The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1910-07-21

and spirit, perfecdng holiness in the
fear Of God" Gil Corinthians VII, y.
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first and count the cost" before you
undertake such a conservation of your
life, such a sacrifice Of your earthly in
terests. mo man having put his hand
to the plow and looking back would be
fit for the Kingdom'-ft for a place on
the Throne as joint-heir with Christ
duke tx, co. They heard the further
expression Of st. Paul to all who would
become joint-heirs with Christ in his
Kingdom assuring them that If they
suffer with Christ they shall reign
with him.
beloved, Let Us Cleanse Ourselves"
We doubt not that as the Heavenly
Father and our Lord Jesus so loved
the world as to provide the great sac
rifice for sin, so St Paul loved the
world-and ala others of Gods people
must have a sympathetic love for the
world But when we think of those
and by the Son and by the apostles
and by each other, we think of the
special class of consecrated saints who
Scripturally are described as of no
earthly sect or party, but as "The
Church of the Firstborns whose
names are written in heaven"
These are dearly beloved" because
they have the mind of Christ, which
is also the mind of the Father. Ac-
cording to the flesh they are not all
lovely or beautiful. st. Paul else
where admopishes us that amongst
these dearly beloved are not many
great, not many wise, not many noble,
not many rich,' but chiefly the ignoble
and the poor of this world. Their
riches and their nobility are not of the
flesh, but of the spirit of the heart, of
the new will, to which they have been
begotten of God by the Holy Spirit
This is surely the Apostles thought,
for, in the preceding verse, he speaks
of these dearly beloved" ones as
sons and daughters" of the Lord. chill
dren of the Almighty-hence, begotten
again of the Holy Spirit-"new crea-
lures in Christ Jesus" QI Corinthians
V, 10. All. how wonderful it seems
that there should be such a class as
this in the world yet not separated
from the world, except by their new
Spirit These are in the world. but
not Of the world, as the Master de.
clared. These have died to worldly
aims and objects and have become
alive toward God through the Holy
Spirit and through the quickening in
fuences of Gods exceeding great and
precious promises given unto them.
Gods purpose respecting them is that
they may be transferred from human
nature to spirit nature-from partici-
patton with the world in the bless
ings coming to it to receive instead
the Divine nature, with the glory.
honor and Immortality attaching
thereto, as new creatures" sons OF
the Highest Oh Peter /. a.
Christian "FiIthness Of the Flesh"
Having located definitely the class
addressed by the Apostle, the saints''
Gil Corinthians i, y, let us note how
and why it is necessary that saints
should receive such an exhortation.
why should the Apostle write to saints
respecting the cleansing of their flesh
from Glthineas? Could one be saint
and yet have flthiness Of the flesh?
We reply that those saints. begotteu
of the Holy Spirit, viii not be perfect
ed as New Creatures until they expert
ence the change" OF the First Resur-
rection." Meantime they have TIE
treasure of the Divine nature. the Ioy
Spirit, the first fruits Of their inher..-
ance in imperfect human bodies 1t is
not the flesh that is begotten again BIZ
the Holy Spirit but new mind a new
will. The viii Of the Gesh they sacr.
fee They give up all earthly rights
and ambitions and accept instead the
will of God, the Will Of Christ. the
Holy Spirit, that they may walk IL
newness Of life. However, from the
very beginning Of their Christian ex-
perience all of these members Of the
Royal Priesthood, in the present life,
pass through difficulties which arise
from three different sources:
~ The Adversary is in opposition to
them and will do them all the harM
the Lord will permit Their projections
is the Divine promise that they win.
not be permitted to be tempted above
that they will be able to bear-that the
Lord will supervise their interests SO
that with every temptation there will
be provided way OF escape.
2l They are in a world that is dark
with sin and sellshness. superstitioG
and ignorance of God ana out OF har
mony with his righteousness. The
world and its spirit surge about them
every day, from morning until night
Its tides ana currents seek to sweep
them away from their resolutions OF
self-sncridce and loyalty to Goa and
righteousness In various ways it holds
out to them enchanting prospects.
pleasures ana riches, case ana aniu-
ence These have their weight. even
though it be known that comparatively
few who follow the worlds beckonng
md allurements ever receive the full
hllment of the promises held out to
them
CD The great fight Of the New Crea
ture, his closest ana most perssten,
adversary, is his own Gesh The long
ings OF his dopraved nature cry out