The more a man has unity and simplicity in himself, the more things and the deeper things he understandeth; and that without labour, because he receives the light of understanding from above.
The spirit which is pure, sincere, and steadfast, is not distracted though it has many works to do, because it does all things to the honour of God, and striveth to be free from all thoughts of self-seeking.
✦ The Light from Above
Kempis opens with a promise that reverses the world's logic entirely. The world says: the more you study, the deeper you understand. The more books, the more knowledge. The more effort, the more light. Kempis says the opposite. The more a man has unity and simplicity in himself — not more books, not more courses, not more effort — the deeper things he understandeth. And that without labour.
Without labour. The understanding is not earned. It is received. The light comes from above. The pure spirit does not wrestle the truth into submission. The truth descends — like manna, like morning dew, like the light that enters the room when the curtain is drawn. The soul's work is not to generate light but to become simple enough to receive it.
And the spirit that has this simplicity is not distracted even by many works — because everything is done for one purpose: the honour of God. When the motive is single, the soul is at rest even in the midst of labour. The distraction comes not from having too much to do, but from doing things for too many masters. Unity of purpose produces peace in the midst of activity. 🙏
Who is so full of hindrance and annoyance to you as your own undisciplined heart?
A man who is good and devout arrangeth beforehand within his own heart the works which he has to do abroad; and so is not drawn away by the desires of his evil will, but subjecteth everything to the judgment of right reason.
Who has a harder battle to fight than he who striveth for self-mastery? And this should be our endeavour, even to master self, and thus daily to grow stronger than self, and go on unto perfection.
✦ The Hardest Battle
Kempis asks two questions — and they are the same question. Who is so full of hindrance and annoyance to you as your own undisciplined heart? Not the world. Not the enemy. Not circumstances. The heart. The undisciplined heart is the greatest obstacle on the road to God. Every other hindrance is external and can be navigated. This one travels with you.
Who has a harder battle to fight than he who striveth for self-mastery? The wars outside are loud. The war inside is silent and unrelenting. The battle against self — against the will that insists on its own way, the pride that lifts itself above others, the curiosity that seeks knowledge instead of goodness — this is the hardest fight any soul will ever face.
And the goal is not victory once. It is daily. Daily to grow stronger than self. Not stronger than others. Not stronger than yesterday's opponent. Stronger than self. The self that wants to be seen. The self that wants to be right. The self that seeks its own. Every morning the battle renews, and every morning the soul has the chance to grow — not by adding strength, but by surrendering the self that stands in the way. And go on unto perfection. 🙏
All perfection has some imperfection joined to it in this life, and all our power of sight is not without some darkness. A lowly knowledge of yourself is a surer way to God than the deep searching of man's learning.
Not that learning is to be blamed, nor the taking account of anything that is good; but a good conscience and a holy life is better than all.
And because many seek knowledge rather than good living, therefore they go astray, and bear little or no fruit.
He is able to summarize all the Christian experience as a good life. This simplicity is very helpful to me.
✦ The Simplicity of a Good Life
This is the third consecutive morning that Kempis has returned to the same truth — and each time the soul recognizes it more deeply. Yesterday: many words satisfy not the soul, but a good life refreshes the mind. The day before: it is not deep words that make a man holy; it is a good life which makes a man dear to God. And now: a good conscience and a holy life is better than all.
Kempis is not building an argument. He is repeating a prayer. The same truth, said again and again, because the soul needs to hear it again and again. The world pulls toward complexity — more systems, more doctrines, more qualifications, more credentials. Kempis pulls toward simplicity. The whole of the Christian life in the palm of the hand: a good life.
Learning is not blamed. Knowledge is not condemned. But when knowledge is sought instead of good living, the soul goes astray and bears no fruit. The tree that is all leaf and no fruit — impressive to look at, empty to the one who is hungry. A lowly knowledge of yourself is a surer way to God than the deep searching of man's learning. The one who knows herself to be weak and frail is closer to the truth than the one who has read every commentary but has not yet knelt. 🙏
It is Truth which we must look for in Holy Writ, not cunning of words. All Scripture ought to be read in the spirit in which it was written. We must rather seek for what is profitable in Scripture, than for what ministereth to subtlety in discourse.
We ought to read books which are devotional and simple, as well as those which are deep and difficult. And let not the weight of the writer be a stumbling-block to you, whether he be of little or much learning, but let the love of the pure Truth draw you to read.
Ask not, who has said this or that, but look to what he says.
✦ Ask Not Who — Look to What He Says
Ask not, who has said this or that, but look to what he says. In one sentence Kempis dismantles every objection that credentials ever raised against truth. The weight of the writer — famous or forgotten, learned or unlettered, Catholic or Protestant, ancient or modern — is not the measure of what he says. Truth is truth regardless of the mouth it comes through. The love of the pure Truth is what draws the soul to read — not the author's reputation, not his denomination, not his century.
This is the principle of the morning devotion — the very principle that opens the journal to James Smith and Spurgeon, to Bernard and Tozer, to Augustine and Chambers: look to what he says. Let the love of the pure Truth draw you to read. Read humbly, simply, honestly — and not desiring to win a character for learning. The reading is not for display. The reading is for the soul's health.
And Kempis adds a final grace: nor be displeased at the hard sayings of older men than you, for they are not uttered without cause. Receive the hard word. Do not argue with the voice that corrects. The older voices — the ones that span centuries, the ones that have outlasted every fashion — they are not uttered without cause. Hear in silence. And let the Truth do its work. 🙏
Men pass away, but the truth of the Lord endures for ever.
Without respect of persons God speaks to us in divers manners. Our own curiosity often hinders us in the reading of holy writings, when we seek to understand and discuss, where we should pass simply on.
If you would profit by your reading, read humbly, simply, honestly, and not desiring to win a character for learning. Ask freely, and hear in silence the words of holy men; nor be displeased at the hard sayings of older men than you, for they are not uttered without cause.
✦ Read Humbly, Simply, Honestly
Men pass away, but the truth of the Lord endures for ever. The writers die. The books yellow. The languages shift. But the truth that ran through them — the truth of the Lord — endures. James Smith is gone. Spurgeon is gone. Bernard is gone. Kempis himself is gone. But the truth they carried is as alive this Saturday morning in Caldas da Rainha as the day it was first written.
And curiosity — even holy curiosity — can become a hindrance. When we seek to understand and discuss, where we should pass simply on. The soul that stops to dissect every verse may miss the one that was meant for her. The mind that insists on understanding before obeying has reversed the order. Pass simply on. Receive what is given. Let the passage that burns stay. Let the passage that is dark remain dark for now. The light will come — from above, without labour, to the spirit that is simple and pure.
Read humbly, simply, honestly. Three words. The whole discipline of the morning devotion in three words. Humbly — knowing you come as a learner, not a critic. Simply — not seeking subtlety where God offers bread. Honestly — not reading to confirm what you already believe, but to receive what God is actually saying. And not desiring to win a character for learning. The reading is between the soul and God. No audience required. 🙏
Você não encontrará nada mais penetrante do que o exposto pelo Novo Testamento quanto ao sentido meramente insignificante com que você insiste em seus direitos. O Espírito Santo dá à pessoa o poder de renunciar aos seus direitos.
✦ O Poder de Renunciar
After Kempis has laid the whole foundation — unity and simplicity, self-mastery, the good life, reading humbly — Chambers arrives through Consuelo's Portuguese and names the power that makes it all possible. The Holy Spirit gives the person the power to renounce their rights.
Kempis says: grow stronger than self. Chambers says: here is how. Not by willpower. Not by discipline alone. Not by gritting the teeth and trying harder. The Spirit gives the power. The insistence on rights — the right to be recognized, the right to be understood, the right to be comfortable, the right to be right — is what the New Testament calls meramente insignificante. Merely insignificant. The things we cling to hardest matter least.
And the renunciation is not loss. It is the doorway to the unity and simplicity Kempis described — the spirit that does all things to the honour of God, free from all thoughts of self-seeking. When the rights are released, the hands are free. When the self stops insisting, the soul receives. The light of understanding from above — it enters the spirit that has stopped clutching and started receiving. The power to renounce is the power to become simple. And the simple spirit understands — without labour — because the light comes from above. 🙏
"The more a man has unity and simplicity in himself, the more things and the deeper things he understandeth — and that without labour, because he receives the light of understanding from above."
Thomas à Kempis · The Imitation of Christ · The light that comes to the simpleUnity and Simplicity
The pure spirit understands deeper things without labour — because the light comes from above. Unity of purpose produces peace in the midst of activity. One motive. One Master. One honour.
Grow Stronger Than Self
The hardest battle is self-mastery. The undisciplined heart is the greatest hindrance. The endeavour: daily to grow stronger than self — not by adding strength, but by surrendering the self that stands in the way.
Read Humbly, Simply, Honestly
Ask not who said it — look to what he says. Let not the weight of the writer be a stumbling-block. Let the love of the pure Truth draw you to read. The reading is between the soul and God.
The Power to Renounce
The Holy Spirit gives the power to renounce rights. When the rights are released, the hands are free. When the self stops insisting, the soul receives. The power to renounce is the power to become simple.