WORD, or delights in the word, or prizes
quickened in the return of praises. And it was a great saying of another, that he could never be quiet until he found God in every duty, and enjoyed communion with God in every prayer. "O Lord," said he, "I never come to you but by you; I never go from you without you."
A sincere Christian is enamored with Christ above all. He cannot be satisfied nor contented with duties or ordinances, without enjoying Christ in them, who is the life, soul, and substance of them. But when hypocrites do duties—all they do is from common principles, from natural principles, and from an unsanctified heart— and that mars all. Hypocrites make a great profession and are much in the outward actions of religion; they make a very fair show, they hear, they read, they pray, they fast, they sing psalms, and they give alms; but these duties being not performed from a principle of divine love, nor from a principle of spiritual life, nor from a sanctified frame of heart—are all lost, and the authors of them are undone forever and ever. "If anyone does not love the Lord, that person is cursed!" 1 Corinthians 16:22.
12. No hypocrite in the world loves the WORD, or delights in the word, or prizes the word—as it is a holy word, a spiritual word, a beautiful word, a pure word, a clean word.
Psalm 119:140, "Your word is very pure—therefore your servant loves it." Only those men whose hearts are after God's own heart—can love the word and delight in the word and embrace the word—for its
holiness, purity, and spirituality. Witness Paul: Rom 7:12, "Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good." Well, and what then? "Why," says he, Rom 7:22, "I delight in the law of God after the inward man." But is this all? "No!" says he, Rom 7:25, "With the mind I myself serve the law of God." Holy Paul delights in the law as holy, and serves the law as holy, just, and good.
A sincere heart is the only heart which is interested in the word for its spirituality, purity, and heavenly beauty. None can joy in the word as it is a holy word, nor can any taste the sweetness in the word as it is a pure word—but sincere Christians: Psalm 19:8-10, "The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart. The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean" (that is, the doctrine of the word which teaches the true fear of God), "enduring forever. The Judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether; more to be desired are they than gold, yes, than much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb;" or, as the Hebrew has it, "sweeter than the droppings of honeycombs." The word of God, as it is a pure word, a spiritual word, a clean word, a holy word; so it rejoices a sincere heart, and so it is sweeter than the very droppings of honeycombs.
The word, as it is a pure word, a holy word—is more sweet to a sincere Christian than those drops which drop immediately and naturally without any force or manipulation—which is counted the purest and sweetest honey. There is no profit, nor pleasure, nor joy comparable to that which the purity of the word yields to a sincere heart: Psalm 119:48, "I will lift up my hands to Your commandments, which I love, and will meditate on Your statutes." Sometimes the lifting up of hands betokens admiration. When men are astonished and ravished, they lift up their hands. "I will lift up my hands to your commandments;" that is, I will admire the goodness, spiritualness,
holiness, righteousness, purity, and excellency of your commandments.
Luther took such sweet pleasure and excellent delight in Scripture, that he would not take all the world, for one leaf of it. King Edward the Sixth was trying to lay hold on something which was just above his reach; one who stood by, seeing a Bible lying on the table, offered to lay it under the king's feet to heighten him; but the good young king disliked the notion, and instead of treading it under his feet, he laid it to his heart, to express the joy and delight that he took in the holy word.
Never did any hypocrites, since there was one in the world, ever love God as a holy God, or love his people as a holy people, or love his ways as holy ways, or love his word as a holy word. There is no hypocrite in the world who can truly say with David, "Your word is very pure—therefore your servant loves it." Saul could never say so; nor could Ahab ever say so; nor could Simon Magus ever say so; nor could the scribes and pharisees ever say so; nor could the stony ground hearers ever say so; nor could Isaiah's hypocrites ever say so. It is true, some of these did rejoice in the word, and delight in the word—but not as it was a holy word a pure word; for the whole word of God, every part of God's word is pure and holy.
Hypocrites are sometimes affected and delighted with the word, as it is dressed up with fine learned notions, which are but mysterious nothings; they are pleased with the word, as it is clothed with arts, parts, and elegance of fine language; they are pleased with the word, as it is appareled with silken expressions, or with some smooth elocution: Ezek 33:32, "You are very entertaining to them, like someone who sings love songs with a beautiful voice or plays fine music on an instrument." These hypocrites looked upon the
solemnity and majesty of the word but as a dry jest. The prophet being eloquent, and having a pleasing delivery, they were much pleased with it, and it was as sweet and delightful to them as sweet music; but they were not at all pleased or delighted with the spirituality, purity, and holiness of the word, as is evident in Ezek 33:31, "So they come pretending to be sincere and sit before you listening. But they have no intention of doing what I tell them. They express love with their mouths, but their hearts seek only after money."
It was a very sharp reproof of Chrysostom to his hearers, "This is that which is likely to undo your souls; you hear your ministers as so many minstrels—to please the ear, not to pierce the conscience." Augustine confesses that the delight which he took before his conversion in Ambrose's sermons was more for the eloquence of the words than the substance of the matter.
Hypocrites are pleased more with the wit, eloquence of speech, action, sharpness of imagination, smoothness of style, neatness of expression, and rareness of learned notion—than they are with the spirituality, purity, and holiness of the word, which they either hear or read. These hypocrites are like those children who are more pleased with the fine flowers which are strewn about the dish, than they are with the meat which is on the dish; and who are more pleased with the pretty weeds which grow in the field, than they are with the good corn which grows there.
But as the prudent farmer is pleased more with a few handfuls of good corn than he is with all the pretty weeds which are in the field, so a sincere Christian is more pleased with a few sound truths in a sermon—than he is pleased with all the lofty lines, and high strains, and flourishes of wit; or than he is pleased with some new-coined