THINGS NO T SEE N STUDIES IN THE CHRISTIAN INTERPRETATION OF LIFE B Y HERBERT H . FARMER M.A. %onbon NISBET & CO . LTD . 22 BERNERS STREET, W .1 INTRODUCTION S the Christian interpretation of life true ? It is not enough that we should think it helpful ; a I drug may be thought helpful. It is not enough that we should think it beautiful ; there are many beautiful phantasies . It is not enough that we should think it impressive because of its antiquity ; antiquity can give a glamour to almost anything . Helpfulness and beauty and antiquity are part of the evidence fro m which the question of truthfulness must be answered , First published in 1927 but the question itself, or rather the answer to it, is th e crucial thing. Calvin College Library How can we find the answer ? Many questions are answered wrongly, not becaus e ~ . .. .. the evidence is contradictory or inadequate, but because the mind through its fundamental disposition s and presuppositions is out of focus with the only kin d of evidence which is really available . And of all the distortions of mind which the presentation of Chris- tianity has to meet the most common is, perhaps, a certain prior scepticism whether the invisible worl d is real at all, whether that which cannot be seen is i n any sense, popular or scientific, " a thing. " Unless such prior scepticism, which is by no means confined t o those who make no profession of religion, can be go t rid of, or at least for the time being held in suspense , the most persuasive exposition of the spiritual lif e will fail to persuade . It ought not to be impossible, or even difficult, t o PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAI N hold such scepticism in suspense . For, in the first AT THE CHAPEL RIPER PRESS, KINGSTON, SURREY INTRODUCTION INTRODUCTIO N place, to do so is not in the least to run counter t o experimental and live by it day by day . We know the reason. Such scepticism has more to do with racia l reality of any world partly by looking at it and partl y habit and instinct than with reason . The circum- by living in it . It must invite us, but we must accep t stances of the evolution of man's life are quite sufficien t the invitation . Larger experience, greater knowledge , to explain the superior reality with which his min d deeper thought, fuller acquaintance with evidence s invests things he can see and touch and hear. But drawn from the whole breadth of life, may late r in these days when physical science, for so long the play a part in building up a more surely based Christia n High Priest of materialism to the popular mind, is conviction, but nothing can take the place of thi s finding matter dissolving away into something which , initial compulsion on the soul of the Christian messag e whatever it is, is not visible, and psychology, for s o as a whole and this initial willingness to test the matte r long the Cinderella of the sciences, has at length loyally in daily life . come into its own, and a good deal more than its own , It is hoped that the following chapters may present —in these days it is not only not unreasonable, bu t a Christian interpretation of life which, though personal , even not unfashionable, to admit the supreme import- will not be merely private, and which, though in - ance of things not seen . In the second place and more adequate, will at least be adequate enough to induce , important, to suspend the sceptical bias of our mind s or renew, in any who may care to read them a sense o f in respect of the unseen is, we believe, to follow th e its general truthfulness and a willingness to make true bent of our nature. In other words, strong a s further experiment of it. The chapters, which were the bias may be, it is still only a bias . If a man can originally prepared at various times as sermons an d suspend it for a period and take the unseen world addresses, have been selected and arranged with this with which religion deals simply and naturally an d end in view, and it is hoped that they form a unity experimentally, sooner or later something deeper which will be the more truthful perhaps because not within him becomes active and induces a sense o f intended at the time of composition . The book reality and truth which he knows he cannot, in sin- indeed hardly seeks to do more than to ask , cerity or reason, resist . Not that the doubts and the in the words of George Macdonald, whether now scepticisms will never afterwards return, but ther e " before your own door stands ,not a gate, lies not a will now be a true and reasonable counterpoise to the m path to walk in. Enter by that gate, walk in tha t in living experience . path, and you shall arrive at the conviction, which n o To know the reality of the religious interpretation o f man can give you, that there is a living Love and life it is necessary to do two things . First, having Truth at the heart of your being and pervading al l rid the mind of prejudice, we must look at such inter- that surrounds you ." pretation, and see whether, taken as a whole and no t necessarily in all its detail, it lays hold of us in an y degree by its own inherent truthfulness and light. Then, second, if it so lays hold of us, we must be boldly CONTENT S PART I D FOREWORD THE WAYS OF GO " I desire the knowledge of God ." CHAPTE R PAGE I have to acknowledge my indebtedness to Sir Jame s I. ~ OD AS REFUGE 1 3 Marchant, K.B.E., LL.D ., for help and encouragemen t TI.--GOD A S POWER 24 in putting together this book, and to Mr . and Mrs. V. A . III .--GOD AS REVEALING PURPOSE 35 Burrows for their kindness in preparing the typescrip t IV.--GOD AS LOVER OF BEAUTY 47 for the printer . V.-GOD AS HOLINESS 58 • H . H . F. PART II SPIRITUAL LAWS " He knew what was in man." VI. HIDDEN THINGS REVEALED 73 VII. DEEPER DARKNESS . 84 VIII. THE SUCCESS OF WRONG VALUES 95 IX.-THE LAW OF INDEBTEDNESS . 106 PART III EVIL AND THE CROS S " While we were yet weak . " X.---CIVILIZATION . • . 11 9 XI.THE DEEPER NEED . 131 XII.--COD'S PROOF OF LOVE 144 154 XIII.THE CROSS • CONTENTS PART IV DISCIPLESHI P " All things through Him ." CHAPTER PAG E XIV.-TAKING US AS WE ARE 167 XV. CHRIST 'S COMPANIONSHIP WITH US 179 XVI.--OUR COMPANIONSHIP WITH CHRIST 19 1 XVII . INCREASING YEARS 201 XVIII .---DEATH . 213 PART I THE WAYS OF GOD " I desire the knowledge of God." THINGS NOT SEE N I GOD AS REFUGE " I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress ; my God, in whom I trust."—PsALrz xci, 2. HE subject we are to consider falls into three main thoughts : first, man's nature T and the world in which he lives are such , that he continually finds himself in need of a refug e of some sort ; second, that, in the end, the onl y adequate refuge for him is something which tran- scends this world altogether, namely, God, as He has been revealed to us by Jesus Christ ; third, that this congruency between man's essentia l nature and need and the God of Jesus Christ is strong evidence of the truth of our faith . So stated, these propositions will seem formal and unin- teresting. But a consideration of them will lead us close to some of the most vital and significan t facts in human life and in religion. I First, then, man's nature and the world in which he lives are such that he continually finds himsel f in need of a refuge of some sort . z3 14 THINGS NOT SEEN GOD AS REFUGE 1 5 From some points of view this is a common - limit to the process being the natural limits of th e place. Man is born to trouble, we say, as th e capacities of the creature concerned . Thus, we sparks fly upward . Man is supremely the dis- may suppose it was the lack of food which firs t contented, disappointed, restless animal in creation , evoked in living creatures a greater capacity fo r his flesh the heir to a thousand and one inevitabl e movement, and hence the development of limb s ills, his spirit the daily vehicle of unsatisfied desire . to help movement ; but movement, once begun , Yet, from another point of view, this common - enlarges the world in other directions besides the place is perhaps the most surprising and challenging quantity of food it brings within reach, witnes s thing about him. our own belief in the value of travel in education . It is an obvious principle of all life that it i s Moreover, such a larger world opened up by move- ever seeking to come into greater adaptation to , ment demands in the creature greater discrimina- and harmony with, the world in which it lives . tion of vision, and so sight begins to develop, an d Generally speaking, living creatures, includin g sight, developing, opens up a still bigger worl d ourselves, only begin to move and to act when the y demanding still more powers and readjustments, and their environment fall into disharmony with and so on.