THE EVIDENCE OF SONSHIP.
By M. C. W.
"Now the Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God," is the language of Paul in Rom. 8:16. It is the same divine law which we have considered in an article in another column. God would not have his people depend on a guess or a wish or a faint hope that they might be his children; he desires them to have sure evidence, evidence absolutely unimpeachable. The Christian need not grope in blindness or doubt. God will give him such plain evidence that it will not be presumptuous to make the claim that he is a child of God. What is the witness of the Spirit of God? Says an apostle, in 1 Cor. 2:10, 11:— "But God hath revealed them [the things of God] unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God." God has revealed these things in his holy word; and that word was inspired by the Holy Ghost. 1 Peter 1:10, 11; 2 Peter 1:21; Acts 1:16; 2 Tim. 3:16. The apostles taught also "not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual." 1 Cor. 2:13. The witness, or testimony of the Spirit of God, then, is in the word of God, the Bible. That word reveals in the holy law of God man's duty, and also sinfulness by that same law, because man has transgressed the law. That word reveals that Christ died to redeem mankind; and that every soul can be saved on conditions which are explicitly and clearly set forth, and which man through God's free favor can meet. That word reveals the promises and power of God, and how obtained. It reveals how the acceptance of God's plan with the whole heart will affect the sinner's mind, affections, and life. God's word, or the Spirit of God through this word, reveals all of the necessary things for man's acceptance and salvation. The text will not reveal all, man's opinions of a text will not, but the Bible will by study, comparing text with text, passage with passage, prophet with prophet and apostle, apostle with apostle and prophet, in short, comparing spiritual with spiritual, reveal man's duty. "Our spirit," or "the spirit of man," refers to man's mind, intellect, and spiritual nature. Its use in this text probably comprehends all of these. It is that by which we obtain knowledge. It does not of itself know the things of God, because of the limitations of its narrow powers, and the greatness of the things of God. But in it is the only knowledge man has of himself outside of divine revelation. "For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him?" This spirit knows man's loves and hates. In the unregenerate it is against good; it is at enmity to the truth of God; it is in harmony with evil. But when regenerate, the old passes away, a new is created within. "A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you." Eze. 36:26. And this new spirit is the creation of the Spirit of God. Verse 27. This being the case, the Spirit of God dwells in the heart of the regenerate, or child of God. And this Paul expressly states: "But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." Rom. 8:9. The spirit of man, then, which has been created within him by the Spirit of God, must be in harmony with the Spirit of God. The testimony of the Spirit of God—the word of God—and the testimony of the renewed spirit of man must agree. The spirit of man is manifest in his thoughts, his words, his deeds; not in one alone, but in all. It matters not what emotions he may have or may have had, of joy or of ecstasy, these are not the witness of Rom. 8:16. The thoughts of man, the words of man, the deeds of man, must be in harmony with the words of God, which is the testimony of the Spirit of God. Has he the Spirit of Christ? Then through that Spirit he must put to death the deeds of the body and the tendencies of the flesh. Rom. 8:13. The Spirit gives through the word what its fruits are. Gal. 5:22-24. Does the spirit of man witness that his thoughts, words, and deeds, are in harmony with this? If they are he has the twofold witness. If his heart is not in harmony, if he hates instead of loves, it matters not what his joy or emotions, he is not a child of God. If he fails, does he sorrow for sin, even though known only to himself? Heartfelt contrition and repentance is evidence of sonship, because it is in harmony with the testimony of the Spirit. If the justified and regenerate man loves the commandments of God, his spirit knows it. It will not be a love of words alone, but deeds. 1 John 3:18. "For this is the love of God that we keep his commandments; and his commandments are not grievous." 1 John 5:3. The power to overcome sin, the willing obedience, the submission to God's will, are evidences absolutely unimpeachable, as the following texts show: "And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments." "But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected; hereby know we that we are in him." 1 John 2:3, 5. See also 1 John 5:2-5. Many other texts teach the same thing. It will be readily seen from this what an infallible, clear, and precious evidence of his acceptance with God the Christian has. It is infallible and unimpeachable. The testimony of the Spirit of God—the Bible—is the same forever. It teaches the same things to-day as it did when John on lonely, rock-bound Patmos wrote the Revelation or penned his gospel. Its teaching, as regards practical duty, is plain and can easily be understood. The Christian knows it, and knows whether he is in harmony with it or not, in heart and through life. The Bible being infallible, and the testimony within himself being in harmony with the Bible, it also is an infallible evidence. The two agreeing testimonies are unimpeachable evidence. The above being the case, it is also clear. For if the Spirit through the word revealed all provisions and conditions of man's salvation, if it plainly declared what the character of the man would be who accepted the truth, and if the man meets all these conditions and is in harmony with all these provisions, certainly the evidence is clear that it is God's Spirit which has wrought this change. It is a precious evidence because of its intrinsic worth. We often hear in revival meetings, in these days of superficiality, such expressions as, "I am saved," "I feel that I am saved." The expression is one of emotion and ecstasy, poor evidence at best. Not that the Christian does not have joy at times, but joy is not the evidence, feeling is not the evidence. Emotion is but incidental, and Satan may cause emotion. Of itself alone, it is of no worth as assurance of acceptance with God. Faith in God's word and the promises through Christ, coupled with a life changed and a character being moulded after the living Word, is evidence upon which we can rest as the rock. Emotion may pass away, physical infirmities may lessen joy, feeling may depart, but God's word is unchangeable, and the heart renewed is just as much in harmony with it all as when joy and feeling were dominant. And even if the child of God has failed, the Word invites him to come back with true contrition. The promise cannot fail, and the submissive, faithful heart that trusts therein cannot fail. "He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty." Ps. 91:1. "For if ye do these things ye shall never fail." 2 Peter 1:10. And the humble-hearted will ever know whether he is doing the will of God or not, will know whether he has a working faith, a "faith which worketh by love." Gal. 5:6. It is only the Spirit of God which can work in us that harmony with the testimony of the Spirit—the word of God. If we have not this Spirit we are none of his. If we have this Spirit, that Spirit will work in us that which is in harmony with the word. In other words, the Spirit in the word of God and the Spirit in our hearts will be in perfect accord. "Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God, that we might know the things which are freely given to us of God." 1 Cor. 2:12. "Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God?" 1 John 3:1. It is our privilege to be the sons of God; it is our privilege to know that we are. We have, if we are sons, an unimpeachable, infallible witness to the fact. Let us hold it fast.