This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1852 Excerpt: ... But this is far from James' purpose. He is speaking of the Law, as made by faith in Christ a living inward principle; of that Law as Christ unfolds it in the Sermon on the Mount, and which presupposes and includes in itself faith. In this view he may justly say, that one must feel himself blessed in the practice of this Law, and in this way alone can become a partaker of that blessedness which Christ imparts to the believer. It is precisely the same thing as Christ himself says, at the close of the Sermon on the Mount: "Whosoever heareth these sayings of mine and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock." Certainly, to this Paul also would have assented. To this certainly corresponded his own manner of teaching, --that only he can experience in himself the divine power of faith, can be blessed through faith, who furnishes the evidence of it in his life; faith beinsr in his view that inward principle, which works from within the transformation of the whole life, that faith which works by love; as he himself says: " Though I had all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing." (1 Cor. xiii. 2.) Jame9 now passes once more from the general to the particular, to the special application of what he has just said on this principle of active obedience. The case which he presents, as requiring special notice, is selected with a view to the peculiar circumstances and faults of these churches. Writing to other churches he might have selected other examples. " If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain." James takes for his starting-point the Christian principle, that religion must emb...