1 Samuel 2:3-4 Talk no more so exceeding proudly; let not arrogance come out of your mouth: for the LORD is a God of knowledge… It is very beautiful to see how the saints of old time were accustomed to find comfort in their God. Thus Hannah thinks of the Lord, and comforts herself in His name. Like others of God's instructed people, Hannah was very happy in the thought of God's holiness. Hannah also turned her heart to celebrate the power of Jehovah. Hannah touched, in her rapturous hymn, upon the wisdom of the Lord. Hannah also derived comfort from the fact that God is strictly just. I. The staple of our discourse will consist of a consideration of THE PROCESS OF DIVINE JUDGMENT, which is continually going on: "The Lord is a God of knowledge, and by Him actions are weighed." The figure of weighing suggests a thorough testing, and an accurate estimating of the matters under consideration. 1. Our first note here shall stand thus, — this is not as man dreams. Consider, next, that this form of procedure is not as man judges. By men actions are judged flippantly, but "by God actions are weighed." Men are exceedingly apt to measure actions by their consequences. How wrong it is to measure actions by results, rather than by their own intrinsic character! A man upon the railway neglected to turn a switch, but by the care of another no accident occurred. Is he to be excused? Another man was equally negligent, certainly not more so; but in his case the natural result followed — there was a collision, and many lives were lost. The last man was blamed most deservedly, but yet the former offender was equally guilty. If we do wrong and no harm comes of it, we are not thereby justified. Yea, if we did evil and good came of it, the evil would be just as evil. It is not the result of the action but the action itself which God weighs. He who swindles and prospers is just as vile as he whose theft lodged him in prison. He who acts uprightly, and becomes a loser thereby, is just as honoured before God as if his honesty had led on to wealth. If we seek to do good and fail in our endeavour, we shall be accepted for the attempt, and not condemned for the failure. If a man gives his life to convert the heathen, and he does not succeed, he shall have as much reward of God as he who turns a nation to the faith. I would now have you note that this weighing is a very searching business. "By him actions are weighed." A man enters a goldsmith's shop and says, "Here is old gold to sell. See, I have quite a lot of it." "Yes," says the goldsmith, "Let me weigh it." "Weigh it? Why, look at the quantity; it fills this basket." What is the goldsmith doing? Looking for his weights and certain acids by which he means to test the metal. When he has used his acids, he puts the trinkets into the scale. "You are not going to buy by weight?" "I never buy in any other way," says the goldsmith. "But there is such a quantity." "That may be, but I buy by weight." It is always so with God in all our actions: he estimates their real weight. We may hammer out our little gold, and make a great show of it, but the Lord is not mocked or deceived. Every dealing between us and God will have to be by a just balance and standard weight. And in what way will He weigh it? The weights are somewhat of this sort. The standard is His just and holy law, and all which falls short of that is sin. Any want of conformity to the law of God is sin, and by so much our acts are found wanting. Remember this, ye who would justify yourselves. The Lord also enquires how much of sincerity is found in the action. The Lord also weighs actions according to their motives. Another mode of judging is by our spirit and temper. Sometimes actions may be weighed by the circumstances which surround them. Multitudes of men are honest because they never had a chance of making a grand haul by setting up a bubble company — which is the modern mode of thieving. The lieu in the Zoological Gardens is very good because he is behind iron bars, and many a man's goodness owes more to the iron bars of his position than to his own heart and motive. Another weight to put in the scale is this, — Was there any godliness about your life? Once more — have we lived by faith? for without faith it is impossible to please God; and if there be no faith in our life then are we nothing worth. 4. This weighing of our lives must be exceedingly accurate because it is done personally by God himself. I once heard a story (I do not know if it is true) of an old banker who said to his son to whom he bequeathed the business, "This is the key of our large iron safe: take great care of it. The bank depends upon that safe; let the people see you have such a safe, but never open it unless the bank should be in the utmost difficulty." The bank went on all right as long as the iron safe was fast closed, but, at last there came a run upon it, and in his greatest extremity the young gentleman opened it, and he found in it — nothing at all. That was the stock of the bank: poverty carefully concealed, imaginary wealth winning confidence, and living on the results. Are there not many persons who all their lives long are doing a spiritual banking business, and deriving a considerable income of repute from that which will turn out to be mere nothing? Beware of driving a trade for eternity upon fictitious capital, for failure will be the sure result. 5. Again, I want you to notice that this weighing is carried on at this present time — "By Him actions are weighed." As at the Bank all moneys are put through a process by which the light coins are detected, so evermore our life passes over the great weighing machine of the Lord's justice, and He separates that which is short in weight from that which is precious, doing this at the moment as infallibly as at the judgment day. "By Him actions are weighed." This is true of all of us — not of open sinners only, but of those who are considered saints. 6. And one day, to conclude this point, the King's weighing will be published — set up where men and angels shall read them II. THE HUMBLING NATURE OF THIS CONSIDERATION. "Talk no more so exceedingly proudly; let not arrogance come out of your mouth; for the Lord is a God of knowledge, and by Him actions are weighed." The fact of Divine judgment on ourselves should forever prevent our insulting over others. Next, I think we must give up all idea of speaking proudly in the presence of God. If ever you have had the weighing process carried on in your own heart I know you have given up all hope of being saved by your own merit or strength. if conscience has been awakened, and if the law has fulfilled its office upon you, you have given up all idea of appearing before God in your own righteousness. III. THE POSITION IN WHICH ALL THIS LEAVES US. If God weighs our actions and we are thereby found wanting, and can only cry, "Guilty" in his sight, what then? Then we are in God's hands. That is where I wish every one of my hearers to feel himself to be. But who is the Lord? 1. First, according to Hannah, He is a God of salvation. 2. Next, according to Hannah's song, tie is the God who delights in reversing the order of things. He throws down those who are on high, and sets up those that are down. 3. Once more, this God is one who delights to carry on strange processes in the hearts of His people. "The Lord killeth, and maketh alive: He bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up." ( C. H. Spurgeon.) Parallel Verses KJV: Talk no more so exceeding proudly; let not arrogancy come out of your mouth: for the LORD is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed. |
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