The Connexion Between Holiness and Eternal Happiness.
It is an impossibility to move man to action without an appeal to his hopes and fears; and every work that he performs is done with the expectation of gaining some good, or avoiding some evil. The Scriptures do not fail to take advantage of this principle when urging the Christian on to holiness. They clearly teach us that the amount of happiness which will fall to our lot beyond the grave, will be proportioned to our attainments in holiness during our pilgrimage through this vale of tears. The more useful the child of God is here, the more blessed will he be hereafter. Not even the smallest act, if performed with an eye to the glory of God, shall lose its reward; and every sinner that we are instrumental in saving shall glitter as a star, in the crown of our rejoicing, forever. In “that day, when the secrets of all hearts shall be made known,” every man shall receive a reward “according to the deeds done in the body,” and certainly those who have been most diligent in their Master’s cause, shall receive the greatest reward. But what is to qualify us for usefulness? Learning, talent, and wealth are of no small value, and, when united with holiness of heart, they add greatly to the usefulness of him who possesses them. The duty of the church is not to neglect these things, but to use them for the advancement of the Redeemer’s kingdom. But they are of but little value when contrasted with holiness; and the whole history of the church serves to confirm the position, that the holier a man is the more useful he will be. It was this that made successful ministers of Paul, Whitfield, Wesley, Emory, and Hedding. True, these men had talents that would have raised them to eminence in any of the walks of life; but had they been destitute of the deep baptisms of the Spirit that they possessed, they would never have been instrumental in “turning many to righteousness.” If this reasoning be correct, of how great value is holiness! But there is another view of this subject, that may be worthy of consideration. We know that in this life we cannot be happy unless our feelings accord with the circumstances by which we are surrounded. He who has no love of music, derives no pleasure from the fact that his ears are saluted with sounds that would cause other hearts to thrill with emotions of joy. Let the unlettered person be introduced to the society of the learned, and he will find no pleasure in their conversation. How little pleasure does the sinner find in the service of God! To him the Bible is a dull book; and praising God an employment for which he has no heart. But change the dispositions of these characters, and then how different will be the emotions under the circumstances by which I have supposed them to be surrounded! But in heaven all is holy. The song that the glorified will sing above, is a song of praise to him who has redeemed them from all sin. He whose smile sends joy to their hearts, “cannot look upon sin with the least allowance;” while the angels that gather around his throne have never been guilty of the least deviation from holiness; and earth’s children will not be permitted to enter that “palace of angels, and of God,” until they have “washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” And is it reasonable to suppose that an unholy person would be happy in such a place, even were it possible that he should be admitted there? Would there not be such a dissimilarity between his feelings and the society and employment of that place, as would render him miserable? The sooner we are cleansed from all sin, the better will we be prepared to enjoy heaven. If these things be so, how important is it that the child of God should immediately “lay aside every weight, and the sin that doth so easily beset him.” Every moment of delay lessens the amount of happiness that he will inherit beyond the grave. Shall we not, then, strive to gain an abundant entrance into heaven?—Guide to Holiness.