109SermonsbyJCRyle (continued)
knowledge of the Lord Jesus, and communion with Him. "Abide in Me," He says Himself, "and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit, unless it abides in the vine; no more can you unless you abide in Me." Christ must be the spring of our holiness—as well as the rock of our faith. Christ must be all in all.
I doubt not He is precious to you that believe. Precious He ought to be, because of His offices, and precious because of His work. Precious He ought to be, for what He has done already—He has called us, quickened us, washed us, justified us. Precious He ought to be for what He is doing even now—strengthening us, interceding for us, sympathizing with us. Precious He ought to be for what He will do yet—He will keep us to the end, raise us, gather us at His coming, present us faultless before God's throne, give us rest with Him in His kingdom. But oh, reader, Christ ought to be far more precious to us than He ever has been yet!
I take you to record, if it were the last word of my life, I believe that nothing but the knowledge of Christ will ever feed a man's spirit. All our darkness arises from not keeping close to Him. The forms of religion are valuable as helps—and public ordinances are profitable to strengthen us—but it must be Christ crucified for sinners—Christ seen with the eye of faith—Christ present in the heart—Christ as the bread of life, and Christ as the water of life—this must be the doctrine we must ever cling to. Nothing else will either save, satisfy, or sanctify a sinful soul. We all need a more experimental knowledge of Christ.
2. If we would grow in grace and hope let us begin here. If we want to grow in grace and have more hope, we must seek more knowledge of our own hearts. "The human heart is most deceitful and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? But I know! I, the Lord, search all hearts and examine secret motives." (Jeremiah 17:9-10) We imagine we are acquainted with our heart—and we are not. The half of the sin that is in them has hitherto been hidden from our eyes. We have not the slightest idea how much they might