There is a species of religion prevalent in the present day, which too often serves as an excuse for no religion at all. It has found a place in the writings of many persons of high mental attainments, and in the teaching of many distinguished professors; and may be considered as the emanation of a mind led astray by its own intellectual powers, to seek God by a different mode from that in which He has revealed Himself to man. Among the German philosophers it has taken the form of Pantheism; in our own country it is indicated in the doctrines of the Rationalists; it exists under many forms, insidious and debasing; yet perhaps the more attractive, because it generally baffles an inquiry into the principles on which it is founded. Its fatal error consists in overlooking the claims of revelation, and building up its theories upon deductions from the laws of Nature, and the constitution of Society, and the elements of material things; rather than upon the plain statements of the Bible, which are more humiliating to human pride. It seems very much like a voluntary return to the benighted condition of those heathen philosophers who displayed their superior intelligence by arriving at some faint conceptions of the nature of God, unaided by Divine light, while their contemporaries were blindly devoted to polytheism. That God left not Himself without witness among them, even at that time, we are assured by St. Paul, "In that He did good, and gave them rain from heaven and fruitful seasons." But if such indications of the presence of the Creator in the world left the heathen without excuse, we must consider that in the present day, men who are in possession of a surer testimony will be held still more inexcusable, if they prefer to follow the dim guidance of human reason, and abide in a land of shadows and confusion, instead of penetrating to the accessible regions of Gospel day. Such an erroneous creed may appear to derive support from two lines of Pope, wherein he describes a good man as : "Slave to no sect, who takes no private road, But looks through nature up to nature's God." To the mind of a Christian, the study of Nature is in the highest degree enhanced by the consciousness that he is engaged in contemplating the wonders of Divine skill and power. He gazes on each inanimate object with greater delight, from the reflection that it is fulfilling the end for which the Great Creator placed it in the situation it occupies. And in tracing minutely the probable design with which it was created, whether for the use of man, or the ornament of the globe he inhabits, each new discovery displays more fully to his mind the wisdom and benevolence of the God whom he adores. It was with such feelings as these that the sweet Psalmist of Israel looked forth upon the starry expanse of heaven; and, overcome by contemplating the glories of creation exhibited under the canopy of night, burst out into the rapturous exclamation, "O Lord, our Governor, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!” But to arrive at such a sublime appreciation of the beauties of Nature needs a mind previously sanctified by lessons which are not learned from the pages of science, or by the most devoted attention to natural objects. The love and admiration that are kindled in the heart by such marks of God's presence must have their origin in a previous acquaintance with Him, in the way in which He has revealed Himself. Man must first learn to adore the God of revelation, before he can form worthy conceptions of the God of Nature. His understanding must grasp the wonders of redemption, and his heart. acknowledge its allegiance to the enthralling love which prompted the offers of grace set forth in the Gospel, before he can render the true homage of gratitude for the bounty diffused around him. For this reason, we feel that there is something vague and dreamy about the religion of those who build their faith in the existence and attributes of God only upon what they discover written with his hand on the face of the world around them. And if they remain satisfied with such a superficial knowledge of Him, and are not induced by this glimpse of his perfections to search out the revelation of his will, and their obligations towards Him, the delusion of attempting to look through Nature up to Nature's God, is lamentable and dangerous. Yet, such a delusion is too common, where the mind is careless and indisposed for the work of religious exercise. The line we have quoted, often forms the excuse of the man who acknowledges his ignorance of the contents of his Bible, of the companion who declines an invitation to join in the work of devotion, of the profane when they are exhorted to attend the ordinances of the Church. How many a Sabbath is devoted to listless and idle recreation by persons who will prefer a ramble in the fields to a seat in the house of God, on the ground that their minds can be exercised in devout thoughts, while surrounded by the beauties of Nature! The advocates of Sunday travelling profess to elevate the mind of the toil-worn artizan, by rapidly conveying him to scenes of rural beauty and tranquillity, during the hours that are protected from the claims of labour by the sanctity of the Sabbath; and if a remonstrance is addressed to them. on behalf of a deserted Church, and neglected ordinances, they will maintain that they do homage to the God of Nature, by encouraging an acquaintance with his works. But even if their views are sincere, they lose sight of the important consideration, that God has revealed Himself to mankind by a method that requires a closer study than the vague contemplation of the objects of creation, which must themselves undergo a final dissolution when the human soul enters upon an eternity of being, for which it is man's best interest to make timely preparation. There is, however, a still greater danger involved in the error of seeking through Nature for an acquaintance with God, since it too often results in a sceptical indifference to the superior claims of revelation, and leaves its votary contented with the religion he has acquired from a subordinate source of intelligence. As he dwells upon the subject most congenial to his mind, and looks around him into the world of Nature, he is fascinated with the ten thousand beauties which he sees there, till he is almost tempted to deify the principle of Nature itself. Such an one will allow his ideas to wander in dreamy conceptions of a spirit of beauty, and a spirit of love, whose emanations are diffused through the universe, while he is tempted to forget the personal reverence due to his Maker, by whose hand all these things were formed, and the personal responsibility that is laid upon him to bring his life and actions into conformity with the Divine will. His religion then ceases to be a work of individual importance; the necessity of working out his own salvation by the help of Divine grace is forgotten; and his devotions are of so undefined and incoherent a character, that the heathen who adores the rising sun, can scarcely be less acquainted with the object of his worship. There are one or two features about this mistaken creed which render it attractive, and to these it is probably indebted for the extent to which we find it prevailing in the books and the conversation of the present day. There is something soothing to the pride of human intellect in forsaking the plain teaching of the Bible, and striking out new fields for religious speculation, in subjects far beyond the reach of ordinary minds. And when a teacher is found who claims to himself the merit of superior research, though his doctrines breathe but little of the spirit of the Bible, he never fails to draw around him an admiring circle, willing to be led astray by a blind confidence in his more exalted powers of discernment. It is a characteristic of a large portion of mankind to admire what they do not understand. many Another inducement to follow the indistinct religious knowledge derived from Nature, is doubtless, because it dispenses with of the requirements which are imposed on a conscientious reader of Scripture. In gazing upon the Divine likeness reflected in His works, a man may overlook the stupendous attributes of God's holiness, and hatred of sin. He may rightly be induced to consider man as the most important among the objects of creation, and acquire a belief in the eternity of a future state reserved for him; but there is no history of man's redemption written upon the face of Nature; and he must look elsewhere for traces of the work that was achieved by the Saviour. The prospect of a future judgment may escape the thoughts of one intent upon present objects; and the scenes of earthly beauty, on which he gazes with rapture, may fail to remind him of the new heavens and new earth, for which we look according to the promise. Hence, there is nothing real to excite his hopes and fears, no line of duty which he must follow with perseverance and self-denial, no temptations to be resisted, no sins to be overcome. He is left to form his notions of religious duty from the maxims of the world; and the practice of benevolence and social virtues hold the highest place in his aspirations after excellence of life. Such are a few of the reasons for guarding against an inconsiderate adoption of the sentiment expressed by the poet, when he exhibits for our approval the man of religious mind, who "Looks thro' nature up to nature's God." But we trust that our preceding remarks have tended to show that the Christian character may well be found associated with that of the true lover of Nature. The wisdom that inspired the Sacred Volume has not deemed it beneath its notice to paint in the most lively colours the attractiveness of objects, whose beauties are resonant with their Maker's praise. It may well form a part of our enjoyment in the place of our earthly habitation to contemplate the world-wide indications of the presence of Him who is more worthily enshrined in the hearts of his faithful worshippers; and the experience of individual mercies, when combined with an appreciation of the Divine bounty, diffused through the universe, will constantly lead us to exclaim: "O Lord, how manifold are thy works; in wisdom hast Thou made them all; the earth is full of thy riches." H. C. N. The Teacher in his School. SKETCHES OF LESSONS FOR A BIBLE CLASS, ON THE EPISTLES TO THE SEVEN CHURCHES. (Continued.) THE TITLES OF OUR LORD. SUBJECT given at the previous class.-ANY SIMILAR TITLES IN OTHER PARTS OF SCRIPTURE. In this lesson we shall consider the various titles given by Our Lord to Himself in these Epistles. Observe that these titles and descriptions of Our Lord are nearly all to be found in Rev. i., in which chapter He reveals Himself to St. John, as if to assure him that these Epistles were indeed messages from the Son of God Himself to his Churches. I. In addressing the Church of Ephesus, Our Lord describes Himself in a twofold manner. 1. He that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand. See also chap. i. 16. The stars are the angels of the Churches, Rev. i. 20. The Ephesian Church being in the midst of trial and temptation, here is an assurance of upholding grace. To be held in Christ's hand is, The saint's privilege, Ps. xxxvii. 24; cxxxix. 10. A promise peculiarly given to those in dangerous and trying circumstances, Is. xli. 10, which has been fulfilled in the experience of God's children, Ps. xviii. 35; lxiii. 8. Make David's prayer yours— "Hold Thou me up, and I shall be safe,” Ps. cxix. 117. 2. Who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks. See also chap. i. 13. "The seven candlesticks are the seven Churches," chap. i. 20. The present God ever in the midst of his people. It is thus with The Church in the wilderness, Deut. xxiii. 14; Lev. xxvi. 12. trouble, Jer. xiv. 8, 9. prayer, Matt. xviii. 20; John xx. 19-26. |