Hebrews 12:14

The disciple of Christ must do more for the attainment of spiritual glory than the philosopher of the world, than the venal slave of flying rumors and the people's whims. It is not enough for you to despise wealth unless you follow Christ as well. And only the one who follows Christ forsakes his sins and walks hand in hand with virtue. We know that Christ is wisdom. He is the treasure which in the Scriptures a man finds in his field. He is the peerless gem which is bought by selling many pearls.

I am much distressed that the canons of the Fathers have fallen through and that the exact discipline of the church has been banished from among you. I am apprehensive lest, as this indifference grows, the affairs of the church should, little by little, fall into confusion. According to the ancient custom observed in the churches of God, ministers in the church were received after careful examination. The whole of their life was investigated; an enquiry was made as to their being neither partiers nor drunkards, not quick to quarrel, keeping their youth in subjection, so as to be able to maintain "the holiness without which no man shall see the Lord." This examination was made by presbyters and deacons living with them. Then they brought them to the chorepiscopi; and the chorepiscopi, after receiving the suffrages of the witnesses as to the truth and giving information to the bishop, so admitted the minister to the sacerdotal order. Now, however, you have quite passed me over; you have not even had the grace to refer to me and have transferred the whole authority to yourselves. Furthermore, with complete indifference, you have allowed presbyters and deacons to introduce unworthy persons into the church, just any one they choose, without any previous examination of life and character, by mere favoritism, on the score of relationship or some other tie. The consequence is that in every village there are many who are considered ministers but not one single person worthy of the service of the altars. Of this you yourselves supply proof from your difficulty in finding suitable candidates for election.

"Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord." What he also said above, "Not forsaking the assembling of yourselves together" (c. x. 25), he hints at in this place also. For nothing so especially makes persons easily vanquished and subdued in temptations, as isolation. For, tell me, scatter a phalanx in war, and the enemy will need no trouble, but will take them prisoners, coming on them separately, and thereby the more helpless. "Follow peace with all men, and holiness" (he says). Therefore with the evil-doers as well? "If it be possible," he says, "as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men." (Rom. xii. 18.) For thy part (he means) "live peaceably," doing no harm to religion: but in whatever thou art ill-treated, bear it nobly. For the bearing with evil is a great weapon in trials. Thus Christ also made His disciples strong by saying, "Behold I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves," (Matt. x. 16.) What dost Thou say? Are we "among wolves," and dost Thou bid us to be "as sheep," and "as doves"? Yea, He says. For nothing so shames him that is doing us evil, as bearing nobly the things which are brought upon us: and not avenging ourselves either by word or by deed. This both makes us more philosophical ourselves and procures a greater reward, and also benefits them. But has such an one been insolent? Do thou bless him. See how much thou wilt gain from this: thou hast quenched the evil, thou hast procured to thyself a reward, thou hast made him ashamed, and thou hast suffered nothing serious.

"Follow peace with all men, and holiness." What does he mean by "holiness"? Chaste, and orderly living in marriage. If any person is unmarried (he says) let him remain pure, let him marry: or if he be married, let him not commit fornication, but let him live with his own wife: for this also is "holiness." How? Marriage is not "holiness," but marriage preserves the holiness which proceeds from Faith, not permitting union with a harlot. For "marriage is honorable" (c. xiii. 4), not holy. Marriage is pure: it does not however also give holiness, except by forbidding the defilement of that holiness which has been given by our Faith. "Without which" (he says) "no man shall see the Lord." Which he also says in the Epistle to the Corinthians. "Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor adulterers, nor idolaters, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor covetous persons, nor thieves, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God." (1 Cor. vi. 9, 10.) For how shall he who has become the body of a harlot, how shall he be able to be the body of Christ?

There are many things characteristic of Christianity: but more than all, and better than all, Love towards one another, and Peace. Therefore Christ also saith, "My peace I give unto you." And again, "By this shall all men know that ye are My disciples, if ye love one another." Therefore Paul too says, "Follow peace with all men, and holiness," that is, purity, "without which no man shall see the Lord."

What he said above: "let us not forsake the assembling of ourselves together" (Heb. 10:25), he does now as well, leading to love. And he urges to be at peace not only with friends, but also with enemies. For he says, "if it be possible, …

It is written, "Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see God." For in quarrels the very light of the soul, the light of good intent, is blocked. This is why the psalmist says, "My eye is troubled because of anger." And what good works remain in us if we lose peace from the heart without which we cannot see the Lord? Therefore, act in such a way that you garner your reward even from those who through strife might have caused it to perish. May almighty God guard your love with heavenly grace and grant you to bear much fruit from those who are committed to you so that your measure may overflow with eternal joys.

686. – Then (v. 14) he advises those who do not sin to avoid sin. In regard to this he does two things: first, he prefaces certain remedies for helping to avoid all sins; secondly, he advises them to avoid all sins (v. 15b). 687. …

Follow peace with all men - This second branch of the exhortation concerns our neighbours; the third, God. And holiness - The not following after all holiness, is the direct way to fall into sin of every kind.

Secondly, Peace and holiness are connected together; there can be no true peace without holiness. There may be prudence and discreet forbearance, and a show of friendship and good-will to all; but this true Christian peaceableness is never found separate from holiness.

Follow peace with all men,....

Translate here "sanctification." His is absolute holiness: our part is to put on His holiness, becoming "holy as He is holy," by sanctification. While "following peace with all men," we are not so to seek to please them, as to make God's will and our sanctification a secondary object; this latter must be our first aim.

ONE feels most happy when blowing the trumpet of jubilee, proclaiming peace to broken hearts, freedom to the captives and the opening of the prison to them that are bound. But God's watchman has another trumpet which he must sometimes blow, for thus says the Lord to him, "Blow the trumpet in Zion and sound an alarm in My holy mountain." There are times when we must sound the alarm—men must be startled from their sleep, they must be awakened to enquire, "What are we? Where are we? Where are we going?"

WELL did the Apostle declare that the righteous scarcely are saved. It is no child's play to be a Christian. The Christian life is beyond the poet's meaning, real and earnest. The hills of difficulty which lie before us are no molehills, and the giants and dragons with which we must contend are no phantoms of a disordered brain. When we reach Heaven, what monuments of Grace we shall be, and how shall we throughout eternity emulate one another's praises, each one feeling himself to be the deepest debtor to Sovereign Grace! It will be well for us to remember that the religion of Jesus Christ is not a matter of trifling, that the gaining of Heaven is not to be achieved by a few half-hearted efforts. And if we will at the same time remember that all-sufficient succor is prepared for us in the Covenant of Grace, we shall be in a right state of mind—resolute yet humble, leaning upon the merits of Christ and yet aiming after personal holiness. I trust that in my ministry I shall never keep back the doctrines of the Grace of God, but I am anxious at the same time with equal clearness to declare the doctrine that good works are necessary evidences of Grace. I am persuaded that if self-righteousness is deadly, self-indulgence is ruinous. Rowland Hill said he had spent a large part of his life in battling with the white devil of Arminianism, but he would now fight the black devil of Antinomian-ism. I desire to maintain always a balance in my ministry, and while combating self-righteousness to war perpetually with loose living. Antinomianism is a black devil, indeed, a devil whose smutty fingers have defiled full many of the pure truths of our holy faith, and made even good men shy of receiving them. We, must remember that though we are saved by Grace, yet Grace does not stupefy us, but rather quickens us into action.

WELL did the Apostle declare that the righteous scarcely are saved. It is no child's play to be a Christian. The Christian life is beyond the poet's meaning, real and earnest. The hills of difficulty which lie before us are no molehills, and the giants and dragons with which we must contend are no phantoms of a disordered brain. When we reach Heaven, what monuments of Grace we shall be, and how shall we throughout eternity emulate one another's praises, each one feeling himself to be the deepest debtor to Sovereign Grace!

ONE feels most happy when blowing the trumpet of jubilee, proclaiming peace to broken hearts, freedom to the captives and the opening of the prison to them that are bound. But God's watchman has another trumpet which he must sometimes blow, for thus says the Lord to him, "Blow the trumpet in Zion and sound an alarm in My holy mountain." There are times when we must sound the alarm—men must be startled from their sleep, they must be awakened to enquire, "What are we? Where are we? Where are we going?" Nor is it altogether amiss for the wisest virgins to look to the oil in their vessels and for the most sound Christians to sometimes be constrained to examine the foundations of their hope, to trace back their evidences to the beginning and make an impartial survey of their state before God. Partly for this reason, but with a further view to the awakening and stirring up of those who are destitute of all holiness, I have selected for our topic, "Holiness, without which no one shall see the Lord." There has been a desperate attempt made by certain Antinomians to get rid of the injunction which the Holy Spirit here means to enforce. They have said that this is the imputed holiness of Christ. Do they not know when they so speak, that by an open perversion they utter that which is false? I do not suppose that any man in his senses can apply that interpretation to the context—"Follow peace with all people, and holiness." Now the holiness meant is evidently one that can be followed like peace— and it must be transparent to any ingenuous man that it is something which is the act and duty of the person who follows it.

Follow peace with all men - Do not give indulgence to those passions which lead to litigations, strifes, wars; see the notes on Rom 14:19. The connection here requires us to understand this mainly of persecutors. The apostle is referring to the trials which those whom he addressed were experiencing. Those trials seem to have arisen mainly from persecution, and he exhorts them to manifest a spirit of kindness toward all - even though they were engaged in persecuting them. This is the temper of the gospel. We are to make war with sin, but not with people; with bad passions and corrupt desires, but not with our fellow-worms. And holiness - Instead of yielding to contending passions and to a spirit of war; instead of seeking revenge on your persecutors and foes, make it rather your aim to be holy. Let that be the object of your pursuit; the great purpose of your life. Men might in such cases counsel them to seek revenge; the spirit of religion would counsel them to strive to be holy. In such times they were in great danger of giving indulgence to evil passions, and hence, the special propriety of the exhortation to endeavor to be holy. Without which no man shall see the Lord - That is, shall see him in peace; or shall so see him as to dwell with him. All will see him in the day of judgment, but to “see” one is often used in the sense of being with one; dwelling with one; enjoying one; see the notes on Mat 5:8. The principle here stated is one which is never departed from; Rev 21:27; Isa 35:8; Isa 52:1; Isa 60:21; Joe 3:17; Mat 13:41; 1Co 6:9-10. No one has ever been admitted to heaven in his sins; nor is it desirable that anyone ever should be. […]