Godliness (continued)

Closely connected with—naturally resulting from, this be­lieving knowledge of God—this right way of thinking about God, is a right way of feeling with regard to God, including the affections of supreme love, veneration and confidence. The godly man loves God. He acknowledges the reasonableness of the first and great commandment, " Thou shalt love the Lord thy God, with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and all thy mind." He considers God as infinitely excellent, and regards Him as the proper object of the highest esteem of which his nature is capable. All the qualities which make creatures objects of esteem appear to him to meet in God—without any drawback of imperfection and increased to infinity—so that he feels that He cannot be esteemed too highly, that He cannot be esteemed highly enough ; and, sensible that He has mani­fested infinite kindness in what He has done and promised to do for him, he feels that he owes God a debt of cordial affection—of deep gratitude, which, an eternity spent in wor­shipping and serving Him, so far from repaying, can but in­adequately acknowledge. The language of his heart is, "Thou art worthy, 0 Lord, to receive glory, and honour, and power ; for Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are, and were created."

 
Connected with this supreme love is supreme veneration, holy fear. The godly man, so far as he is a godly man—so far as he knows and believes the truth about God, and cherishes that supreme love which grows out of the truth known and believed, is delivered from that "fear" of God which "has torment" in it. He knows Him as " the God of peace," the pacified Divinity, who was angry with him, but whose anger has been turned away. Still he regards Him with godly fear. 

The grandeur of the Divine character is more strikingly manifested in the incarnation and sacrifice of the Only Be­gotten of God, by which the salvation of men is made con­sistent with, and illustrative of, the Divine holiness and righteousness, than in any, or in all, of the other works of God. " There," to use M'Laurin's burning words, " There shine spotless holiness, inflexible justice, incomprehensible wisdom, omnipotent power, holy love. None of these excel­lencies darken or eclipse the other, but every one of them rather gives a lustre to the rest. They mingle their beams and shine with united, eternal splendour—the just Judge, the wise Governor, the merciful Father. No where not only does mercy appear so amiable, but no where does wisdom appear more unsearchably profound, and justice wear a more terrible majesty." In every godly heart, an awful sense of God's in­finite greatness and excellence, and a holy fear of offending Him, dwell along with the love which casts out tormenting fear. Wherever God is served acceptably He is served " with reverence and godly fear."

 

Joined to this love and veneration of God, and rising out of the same views of His character, is the next element of godli­ness I noticed—supreme confidence in God. The godly man is aware of his own weakness, and of the insufficiency of all creatures to sustain him and bless him. He knows and is persuaded of the all-sufficiency, the infinite power, wisdom, kindness, and faithfulness of God—that he is " able to do for him, exceeding abundantly above all that we ask and think ;" and that He has promised to do so, and that " He is faithful that has promised:' and his settled trust finds appro­priate utterance in the language of the Psalmist—" The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life ; of whom shall I be afraid`? In the Lord I put my trust. The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer ; my strength, in whom I will trust, my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower." Knowing God's name, he puts his trust in Him, and says—" Truly my soul waiteth upon God ; from Him cometh my salvation."  He only is my rock and my salvation ; He is my defence ; I shall not be greatly moved. In God is my salva­tion and my glory : the rock of my strength and my refuge is in God."