our vision inward and made it self-regarding. Unbelief has put
self where God should be, and is perilously close to the sin of Lucifer
who said, "I will set my throne above the throne of God." Faith looks
_out_ instead of _in_ and the whole life falls into line.
All this may seem too simple. But we have no apology to make. To those
who would seek to climb into heaven after help or descend into hell God
says, "The word is nigh thee, even the word of faith." The word induces
us to lift up our eyes unto the Lord and the blessed work of faith
begins.
When we lift our inward eyes to gaze upon God we are sure to meet
friendly eyes gazing back at us, for it is written that the eyes of the
Lord run to and fro throughout all the earth. The sweet language of
experience is "Thou God seest me." When the eyes of the soul looking out
meet the eyes of God looking in, heaven has begun right here on this
earth.
"When all my endeavour is turned toward Thee because all Thy endeavour
is turned toward me; when I look unto Thee alone with all my attention,
nor ever turn aside the eyes of my mind, because Thou dost enfold me
with Thy constant regard; when I direct my love toward Thee alone
because Thou, who art Love's self hast turned Thee toward me alone. And
what, Lord, is my life, save that embrace wherein Thy delightsome
sweetness doth so lovingly enfold me?"[1] So wrote Nicholas of Cusa four
hundred years ago.
I should like to say more about this old man of God. He is not much
known today anywhere among Christian believers, and among current
Fundamentalists he is known not at all. I feel that we could gain much
from a little acquaintance with men of his spiritual flavor and the
school of Christian thought which they represent. Christian literature,
to be accepted and approved by the evangelical leaders of our times,
must follow very closely the same train of thought, a kind of "party
line" from which it is scarcely safe to depart. A half-century of this
in America has made us smug and content. We imitate each other with
slavish devotion and our most strenuous efforts are put forth to try to
say the same thing that everyone around us is saying--and yet to find an
excuse for saying it, some little safe variation on the approved theme
or, if no more, at least a new illustration.
Nicholas was a true follower of Christ, a lover of the Lord, radiant and
shining in his devotion to the Person of Jesus. His theology was
orthodox, but
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