duties from spiritual principles, nor in a
sore and sad lamentation, that I have had so little of my heart in that service that I have offered to you!" This is the daily language of an upright heart.
But all the work of a hypocrite is to get his golden parts into his duties, and his silver tongue into his duties, and his nimble head into his duties; but he never makes conscience of getting his heart into his duties. Hypocrites are always heartless in all the sacrifices they offer to God, and this will one day prove appalling and damnatory to them.
11. A hypocrite never performs religious duties from spiritual principles, nor in a spiritual manner.
A hypocrite is never inclined, moved, and carried to God, to Christ, to holy duties—by the power of a new and inward principle of grace working a suitableness between his heart and the things of God. A hypocrite rests satisfied in the mere external acts of religion, though he never feels anything of the power of religion in his own soul. A hypocrite looks to his words in prayer, and to his voice in prayer, and to his gestures in prayer—but he never looks to the frame of his heart in prayer. A hypocrite's heart is never touched with the words his tongue utters; a hypocrite's soul is never divinely affected, delighted, or graciously warmed with any duty he performs.
A hypocrite's spiritual performances never flow from spiritual principles, nor from a sanctified heart. Though his works may be new, yet his heart remains old; his new practices always spring from
old principles; and this will prove the hypocrite's bane, as you may see in Isa 1:15, "When you make many prayers, I will not hear, for your hands are full of blood." These were unsanctified ones; their practices were new—but their hearts were old still.
The same you may see in the scribes and pharisees, who fasted, prayed and gave alms—but their hearts were not changed, renewed, sanctified, nor principled from above; and this proved their eternal bane. Nicodemus was a man of great note, name, and fame among the pharisees, and he fasted, and prayed, and gave alms, and paid tithes, etc., and yet was a total stranger to the new birth; regeneration was a paradox to him. "How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb and be born?" John 3:4. This great doctor was so great a dunce, that he understood no more of the doctrine of regeneration, than a mere child does the darkest precepts of astronomy. As water can rise no higher than the spring from whence it came, so the natural man can rise no higher than nature.
A hypocrite may know much, and pray much, and hear much, and fast much, and give much, and obey much—and all to no purpose, because he never manages anything he does in a right manner; he never carries on his work from inward principles of faith, fervency, life, love, delight, etc. Will the hypocrite delight himself in the Almighty? Answer: No! He cannot delight himself in the Almighty.
To delight in God is one of the highest acts of grace; and how can a hypocrite put forth one of the highest acts of grace—who has no grace? A hypocrite may know much of God, and talk much of God, and make a great profession of God, and be verbally thankful to God;
but he can never love God, nor trust in God, nor delight in God, nor take up his rest in God, etc.
A hypocrite knows not God; and how then can he delight in that God whom he does not know? A hypocrite has no inward, saving, transforming, experimental, affectionate, practical knowledge of God; and therefore he can never take any pleasure or delight in God.
There is no suitableness between a hypocrite and God; and how then can a hypocrite delight himself in God? There is the greatest contrariety imaginable between God and a hypocrite. God is light, and the hypocrite is darkness; God is holiness, and he filthiness; God is righteousness and he unrighteousness; God is fullness, and he emptiness. Now what delight can there be where there is such an utter contrariety?
Every hypocrite's heart is full of enmity against God; and how then can he delight himself in God? "The carnal mind is enmity against God, for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be," Rom 8:7. The best part of a hypocrite is not only averse to God— but utterly hostile to God and all goodness. The eagle has a continual enmity with the serpent. Just so, a hypocrite's heart is still full of enmity against the Lord; and therefore he can never delight himself in the Lord.
The stream, cream, and strength of a hypocrite's delight—runs out to himself, and to this lust or that, or this relation or that, to this creature-comfort or that, to this worldly enjoyment or that; or else to arts, parts, gifts, privileges, etc. And therefore, how can he delight himself in the Almighty? A hypocrite always terminates his delight in something short of God, Christ, and heaven. As the apricot tree, though it leans against the wall, yet is fast rooted in the earth—so though a hypocrite may lean towards God, and towards Christ, and
towards heaven; yet his delight is still rooted fast in one creaturecomfort or another. Neither God nor Christ is ever the complete object of a hypocrite's delight. A hypocrite is never principled to delight himself in a holy God, neither can he cordially, divinely, habitually delight himself in holy duties. A hypocrite may reform many evil things, and he may do many good duties, and yet all this while it is only in his practices—for his heart and principles are not changed and altered.
Though a hypocrite has nothing in himself which is essential to a Christian; yet he may resemble a Christian in all those things which are not essential to a Christian. A hypocrite, in all the externals of religion, may be the complete picture of a Christian; but if you look to his principles, and the manner of his managing of holy duties, there you will find him lame and defective, and as much unlike a sincere Christian as ever Michal's idol was unlike to the living David; and this will prove the great flaw, the great breakneck of hypocrites at last.
O sirs! Consider that outward motives and natural principles have carried many heathens to do many great and glorious things in the world. Did not Sisera do as great things as Gideon? The difference only lies here—that the great things which Gideon did, he did from more spiritual principles and lofty considerations, than any principles which Sisera acted by. And did not Diogenes trample under his feet the great and glorious things of this world, as well as Moses? The difference only lies in this—that Moses trampled under his feet the mirthful and gallant things of this world, from inward gracious principles, namely, faith, love, etc., whereas Diogenes only trampled upon them from poor, selfish principles, and from mere outward, carnal, external considerations. The favor of men, the eye of men, the commendations of men, the applause of men, and a great
name among men—are golden apples, great things among mere moralists. The application is easy.
A sincere Christian looks to the manner as well as to the matter of his duties. He acts and performs duties, not only from strength of nature and acquired abilities—but from strength of grace and infused principles; he acts from God and for God; he acts from a new heart; he acts from the law written in his heart; he acts from the love of God shed abroad in his heart; he acts from the divine nature communicated to him; he acts from the Spirit's indwelling in his heart; he acts from the fear of God established in his heart. These are the springs and principles of a sincere Christian's spiritual life and actions; and where they act and bear rule, it is no wonder if there are such motions and performances as the world may admire, but not imitate.
Paul's life, after his conversion, was a kind of constant miracle. So much he did, and so much he suffered, and so much he denied himself—that if he lived in these days, his life would be a miracle! But yet if we consider the new infused principles by which he acted, the great wonder will be, not that he did so much—but that he did no more. "For," says he, "Christ lives in me, and the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me," Gal 2:20.
It was a great saying of blessed Bradford, that he could not leave a duty until he had found communion with Christ in the duty, until he had brought his heart into a duty-frame. He could not leave confession until he had found his heart touched, broken, and humbled for sin; nor petition until he had found his heart pleased with the beauties of the things desired; nor could he leave thanksgiving until he had found his spirit enlarged and his soul