Christian church, and has more or less been cherished since by the various sects of Christendom. The idea of his being the special favourite of a partial God is still ardently cherished by many a self-deceiver. 3. There is a divine election, but not of favouritism. It is only by grace. It is an election, not of a few, but of countless myriads of the saved, innumerable as the sands by the sea-shore, or as the stars of heaven, transcending all human arithmetic. jo Christian Evolution. 4. The conception of an election of grace is the grandest thought which the finite mind can form of the action of the infinite mind. For, in this election, the infinite imparts Himself to the finite being in the fulness of the divine life, for the enjoyment of mutual fellowship throughout eternity. God and man mutually enter into endearing and enduring relations. 5. The election of grace includes all those of mankind who have yielded themselves up to, and have been transformed by, the gracious love of the Father, descending into the soul through the self-sacrifice of the Son. And the love of the Father through the Son is apprehended by the sinner through the quickening of the Divine Spirit. 6. This process is the inevitable condition of the divine power possessing itself of the fallen human nature. The necessity is grounded in the antagonism of the selfish heart to the divine will. Selfishness naturally hates all generosity and self-sacrifice. Humanity, while unperverted, is receptive and plastic to the indwelling of the Divine Spirit. But the selfish spirit is an- tagonistic to it. When the antagonism is over- come, the spirit becomes " poor," or emptied of self-will. Such spirits are loyally submissive to the reign of grace, and, therefore, " theirs is the kingdom of heaven." The Election of Grace. 7 1 7. This descent of the love of God into the heart of fallen man illustrates the more clearly its infinite depth and tenderness. It shows, at the same time, that there is in fallen humanity the possibility of the grandest display of God's gracious love. 8. In this possibility lies the mystery of the fall. The divine love embraced Humanity in creating man in the image of God. The act was in harmony with the perfection of Creation ; and was a manifestation of the supremacy of man over the lower creation. But in order that man might be raised into the realization of the indwelling of God, the infinite force of self- sacrificing love must be exhibited to the uni- verse. The fall of Israel subserves " the fulness of the Gentiles." 9. The elect of grace stand to God in the nearest and most endearing relationship of being. They are the subjects of the Father's tenderest love, imparted to them in the grandest possible manner, and accomplishing in them its grandest and most glorious results. 10. But beyond man's original creation in God's image, regeneration raises the elect of grace above other finite existences, by quicken- ing within them the highest possible conditions of the divine life. Nothing comes in between 72 Christian Evolution. them and the tenderest love of God. It holds them in its divine embrace ; it pledges itself to do for them whatsoever is possible for them in their capabilities, and its own most gracious outgoings. Whilst here the heirs of God are made lower than their ministering angels, who are "sent forth to minister to them who shall be heirs of salvation." But this is only their tem- porary, not their permanent condition. When they shall appear with Christ in His glory, and shall reign with Him, they too shall be raised far above all principalities and powers, thrones, and dominions. They will enjoy the full parti- cipation of the divine nature and life. They will be the children of God, the brethren of Christ, presented by the Spirit of God " fault- less in the presence of His glory with exceeding joy." II. Amidst the innumerable and varied con- ditions of finite intelligence which may exist in the universe, they will sustain the closest rela- tion to the Father. The work of grace within them draws them by the strongest cords, quickens them with the divinest life, and de- velopes in their experience the consciousness of the most enduring fellowship with God. To gain this end required the self-sacrifice, not alone of the Son, but also of the Divine Spirit. The Election of Grace. 73 12. The elect are brought into this close re- lation to God by the most wonderful means and methods. Magnificent as is the work of Creation, it pales in splendour before the work of regene- rating grace. To bring sinners into the election of grace, the Godhead travailed in the greatness of Its almighty strength. The mightiest oper- ations of the divine power, the most amazing act of self-sacrifice in the outgoings of eternal love, were necessary to bring the rebellious back to their allegiance. So surpassing in its glory is it, that it absorbs the study of the heavenly intelligences. " Which things the angels desire to look into." 13. The new relationship is one of communi- cated spiritual vitality. In this earthly state it is apprehended through belief in Christ, and realized in the fellowship with the Divine Spirit. The believer grows in " meetness for the inheri- tance of the saints in light." The Church on earth is the training school for the Church in heaven. 14. There the elect of grace occupy the most conspicuous position in the universe : but not merely for their own enjoyment. A pure spirit can only find its enjoyment in employment worthy of its nature. The exaltation of the elect to the highest relation with the Godhead 74 Christian Evolution. makes them fitted for the most exalted employ- ment. If the Godhead has engaged in its loftiest undertaking for, and in, the elect, it must be a fitting and worthy end. God does nothing that does not become Himself. The wondrous manifestations of divine grace were not accom- plished solely for the sake of the saints them- selves. Their rescue from the fall, their deliver- ance from sin, their elevation to the highest rank of being, is a work which does not termi- nate in itself. The elevation of " the heirs of God " to the loftiest condition of being, so that they may present to higher intelligences the fullest revelation of God's grace, must be de- signed in order that they shall shew forth in its purest radiance that divine glory. These will be the perpetual study of all heaven's intelli- gences. The self-sacrificing love of the Godhead will, in them, be so conspicuously displayed, that they will be the constant wonder and admiration of the angels who once had been their minister- ing spirits. The end for which they are exalted, and the manner of their exaltation, will awaken in the breasts of angels the most adoring grati- tude to God. These reflections of the divine life in its purest radiance and highest glory will cause the innumerable unfallen spirits to rejoice and exult in God's mighty work of raising His The Election of Grace. 75 human children to such a pre-eminence of rank and dignity. And the saints in glory will be employed in such a manner as will be at once suitable to their illustrious condition and rank, and will especially exhibit the amazing nature of the self-sacrificing love that has exalted them so highly. 15. But the nearest fellowship with the God- head is possible only to spirits which bear the deepest consciousness of the divine life in the performance of the divine will through eternity. The employment of the elect in heaven will be such as will give to the intelligent universe a revelation of the Godhead unsurpassed in the history of creation. Their identification with their Lord in glory, in his final reign ; their obligations to, and sympathy with, His self- sacrificing work on earth ; their qualifications for, and delight in, self-sacrificing love for their Redeemer and Deliverer ; will engage them to carry on its further displays into the eternity to come. 16. What maybe the character of the employ- ment of the glorified in heaven is to us on earth unknown. We have only the feeblest indications, and the faintest hints in the Bible. The saints are to judge the angels ; the suffer- ings of the present state are not worthy to be j6 Christian Evolution. compared with the glory which is to be re- vealed ; and the creation which is now " made subject to vanity," is waiting in earnest expecta- tion for the manifestation of the sons of God. They reign with Christ, and being the most illustratious exemplifications of the divine self- sacrifice, they will doubtless be the heralds of the same divine grace to those who may still be strangers to it. As the sun is the grandest and most conspicuous object in the solar system ; as the milky-way is the brightest cluster in the celestial horizon ; even so are the elect in the sphere of grace. The song of victory they sing is one that cannot be learned by other intelligences. The heavenly hosts join joyfully in the chorus, "Great and marvel- lous are Thy works, Lord God Almighty, just and true are Thy ways, Thou King of saints ! Who shall not fear Thee, O Lord, and glorify Thy name ; for Thou only art holy." But they cannot sing the song of Moses and the Lamb. They, never having struggled to rise superior to sin, cannot occupy the place of the Redeemer. The saints in glory are for ever separated from all other intelligences by their consciousness of their once being sinners, and of having been saved from sin by the self-sacrifice of God's own Son. The Election of Grace. yj 17. The elect, in their glorified state, give to the universe a full and complete revelation of the mystery of the creation of free will. The mystery is one which at present we cannot fathom, but still must believe. The opposition of wills has caused tremendous evil on this earth, not to speak of other spheres of existence. It may have been necessary to the fuller de- velopment and higher completion of the finite being. But we may rest in the assurance, that when the Godhead shall fully disclose the mystery, its creation will be seen to be in com- plete harmony with His infinitely blessed character. 18. The existence of suffering is inseparable from the abuse of free will, and the woes of earth offer an appalling spectacle to the thought- ful mind. And yet suffering is not a wholly unmitigated evil. Under its sharp discipline the loftiest heroism and the sublimest piety are matured. The Son of God Himself was made " perfect through suffering." And St Paul exultingly exclaims, that " the sufferings of the present state are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed." When the mystery of suffering shall be disclosed, the greatest sufferers on earth will be the most joyful spirits of heaven, and the most fervent J 8 Christian Evolution. feeling of gratitude in their hearts will be that, in the mystery of divine providence, they have been brought through suffering to realize the present unspeakable blessedness. 19. The mystery of dying into life will then be also made known. Though death in itself be the "last enemy," the brightest radiance and sweetest joy of the perfect state in heaven is secured to the saints through death. It may then be discovered that death was the ne- cessary condition to entering into the conscious- . ness of the higher life. 20. If, through the mystery 'of the creation of free will, the grandest achievements are wrought ; if, in connection with suffering, the sublimest life of man is secured ; if, through the dying of the Son of God, the salvation of a ruined race has been accomplished ; if, in the self-sacrifice of the Godhead, the foundation of the most illustrious condition of finite existence has been laid in time, to be fully realized in its highest perfection in eternity ; may we not rest in the assured confidence, that when these mysteries shall be developed to universal intelli- gence, the exulting hosts of heaven will burst forth in the lofty hymn, " Great and marvellous are Thy works, Lord God Almighty, just and true are all Thy ways, Thou King of saints ! The Election of Grace. 79 Who shall not fear Thee, O Lord, and glorify Thy name, for Thou only art Holy ! " All orders of being shall come and worship before Thee now that Thine infinitely wise and holy designs are all revealed ! 21. In the struggles of life involved in the transition from self-will to self-sacrificing obed- ience, there is, doubtless, the richest and most important experience that can possibly be realized. Such an experience, in its length and breadth, height and depth, will afford comprehensive visions of being and life that will bring the soul into an identity with the divine object of the universe ; justifying St Paul in his declaration of the perfect state as one in which the saved will " see as they are seen," and " know as they are known." The life of the redeemed will be so fully identified with the life of the Redeemer, the will of man will be so lost in its oneness with the will of God, that all selfishness will be annihilated. 22. The consummation of all will be FAITH REALIZED IN SIGHT. The kingdom is brought back to God the Father, and " GOD WILL BE ALL IN ALL." APPENDIX. ON THE REVISION OF CREEDS. APPENDIX, ON THE REVISION OF CREEDS. I. ■HpHE one characteristic which distin - JL guishes revelation from formularies of human belief is that the former is from God, whilst the latter are of man. The truth, coming from God to man through inspiration, necessarily comes under limiting conditions, but these leave the infinite source ever unlimited. The limits are in the mode of reading, not in the truth read. A clear apprehension and conception of its meaning can only be attained through careful and prolonged study. 2. But formularies of human belief are but the compilations cf individuals of one age, or of different periods of ecclesiastical history, endeav- ouring, as best they can, to attain to a correct apprehension of Scriptural truth. However fitted they may be to give apt expression to the con- ceptions current in their age, they may yet not 84 Christian Evolution. be fitted for expressing those of after-genera- tions. 3. To alter the inspired form of revelation would, in any age, be presumptuous, and even impious ; but to adapt the formularies of one generation to the more fully developed concep- tions of a succeeding one is obviously quite allowable. 4. For the men of any one age, however learned, wise, and pious they may be, to stereo- type their conceptions, and to bind the faith of after-generations to their own special form of expression, would be arrogance intolerable to independent minds, and an unwarrantable inter- ference with the freedom of Christian thought. 5. Happily, this was not the design of the eminent men of former times who set them- selves to the task of formulating the truths of divine revelation. Their object was to raise a bulwark around inspiration against the invasion of deadly error. 6. Those framers had no intention of inter- fering with Christian thought, or of imposing a burden upon the enlightened intellect of after ages. They were, in fact, both desirous and careful to avoid the very appearance of doing this. They did their allotted work as best they could, laying after-generations under a deep Appendix. 85 obligation to them for their pious labours in the cause of God's truths. 7. When errors arise within the Church, causing strife and division, the need for formu- laries is at once recognised. They become standards around which those who hold the same views of divine truth may rally for its defence. But it is not belief in formularies of faith, it is belief of the truth as it is in Jesus, that alone saves the soul. The immense import- ance of this difference cannot be too earnestly insisted upon. The Spirit of God, in building up souls to salvation, will make use of no other instrumentality than that which He Himself has revealed for this very purpose. And when He has revealed the very form of truth He will employ in this His own greatest work, we are not to suppose that He will sanction any form of merely human devising. This is a momentous difference, challena-ino- the devout consideration of all Christians. Overlooking it may possibly be the explanation of the conflicting and dis- turbed state of the Churches at this present time. 8. The belief in formularies, however necessary it may be for effecting ecclesiastical ends, un- deniably perpetuates divisions within the Church. The formularies tenaciously clung to in prefer- 86 Christian Evolution. ence to the simple truth as it is in Jesus, become idols of sectarianism, the worship of which seriously impedes the progress of Christianity. Formularies, being necessarily defective, cannot be of perpetual obligation. Their revision, as occasion may demand, should be undertaken in the spirit of brotherly love and of reverence for the truth. Their temporary character should be fully and frankly admitted. 9. The Church is bound to be progressive, advancing ever towards perfection. To aid its progression honest endeavours must be put forth by all sections of the Church to bring their various creeds and confessions as nearly into harmony as their increasing light will show them. 10. A Church which is adverse to the revision of its formularies must either regard them as already perfect and complete, or it must be indifferent to its own spiritual progress. It prefers the human forms of divine truth to those which the Holy Spirit has given. But even the Church which claims for itself in- fallibility has acknowledged the necessity of modifying its doctrinal standards at different points of history. A revision of formularies is doubtless attended with difficulties which may lead timid souls to shrink from the task when Appendix. 8 7 it becomes a duty. But this does not justify their refusal. If a revision of the translation of the Old and New Testaments has been executed by authority, a revision of the formularies surely is justifiable. The work must not, however, be so executed as to cause still more divisions in the Church, and so endanger the advance of Christianity. It must be undertaken in a spirit of most tender fraternal kindness even to the weakest of the brethren. II. The plea of absence of the men possessed of the needful learning, wisdom, and piety for the proper accomplishment of the revision is, in effect, a denial of the progressive character of the Christian Church. If creeds were formulated freely three centuries ago, it is certainly no compliment to the men of the present advanced age to put forth this plea for non-interference with its creeds. The above may be summarised as follows : — 1. Creeds, the nature of. A simple gathering-up of the received beliefs of a people at the time they were found. 2. The object of Creeds. To provide a platform for organisation and work. 88 Christian Evolution. 3. Authority of Creeds. Merely human, not divine. The truth in them is of God ; the setting of that truth is of man. The words in which the truth is set forth are essential to the creed ; and these being of man, the creed is of man, not of God. 4. Value of Creeds. The present and definite system of doctrine given to the world is necessarily imperfect through the limitations named ; yet, in the main, is good and worthy. 5. Binding nature of Creeds. Obligatory on the conscience accepting it. When it can be no longer held it ought to be rejected. 6. Permanence of Creeds. Men's opinions are ever passing through new phases. This may necessitate a change in the form of creeds. 7. Present agitation. Much restlessness is apparent, but nothing definite is proposed. Yet, in order to satisfy those who are mentally troubled, something should be done in the way of revision. 8. What is possible ? It would be rash to alter present creeds, Appendix. 89 as many cling to them with devout tenacity, as being venerable and ecclesiastical historical documents. They should be allowed to remain untouched. But a shorter and simpler creed, suited to the requirements of the times, might be drawn up for popular and general use. TURNBULL AND SPEARS. PRINTERS, EDINBURGH. RECENT WORKS BY THE REV. JOHN COOPER. i. THE SCIENCE OF SPIRITUAL LIFE ; Or, The Adaptation of Christianity to the Nature and Condition of Man. London : Sampson, Low, Marston, Searle, & Rivington. II. JESUS CHRIST'S MODE OF PRESENTING HIM- self to the World : A Proof of His Divine Mission and Supernatural Work. An Original Demonstration of the Truth of Christianity. London : Hodder & Stoughton. III. THE PROVINCE OF LAW IN THE FALL AND Recovery of Man ; or, The Law of the Spirit of Life in Contrast with the Law of Sin and Death. London : Hodder & Stoughton. IV. SELF-SACRIFICE THE GRANDEST MANIFES- tation of the Divine, and the True Principle of Christian Life ; or, The Lost Power of Christian Zeal Restored to the Church. Lon- don : Hodder & Stoughton. EXTRACTS FROM REVIEWS AND NOTICES. The Science of Spiritual Life. " Will be relished and profoundly appreciated by thinking and earnest minds." — Dr M^Cosh in Prince- ton Review on First Edition. " The volume contains so much solid worth, and is so rich in thought with regard to a theme, not by any means common, that we trust it will be widely circulated and studied." — Evening Star. " At once evangelical and intellectual. Nothing is taken for granted, but all his conclusions are wrought out by his own mind, and often in a train of original and profound reasoning. The book consists of twenty-four chapters. ... All of these are written with much thought, and often with much eloquence." — The Pulpit Analyst. " A writer of no mean calibre, an original thinker, and a bold and consistent advocate of his own views and opinions." — The Bookseller. " Our chief reason for reviewing the book is simply that it is a book worth reviewing." — The Age. " Those to whom argumentation is a feast will here find a rich banquet." — The Empire. " The subject of which it treats is one of great importance, and is discussed by the author with much clearness and power." — The Evangelist " The volume is a valuable one ; many parts of it exhibit great ability." — The Wesley an Chronicle. " A sustained effort of highly abstract reasoning, by which it is sought to unite the metaphysics to the theology of human, and especially of Christian ex- perience." — The Weekly Review. " In the first half of the book the metaphysical reader will find a welcome exercise of mind ; in the latter half the experimental and practical Christian will meet refreshing streams of thought on the subjects on which he most delights." — The Christian Herald. " The book is marked by extensive study of the objections of philosophers, a vivid perception of evangelical truth, a reasoning simple but severe, and a command of language at all times worthy of the theme." — The Rock. " The work may be viewed as a valuable con- tribution to the cause of truth." — The Record. " This book is the product of a big, well furnished brain, and of a large, glowing heart. In a way pro- found, as well as fresh and original, it treats of some of the most profound subjects which can engage human thought or inquiry. It is from beginning to end argumentative, but the reasoning is frequently followed by passages of eloquence so rich and manly that one is reminded of some of the more eloquent portions of the writings of such men as Channing, Hall, and Chalmers. ... We have not for a long time read a book so satisfying to mind and heart." — The Messenger. " The work will well repay perusal." — European Mail. " We strongly commend this work to our readers as worthy of their serious study." — The Fountain. VI " A valuable contribution to our apologetic litera- ture." — The Literary World, Jesus Christ's Mode of Presenting Himself to the World : A Proof of His Divine Mission and Work. (London : Hodder and Stoughton.) "The best of all answers to scepticism is the setting forth of Christ before the eyes of the world as He is portrayed in the Gospels. This has been done with more or less success by some of the ablest writers of the day, but we do not think it too much to say that none has done it better than Mr Cooper." — The Christian World. " A very able defence of Christianity and its reason- ableness from a comparatively new stand-point." — The English Churchman. "Mr Cooper presents the subject with consider- able freshness and vivacity of style." — The Glasgow Herald. " The author presents the topic so graphically that it is fresh to all readers, and will be new to most." — The Southern Cross. "We are bound to say that the nature of his argument is peculiarly adapted to the age in which we live, and that he puts it in a form which must commend it to most readers. To doubting men who have not quenched the longings for the infinite and eternal, the book may be of great service." — Church Bells. "A vigorous and original thinker." — The Weekly Review. VI 1 The Province of Law in the Fall and Recovery of Man ; or, The Law of the Spirit of Life in con- trast with the Law of Sin and Death. (London : Hodder and Stoughton.) " The book breathes throughout a fervent and high- toned spirit, and can scarcely be read with any atten- tion without acting as a stimulus to all that is best and truest in the reader's character." — Glasgow Herald. "The book is thoughtful throughout." — New Zealand Christian Record. "Of Mr Cooper's earnestness, ability, thoughtful- ness, and extensive reading, there can be no doubt. Every page bears witness thereto." — Leeds Mercury. " Christendom may well feel indebted to the author of this and kindred volumes for his splendid con- tributions in elucidation and defence of the religion of the Bible." — Church Advocate. Self-Sacrifice The Grandest Manifestation of the Divine, and the True Principle of the Christian's Life. (London : Hodder and Stoughton.) "The book is fitted to be eminently serviceable by suggesting problems, the mere consideration of which is useful discipline, and by keeping constantly before the mind a noble conception of Christian character." — Glasgow Herald. " Few volumes issued in the present ' book season ' are more to our liking than this." — The Weekly Review. Vlll CRITIQUES OF THE THREE VOLUMES. Jesus Christ's Mode of Presenting Himself to the World ; The Province of Law in the Fall and Recovery of Man ; and Self- Sacrifice. "There is in these three volumes a quantity of purely- original thinking, which, in the hands of some sermon writers, would have been spun out into a small library of printed books." — Victorian Banner. "A noble contribution to the study of a subject which engrosses the thought of the best and wisest of mankind." — Advertiser. "We can cordially recommend our readers not merely to purchase the volumes, but to study them." — The Monthly Messenger. " Earnest and devout, rising sometimes into true fervour." — Victorian Independent. " We heartily wish these volumes, more especially the second and third, a wide circulation." — The Literary World. " If we are not mistaken, the intellectual world will speedily come to recognize the appearance of a new and very able original thinker, whose high argument will compel attention from its own sheer force and weight, and which it will be difficult for any athlete in the intellectual arena to defeat. . . . There is thought enough within the covers of these three books to set up any ordinary preacher for a lifetime."— The Daily Telegraph. Princeton Theological Seminary Libraries 1 1012 01247 9640 DATE DUE "'"Jjffrffr MM GAYLORD i PRINTED IN US A. HiM