January 6

"Unite my heart to fear thy name." Psalms 86:11

THE fear of God does not here mean a particular grace of the Spirit, but religion at large. It is common to all writers to express the whole of a thing by a part; but then it ought to be an essential and a distinguishing part. And "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;" and we "perfect holiness in the fear of God."

Religion is nothing without the heart. Yet naturally the heart is alienated from the life of God, and hangs off loosely and carelessly from all the spiritualities of his service. But it must be drawn and attached to divine things; and God alone can accomplish this union. Without his agency, indeed, there may be an outward and professional union, but the ligatures of faith and love which are in Christ Jesus, will be wanting. To him, therefore, must we give the glory of the work, if it has been effected, and to him we must repair if we desire to experience it, encouraged by the assurance, that he will not fail to give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him.

But how may I know that he has united my heart to his fear? When we are attached to a thing, we love to hear of it, we think much of it, speak much of it, and delight to remember it. If we are cordially united to an individual, he shares our sympathy; we feel his interests to be our own, we weep when he weeps, and rejoice when he rejoices. It is the same with a man that is cordially attached to religion: he feels himself to be one with it; when it is assailed, he will endeavor to defend it; when it is wounded in the house of its friends, he will feel the pain, the reproach of it will be his burden, he will pray for its success, he will exult in its prosperity. Are we cordially united to any one? In the same degree we dislike absence, and dread separation. Thus the attached Ruth said to Naomi, "Entreat me not to leave thee, nor to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest I will go; and where thou lodgest I will lodge; thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God. Where thou diest I will die, and there will I be buried." And what is the language of the soul under this divine influence? "Why shouldest thou be a stranger in the land, and as a wayfaring man that turneth aside to tarry for a night?" "Hide not thy face from me; put not thy servant away in anger: thou hast been my help; leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation." "Cast me not away from thy presence, and take not thy Holy Spirit from me."

But was not David's heart united to the fear of God before? It was. But he who has the dawn wishes for the day. He in whom the good work is begun will always pray, "Perfect that which concerneth me." Who can say, I have attained; I am already perfect? David, as a backslider, prayed, "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me;" but there was no period in his life, or advancement in his religion, at which he would not have used the very same prayer:

"Whoever says, 'I want no more,' Confesses he has none."

The Christian, as long as he feels any reluctance to duty, any dulness in his work, any distractions in his worship, any law in his members warring against the law of his mind, any reason to sigh, "When I would do good evil is present with me, and how to perform that which is good I find not," will not cease to pray, "Unite my heart to fear thy name."