The Unconditional Freeness of the Gospel

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1870 edition. Excerpt: ... CHAPTER V. Sympathy with the mind of God. Two fields of Christianity has two fields: the one is Christiaintj*.' the infinite and unchangeable character of God--the other is the heart of man: the first is all light--original, uncreated light; the second in itself is all darkness--but it is created with a capacity of receiving light. The great object of Christianity is to dispel the darkness of the second field, by introducing into it the light of the first. A man may know that there is light in God, and he may acquire some ideas concerning the colour and the qualities of the rays of that light, and yet be unvisited by a single ray. He may know about it, as a blind man may know about material light. And all the while, though he reasons about it, he has it not--he is in darkness. But why is the heart of man dark 1 Surely it was not so when God pronounced it good. No, it was then light; but it was light merely and solely because it was then open to receive the light of God. The creature must be darkness when separated from the Creator-- when shut against Him; and man has separated himself from God, and shut out His light, and never can have light again, until he opens his heart to receive the light of God. As easily may the eye create light for itself, independent of the sun, as the soul of man create light for itself, independent of God. There is no light for man but in God; if He is not in thee, my brother, the light that is in thee is darkness. The natural sun entering upon the polar regions, which have been locked up in the death and frost and darkness of their long winter, and filling all things with light and life and warmth, is but a feeble emblem of the entrance of the Sun of Kighteousness on the cold, dead, dark regions of the human...