“Who can understand his errors? Cleanse thou me from my secret faults” 19 Ps1?:12 (10 Sept 1871)

1 - 139, Ps. [1???] - (L.M.)
2 - 142 [?] (C.M.)
3 - 144 [?] (C.M)
Oxford 10o Sept 1871
[Ho?ewell] 24 Oct Morning 1871
"Who can understand his errors? Cleanse
Thou me from secret faults." 19o Ps.: 12o.
There are two great great truths involved in the
relations we sustain to God, which we fully
recognise when they come before our minds
but both of them we are apt to forget. Of
both of them, therefore, it is needful we
should be reminded. The first of these truths
is that we see only a small part of our sins,
(i.e. there are sins in each of us, that we do not know ourselves)
while we forget that not one of them escapes the
Knowledge of God. By consequence we are not
so innocent in the sight of God as we are in
our own. Many causes combine to this state of
Things. Among them we enumerate
1. Self-love- mistaken self-love. Moral philosophers
mention three impulsive motives + restraints. Selfishness

Selfishness, Self-Love, and Conscience. 1. Under the influence of
selfishness we consult only what we imagine will do us
good for the moment in the way of immediate gratification, without
regard to our own ultimate good, and with utter disregard
to the interest of others.
2. Self-love, is a higher impulse, in that it has [re??????] to
the consequences of immediate gratification upon our own
highest good ultimate, + therefore counsels us not to
go into a temporary + fleeting enjoyment, which may end
in a certain future injury. But its failure as a guide
consists in its ignoring the consequences of a given
course of conduct as they affect the interests of others.
3. [?] are these defective influences ever corrected save by
the authoritative supremacy of an enlightened
conscience echoing the voice of God in the Soul,
But it is this mistaken self-love which while it is in

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a degree higher than selfishness, still looks only to what
it considers the best interests of self, that judges only
partially [and] because it is blind to its own faults,
and even fails to see the large majority of its own
errors. This Self-Love however presents itself in another
form and that is in an aversion to search into
the heart, and know these faults. There is a timid +
[????se] dread of lifting the covering of the heart lest
the scene there + thus disclosed may shock the
sensibilities, and disturb the serenity or peace of a
slumbering Conscience. The deceitfulness of the human
heart, its desperate wickedness; and the consequent
perversion of the understanding, and the weakening of the
judgment, give rise to countless delusions and
artifices which make us believe much more
favorably of ourselves, both as to our character and our

state than we ought to believe, or than there is
any ground to believe. We are thus tempted to
palliate and excuse many glaring
imperfections in ourselves [and others]; and even in
regard to those we do judge to be most deeply
aggravated in their guilt, we fail to bestow
upon them that condemnation which they
deserved. [Introduce +] how while Self Love leads us to this
very inadequate estimate of our own errors
we must be reminded that the judgement
of God is according to truth + righteousness; that
in his sight the very Heavens are not clean; that
He "sets our iniquities before Him, our secret sins
in the light of his countenance;" that "there is not
a word in my tongue but lo! O Lord, thou knowest it
altogether;" that "The Lord Knoweth the thoughts of man;"

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"He has searched us + known us;" that "He knows our
down sitting and our uprising + understands
our thought afar off;" that "He compasses our
path and is acquainted with all our ways;"
hence of Him it is true + of Him alone that
"He will bring every work into judgment
with every secret thing, whether it be good,
or whether it be evil." These things being
so, I trust the old forgotten may
now be impressed deeply upon every
mind this day, that "no man is so innocent
in the sight of God, as he is in his own.
The Second of these truths which need to
be re-impressed is that with regard to
our Sins it is not only true that we are
ignorant of the existence of many of them,

but that we have forgotten very many of those
we once knew, and so the inferential
moral from this very trite truth is
that our remembrance of our sins is
not to be the ground of judgment of their
guilt, they are recorded in all their
aggravations in God's Book of remembrance
He forgets nothing - because there is no
past with Him. We do. We are deeply
affected [with] as the time of the commission of a crime or fault or
error, or besetting Sin of which we
have been convicted by our own consciences.
Such an occurrence pains us deeply;-
we mourn over it, and regret it, and
then gradually time heals the wound, and
we allow it to pass, almost entirely from the

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mind. Even of things occurring years ago of
this character we entertain but a feeble
impression comparatively. But it is an awful
thought that with God we are in full view
committing those sins now, because every
thing is present with Him. They are past
+ over with us, because we are progressive
creatures, not lingering a moment on our
journey, but going on incessantly towards the throne
of Judgement, while all that we call past +
present + future are alike but one now to
God. With Him a thousand years are as one
day, + one day as a thousand years." "He
is the same yesterday, + today + forever.'"
O could we [get] cast a single glance into that
dread register which God keeps of our lives

could we go over it chapter by chapter and
verse by verse, and read there sins of thought
+ motive which we perhaps have never known,
"secret Sins;"- sins of youth + manhood we
had forgotten but of which we are keenly
reminded now; sins of weakness; sins of want
of moral courage; sins of positive wilfulness;
sins we designed but never accomplished; sins
we both designed + accomplished; how [?]
we be able to endure the shock which
would visit our souls and agitate our
hearts, awakening our minds "to brood
o'er guilty deeds"- long past + perhaps
forgotten by us - but oh, not forgotten of
God, - not forgotten of God.'" Then would
you understand + fully enter into David's feelings

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in 12ov. 40o Ps. "Mine iniquities have taken hold upon
me so that I [cannot] am not able to look up;
they are more than the hairs of mine head;
therefore my heart faileth me."
It is well + wise for us then in the outset of our
study of this passage to have impressed
upon our minds the two great truths we have
been considering, 1o. That there are so many more
sins in us [that] of which we ourselves are ignorant that
we are not so innocent in the sight of God,
as we are in our own. 2o That we are not to
allow our recollection of our Sins to guide us
in estimating our guilt, but to realize that all
of our sins + all of their aggravations are recorded
in God's eternal Book of Remembrance,
and by that register we are to be judged in a future day.

Now no man can reflect upon this subject without
confessing that he has offended God in more forms, +
with greater aggravations, than it is in his power
to specify, or recall to his recollection. We ask
you now to endeavor today 1. to consider a certain
number of the more obvious of these forms of sin
merely as illustrations of the solemn truth that no
man can fully "understand his errors," and that
every man needs to be "cleansed from secret faults;"
II. Consider the proper spirit with which we shd.
confess our "errors," + "secret faults;"
III. The advantages of this exercise.
1. Among the first and most important of our errors
is the neglect of the great concern,- our Soul's
salvation. This is indeed the foundation of all the rest.
If we lived habitually under a realization of our

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eternity; if we trained ourselves to dwell upon the fact
that the things of earth are transitory + unsubstantial
and passing away, and that these are to be succeeded
by a state endless and unchanging; were we at all
times conscious within our own hearts that we are
lost and ruined by nature and by practice, and
that, living thus and dying thus, our eternity will only
be hopeless + remediless woe; and if we had a
stimulating and inciting conviction that Jesus Christ is
the only Savior and going to Him should be
received, welcomed, pardoned, + saved, we should
have laid the only foundation that can answer
on which to build a hope not only of deliverance
from hell, but of deliverance from Sin, and
hence of preparation for heaven. But alas. "This
mother of all Sin - unbelief,- practical infidelity-

influences the majority of us to neglect this grand
interest to despise or treat with contempt,
indifference, disobedience, + perversion, all the
riches of God's goodness forbearance + long-
suffering; careless to know that "the goodness
of God is intended to lead us to repentance."
Not many realize their aggravated guilt in such
indifference - they reason, "I do not man to treat
God with disrespect- I only do not feel my need, [?]
Hood;- the very indiff is a crime;- want of
regard is an insult- then disobedience;- then
Perversion;= "because sentence" [?]
Remember the charge "Israel doth not know" [?].
And the solemn question "How shall we escape" + does
not [dependent] derive its solemnity from any overt act but simply
[upon] from "neglect." This is one of the common errors

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of which many are guilty + yet which they do not
understand. This is chargeable upon the majority
of my heavens.' But
[2.] Even in regard to those who profess to have sought
and found the Savior precious in the pardon of
their Sins, there are many errors of which they
do not understand the guilt. One of them is
2. The formality of their devotions. We are creatures
of habit. What is full of interest to us at first
becomes stale by repetition- even prayer and
reading the word of God- liable to become a
mere task- a talisman- a lifeless form,-
without heart- + even knowing this we go on-
oh, we greatly need to be stirred up to pray
against lifeless prayers,- lifeless reading,- lifeless
zeal,- lifeless religion,- who can understand his errors?

3. Another of our errors, not fully recognised by ourselves,
is the narrow and selfish scope of our Christian
Spirit of Charity- Love. Paul's greatest
of the three, seems to be the Smallest
in the practice of many. And yet
while it is the office of Faith to realize
the INvisible +c- of Hope to
give us well grounded aspirations after
future Bliss- it is Love that
gives us wings to fly to the Savior-
to give up all for him;- to lay
ourselves out to serve God +
our fellow men, to enable + incline
us to love all men with a love of
benevolence; to make us willing
to [make] endure sacrifices in order to cause joy

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to the suffering; to reclaim the wanderer,
to "turn many to righteousness"; "to convert
one soul from the error of his ways- to Save
a soul from death, and hide a multitude
of Sins"; to resemble [?] in "going about
continually doing good;" to burn for
souls; to travail for the increase of
His Kingdom; to endure hardness as a
good soldier of J.C.; to seek out
the suffering + the sorrowful; to rejoice
with those who rejoice + weep with those
that weep; to love + honor others who may
be outside our denominational pale; not
to denounce any merely because they have not
entered the Ch. of [X?]. by the same door through
which we entered; not to turn all others but ours

to "the uncovenanted mercies of God;" which
really means to no mercies at all- for
God has not revealed to us in His
word any other class of mercies save
those are covenanted; Let all who
live at this poor dying, selfish,
uncharitable a rate feel that they are indulging
errors they surely do not understand, +
pray "cleans me". But another error
4. Is the want of a submissive spirit under
the rod of the Divine affliction. It is not
to be expected from the mere man of the
world- but [Xt??n]. "Whom the Lord [?]
5. The indulgence of an irritable temper.- "Slow to
wrath." Consider Him who endured [?]
6. The indulgence of the license of the tongue.
James 3 Ch.

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Take these as samples- add to them your
individual besetting sins whatever they are- and
you will feel that you have never fully understood
yr error + need to pray "cleanse" me.
II Now Confess. I answer negatively
(1) Not as a censure on others- "we all have
faults-
(2) Not vaguely - do not feel what
they say- comes from nothing + leads
to nothing. But affirmatively-
1. We shd confess with deep
conviction before God that we are ourselves
are guilty
2. That we are sinning against God only
3. That we have nothing to do with
other men's sins- but our own will

be enough to occupy us to study and
"understand" and pray "cleanse" me
4. That we cannot obtain deliverance
except from God- no person can
pronounce absolution- no [t???] can
wash away guilt- nothing but
the blood of J.C. applied by the
Holy Spirit can wash away
guilt + cleanse from sin, +
reconcile us to God. Go to
God then [thro?] "[X?] + cry "Cleanse"
+ then continue to "watch and
pray" for "the Spirit indeed may
be willing but the flesh is weak."
III what advantages result from all
this? 1. Our repentance will be renewed

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2. We shall feel that we need [X?] all along
the path- it will endear his Cross +
Grace
3. It will kill Pride in us.
4. It will kill selfishness
5. It will make us willing to receive
reproof- "We are not perfect.'"
6. Teach us submission
7. Increase our charitable judgements
towards the infirmities of others.
8. It will make us long after Heaven,
where we can sin no more-
9. It increase our caution -
10. Enable us to diminish + cut off
some of our imperfections, + make
some progression holiness- tho' not perfect
In Conclusion.
The great lesson to be learned
from all this is simply
that all our errors, secret sins
and presumptuous faults arise
from the deep inward fountain
of Native, Original Depravity
+
therefore we must constantly seek
for more grace to mortify and
ameify + destroy more + more
the principle of Sin.
We may cut off shoots + [se??o?s]
but they spring up again. [Ro??].
We must pray God "Create in
me a clean heart + renew a
right spirit within me.'"