July 25

Observe the aim of the exhortation—He exhorted them all, that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord. With the first preachers of the Gospel he was all in all: and the subject of all their practical addresses therefore was, "As ye have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so continue to walk in him." "Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of faith," They knew that he alone was equal to all their exigencies, and that their religion prospered only as they maintained an habitual and supreme regard to him. Had we heard Barnabas explaining his admonition, we should have found him urging the brethren to adhere to him—as their teacher, who should lead them into all truth; as their Saviour, whose blood cleansed them from all sin, and whose righteousness justified them before God, and gave them access with confidence; as their helper in every duty and conflict, without whom they could do nothing, and through whose strength they could do all things; as their comforter, the consolation of Israel, the man who is the peace when the Assyrian cometh into the land; as their example, whose life was to be made manifest in their mortal bodies; and as their master, who had every claim upon them, having bought them with a price, and rescued them from their enemies, and to whom, as their rightful owner, they had given themselves, body, soul, and spirit.

Observe the nature of the exhortation—He exhorted them all that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord. Religion is a poor business unless the heart be in it. God therefore demands it: My son, give me thine heart. If this be not given, nothing else will be given, unless reluctantly, and therefore unacceptably. But every thing will follow the heart; and where there is first a willing mind, and a concern to please, imperfections in manner will be overlooked in the motive; and if the deed be hindered, it will be accepted according to what a man hath, and not according to what he hath not. Yet there is much truth in the proverb, Where there is a will there is a way. Nothing often is wanting as to efficiency but resolution; and a fulness of resolution is most likely to arise from a fulness of inclination. Love gives ardour and boldness; love is strong as death; many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it. While the slothful sees thorns; and the coward cries, There is a lion in the way, I shall be slain in the streets; purpose of heart, founded not in our own strength, but in the strength of the Lord (and in a Christian it is always so founded), clears away difficulties, or is roused by them into greater vigour and strenuousness.

Observe also the extent of the exhortation—He exhorted them all, that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord—Not only the young, but the old: not only those who were just entering a religious course, but those who had been walking in it: not only the weak and the wavering in the faith, but the strong and established. Who is secure from temptation? Who is entitled to live without caution? None must put off his armour till he has quitted the field. If any one thinks the admonition unnecessary with regard to him, he is the individual who wants it most. A haughty spirit goes before a fall. Be not high-minded, but fear.