The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1882-05-24
For the Central Presbyterian.
The Spirit Promised to Supply
the Place of Jesus Christ.

The Spirit Promised to Supply
the Place of Jesus Christ.
We all need very often to be reminded
that to be Christian is simply and only
to follow Christ. 1t is not to believe in
any number or kind of doctrines, though
it may imply belief in them; it is not
to perform routine o. duties, though it
may imply the performance of them. 1t
is, however, to have Christs spirit and
to do as He would. In order to be a
Christian we need heart quick and &C
curate to discern how Jesus would act in
our circumstances. We need Christian
consciousness that will perceive, think,
act, and decide from Christ standpoint,
not our own. Often son so loves his
father that he seems to use that fathers
eye with which to see; his ears to hear
and his wisdom to decide. Under diff
culties so great and complicated that his
own wisdom fails him, he is quick to i'm
agine how his father would act Under
strong temptation he conceives with what
indignation his father would bid the
tempter get thee behind me-" Indeed
his fathers consciousness seems to over
lie and conceal his own. In Just this re-
lation we need to stand with Christ. We
may doubtless do much of ourselves to
cultivate such Christian consciousness,
but we have the promise of the Spirit to
accomplish just this in u.s. He is to
abide with us 'torever; is not to speak of
himself, but to glorify Christ; to take of
the things Of Christ and show them unto
US; in short, to fully compensate for the
going away of Christ He is to be what
Christ's own presence would have been
had he remained on earth. In John xiv
II, Is, the promise OF the Comforter so
easily passes into a promise of Christs
own coming to give comfort, as to lead
us to think that the two promises are,
Identical. Now what would r'l--:,O pe 70
us in bod;1v r...onUe {! Our lmaglnatlons
are 90 aer TO rnalre the answer. We should
saolieio about His feet in attitudes of ado
ration; we should let not syllable or
sound of His words escape. His slightest
wish would find hundreds of willing,
obedient feet. Truth would seem truer,
deeper, and higher than now The ter
rible truths would seem more terrible as
they would come from His lips, and the
bright ones would be lighted with cen
trail splendor never seen before. More
than this, if Christ were present with us
in the body, he would be personal in
spiration to every believer. He would
be that which Napoleon was to his sol
diers and marshals. His presence would
infuse ease and alacrity into the perform
ance of duty. A steady and safe enthu-
siasm would characterize us. We should
go into the path of duty as the man whom
Peter healed came into the temple, walk
ing and leaping and praising God. . 1t
now seems as II religion would be spon-
taneous, joyous, service. Our prayers
and expressions of Christian experience
would come from our hearts as full buck
cts from deep wells This oppressive
feeling of shallowness of motive, and fee
bleness of impulse, would give place to
an abundance of heat We should be no
longer on the lookout for reasons why we
may let slip the hour of prayer, or be
absent from the prayer meeting, or why
we are not the ones to plead with others
their souls salvation. Wei
should no more stumble over the straws,
but Christ's presence would be an i'm
pulse that would carry us without halt !
ing or misgiving over every obstacle.
Now the Spirit which Christ is ready
to pour out upon us does all these things
and more, for those in whom He dwelis.
He opens Gods book, and we see in it
wonderful, precious things The Bible
becomes transformed in a day. The
spiritual landscape is cleared of its fogs,
and we see things with delightful dis
tinctness, and rejoice in this nearness,
The Spirit gives that same abiding i'm
pulse to obedience that Christ's presence
would afford. We feel somewhat as Paul
did concerning his preaching, that bliss
tul necessity is upon us. Stephen, the
first martyr, was so filled with the Spirit
that the wisest Of earth's philosophers
were not able to resist the wisdom and
grace by which he spoke Neither would
sinners be able to resist our appeals, if
we possessed the Spirit as abundantly as
it is promised to us.
The conclusion to which we must come
then, is, that we have not opened our
hearts to this best Of all God 8 gifts. The
shallowness Of our Christian experience
proves this. The barrenness Of our lives