Transcribed from the 1883 Church of England Book Societyedition ,
BY
THE REV. EDWARD HOARE, M.A.,
VICAR OF TRINITY CHURCH, TUNBRIDGEWELLS;
AND HONORARY CANON OFCANTERBURY.
AUTHORIZED EDITION.
LONDON:
THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND BOOK SOCIETY,
11, ADAM STREET, STRAND.
1883.
| PAGE |
DIFFICULTIES | |
THE RACES | |
THE JEWS | |
PALESTINE | |
SCOFFERS | |
THE SACRAMENTS |
The Bible has been compared to ariver in which a child may wade, and an elephant swim; by whichis meant that it is full of practical truth so plainly revealedthat a little child may rejoice in it, while at the same time itis full of truth so deep that the loftiest intellect of man isvery soon out of its depth in the study of it. Thus thereare few things more beautifully simple than a living faith. It is the unquestioning trust of one who loves his God andSaviour; the calm repose of the dependent heart on One who hassummed up His Gospel in the words “Come untoMe.” Thus there are thousands, and tens of thousands,of happy believers who have accepted the great salvation just asGod has given it; and who, without perplexing their minds aboutmatters which they cannot understand, most thankfully receivewhat God has revealed, and rejoice in it with their whole heartsas belonging to themselves and their children. As littlechildren they receive and trust, the result of which is that theyrest p. 6intheir Saviour as a child rests in its mother’s arms. I believe there are those by whom such persons are despised, andby whom they are regarded as weak, foolish, and contemptible; butthey have the joy of the Lord, and, instead of beingdespised, they may well be envied by those who, inthe consciousness of superior intellect, consider themselvesqualified to despise their folly.
But, while we rejoice in this simple and childlike Christianfaith, it is vain to deny that in “the deep things ofGod” there are difficulties, and that there are other mindsto whom these difficulties are a source of real and graveperplexity. I am not now speaking of those who delight inmagnifying difficulties, and whose o