There is one important truth
which cannot be too deeply engraven on the heart, that to be holy
is to be truly happy. This truth, being once admitted,
accounts for the misery of thousands who are in search of happiness. They mistake its real nature,
and the way which leads to it. They thirst, indeed, for the
refreshing stream, but find it not, because their minds, being
unholy, they cannot discern, nor even relish if they could
discern, the true felicity of man. Where, then, is this sacred
treasure to be found? What shall we answer to the thousands
who inquire? Who shall show us any good? The blessed gospel reveals the
important secret. While worldly minds are toiling
through the valley of life to reach the envied spot, the imaginary
paradise of affluence, where happiness is supposed to dwell,
the humble Christian, living day by day on Christ by faith,
enjoys the real blessing in every situation and condition of life. Riches cannot confer happiness. Grace can and does. Herein is
the goodness of God strikingly manifested, that true happiness
is not the result of human wisdom, power, or grandeur. The poor
may enjoy it, while the most wealthy are destitute of it. The illiterate may discern its
excellence, while the wisest philosophers may be blind to
its beauty. We see this continually verified. the rich rejecting the true riches,
the wise of this world despising the true wisdom, the men who
are struggling after happiness, refusing that gospel which alone
can make them happy. And why is this? Because man
is naturally blind to the things of God and of his own true interest,
until enlightened by the Spirit of God. Truly, man by nature
is dead in trespasses and sins. He is alive indeed to evil, and
active in the pursuit of earthly good, but towards God he is dead. His heart has no impulsive feeling
of love and gratitude. His will has no holy bias in
childlike simplicity and obedience to his great Creator. He is averse
from God. The carnal mind has not only
no desires towards God, but is rooted in enmity against Him. This is the true state of man
by nature. He is up in arms against his
Maker. Hence he is an object of deserved
condemnation. His natural conscience testifies
indeed against him, but he breaks through all restraints and sins
with awful determination. The Almighty could, by a single
volition of His will, consign the rebel to eternal death. But
oh, how sweetly do grace and mercy shine! Yes, how wonderfully
does mercy rejoice against judgment! Jesus descends, satisfies the
demands of the law, removes the curse and opens the kingdom to
all believers. To believe this mystery of love,
to receive Christ into the heart by faith, to live under the abiding
influence of this heavenly truth, is to attain the grand secret
of true happiness. All else is but vanity and vexation
of spirit. For there is no peace, says my
God, to the wicked. It is evident, then, that true
happiness consists in being at peace with God through Jesus
Christ, and in the habitual enjoyment of that peace in the conscience
through the power of the Holy Spirit. This delightful state
of reconciliation with God is connected with inward purity,
as the blessed fruit of the Saviour's for holiness is an essential
part of Christ's salvation. Thus, peace and purity, felt
and enjoyed, form that happiness which creates a heaven in the
soul and prepares the soul for the enjoyment of heaven. In proportion
to the clearness of our views of gospel grace and the strength
of our faith in the atonement of Jesus, will be our victory
over sin and the abundance of our peace and joy. All believers
are not equally happy, because all are not equally strong in
faith or equally advanced in inward holiness. When, therefore,
we are dejected and fearful, when we find an uncomfortable
restlessness within, corroding and damping our spiritual enjoyment,
or when we feel a dread of the judgment to come. We should look
well to ourselves, lest there be some root of bitterness, some
secret sin indulged in the heart, which, as it grieves the Holy
Spirit, never fails to intercept the smiles of our Heavenly Father,
to becloud our evidences, and to mar our joy. Happiness is
inseparable from holiness. and cannot exist without it. Some constitutions are prone
to melancholy, and if any pious people have such a natural predisposition
to sadness, the world immediately ascribes it to religion. But
surely this is most unjust, and shows how readily we throw the
blame on what we do not love. How perverted is a man in his
feelings and affections! He smiles when he should sigh,
he laughs when he should mourn, he appears gay and sprightly
when he should be of a sorrowful spirit. But, O, the blessed change
which takes place when the Gospel comes to the heart, not in word
only, but in power, in the Holy Spirit, and in much assurance! He sighs and mourns over his
guilt and misery, but his sorrow is turned into joy. Jesus, who
is anointed to preach glad tidings unto the meek, to bind up the
broken-hearted, and to comfort all that mourn, gives him beauty
for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, and the garment of
praise for the spirit of heaviness. He can now rejoice in the Lord
with joy unspeakable and full of glory. A heavenly light shines
into his soul, and he delights himself in the abundance of peace. O happy, blissful state, who
would not long to be a genuine disciple of the blessed Jesus,
who has assured his obedient people that he will manifest
himself unto them as he does not unto the world, that he will
come and make his abode with them. What heart can be unhappy
in which Jesus deigns to dwell, to which He manifests His grace
and love? Such favored souls are the temples
of the Holy Spirit, the habitation of God through the Spirit. They
are led by the Spirit into all truth, are preserved from the
corruption which is in the world through lust, and bring forth
the fruits of righteousness. They ripen daily for the Paradise
above, where they shall eat of the Tree of Life, and walk in
white with Him whom they love above every created being. O
my soul, receive with joy the reconciliation. Nothing can make
you happy but a simple laying hold of Christ by faith. O what a blessing is the simplicity
of faith! Lord, enable me to look to you
as revealed in the gospel and to rely with unshaken confidence
on your atonement and intercession. If I believe with the heart unto
righteousness, I shall be saved, saved from guilt and condemnation,
saved from the power and pollution of sin. If thus saved, I must
be happy. happy in the love of God, and
happy in the sweet assurance of being with my Savior forever
and ever. Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief. I would credit your word. It
is unerring truth. Now let its sacred power be felt
in my heart. From this moment seal your pardon
to my soul. by the indubitable impression
of heavenly love. Who can describe the holy joy,
the calm that reigns within, when Jesus speaks the pardoning
word and breaks the power of sin? Sweet peace composing all
the mind bids angry passions cease, graces descending from
above, like flowing waves, increase. Dear Savior, let your healing
beams, In softest radiance shine, Let humble fear and love abound,
To prove the work divine. Then will my grateful heart each
day Its Ebenezer raise, Until angels teach me, Near your throne,
Eternal songs of praise. True Happiness by Thomas Reed.