THE TOUCHSTONE OF GODLY SINCERITY – Charles Spurgeon
THE TOUCHSTONE OF GODLY SINCERITY
“Will he always call upon God?” – Job 27:10.
Introduction to Job’s Defense
When Job resumes his address in this chapter, he appeals to God in a very solemn manner as to the truth of all that he had spoken. No less vehemently does he assert his innocence of any signal crime or his consciousness of any secret guile which could account for his being visited with extraordinary suffering. I do not know that his language necessarily implies any culpable self-righteousness; it appears to me, rather, that he had good cause to defend himself against the bitter insinuations of his unfriendly friends. Possibly his tone was rash, but his meaning was right. He might well feel the justice of vindicating his character before men, but it was a pity if, in so doing, he seemed to utter a protest of complete purity in the sight of God.
Paul’s Approach to Vindication
You may remember how Paul, under equal, if not exactly similar provocation, tempered his speech and guarded against the danger of misconstruction. Thus, he wrote to the Corinthians: “With me, it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of man’s judgment: yes, I judge not my own self. For I know nothing by myself [or of myself, as though he said, ‘My conscience does not accuse me of wrong’]; yet am I not hereby justified.” But the two holy men are very similar in one respect, for just as Paul, in the struggles of the spirit against the flesh, faced the peril and mounted a guard against it, “lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself shall be a castaway,” so Job lays bare before his own eyes, and points to the view of those who heard him, the features of a hypocrite, lest by any means he should turn out to be such.
The Hypocrite’s Flaw
In terrible language, Job describes and denounces the hypocrite’s flattering hope and withering doom. The suspicion that he himself could harbor a vain presence in his own breast, or would pretend to be what he was not, was utterly abhorrent to Job’s honest heart. He placed himself at the bar, laid down the Law with rigor, and weighed his case with exactness. Thus, he forestalled his adversaries’ verdict by judging himself so that he might not be judged.
The Nature of the Hypocrite
Who, then, is this “wicked man,” thus portrayed before us? And what are the first symptoms of his depravity? We ask not the question idly, but in order that we may take heed against the uprising of such an evil in ourselves. “Beneath the saintly veil, the votary of sin may lurk unseen; and to that eye alone, which penetrates the heart, may stand revealed.” The hypocrite is often an exceedingly neat imitation of the Christian. To the common observer, he is such a good counterfeit that he entirely escapes suspicion. Like base coins, which are cunningly made, you can scarcely detect them by their ring; it is only by more searching that you are able to discover that they are not pure gold—the current coin of the realm.
Imitation of Prayer
It would be difficult to say how nearly any man might resemble a Christian, and yet not be “in Christ a new creature,” or how closely he might imitate all the virtues, and yet at the same time possess none of the fruits of the Spirit before the Judgment of a heart-searching God. In almost all deceptions, there is a weak point somewhere; never is a lying story told but, if you are keen enough, you may from internal evidence somewhere or other, detect the flaw. Though Satan himself has been engaged in the manufacture of impostures for thousands of years, yet whether through the lack of skill on his part, or through the folly of his agents, he always leaves a weak point. His clattering statements are a little too strongly scented and smell of lies, and his mimic Christians are so overdone in one place and slovenly in another that their lie betrays itself.
The Role of Prayer in Discernment
In discriminating between saints and hypocrites, one great test-point is prayer. “Behold, he prays,” was to the somewhat skeptical mind of Ananias, demonstration enough that Paul was really converted! If he prays, it may be safely inferred that the breath of prayer arises from the life of faith. The process of spiritual quickening has at least begun, and so the hypocrite desires to possess that vital action. If the Christian prays, the hypocrite will commit himself to the like exercise. If the Christian calls upon God, the deceiver takes care to make mention of the name of the Lord. Yet, between the prayer of the truly converted man and that of the hypocrite, there is a difference as radical as between life and death, although it is not apparent to everybody. No one, perhaps, can at first be aware of it except the man himself, and sometimes even he scarcely perceives it.
The Difference Between True and False Prayer
Many are deceived by the fine expressions, by the apparent warmth, and by the excellent natural disposition of the hypocrite. They think that when they hear him call upon God, his supplications are sufficient evidence that he is truly a quickened child of God. Prayer is always the telltale of spiritual life; if the prayer is not right, there is no grace within. Slackened prayer indicates a decrease of divine grace; if prayer is stronger, you know the whole man is stronger. Prayer is as good a test of spiritual life and health as the pulse is of the condition of the human frame. Therefore, I say the hypocrite imitates the action of prayer while he does not truly possess the spirit of prayer.
The Test of Consistency in Prayer
Our text goes deeper than the surface and inquires into vital matters. Prayer is a test, but here is a test for the test—a trial even for prayer itself! “Will he always call upon God?” That is the point! He calls upon God now, and he appears to be intensely devout; he says he was converted in the late revival; he is very passionate in his expressions and very forward in his manner at present. But will it continue? Will it wear? Will it last? His prayerfulness has sprung up like Jonah’s gourd in a night; will it perish in a night? It is beautiful to look upon, like the early dew that glistens in the sunlight, but will it pass away like that dew? Or will it always abide? “Will he always call upon God?” That is the question.
Examining Our Own Prayer Lives
O that each one of us may now search ourselves and see whether we have those attributes connected with our prayer that will prove us not to be hypocrites! Pray our search will not show that, on the contrary, we have those sad signs of base dissembling and reckless falsehoods which will before long show us to be dupes of Satan, impostors before Heaven! “Will he always call upon God?” This question, simple as it is, involves several pertinent inquiries.
The Question of Consistency
The first point it raises is that of consistency. Is the prayer occasional, or is it constant? Is the exercise of devotion permanent and regular, or is it spasmodic and inconstant? Will this man call upon God in all seasons of prayer? There are certain times when it is most fit to pray, and a genuine Christian will and must pray at such periods. Will this hypocrite pray at all such times, or will he only select some of the seasons for prayer? Will he only be found praying at certain times and in selected places? Will he always, in all fit times, be found drawing near to God?
Private vs Public Prayer
For instance, he prayed standing at the corner of the street where he was seen of men; he prayed in the synagogue, where everybody could mark his fluency and fervor. But will he pray at home? Will he enter into his closet and shut the door? Will he there speak to the Father who hears in secret? Will he there pour forth petitions as the natural outflow of his soul? Will he walk the field at eventide in lonely meditation, like Isaac, and pray there? Will he go to the housetop with Peter and pray there? Will he seek his chamber as Daniel did, or the solitude of the garden as did our Lord?
Hypocrisy in Public vs Private Prayer
Or is he one who only prays in public—who has the gift of prayer rather than the spirit of prayer; who is fluent in utterance rather than fervent in feeling? Public prayer is no evidence of piety; it is practiced by an abundance of hypocrites! But private prayer is a thing for which the hypocrite has no heart—and if he gives himself to it for a little time, he soon finds it too hot and heavy a business for his soulless soul to persevere in, and he lets it drop. He will sooner perish than continue in private prayer! O for heart searching about this! Do I draw near to God alone? Do I pray when no eye sees, when no ear hears? Do I make a conscience of private prayer?
Conclusion: Always Call Upon God
The true Christian will pray in business; he will pray in labor; he will pray in his ordinary calling—like sparks out of the chimney, short prayers fly up all day long from truly devout souls! The hypocrite prays at Prayer Meetings, and his voice is heard in the assembly—sometimes at tedious lengths, but will he pray with exclamatory prayer? Will he speak with God at the counter? Will he draw near to God in the field? Will he plead with his Lord in the busy street with noiseless pleadings? When he finds that a difficulty has occurred in his daily life, will he, without saying a word, breathe his heart into the ear of God? Ah, no! Hypocrites know nothing of what it is to be always praying, to abide in the spirit of prayer; this is a choice part of Christian experience with which they do not meddle!
THE TEST OF TRUE SINCERITY IN PRAYER
It is so with a lively Christian. If he is seeking a great favor from God, he prays, whether he gets it or not, right on—he cannot take a denial. If he knows his petition to be according to God’s will and promise, he pleads the blood of Jesus about it; and if he does not get an answer at once, he says, “My soul, wait”—WAIT! A grand word—“Wait only upon God, for my expectation is from Him.” As for the hypocrite, if he gets into a church, and there is a prayer meeting, and he feels, “Well, there is a fire kindling, and an excitement getting up”—ah, how that man can pray! The wagon is moving behind him, and he is very willing to pull; but the sincere believer says, “I do not perceive any revival yet; I do not hear of many conversions. Never mind, we have prayed that God will glorify His dear Son—we will keep on praying! If the blessing does not come in one week, we will try three; if it does not come in three weeks, we will try three months; if it does not come in three months, we shall still keep on for three years! And if it does not come in three years, we will plead on for thirty years; and if it does not come then, we will say, ‘Let Your work appear unto Your servants, and Your Glory unto their children.’ We will plead on until we die, and mingle with those who beheld the promise afar off; they were persuaded of it, prayed for it, and died believing it would be fulfilled.” Such prayer would not be wasted breath; it is treasure put out to interest—seed sown for a future harvest! It is the aspiration of saints kindled by the inspiration of God! The genuine believer knows how to tug. Jacob, when he came to Jabbok, found that the angel was not easily to be conquered; he laid hold of Him, but the angel did not yield the blessing. Something more must be done. Had Jacob been a hypocrite, he would have let the angel loose at once, but being one of the Lord’s own, he said, “I will not let You go, except You bless me.” When the angel touched him in the hollow of his thigh, and made the sinew shrink, had Jacob been a hypocrite, he would have thought, “I have had enough of this already; I may be made to shrink all over! I cannot tell what may happen next; I will have no more of this midnight encounter with an unknown visitor; I will get me back to my tent.” But no, he meant to prevail, and though he felt the pain, yet he said—“With You all night I mean to stay, and wrestle till the break of day.” He did so, and became a prince from that night! Will you take a denial from God? You shall have it! O importunate Christian, you are he whom God loves!
The Inconstancy of the Hypocrite
Alas for those who only give, as it were, runaway knocks at the door of heaven, like boys in the street who knock and run away; they shall never find the blessing. Oh, to continue in prayer! It is the very test of sincerity! That is why of the hypocrite it is said, “Will he always call upon God?” A hypocrite leaves off praying in either case; he leaves off if he does not get what he asks for, as I have shown you, and he leaves off if he does get what he asks for. Has he asked to be recovered from sickness when ill? If he gets well, what does he care for praying again? Did he pray that he might not die? Oh, what a long face he drew, and what drawling professions of repentance he groaned out; but when his health is regained, and his nerves braced, his spirits cheered, and his manly vigor has come back to him—where are his prayers? Where are the vows his soul made in anguish? He has forgotten them all! That he is a hypocrite is palpable, for he leaves off praying if he does not get heard—and if he does! He has not the heart for true devotion and soon fails in the attempt to exercise it.
The Trial of Perseverance
“Will He always call upon God?” Here is the trial of perseverance. Will he always continue to pray in the future? Will he pray in years to come, as he now professes to do? I call to see him when he is very sick; the doctor gives a very poor account of him; his wife is weeping; all over the house, there is great anxiety. I sit down by his bedside; I talk to him, and he says, “Oh, yes, yes, yes.” He agrees with all I say, and he tells me he believes in Jesus, and when he can sit up, he cries, “God be merciful to me.” His dear friends are godly people; they feel so pleased; they look forward to his recovery, and reckon upon seeing him a new creature—a disciple of Christ! Besides, he has told them that when he gets up, his will be an earnest life of faith and obedience to the Lord; he will not be a mere professor—he means to throw his whole soul into the Master’s service! Now look at him; he recovered, and when he broke forth from that sick chamber, and was able to dispense with the ministry of those gentle patient women who nursed him and prayed for him, what does the hypocrite do? Oh, he says he was a fool to think and speak as he did! He admits he was frightened, but he disclaims every pious expression as an infirmity of his distracted brain—the delirium of his malady—surely not the utterance of his reason! And he recants all his confessions like the atheist in Addison’s “Spectator.” Addison tells us that certain sailors heard that an atheist was on board their vessel; they did not know what an atheist was, but they thought it must be some odd fish, and when told it was a man who did not believe in God, they said, “Captain, it would be an uncommonly good thing to pitch him overboard.” Presently, a storm comes on, and the atheist is dreadfully sick and very fearful. There, on the deck, he is seen crying to God for mercy, and whining like a child that he is afraid he will be lost and sink to hell. This is the usual courage of atheism! But when the coward reached the shore, he begged the gentlemen who heard him pray to think nothing of it, for indeed he did not know what he was saying! He had, no doubt, uttered a great deal of nonsense. There are plenty of that sort, who pray in danger, but brag when they get clear of the storm. Hereby the hypocrite is discovered! Once take away from him the trouble, and you do away with the motive for which he put on the cloak of religion. He is like a boy’s top which will spin as long as you whip it. The man will pray while he smarts, but not one whit longer; the hypocrite will pray today, in a society congenial for prayer, but he will discard prayer tomorrow when he gets laughed at for it in his business. Some old friend of his drops in, who has heard that he has been converted, and he begins to ridicule him; he asks him whether he has really turned a Methodist? He makes some coarse remarks rather to the chagrin of our courageous friend, till he who set out so boldly to heaven with his prayers, feels quite small in the presence of the skeptic! If he were right in heart, he would not only have a proper answer to give to the mocker, but in all probability he would carry the war into the enemy’s country, and make his antagonist feel the folly of his sins, and the insanity of his conduct in living without a God, and without a Savior! The Christian need never be ashamed or lower his colors; the hypocrite may well blush and hide his head, for if there is any creature that is contemptible, it is a man who has not his heart where he professes it to be!
The Allure of Prosperity
Neither will such a one always call upon God if he gets into company where he is much flattered. He feels then that he has degraded himself somewhat by associating with such low, mean people as those who make up the Church of God. And if he prospers in business, then he considers that the people he once worshipped with are rather inferior to himself—he must go to the world’s church; he must find a fashionable place where he can hear a gospel that is not for the poor and needy, but for those who have the key of aristocratic drawing-rooms, and the select assemblies. His principles—well, he is not very particular; he swallows them. Probably his nonconformity was a mistake; the truths of God which his fathers suffered martyrdom to defend, for which they were deprived of their possessions, driven as exiles from their country, or cast into prison, he flings away as though they were of no value whatever! Many have fallen from us through the temptations of prosperity who stood firmly enough under persecution and adversity; it is another form of the same test, “Will he always call upon God?”
The Test of True Conversion
Besides, if none of these things should occur, the man who is not savingly converted and a genuine Christian generally gives up his religion after a time because the novelty of it dies off. He is like the stony ground that received the seed, and because there was no depth of earth, the sun could play upon it with great force, and up it sprang in great haste; but because there was no depth of earth, therefore it soon was scorched. So this man is easily impressible, feels quickly, and acts promptly under the influence of a highly emotional nature. Says he, “Yes, I will go to heaven,” as he inwardly responds to the appeal of some earnest minister; he thinks he is converted, but we had better not be quite as sure as he is. “Wait a bit, wait a bit!” He cools as fast as he was heated; like thorns under a pot that crackle, and blaze, and die out, leaving but a handful of ashes, so is it with all his godliness! Before long he gets tired of religion, he cannot stay with it; what weariness it is! If he perseveres a while, it is no more pleasure to him than a pack is to a pack horse; he keeps on as a matter of formality; he has got into it, and he does not see how to break away, but he likes it no better than an owl loves daylight.
The Strain of Maintaining Spiritual Respectability
He holds on to his forms of prayer with no heart for prayer, and what a wretched thing that is! I have known people who felt bound to keep up their respectability when they had little or no income; their debts were always increasing, their respectability was always tottering, and the strain upon their dignity was exhausting their utmost resources. Such persons I have considered to be the poorest of the poor; an unhappy life they lead, they never feel at ease; but what an awful thing it is to have to keep up a spiritual respectability with no spiritual income—to overflow with gracious talk when there is no well of Living Water springing up within the soul; to be under the obligation to pay court to the sanctuary while the heart is wandering on the mountain; to be bound to speak gracious words and yet possess no gracious thoughts to prompt their utterance. O man, you are one of the devil’s double martyrs because you have to suffer for him here in the distaste and nausea of your hypocritical profession, and then you will be made to suffer hereafter also for having dared to insult God and ruin your soul by being insincere in your profession of faith in Jesus Christ!
The Need for Self-Examination
I may be coming close to home to some persons before me—I am certainly pressing my own conscience very severely. I suppose there is no one among us who does not feel that this is a very searching matter. Well, dear friends, if our hearts condemn us not, only then have we peace towards God; but if our hearts condemn us, God is greater than our hearts, and knows all things! Let us confess to Him all past failures, and though we may not be conscious of hypocrisy (and I trust we are not), yet let us say, “Lord, search and try me, and know my ways; see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the Way everlasting.”
The Assurance of God’s Truth
I was speaking with a gentleman last night, and I said to him, “You are a director of such a life assurance company, are you not?” “Yes,” he said. “Well,” I said, “Yours is a poor society, is it not?” “It is a very good one,” he replied, “A very good one.” “But it is very low down in the list.” “What list is that?” “Why, the list that has been sent around by certain persons to let the public see the condition of the life assurance companies.” “Well,” asked he, “Where is it to be seen?” “Oh, never mind where it is to be seen; is it true?” “No, it is not true; our society stands well; admirably well.” “How so?” “Well, you know such a man; he is an excellent actuary, and a man of honor.” “Yes.” “Well, when we employed him to go over our accounts, we said just this to him—‘Take the figures, examine them thoroughly, sift our accounts, and tell us where the figures land; tell us just that, neither less nor more. Do not shirk the truth in the slightest degree; if we are in a bankrupt state, tell us; if we are flourishing, tell us so.’”
The Call for Sincerity
My friend has convinced me that his office is not what I feared it was; I have much confidence in any man’s business when he wishes to know and to publish the unvarnished truth. I have great confidence in the sincerity of any Christian who says habitually and truthfully, “Lord, let me know the very worst of my case, whatever it is; even if all my fair prospects and bright ideals should be but dreams, the fabric of a vision. If yonder prospect before me of green fields and flowing hills should be but an awful mirage, and on the morrow should change into the hot burning desert of an awful reality— so be it, only let me know the truth. Lead me in a plain path; let me be sincere before You, O You heart-searching God!” Let us, with such frank candor, such ingenuous simplicity come before the Lord; let as many of us as fear the Lord, and distrust ourselves, take refuge in His omniscience against the jealousies and suspicions which haunt our own breasts; and let us do better still—let us hasten anew to the Cross of Jesus, and thus end our difficulties by accepting afresh the sinner’s Savior! When I have a knot to untie as to my evidence of being a child of God, and I cannot untie it, I usually follow Alexander’s example with the Gordian Knot, and cut it! How do I cut it? Why, in this way: “Say, O conscience, this is wrong, and thus is wrong. You say, O Satan, my faith is a delusion, my experience a fiction, my profession a lie. Be it so, then, I will not dispute it, I end that matter! If I am no saint, I am a sinner—there can be no doubt about that! The devil himself is defied to question that! Then it is written that, ‘Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners.’ And to sinners is the gospel preached, ‘He who believes on Him is not condemned.’ By His grace, I do believe on Him; if I never did before, I will, by His grace, now, and all my transgressions are therefore blotted out! And now, Lord, grant me grace to begin again, and from this time forth let me live the life of faith, the life of prayer. Let me be one of those who will pray always; let me be one of those who will pray when they are dying, having prayed all their lives.”
The Vital Nature of Prayer
Prayer is our very life—ceasing prayer, we cease to live! As long as we are here preserved in spiritual life we must pray. Lord, grant it may be so with each one here present, through the power of Your Spirit, and the merit of Jesus’ blood. Amen and Amen.
Portion of Scripture Read Before Sermon—Job 27.