AT THE
TABERNACLE, MOORFIELDS
Modernized by Cliff Collins
“He who is often reproved, and hardens his neck, will suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.” (Proverbs 29:1)
This passage needs no explanation. Therefore, I will give you the outline of
thought which I plan to pursue.
I. The true idea of reproof.
II. Some of the ways God administers reproof.
III. The purpose of reproof.
IV. What it means to harden the neck under
reproof.
V. What being suddenly destroyed means.
VI. What being destroyed without remedy means.
I. The true idea of
reproof.
First, reproof does not
necessarily imply that the individual reproved regards, or looks on the events
or circumstances that are designed to reprove, as a divine rebuke from
God. Whatever is calculated not only to
draw man’s attention to the fact that they are neglecting their duty and
neglecting the obligation they owe to God but also to draw their attention to
the danger of their present condition, no doubt involves the true idea of
reproof.
II. Some of the ways God
administers reproof.
First, both the Bible and
nature teaches that God exercises a universal providence. If it is true that God created the universe,
He had a purpose for creating it. And
if He has a purpose when He created the universe, it follows that He has made
provision to accomplish that purpose.
He has made provision to secure the end that He originally had in view. This is the true idea of divine providence. I know of two or three different theories of
divine providence. One is, that in the
original creation of both matter and mind, God furnished them with such laws
that, as the universe develops, the great end for which He created the universe
will be automatically secured. Another
theory of divine providence is that God constantly supervises, and either by
His own direct agency and supervision, or through other agencies, God oversees,
controls, and brings about what He designs and wills. Both these theories agree that the providence of God is
universal. Both admit that God has
control in some sense, if not in the same sense. In fact, God could not exercise control over the great events of
the world, if he did not exercise control over the smaller events also, because
one is made up of the others. Great
events are made up of innumerable smaller events; and if the smaller events are
not under God’s direction in the sense that He controls them, of course the
great events made up from these smaller ones could not be under God’s direction
either. The first theory that I
mentioned is a general providence that sees the whole universe as a vast
machine, which, once a law is impressed on it at its creation to work out its
results, does not need divine supervision.
The second theory sees God supervising and adjusting all the laws of the
universe, whether of matter or mind, to accomplish the work that God aims
for. This latter theory sees God as
constantly interfering in the spiritual world, and often in the natural world,
making such arrangements and adjustments that would prevent certain things from
happening. Those who support this
latter theory also believe that moral agency is free, and that God never
interferes with man's will by His supervision.
Another theory is a
combination of the two. They believe
that the universe is partly governed by irresistible laws impressed on it at
the beginning, and partly by direct supervision. Yet, all admit that the providence of God is in some sense
universal. They agree that God is
immediately concerned in everything that occurs; or He knows what is about to occur
and He does not prevent it because He knows it is wiser to let the law take its
course. Now, when God created Adam and
Eve, He knew what would happen; and although He did not prevent their fall, He
took care that their conduct should not defeat the great end for which He
created the universe. Thus, God either
allows everything to be done that is done in the sense that He knows it is
about to occur, or He is actively involved in bringing everything about. God, in fact, has some plan in everything
that occurs in the whole universe, whether He actually originates it by
positive and direct means, or he allows it to occur and so overrules it as to
bring good out of it.
God often administers
reproof in His providential government.
For example, the favors that he bestows on the wicked are reproofs. Suppose a man injured you, and you returned
his evil with great kindness, would he not understand it to be a reproof? Suppose you met a man in the street that had
done you great harm, and you did a big favor for him, would he not regard it as
a reproof? Take the case of Mr.
Whitfield. Once, when he was preaching,
an individual stood up and accused him of a great crime that he was not guilty
of, but the individual wanted to attack his message, and ruin his reputation in
the eyes of those listening to him.
Well, what did he do? Why, when
he came out of the pulpit, he called the individual over to him, gave her a
guinea (ten dollars), and turned away.
This was intended to be a reproof; and it made such an impression on her
that she never got over it. What did
Christ say? “Therefore if your enemy
hungers, feed him; if he thirsts, give him a drink; for in so doing you will
heap coals of fire on his head.” (Rom
12:20)
Now, whether or not it
was wise for Mr. Whitfield to act as he did, it was definitely intended as a reproof! And does not God intend the favors which He
bestows on the wicked as reproofs? They
may think that they receive them because they are deserved: their
self-righteousness may say this; but who does not see that this is not
true? “He makes His sun rise on the
evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” (Matt 5:45)
How can men prowl around at night in the dark, and not feel ashamed and
rebuked when the sun shines on them in the morning? I knew a man once who had been quarreling all night, and when the
sun shone on him in the morning, he was so cut to the heart, that he was led to
repent of his sins. He felt astonished
that God would allow His sun to shine on such a wretch as he. It is remarkable, that when men have been
engaged in some great wickedness and God comes right out and shows them some
great favor, that they do not feel infinitely ashamed of themselves, blush, and
hang their heads down in shame.
Although some men may,
because of their self-righteousness, believe that these things are given as a
reward for their goodness, all such favors are reproofs. It is as if God is saying, “you have refused
to obey My commands, you have broken My law, taken My name in vain, and
profaned my Sabbaths, while I have fed you, clothed you, and given you a home
and friends. What do you think of yourself? You live in sin and yet I keep you
alive. I watched over you in the dark,
and then you rise up in the morning and rebel against me. I have done all this for you and yet you
still abuse me. What do you think of
yourself? See how much love I have
shown towards you, how many good things I have done for you, how I have
persevered in doing you good, and yet you have rebelled against Me. Are you not ashamed of yourself?” Now God does not bestow His favors without
some purpose; and that purpose is to lead sinners to repent. “Or do you despise the riches of His
goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God
leads you to repentance?” (Rom
2:4)
Sometimes, God gives
sinners such a look that you would think would strike them down, break their
hearts, and make them burst out into loud weeping. When they abuse Him, He comes to them with His hands full of
blessings, but says nothing. How many
times has He done this to sinners here today?
What do you think about it? You
have forfeited your life and exposed it to eternal death. Have you not had reason to believe that a
thunderbolt would strike you dead?
Instead of that, God opens your hand and supplies you with all needful
good. Do you suppose that He does this
because He approves of what you have done?
You may not understand it, but God meant to reprove you for what you
have done. By these gifts, He meant to
reprove you for your ingratitude and your sin, just as you, by doing something
similar, would have meant to reprove an individual who had done you a lot of
harm. You try to shame him out of his
bad conduct, to break his heart, and to make him feel how wrong and wicked his
conduct was.
By judgments, God often
administers reproof. By judgments, I
mean those things that are not regarded by men as merciful dispensations, but
as adverse circumstances. Now every one
of them are designed to administer reproof.
When mercy fails, judgment will take its place. God interferes in a great many ways to save
men. Sometimes people are warned by
dreams, although I do not think that dreams can be relied on because they very
often result from the state of health or the nervous system. Yet, it is clear that they are often providential,
and this has been true in every age of the world. There have been striking instances in which people have been
warned by dreams. I have heard many
such things told to me, and so have many other people; and sometimes there is
no doubt that they should be received as warnings.
President Edwards
provides a very remarkable and striking example of a warning given to a man in a dream. In his congregation, there was a notorious drunkard, who had for
many years drank and avoided church.
One night he had a dream, and he dreamed that he went to hell. I will not discuss what he saw there,
because that would take too long, and is unnecessary. However, he was greatly agonized, and he prayed to the Lord to
give him one more chance, and let him return to earth. Well, the Lord gave him leave to return to
earth for one year, and if he was not reformed in that time, he would surely
return to hell. The man, as might be
supposed, was greatly distressed about this dream, and he went to President
Edwards after a few days and shared it with him. President Edwards told him that he ought to regard it as a providential
warning from God, and that it was unwise not to regard it as such. For a while, the man broke off his old vice,
and started going to church. After only
a few months, he began returning to his old habits, until he became as bad, if
not worse than ever. One day he had
been drinking a great deal, and became very intoxicated, and being unable to
get home, he was carried into a carpenter's shop, and laid down among the shavings:
in the night he awoke, and attempted to go down the stairs, when he fell and
broke his neck. Since this dream had
seemed very remarkable to President Edwards, he jotted it down in his notebook
at the time that it was told to him, and when he heard of the man's death, he
referred to the entry, and found to his amazement that it was exactly one year
that very night. I mention this fact to
illustrate what I mean, that often, God in dreams, as well as various other
ways, reproves people for their sins.
He does it by his Word, His writings, by sermons, and by every way that
is calculated to remind the sinner that he is not doing his duty.
Again: the Holy Spirit
reproves by convincing the sinner of his sins, and producing in his mind
feelings of remorse. But, because it is
not my purpose to show how the Holy Ghost works on the conscience by every
means possible to wake the sinner up to knowing where he stands with God, I
will discuss:
III. The purpose of
reproof.
Reproof is designed to
bring about a reformation. God means to
secure this end by forbearance. By reproof,
God tries to convert and save him if he can.
God uses every means possible to make men trophies of mercy. God intends to leave all men without
excuse. I can appeal to every sinner in
this house. God has pursued a course
with you that is designed to leave you without any excuse! At one time, perhaps, He pursued you, or is
pursuing you with loving-kindnesses and tender mercies, as if he would melt you
down by acts of forbearance and love.
But when none of these things are successful, then He uses the rod. When you resist His mild reproof, He will
turn and smite you. He will reprove you
by any means possible. But are you
reformed? For that is His great
purpose.
IV. What it means to
harden the neck under divine reproof.
The language in our
Scripture is figurative. This Scripture
refers to the steer working with a yoke on his neck. The practice of using steers in this manner is rarely found these
days outside of third world nations. When
they are so employed, their neck becomes calloused. The yoke often produces a very hard substance on the neck, by
constantly pushing against it. The men
that are spoken of here are represented as constantly pushing against God's
providence, and thus making their necks hard.
The figure is very striking. The
steer when it first wears the yoke becomes sore-necked; sometimes unable to
bear it on for days, but as time goes on, the steer becomes so accustomed to it
that its neck gets completely hardened.
Thus, the conscience of the sinner becomes quite calloused under reproof
if he does not yield to it. Reproof may
be administered, but he does not feel it any more than the bullock does the
yoke.
V. What being suddenly
destroyed means.
Opposition and destruction
will always go together. This is taught
everywhere in the Bible. “For when they
say, "Peace and safety!'' then sudden destruction comes upon them, as
labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And
they shall not escape.” (I Thess
5:3) By resisting reproof, men become
hardened, so that they do not fear God’s judgments. The conscience becomes so stupefied that men lose their sense of
danger; and it is just then that the danger really becomes greater. Although men have ignored the danger, “their
destruction does not slumber”, (II Peter 2:3) and therefore it is like what God
says, “they shall be suddenly destroyed”.
It shall come on them
sooner than they expect. “The Lord is
not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering
toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to
repentance;” (II Peter 3:9) Therefore God uses every means possible as long as
there is any hope. But when there is no
hope, destruction will come “suddenly”, and much sooner than they expect. This was the case with the old world. God warned them by Noah for one hundred and
twenty years, but they didn’t listen to him, and the flood came suddenly when
they did not expect it.
VI. What being destroyed "without remedy”
means.
I have often been
reminded of this text when I have stood by the dying bed of many individuals. It was no use trying to help them, because
God had determined to destroy them. The
minister is sent to pray for the dying man.
He cannot pray. God will not hear. It doesn’t matter if the entire universe intercedes. God will not alter His purpose. How often have I felt shocked and horrified
under such circumstances? When God
makes up his mind to destroy a man, every chance of his being saved has passed
away. Having been often reproved he is
suddenly destroyed, and that without remedy.
All the means that men can employ will be useless. There is no help for such a man in the whole
universe.
I must conclude with a
few remarks.
First: it should always
be understood that there is a relationship between every part of the Divine economy;
and sometimes things occur providentially under such circumstances that even
infidels will say it’s the work of God.
Quite often, these providential dispensations will make the ears of good
men tingle. God will reveal Himself in
such a manner as to shock them.
Again: it is often very
moving to see how God will intercede to save several by the destruction of
one. He takes away one of a circle of
friends, that those who remain behind may be warned. I have often noticed such things myself. One member of the family is a great obstacle
to the others. God steps in and cuts
him down in order that He may save the rest.
How striking such providences are.
Several such cases have occurred in my own experience since I have been
in the ministry, and many others have been reported to me. Individuals have given themselves up to
oppose revivals of religion; have agreed to resist and stand out against all
efforts to revive the cause of God, and have been cut down in a most remarkable
and awful manner. I could name cases,
but it is not important to do so, since such events are common.
Every sermon you hear is
designed to be a reproof to you if you are in an impenitent state. And let me say, reproof will have some
effect; it will either make you better or worse. Always understand this.
Every word and providence will either be a savor of life or death to the
soul. It should be remembered that the
whole system of providence is but a vast system of Divine instruction. Some people try to make a distinction
between the word of God and the providence of God; but they should understand
that the lessons taught are the same, and that the God who created the universe
is the same God that dictated the Bible.
Every event in providence is teaching us lessons just the same as the
Bible; “Whether they hear or whether they refuse”. (Ezek 2:5) If men will
not receive the truth of God's word, they cannot help being instructed as they
pass along under His providence and works.
Everything speaks to them and reproves them. “God has spoken once, twice” (Ps 62:11), whether men regard it or
not. Men are preparing for either
heaven or hell. Every step each of you
takes is taking you closer and closer to the solemn judgment, and everything
cries out, “Prepare to meet your God!”
Sinners beware! You are passing
on to judgment, and God's voice is everywhere loudly calling on you to be ready
to meet Him. Let His voice be heard!
The danger of men is
great, and that danger becomes greater the less they are affected by a sense of
danger. The more reproofs that are
ignored as Divine admonitions, the faster their destruction descends. When men feel the most secure, if they are
living in sin, then destruction is most certain. When it does come, it will be sudden because they do not expect
it at all.
Listen, this is not
arbitrary on the part of God: it is a natural consequence of the sinner's
conduct. God admonishes and warns in a
thousand ways; and He tells men if they will not listen, He will surely punish
them; and if He did not tell them, they would continue to despise Him. God does not lead men to expect one result,
and then bring about another. He is
honest with them, and what He says, He will do. You can depend on it. It
is often very moving to see what state of mind men will sometimes manifest when
they have found themselves being drawn into the vortex. The providence of God in its dealings with
men has sometimes seemed to me like Niagara Falls. The water of this immense river pours over the rocks in one great
broad, mighty fall, as smooth as glass; and comes down on the water below with
such powerful force as to cut right into it.
No foam is visible at the place where it enters, but it rushes along
under the surface, then rises again at about a mile and a half away, and rolls
itself up in mighty masses of spray and foam.
The water thus forms a vast eddy.
Towards the edges of the circle, the power is not very great, but it
increases every inch as you near the center, where everything that enters into
it is instantly engulfed. The sinner
has gotten into such an eddy. You call
and tell him that he is in danger, but he does not believe it. As you see the dangers increase, you raise
your voice still higher, but he refuses to listen to you. As time goes on, he hears the mighty
roar. He then sees his danger, but it
is too late, he is swallowed by the mighty vortex. “Suddenly destroyed!” The
whole universe may call, but his soul will be lost though black as hell!
Sinner! O sinner!
How long shall God warn you? How
long will you despise reproof? Be admonished. Be
warned. Be entreated. Be persuaded. Cast away your sins: put away your rebellious heart and your neck
of iron. Sinner, make up your mind to
give your heart to God. Let your
language be, “Speak, Lord; Your servant listens”. Will you say, “O my Father, my God, I will sin against you no
more? I am ashamed. I am confounded. I have received good things, from you, and have abused You for
them. You have offered me salvation,
but I have refused it! Can I hope for
forgiveness? Can I be forgiven? But forgiven or not, I will not go on in
this way any longer. God being my
helper, I will not. I will renounce my
rebellion against You tonight Lord, right now in this house. This shall be the last hour that You will
have to complain of me, for I will no longer harden my neck against the calls
of Your providence. I now yield myself
up to You. I give up all my sins. I consecrate myself to You. The rest of my life shall be Yours,
Lord. My time, talents, property,
everything I have shall be yielded up to Your honor and glory.” Will every sinner now in this house, thus
renounce your sins, and right now give yourselves up to God and say, “here we
are, Lord, at your feet; O write Your name on our hearts, and let us henceforth
live entirely for You?”