Secret Power; or, The Secret of Success in Christian Life and WorkMoody, Dwight Lyman
Religion
Secret Power; or, The Secret of Success in Christian Life and Work
Moody, Dwight Lyman
Baptism in the Holy Spirit; Christian life; Holy Spirit
Paul when writing to Titus, second chapter and first verse, tells him
to be sound in faith, in charity, and in patience. Now in this age,
ever since I can remember, the Church has been very jealous about men
being unsound in the faith. If a man becomes unsound in the faith,
they draw their ecclesiastical sword and cut at him; but he may be
ever so unsound in love, and they don't say anything. He may be ever
so defective in patience; he may be irritable and fretful all the
time, but they never deal with him. Now the Bible teaches us, that we
are not only to be sound in the faith, but in charity and in patience.
I believe God can not use many of his servants, because they are full
of irritability and impatience; they are fretting all the time, from
morning until night. God can not use them; their mouths are sealed;
they can not speak for Jesus Christ, and if they have not love, they
can not work for God. I do not mean love for those that love me; it
don't take grace to do that; the rudest Hottentot in the world can do
that; the greatest heathen that ever lived can do that; the vilest man
that ever walked the earth can do that. It don't take any grace at
all. I did that before I ever became a Christian. Love begets love;
hatred begets hatred. If I know a man loves me first, I know my love
will be going out towards him. Suppose a man comes to me, saying, "Mr.
Moody, a certain man told me to-day that he thought you were the
meanest man living." Well, if I didn't have a good deal of the grace
of God in my heart, then I know there would be hard feelings that
would spring up in my heart against that man, and it would not be long
before I would be talking against him. Hatred begets hatred. But
suppose a man comes to me and says, "Mr. Moody, do you know that such
a man that I met to-day says that he thinks a great deal of you?" and
though I may never have heard of him, there would be love springing up
in my heart. Love begets love; we all know that; but it takes the
grace of God to love the man that lies about me, the man that slanders
me, the man that is trying to tear down my character; it takes the
grace of God to love that man. You may hate the sin he has committed;
there is a difference between the sin and the sinner; you may hate the
one with a perfect hatred, but you must love the sinner. I can not
otherwise do him any good. Now you know the first impulse of a young
convert is to love. Do you remember the day you were converted? Was
not your heart full of sweet peace and love?
THE RIGHT OVERFLOW.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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