and use the word of God. We may have, and we ought to have, special times of devotion, but if our daily life is to be that of a Christian, it must have every day somewhat of a Christian's daily bread.

"The beginning of wisdom," we are told, "is the fear of the Lord, and to depart from evil, that is understanding." And here we may begin with the special rules of seeking wisdom. For in this statement we are not only told that we cannot be wise unless we fear God, but that "the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom," that is, that wisdom must be grounded upon it. Accordingly one of the first steps is to make all other wisdom give place, until the fear of God has been consulted. Men in general act in most things before they think of the fear of God, before they consider how it is most likely to be His will that they should act. Now so long as they do so, they will not make progress in true wisdom. For in everything it is the first point of wisdom to know what is the will of God. If we can act upon that we are sure we are acting wisely, and no power can be effectual against us if we are on God's side. With this, therefore, we must begin,—setting ourselves earnestly to

b Job xxviii. 28.

find out in everything what is the will of God.

i

God

It is true there are many maxims of what may be called worldly wisdom in the book of Proverbs, and in the Apocryphal books which the Church reads, at this time, for our instruction. But all those books acknowledge this principle, that the fear of God is to be first and above all other rules to us. would not have His servants to be ignorant of the laws of nature, or the general course of events in the world or in society. "Wise as serpents" let them be, for no less is commanded them; but though they were to be so wise that they could outwit the serpent that beguiled Eve, yet must their first principle be the fear of God. For this it is wise to cast off all other wisdom, insomuch that the Apostle says, 66 If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God, for it is written, He taketh the wise in their own craftiness."

It is a rule even of this world's wisdom that a man does not become great unless he sets one thing before him, and pursues it with all his might. And the same rule holds

i S. Matt. x. 16.

k 1 Cor. iii. 11, 19.

in the kingdom of God. If a man does not set himself with all his might to seek to be wise according to the fear of God, he will not advance beyond the common measure of men's attainments, which is indeed low enough. If any other aim is permitted to interfere, and to draw him one way, while the fear of God would draw him another, he will seek after another wisdom that has endless windings and entanglements, but no straight paths of advancement, that wisdom which strives to unite the service of two masters, to shew how God and Mammon may both be served together—a wisdom whose end is falsehood, and whose ways are only so many turnings and doublings to avoid the truth. A man may walk long and toilsomely in such ways and be never the forwarder. It is much if he do not find himself at last with his back turned upon the gate of Heaven, and no road that he can see to lead him thither.

But we will suppose a man thoroughly purposed to do the will of God, and to find it out whenever he can. How is such a man to proceed in order to grow in wisdom, and especially in that kind of wisdom which relates to the conduct of life?

In the first place, when he has taken the

This

fear of God for his first principle, he gets a great store of wisdom ready to hand, in the laws of God, and in the usages of the Church, which is His kingdom. We have here even much that Solomon had not. "Prophets and kings have desired to see the things that ye see, and have not seen them." may be said to us, though we do not see with our eyes what the Apostles saw, because the Church saw in them. We have the Record, and we have the living and indwelling Power, of That of which Solomon had the promise and the shadow. We have the law of love plainly laid down for us as the foundation of all other law. We have the distinct promise of the resurrection, and of life eternal. We have communion with God Incarnate, and the example of His life on earth, and the lives of His Saints.

Now all this becomes available to us so soon as we have taken the fear of God for the beginning of our wisdom. And if we feel that we have not done so with full purpose of heart before, we may be sure that we shall find fresh wisdom in what we used to think we knew. It is one thing to study these things, with a view to pick and choose what we please, and another to look

1 S. Matt. xiii. 17.

to them as all and each belonging to our very life, and necessary for us to keep in view in our practice.

When therefore we have determined to set ourselves with full purpose on the practice of these things, the next rule is that of watchfulness and self-examination. Without this we shall not find out the opportunities we have of learning wisdom. God shews us ourselves, and the things that are about us, in the course of our daily life, but we do not see aright unless we attend to what passes. And we shall attend if we strive earnestly to guide our steps according to His law, and to correct ourselves where we stray from it. This, too, will shew us where we are ignorant, and where we must take pains to encrease our knowledge.

Thus far we shall attain if we merely strive to be dutiful. But if we wish farther to become wise, we may take farther pains with much profit, so that what duty requires be first done. For instance, we may take pains to find out not only what is wrong to do, or what is wrong that we have done, but what things are apt to lead to it, and what things help most against it. And here there is room for much exercise of the mind, and much may be learned that will