3,^4,.'ol 
 
 PBESENTED TO THE LIBRARY 
 
 PRINCETON THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 
 
 Professor H^^^^y ^^rx Dyke, D.D., lili.D. 
 
 BV 255 .H34 
 
 Hallock, Joseph Newton, 18: 
 
 The Christian life 
 
THE 
 
 Christian Life: 
 
 FOR 
 
 Devotional IRcabing 
 
 AND 
 
 Jfaniil^ Morsbfp. 
 
 WITH NUMEROUS ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 BY 
 
 V- 
 
 REV. JOSEPH NEWTON HALLOCK, 
 
 EDITOR OK "THE CHRISTIAN AT WORK." 
 
 THIRD EDITION. 
 
 " Forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forward to those things 
 which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in 
 Christ Jesus." — Phil., iii., 13, 14. 
 
 NEW YORK: 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN AT WORK. 
 
 1892. 
 
Copyright, 1892, by 
 THE CHRISTIAN AT WORK- 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 NO one is more surprised at the publication of this 
 volume than myself. When I wrote these articles 
 it was not with the intention of printing them in book 
 form. They were simply written for and printed in the 
 now well-known department, "The Christian Life," which 
 was many years ago introduced in The Christian at Work 
 by the writer, who until the present time has edited it 
 exclusively. Although written for a religious paper, and 
 not for preservation in this more permanent form, I have 
 been induced to print this book at the request of many who 
 have found these editorials on the Christian life helpful, 
 and have learned each week to look for and prize them. 
 This volume, therefore, consists simply of a few selections 
 of original articles and editorials from this department of 
 the paper, and is especially intended for a place in the 
 family library. Nothing, however, is here printed that 
 has appeared within the last two or three years, and many 
 of the articles were written long before that time, some of 
 which I have partially rewritten for this especial presen- 
 tation. This part of the book needs no introduction to 
 its new readers, many of whom will doubtless be already 
 somewhat familiar with portions of it. I can only hope 
 that these short and rather* hastily written sketches may 
 not lose whatever of helpfulness they seem to have pos- 
 sessed by being thrown into this more permanent form, 
 where they can be read more leisurely and critically, and 
 at such times as the various members of the family may 
 feel so inclined. The true Christian life is progressive, 
 and both the old and the young need all the encourage- 
 ment and help in this direction that can possibly be given 
 them. The mission of this little book is simply to give 
 such help, and, with this object particularly in mind, it 
 has been issued in such illustrated form as to be attrac- 
 
4 PREFACE. 
 
 tive to the young, although its matter is intended more 
 especially to instruct, comfort, and help the older mem- 
 bers of the family. 
 
 The various forms of prayers for family worship, at the 
 close of the volume, are not added to make the book pop- 
 ular. Indeed, there is in many minds a deep-seated preju- 
 dice in regard to any printed forms of prayer; and the 
 same objection appears, only less in degree, to printed 
 forms of grace at meals, and even to the children's pray- 
 ers. Prayer is a mockery unless it comes from the heart, 
 and hence some feel that sincere feelings and impulses 
 can be expressed by no set form of words, but simply by 
 the spontaneous and unrestrained language that comes 
 bursting from a full heart. We sympathize with such; 
 indeed, there is no prayer mentioned in the Bible as being 
 more acceptable to Ciod than the simple, broken-hearted, 
 and almost despairing cry of the publican, " God be mer- 
 ciful to me a sinner." Such a prayer from a broken and 
 contrite spirit will always be heard. But while we feel 
 the necessity of always praying " from the heart," we 
 should be careful and not allow ourselves to be unreason- 
 ably prejudiced against set expressions, sentences, or 
 devout and fixed forms of prayer. A spirit of devotion 
 does not necessarily imply the ability to always give clear 
 expression in words. Many a good Christian is rather 
 hindered than helped by inability to adequately express 
 his feelings of love, gratitude, and devotion in the hear- 
 ing of others. The early disciples realized this, even 
 while in the Master's inspiring presence; and with a 
 directness and simplicity which, in our ignorance and pov- 
 erty of utterance, we will do well to emulate, they asked 
 to be taught hotv to pray. Our Saviour recognized their 
 need, and respected their request by complying with it. 
 He gave them a " form " of prayer; and who will say they 
 were afterward less sincere and devout in their worship 
 because they sometimes felt impelled to use the very 
 words of the Master ? 
 
 I am indebted to so many of my friends for valuable 
 suggestions and material assistance in regard to this feat- 
 ure, that I can here only acknowledge my great obliga- 
 tions and return thanks to all collectively. It may be 
 interesting to the reader, as it was to me, to learn the 
 
PREFACE. 5 
 
 significant fact that from nearly thirty of our best-known 
 and most devout clergymen — to each of whom I had sent 
 a private note requesting, for this purpose, a short, sim- 
 ple, and original form of family prayer — came back the 
 modest response: "I have tried, but made a miserable 
 failure. I pray thee have me excused." These were the 
 very men I did not wish to excuse, and as all most heart- 
 ily endorsed this feature of my book, I sent to each a 
 second and more urgent note, in response to which, from 
 nearly every one, I received such chosen or original form 
 of prayer as he deemed most suitable for family worship. * 
 In most instances the prayer is original in its language, 
 and was written especially for this volume, one of the 
 longest and best of these being the excellent Sunday morn- 
 ing prayer from our well-known friend and contributor, 
 Rev. Dr. Cuyler, near the close of the book and under- 
 neath his portrait. It will be seen, therefore, that the 
 various forms of family prayers in the last few pages of 
 this book have either been very carefully chosen, or written 
 especially for this purpose, by the best and most sin- 
 cere Christian men of our time. The feature was sug- 
 gested by the fact that in social conversation with the 
 writer, many persons have plead timidity, ignorance, and 
 kindred excuses as an apology for neglecting family pray- 
 ers. Very many, when the subject has been referred to, 
 have confessed that they would be glad to observe this 
 time-honored custom of their fathers, but feel a reluctance, 
 which they cannot overcome, to engage in prayer in the 
 presence of others. This is not a sufficient excuse for 
 the neglect of a pla.in duty, but as it prevails to a great ex- 
 tent it is well to try to remove it. With these excellent 
 forms of prayer at hand, no one can reasonably plead 
 such an excuse. If necessary, a prayer may be read ; 
 all joining in the Lord's Prayer at the close. But it is 
 still better to study the prayers and familiarize one's 
 self with the different forms of expression, as here set forth 
 from the hearts and lips of these earnest Christians. Words 
 
 * I trust I commit no breach of confidence in stating that such well-known names 
 as Behrends, Hall, Phillips Brooks, R. S. Storrs, Fishei, Taylor, Doolittle, Ingersoll, 
 Parkhurst, Whitaker, C. L. Thompson, Junor, Deems, Chester, Ludlow, Van Dyke, 
 and many others equally well known for their piety and good works, are among those 
 to whom I wrote, nearly every one of whom is here represented by an original form 
 of prayer, or such a selected form as he deemed most suitable for the family. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 and sentences are simply vehicles of thought, ideas, and 
 feelings, and the best and most worthy Christian must 
 learn how to use them before he can convey his sentiments 
 to others, or even fitly express his emotions of reverential 
 love, gratitude, and praise. It is true 
 
 " Prayer is the simplest form of speech 
 That infant lips can cry." 
 
 But we should not be content to forever remain infants in 
 the Christian life. We must strive to attain to those 
 heights of spiritual vision where we shall find in our own 
 experience come welling up from our hearts and lips 
 
 " Prayer — the sublimest strains that reach 
 The Majesty on High." 
 
 It is a duty, therefore, as well as a great and biCSsed priv- 
 ilege, to familiarize the mind with the Lord's Prayer, and 
 with the prayers of good men. These different forms of 
 expression should by no means supersede or interfere 
 with the daily practice of extempore prayer; rather use 
 them as the lame use a staff — to lean upon at such times 
 as you feel the need, and cannot do better without their 
 assistance. If used in this way, they will prove, we trust, 
 with the rest of the book, a constant source of strength 
 and help. 
 
 J. N. Hallock. 
 
 New York. City, December 14, 1S91. 
 
 ADDENDA FOR THIRD EDITION. 
 
 To THE Table of Contents : 
 
 Page 18. — Christ the Shepherd. 
 
 39. — Underneath the Everlasting Arms. 
 123. — Burden- Bearing. 
 133. — A Prepared Life. 
 165. — Seeking Relief in Prayer. 
 302. — Thirty-and-eight Years. 
 
 To the Illustrations : 
 
 Page 301.— St. Peter's and Castle of St. Angelo. 
 " 318. — Christ Among the Doctors. 
 " 332.— Jesus Stilling the Tempest. 
 
Preface P'^^'^s 3 to 6 
 
 Contents " 7 
 
 Full-Page Illustrations " 9 " lo 
 
 Frontispiece. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 What is Christian Life? ii 
 
 Our Besetting Sin 15 
 
 Heavenly Mindedness 17 
 
 Christ the Vine 21 
 
 The Signs of the Times 23 
 
 Letting the Light Shine 25 
 
 Glorification through Death.. 27 
 The Mountains and their Sug- 
 gestions 31 
 
 The Lord our " Rock" 36 
 
 " Ye must be born again".... 41 
 
 Speak the Truth "in Love".. 44 
 
 Little Sermons 47 
 
 Home without Spiritual Life. 49 
 
 Faithful unto Death 51 
 
 "If" 52 
 
 The Value of Time 53 
 
 Christian Sympathy 55 
 
 The Grace of Ignorance 57 
 
 The Christian's Race 61 
 
 Mary Magdalene's Reward... 63 
 
 Walking with God 67 
 
 The Blessings and Power of 
 
 Prayer 69 
 
 True Religion not Damaged 
 
 by Adversity 71 
 
 Girding on the Armor 75 
 
 Don't be too Busy 77 
 
 Little Things 79 
 
 The Love of God 83 
 
 Not Incomplete 85 
 
 •* First Pure" 87 
 
 " Then Peaceable" 91 
 
 " Gentle and Easy to be En- 
 treated" 94 
 
 P.\GE 
 
 " Full of Mercy" — Forgive- 
 ness 9^ 
 
 The Real Source of Power... 100 
 
 " And Good Fruits" loi 
 
 Bread upon the Waters 103 
 
 What is Prayer? 107 
 
 The Anchor of the Soul no 
 
 In the Shepherd's Care 113 
 
 The Wheat and the Tares.. . I17 
 
 God's Special Care 119 
 
 The Christian's Possessions.. 121 
 
 A Spiritual Atmosphere 125 
 
 A Good Name 129 
 
 God's Discipline 131 
 
 Crossing the Rubicon of Trial 133 
 
 A City of Refuge I37 
 
 " Watch" 139 
 
 God's Instruments 141 
 
 Is Life Worth Living ? I45 
 
 Character 148 
 
 Will it Pay? 151 
 
 " Peace, be Still!" I54 
 
 Christian Cheerfulness 155 
 
 " He Saith" I57 
 
 A Stranger and a Pilgrim... . 159 
 
 God " Our Father" 161 
 
 Faith of Woman 163 
 
 Despondency i^7 
 
 Be not Weary in Well Do- 
 ing 170 
 
 Affliction and Tribulation.... 171 
 
 Laboring in the Vineyard I73 
 
 Sufficient unto the Day I74 
 
 A Beloved Disciple I77 
 
 But your Heart in It I79 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Called and Chosen: And 
 
 Faithful i8l 
 
 One Restful Day 183 
 
 The Joy of the Morning 185 
 
 Our Tender Shepherd 187 
 
 Lessons of the Day I go 
 
 Every-day Christian Life 192 
 
 Perfect Trust 194 
 
 Our Old Enemies 195 
 
 Moral Beauty 199 
 
 What Are We Doing? 200 
 
 " No God" 202 
 
 Cause and Effect 204 
 
 God's Omniscience 206 
 
 The Father's Way 208 
 
 God's Crucible 210 
 
 Full and P"ree Forgiveness.. . 211 
 
 Little Sins 213 
 
 Crowns 214 
 
 What is Rest? . . . 215 
 
 My Presence Shall Go with 
 
 Thee 2i6 
 
 Planning and Doing 217 
 
 Not Our Own 219 
 
 Restraining Grace 221 
 
 Under Sealed Orders 223 
 
 Waiting on the Lord 224 
 
 Neither Cold nor Hot 225 
 
 God's Laws Inflexible 227 
 
 Grace Will Tell 229 
 
 Take Near Views 231 
 
 The Branch and the Vine.. .. 233 
 
 Self- Denial 238 
 
 Ambition for Greatness 239 
 
 Just Once 241 
 
 Common Sense in Religion... 243 
 Jesus of Nazareth passeth by.. 244 
 The Real Source of Power. . . 246 
 Ask and Ye shall Receive. . . 247 
 
 Individual Responsibility 249 
 
 Doing Heartily 251 
 
 Perverting the Truth 253 
 
 A Rainbow in the Clouds — 255 
 
 Words Fitly Spoken 258 
 
 Recognition in Heaven 261 
 
 Power in Right Music 263 
 
 Light and Love 267 
 
 Alone with God 268 
 
 Euroclydon 269 
 
 The Prince of Peace 272 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Giving up Old Hopes 274 
 
 Advantages of Confessing 
 
 Christ 275 
 
 Our Responsibility 279 
 
 How Are We Building? 281 
 
 The Master Impulse 282 
 
 Light is Sown for the Right- 
 eous 283 
 
 The Devices of the Tempter. 285 
 
 Their Eves were Holden. . . . 288 
 
 The Dai'iy Task 291 
 
 Sunlight in Autumnal Days... 293 
 
 The Will of God..- 297 
 
 Conquer as You Go 299 
 
 But One Petition 303 
 
 He Will Bring it to Pass. . . . 307 
 Treasures in Earthen Ves- 
 sels 309 
 
 Work That Endures 311 
 
 Personal Obligation 315 
 
 Childhood of Jesus 317 
 
 His Ways Are not Our Ways. 319 
 
 The Human Tide 323 
 
 The Living Bread 325 
 
 An Olive-tree 329 
 
 A Few Days 33 1 
 
 Does Jesus Care? 333 
 
 The Church at Laodicea. . . . 337 
 
 Sadness and Solace 341 
 
 Waiting for Feeling 343 
 
 Missionary Work 347 
 
 In Everything Give Thanks. 350 
 
 Giving Thanks 351 
 
 New Year Thoughts 355 
 
 The Hopes of Easter-tide.... 357 
 
 Sweetness of Spirit 360 
 
 If They Could Come Back. . 361 
 
 Old-fashioned Christians 364 
 
 On Christmas Day 3^7 
 
 Fidelity 370 
 
 The Preciousness of Christ.. 373 
 
 Your Sunday Reading 37& 
 
 What Will Ye Give Me? 378 
 
 The World 380 
 
 Beginning at Jerusalem 383 
 
 Children's Prayers 39" 
 
 Family Prayers 391-413 
 
 Common Forms of Grace dur- 
 ing Meals 414-415 
 
 The Lord's Prayer 416 
 
FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Frontispiece. 
 
 The Mount of Olives 30 
 
 Mount Ararat 33 
 
 The Mountains and their Suggestions (\'ie\v on the Jordan) 35 
 
 JNIount Olivet from St. Stephen's Gate 37 
 
 C'.ethsemane 43 
 
 I Will Instruct Thee (Text) 45 
 
 O Lord, How Manifold (Text) 59 
 
 Mary Magdalene's Reward 63 
 
 Ark of the Covenant 65 
 
 Florence Nightingale 73 
 
 Christ Blessing Little Children 81 
 
 The Wild Palm 89 
 
 He That Walketh Uprightly (Text) .- 100 
 
 The Annual Overflow of the Nile 105 
 
 Anchor of the Soul iir 
 
 In the Shepherd's Care 115 
 
 Thou Shalt Guide Me (Text) 135 
 
 A City of Refuge 137 
 
 The Altar of Sacrifice >. . . . 143 
 
 Tribute Money ' 1 50 
 
 The Sea of Galilee 176 
 
 He That is Without Sin 197 
 
 The Way of Peace 209 
 
 Thou Crownest the Year (Text) 235 
 
 Jesus of Nazareth Passeth By 245 
 
 Characteristic Oriental Scene 265 
 
 The Prince of Peace 273 
 
 Sunlight in Autumnal Days 295 
 
 He That Overcometh (Text) 30T 
 
 Wash Me, and I Shall be Whiter than Snow 306 
 
 9 
 
lO FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Thy Kingdom Come (Text) 313 
 
 The Ascension of Our Lord 321 
 
 The Table of Shew Bread 327 
 
 Elijah Fed by Ravens 328 
 
 Steps in the Rocks Leading to INIt. Sinai 335 
 
 Laodicea 339 
 
 The Pool of Siloam 343 
 
 Ancient Gethsemane 345 
 
 Thanksgiving 353 
 
 Bird's-eye View of Jerusalem 3S5 
 
 Watch and Pray (Text) 387 
 
 Rev. Theodore L. Cuyler, D.D 411 
 
WHAT IS CHRISTIAN LIFE? 
 
 COMMON error is to suppose that 
 we are doing the Lord's worlc 
 only when we are engaged in de- 
 votional exercises or laboring for 
 the conversion of sinners, or for 
 the edification of Christians. 
 That which a man does heartil)^, 
 as unto the Lord, is the Lord's 
 work. The farmer, when he is 
 carefully and wisely cultivating 
 the soil, is doing the Lord's 
 work. Plowing is as truly a 
 religious act as praying. The 
 merchant when he makes an 
 honest exchange is doing the 
 Lord's work. Dealing justly is 
 as truly a religious act as warn- 
 ing sinners to flee from the wrath to come. A man is 
 doing God's work when he is doing that which pleases 
 
 II 
 
12 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 God. A man is doing the Lord's work when he is faith- 
 ful to his employer — does a fair day's work; when he 
 takes proper care of his health ; when he governs his 
 temper; when he is careful to speak the exact truth; when 
 he is courteous to strangers and lends a helping hand to 
 the needy; when he has a word of encouragement for the 
 desponding; when he sets an example of industry and 
 honesty; when he returns good for evil; when he leads 
 such an upright, benevolent, God-honoring life, that men 
 take knowledge of him that he has been with Jesus. 
 Religion does not consist solely in reading the Bible, 
 praying, attending church and laboring for the conversion 
 of men. These are important duties, but they do not 
 include the whole of duty.- God's will has reference to 
 every act of our lives. 
 
 Let us see wherein this differs from the secular life. 
 The two may be, and frequently are united in the same 
 individual. We are all obliged to attend to the every- 
 day business of life, and it is right that we should do 
 so, but this Christian life is something different from, 
 while at the same time it enters into an ordinary life. 
 Some of the most prominent characteristics of a truly 
 Scriptural and spiritual Christian life are the following: 
 
 1. Christian life is life in Christ. He is our very life. 
 " Not I, but Christ liveth in me," and to the close we are 
 dependent on him for everything, and do all things 
 through Christ who strengtheneth us. 
 
 2. Christian life is life in the Spirit. Christ seals it, 
 sustains it, and is the substance of it. We " live in the 
 Spirit" and "walk in the Spirit." All our graces are 
 "the fruit of the Spirit." We are illuminated by the 
 Spirit, "strengthened" by the Spirit, and " filled" with the 
 Spirit, and we are warned against grieving and quenching 
 this Blessed Friend. 
 
 3. Christian life is resurrection life. The believer is 
 regarded as a man who has died with Christ as to his old 
 sins and sinful nature, and is no longer his former self. 
 His life is not a modification or in\provement of the old 
 life, but a new nature imparted directly from the heart of 
 Christ and as free from all former sin as Christ is now 
 free, as fully accepted in the beloved as the beloved Son 
 himself; as truly the child of God as Jesus is; and with 
 
WHAT IS CHRISTIAN LIFE? 13 
 
 aspirations as high and heavenly as his high and heavenly 
 origin; "buried with Christ," " risen with Christ," " quick- 
 ened together with Christ," made to "sit together with 
 Christ in heavenly places," called to "know the power of 
 his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings." 
 
 4. Christian life is a life of separation from the world 
 and sin. " It has crucified the flesh with its affections 
 and lusts." It can say, "The world is crucified unto me, 
 and I unto the world." It must "seek the things that are 
 above," and "mortify the members that are on the earth." 
 It must "put off the old man with his deeds;" its "con- 
 versation" must be as "in heaven," remembering ever 
 that they who mind earthly things are "enemies of the 
 cross of Christ." 
 
 5. Christian life is a life of conflict; "conflict with the 
 flesh," which " lusteth against the Spirit;" conflict with 
 principalities and powers — the rulers of the darkness of 
 this world — wicked spirits in heavenly places. And the 
 nearer we get to the gates of triumph, the thicker grow 
 the opposing hosts, and the more trying the ordeal of 
 temptation. But the panoply is sufficient and the victory 
 is sure. 
 
 6. Christian life is a strife, an ardent desire for prac- 
 tical holiness. Nothing is more emphasized in the Epis- 
 tles of Paul than the common virtues of life, the ordinary 
 relationships, the petty moralities, the domestic and social 
 obligations, which a true spiritual life ought to bring out 
 and show in the best light. Such a life ought not even 
 to need being so pointedly reminded of these things. But 
 the blessed Teacher knows that these very things are the 
 truest test of real spirituality, and the most influential 
 testimonies of our religion before the world. As the 
 greatest minds are always the most perfect masters of de- 
 tails, as the truest chronometer is as exact in measuring 
 seconds as hours, so the holiest saint will ever prove the 
 most faithful father, husband, wife, child, servant or 
 neighbor. 
 
 7. Finally, the true Christian life is a life not only 
 of working and suffering, but of waiting and hoping for 
 the coming of Christ and the glory of his resurrection, 
 looking for the blessed hope and the glorious appearing 
 of the great God, our Saviour Jesus Christ, "pressing 
 
14 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God 
 in Christ." 
 
 Let not thy days be passed in hope or fear 
 Of joys and cares that future time may bring : 
 To-morrow is not thine for any thing. 
 The need for love and duty lieth near. 
 Nor brood o'er thoughts and follies of thy past : 
 It is too late for thought or action there. 
 From " all existence " learn thy lesson vast, 
 And put to shame thy life of petty care. 
 To-day is all that thou canst call thine own : 
 Now is the hour for noble thoughts and deeds. 
 Let Truth, Love, Beauty, speak to thee alone. 
 Or give thyself to help the common needs. 
 Thus shall thy life grow ever more sublime. 
 And thou shalt learn of deeper things than time. 
 
OUR BESETTING SIN. 
 
 ^HEN day after day we find ourselves 
 drawn — often against our better 
 instincts — in the same direction 
 and trapped by the same sin, we 
 must come at last to the unpleasant 
 conclusion that we have a cer- 
 tain partnership in evil, that there 
 is something in the realm of wick- 
 edness which has a right to be 
 called our sin. It does not affect 
 the conclusion whether we are an- 
 gered at the partnership, or blush at it, or accept it with- 
 out feeling; the fact of partnership is there. The easily 
 besetting sin is steadily and powerfully influencing us, 
 however we may disguise the fact. 
 
 There are two ways of looking at this easily besetting 
 sin. Many of us it blinds to our true position. Our 
 tendencies are not generally evil ; so we reason that we 
 do not do this thing, we do not do that; we are riot as 
 bad as some other men, and these things we emphasize, 
 while we are apt to pass over slightingly the one* sin we 
 do commit. "Men must be allowed their little weak- 
 nesses," we say, and we feel that one evil among so much 
 good ought not to be very severely regarded. 
 
 This is assuredly a most comfortable way of regarding 
 besetting sins, and I think that as a general thing men 
 are thus linked to evil mainly by a single sin. Few ever 
 break the whole law; our natures fortunately are not large 
 enough to make us guilty of all ; the restraints of circum- 
 stances are usually such as to leave a loophole in the life 
 of every person for only a few, and often it happens to be 
 a simple, willful, persistent besetting sin that we are 
 entertaining and excusing. If we are unable to feel as 
 we ought on this subject, Christ's words ought to destroy 
 our complacency and incite us to action: "Whosoever 
 shall keep the whole law and yet offend in one point, he 
 is guilty of all." 
 
 15 
 
1 6 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 Surely the great Comforter, who delighted in nothing 
 so much as giving men peace, would not have said that 
 if it had not been necessary and if it had not been a 
 tremendous truth. 
 
 When we come to our besetting sin, instead of asking 
 for indulgence we have really come to the crisis of spirit- 
 ual life. It is no trifle, however small it may be; but, 
 on the contrary., it just represents the point where we are 
 bound to evil, and to break with sin entirely is to break 
 with it at this point. The first consciousness of the new 
 birth is usually a determination to break with this sin; 
 then we may believe we are living unto God. We can 
 see the important place this sin occupies by looking at 
 the weakness it introduces into the whole life. If we are 
 free from a multitude of other sins, so much the better, 
 but also so much the more important is it to break with 
 that one. Though every organ of the body but one be 
 healthy, fatal disease in that one is fatal to all. Why 
 should it not be in the soul, even as in material things? 
 No chain is stronger than its weakest link, and this holds 
 good in character. Our great enemy, walking up and 
 down in the earth, finds the weak spot, and then farewell 
 to strength; our easily besetting sin conquers us. 
 
 Everything is concentrated here; it is the key to the 
 whole position. As long as there is one place of com- 
 munication between the soul and sin, so long the old life 
 is let in, and we shall find ourselves as weak as our weak- 
 est point. In all other respects we may be models; in 
 great matters we may be firm; and yet a little folly may 
 destroy all and bring our entire character down to its own 
 weak level. 
 
 The Christian's character is like a chain of large and 
 massive links which lies on the deck of an ocean steamer 
 in rusty coils, to be used to keep the great ship away from 
 danger. Can you imagine the captain examining such a 
 chain, and on finding one link with a flaw in it, saying, 
 "On the whole this is a good chain; one weak spot, but 
 all the rest as strong as need be; it will do?" The judg- 
 ment of that captain is wisdom itself in comparison with 
 the utter folly of those of us who risk our eternal well- 
 being on one wilful, known besetting sin. 
 
HEAVENLY 
 
 MINDEDNESS. 
 
 is the part of wisdom to let 
 worldly cares and enjoyments 
 hang loosely about us, so that 
 when "the inevitable hour" 
 comes we may let them fall like 
 a mantle, and take our depar- 
 ture unregretfully. Ripened 
 fruit falls easily. So when the 
 heart of the Christian is truly 
 weaned from the world, death 
 may come at any time and find 
 him ready. It is possible to be 
 in the world and yet not of it, 
 to perform its proper tasks and allotted duties fully and 
 bravely, while yet our supreme desires and affections are 
 set on things above. If we allow worldly cares and per- 
 plexities to weave themselves about our hearts so firmly 
 that they cannot rise above the level of our common life, 
 then are we companioning ourselves with the beasts of 
 the field, who live in the present only, and whose whole 
 range of being is comprised within the circle of sensual 
 gratification. Heavenly-mindedness comes from a con- 
 templation of the things that are pure, and right, and holy; 
 from a study of God's Word, and an application of its 
 precepts to our daily life. It is not possible to have this 
 frame of mind exxept it be with a consciousness that we 
 are accepted of God, and have received forgiveness of 
 sins. While the windows of the soul are darkened by sin 
 and unbelief, we cannot expect that the sunshine will pour 
 in to cheer and lighten its innermost recesses, and draw 
 its thoughts heavenward. The mind that is set on spirit- 
 ual delights, that loves to commune with God, and finds 
 its chiefest joys in doing' his service, will not be ruffled 
 
 2 17 
 
1 8 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 by every disappointment in life, or broken by its calami- 
 ties, for these things it rightly regards as transitory, and 
 of no account in comparison with things that come after, 
 that are sure and eternal. Clothed in such serenity and 
 peace, the soul may move through the midst of trials and 
 griefs, such as come to all of us, like a great strong ship 
 whose course is not stayed by the buffeting of the winds 
 and waves, because it has a certain port to gain, and a 
 pilot who knows how to guide it there. 
 
 " Lo, I am with you alway," were the farewell words 
 of our blessed Saviour to his mourning disciples, but 
 the promise made to them was meant for every one of 
 earth's sorrowing children. "I," the Infinite One, the 
 "friend that sticketh closer than a brother," the lov- 
 ing, tender shepherd, "I am with you." And for how 
 long a time? "Alway." Have bereavements come upon 
 you ? Have earthly friends become estranged and for- 
 saken you? Have misfortunes overtaken you, and swept 
 away every temporal comfort ? Uo grief and care walk 
 hand in hand beside you ? Are the wayside blossoms 
 beaten down by the storms of adversity ? Is the song 
 gone out of your heart and the light out of your life;? 
 Oh! famishing, drooping soul, look up! Hear the tones 
 of infinite pity and love, "I will not leave you comfort- 
 less." " Lo, I am with you alway." What though the 
 daily task be hard, and the life path be rough? What 
 though affliction, sorrow, pain, sit ever unwelcome guests 
 around your hearthstone? What though death touch with 
 icy fingers the lips you love, and set his seal upon the 
 marble brow, and hush forever the voice whose tones 
 made sweetest music? Reach out and touch the Divine 
 hand extended toward you; open your eye of faith to be- 
 hold your Saviour walking with you in loving companion- 
 ship, heeding all your sighs and counting all your tears. 
 Lean upon his arm which is ever outstretched to enfold and 
 uphold you, and that moment you will be able to say, 
 
 " I'm walking close to Jesus' side, 
 
 So close that I can hear 
 The softest whispers of his love 
 
 In fellowship so dear, 
 And feel his great almighty hand 
 Protects me in this hostile land." 
 
CHRIST THE SHEPHERD. 
 
 EXT to that of Father, one of the 
 dearest and tenderest of all the 
 figurative characters of Christ is 
 that of the Shepherd, the Good 
 Shepherd. The Master was wont 
 frequently to apply that title to 
 himself, and to speak of his fol- 
 lowers as his flock. In nearly all 
 the Eastern countries we know 
 there was no occupation held in 
 more respect and honor than that 
 of the shepherd. A man could not be a good shepherd 
 unless he was kind, patient, tender, and watchful. He 
 had to be all this to care properly for the tender and 
 defenceless lambs, and to protect his flock from the 
 
 19 
 
THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 ravages of wild beasts. The good shepherd knew each 
 member of his flock by name, and was known of them. 
 They came gladly at his call; they followed willingly 
 whithersoever he led the way. Not one, from the smallest 
 and weakest to the oldest and strongest, was overlooked 
 or neglected. By daylight and starlight, through sunshine 
 and storm, the shepherd stood by his flock with ever- 
 watchful eyes. How completely the figure of the shepherd 
 sets forth the relations which the Saviour bears to those 
 who put their trust in him. Only the tenderness, love, 
 and patience of Christ are infinite, wide, and boundless as 
 eternity. The pastures where he feeds his flocks are 
 always fresh and bountiful; those who follow him need 
 never thirst or hunger, or have aught to fear. How 
 sweet the thought of being one of the flock of Christ, to 
 be cared for, to be watched over, to be guided day by day 
 by the wonderful and compassionate Son of God. AVho 
 would not gladly follow the beckonings of such a shep- 
 herd as he ? 
 
 Christ is also called the Door. He is the door that 
 opens eternal life, the only one. There is no other way 
 to heaven but through the merits of the blood of Christ. 
 Men have been seeking for other doors ever since the 
 world began; they have knocked and kiiocked at what 
 they thought were doors, but no answer has come back, 
 and they have not entered in. Christ is the Open Door, 
 and all who seek an entrance through him will find the 
 way prepared for their feet,- and happy welcome all along 
 to cheer them on, greetings and (iod-speeds to lighten 
 the journey. Christ the Door is ready to-day to receive 
 to himself all those who will come and enter into com- 
 munion with him. Shall any one who reads these words 
 say he has not known the door? 
 
CHRIST THE VINE. 
 
 ^NDER this title our Saviour 
 is often presented to us, and 
 of all the figurative titles 
 applied to Christ in the 
 Scriptures there is none 
 more suggestive than that 
 of the vine. " I am the 
 vine," says the Master to 
 his disciples, "ye are the 
 branches." What figure 
 could illustrate more strik- 
 ingly than this the vital 
 union which exists between 
 the true believer and Christ, 
 the Head of the Church' The true Christian has his 
 very being in Christ, receives from Him every invigorat- 
 ing impulse, every enlarging desire and motive, every per- 
 fecting grace. The branches of the vine are strong and 
 fruitful just in proportion as they are firmly and deeply 
 engrafted on the main body. If, for any reason, they be- 
 come partially disconnected, their hold upon the vine 
 loosened, they at once grow poor and feeble, and if not 
 soon reunited, wither and die. The Christian who neg- 
 lects the means of grace, who falls into a loose and care- 
 less observance of God's laws, soon loosens his connection 
 with the Vine, and is in danger of becoming a dead and 
 withered branch in the vinevard. 
 
THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 As the natural vine holds up and supports its branches 
 free from the earth and its entanglements, so does Christ 
 the Vine bear aloft his followers above the world, above 
 its cares and perplexities, above its trials and griefs. All 
 the branches have to do is just to cling firmly, to trust 
 wholly and grow. It is the Vine that gives the life, the 
 strength, the power to bear fruit. The sincere, trustful 
 Christian depends upon the Vine. Christ is his all in all. 
 
 In contrast to the above, Christ is also called a Rock. 
 He is a firm and sure basis for all who will build upon 
 him. He is the Rock, the everlasting, unchangeable Rock. 
 Those who flee to him for refuge are never given over or 
 betrayed to the enemy. He standeth sure through all 
 the vicissitudes of this world, the storms, the perils, 
 dangers, seen and unseen. Who would not seek the shel- 
 ter of this Rock, the living Rock, Christ Jesus? 
 
THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES. 
 
 RISES in history 
 always call forth 
 men able and 
 ready to meet 
 them. One may 
 look for them in 
 vain beforehand, 
 and be ready to 
 despair of their 
 existence, but 
 somewhere, out 
 of the way, they 
 are in course of 
 preparation, and 
 when the time 
 comes they ap- 
 pear. So whenever God has a special work to be done 
 he raises up a special man to do it, and prepares him 
 specially for it. All these giants in history have this one 
 great characteristic in common, that -they understood the 
 times. We do not read very much about the tribe of 
 Issachar in the Scriptures, and yet it is no faint praise 
 that is lavished upon them in the words, they were " men 
 that had understanding of the times to know what Israel 
 ought to do." They were quiet, observant men, who kept 
 their eyes upon the signs of the times, and were therefore 
 well fitted to be wise and able counsellors. There is a 
 very practical meaning in these words; they reveal to us 
 very clearly what churches, that is, ministers, members, 
 and people are meant to be. They should be like the 
 children of Issachar, men who have understanding of the 
 times to know what ought to be done. 
 
 It is hardly necessary to illustrate this in national life. 
 No man can be a true or practical statesman who has not 
 
 23 
 
24 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 a clear and timely sagacity. No merchant can be suc- 
 cessful who has not the talent of clear discernment, and 
 can any one think for a moment that religion is a matter 
 of less concern and interest than any earthly business? 
 Many act so indeed, but I believe that if you could sum- 
 mon all the merchant princes of the earth, and ask them 
 seriously what they consider the most important matter 
 in the world, they would admit that the merchandise of 
 religion is of more importance than the merchandise of 
 silver. All men recognize it theoretically, but here is the 
 great difficulty, — the wares of religion, so to speak, are 
 immaterial, and cannot be seen or handled, and so they 
 come to be considered unreal. Religion thus has no 
 market value. Spiritual things cannot be estimated in 
 money, and a man's services as a minister of the Gospel 
 cannot be computed in dollars and cents. These are all 
 spiritual things, and far removed from earthly rewards, 
 but at the same time salvation has its value; even to the 
 carnal judgment that value is greater than that of silver 
 or gold. 
 
 "Godliness is profitable," and profit is what every mer- 
 chant aims to secure; godliness pays. Why, then, cannot 
 practical men be persuaded to give this subject practical 
 attention? You who have "understanding of the times," 
 why not apply the same talents to religion as to business. 
 Take the weight and dimensions of "the pearl of great 
 price." Calculate the value of its daily help and strength, 
 put religion to the test, and let us see whether, even in 
 regard to this world, it does not bring gain; so that al- 
 though in a lower sense you may be forsaking all to fol- 
 low Christ, yet in a higher sense is it not true that every 
 one who hath forsaken houses or lands or brethren for 
 Christ does receive for it an hundred-fold? 
 
LETTING THE LIGHT SHINE. 
 
 HEN a person is first converted to Chris- 
 tianity, jt is generally a very easy mat- 
 ter to let others know something of the 
 comfort and satisfaction which religion 
 affords. Then, as time goes on, there 
 seems to grow a certain reserve in 
 alluding to the subject. This is not 
 owing to coldness or indifference, per- 
 haps, but to a kind of unwillingness to 
 introduce a topic which might not be 
 altogether agreeable to others. We 
 should not act without judgment, but we must not forget 
 that our Saviour told his disciples to let their light shine in 
 such a way that others could see it. And when Jesus gave 
 that injunction he knew all about the different dispositions, 
 temperaments, and characters which must, through all ages, 
 go to make up such as should be his disciples or followers. 
 And there are so many ways in which the Christian's light 
 may shine that no one is exempt from the Saviour's re- 
 quirement in this respect. Mr. Moody says: " It is a great 
 deal better to live a holy life than to talk about it. 
 Lighthouses don't ring bells and fire cannon to call atten- 
 tion to their shining — they just shine." Nothing will 
 commend religion to others like living a Christian life, 
 and yet it may sometimes, at chosen intervals, be one's 
 duty to talk about it too. How often it happens that a 
 person, perhaps at the cost of considerable effort, makes 
 
 25 
 
THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 some serious remark, that is eagerly, even hungrily re- 
 sponded to by a companion supposed to be utterly thought- 
 less and careless concerning such subjects. 
 
 A young lady when dying was in great distress of mind. 
 On being asked why she had not thought of her soul and 
 its interests while in health, she replied that no one had 
 spoken to her about such things. The most pathetic and 
 deplorable part of it was, that she had been living in a 
 community of church-going Christian people. What kind 
 of " lights" could they have been, that this poor child 
 had failed so piteously to see them shining, and so knew 
 nothing of glorifying her Father in Heaven! Like the 
 several flowers in a garden, laden each with the dew 
 of heaven, which, when shaken with the wind, they let 
 fall at each other's roots, and thus are jointly nour- 
 ished, Christians should become helpers, one to the 
 other, in the Christian life. ^ The dew of God's grace 
 is given freely as the dew of heaven, and in falling it 
 lights on hearts of many different moulds. The perfume 
 of some lives is surely richer and fuller than that of 
 others, and yet when shaken with the wind of God's love 
 each lowly flower sends out its dew, a portion of its own 
 sustenance, to help sustain or nourish others. 
 
 Many true, earnest Christians lament the fact that they 
 seem to be able to do almost nothing to show forth the 
 love they have for God, and their real desire to promote 
 the cause they have so near at heart. But there is always 
 the strong, potent power of prayer. A lady once spoke 
 of certain friends whom it was her duty and privilege to 
 benefit, without their being able to make return; "but," 
 she added, " they are good people and we have their prayers, 
 which I value a great deal." Quite as much as temporal 
 benefits, and even vastly more, are the prayers of good peo- 
 ple, whose only payment can be prayer for God's blessings, 
 sure to be sent in answer. Woe to those so-called Chris- 
 tians who profess to serve God, but make no effort to send 
 out a saving light into a world of sinners. Example in 
 the right direction is much, and it often happens that a 
 word of warning or encouragement falls as dew upon the 
 flowers. Any earnest, prayerful effort to send out a saving 
 light in the great garden of the Lord will surely gain 
 the commendation of the great Lord of the harvest at last. 
 
GLORIFICATION THROUGH DEATH. 
 
 VERY simple thing is the symbol of this 
 great truth. A grain of wheat! A beau- 
 tiful and complete thing, but small and 
 valueless by itself. A single grain of 
 wheat could keep no one alive; you might 
 as well throw it away or cast it in the 
 ground. If you do the latter it dies, and 
 in that death it finds its glory. There it 
 softens and expands, it is given up to the 
 forces of nature, the earth covers it, the 
 sunshine warms it, the showers water it. 
 They seem to take possession of it and 
 put it altogether aside, but that burial 
 place becomes the scene of a wondrous 
 transformation; the spark of vitality is 
 kindled by the very elements which seem 
 to work its destruction. It lengthens 
 downward and upward, becomes a green, 
 beautiful stalk, and at length is laden 
 with a score of such grains as it was 
 itself, and becomes the prolific parent of countless har- 
 vests in the future, unt'il travelling in the West some day 
 you will see vast towers and enormous buildings which 
 look like the enginery of war. These are not buildings 
 for defence, but the storehouses for the resurrections of 
 your single grain of wheat. 
 
 27 
 
28 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 From the interminable fields, stretching far as the eye 
 can reach, undulating in the breeze like the waves of a 
 tawny ocean, they bring in the grain, increased an hun- 
 dredfold, and store it for the consumption of the world. 
 When a famine occurs, even if it be in China, those great 
 buildings are opened, and ship after ship departs laden 
 with the golden grain to relieve misery and save life. 
 What could the single grain of wheat have done toward 
 that grand object? A hard, narrow, isolated thing, it 
 could not have kept life in the smallest child. Only by 
 death came its glorification. Sacrifice it in the sowing, 
 and it will come again an hundredfold in the harvest. 
 
 This mysterious but familiar principle underlies all 
 nature, and without it the beauty and fertility of the world 
 could not be unfolded; but it receives its highest exem- 
 plification in Christ himself. All the operations of nat- 
 ure are really but mute prophecies of him, and the first 
 seed which sprang in the earth was a symbol of the Lamb 
 slain for the sins of the world. Every harvest which God 
 has sent, bearing fruit from the death of the seed, has 
 been an illustration of him who pre-eminently was glori- 
 fied through death. 
 
 What a wonderful, transcendent fruitage sprang from 
 that grave! It grows and flourishes around us, it covers 
 all the earth, but whence came it? Nature tells that the 
 harvest which now waves beneath the sun has been lying 
 on the ground all through the winter, chilled with the 
 frosts, drenched with the rains, buried in the grave of 
 darkness, covered with a shroud of snow, but now it 
 stands erect, crowned with beauty and bounty. 
 
 How true a symbol this is of the Saviour's stormy life, 
 the dreary seed time when the Divine seed was placed in 
 the ground amid the wreck of life and beauty. But out 
 of that hiding-place of God's power, out of that grave 
 sprang life and immortality. All the nations of the world 
 shall eat of the fruit of that harvest. Thus our Saviour 
 lost his life, and found it again in the lives of others to 
 whom he had imparted life. 
 
 His personality became enlarged and increased by that 
 very self-sacrifice which seemed at the time to have 
 destroyed it. 
 
 Some time since there were discovered some grains of 
 
GLORIFICATION THROUGH DEATH. 29 
 
 wheat, bound tightly up in a mummy's wrappings. For 
 centuries they had rested there unseen, until the dust of 
 ages had gathered upon them. Hard, unfruitful kernels 
 they had remained through all that time, of no use to the 
 mummy and of no value to the world ;but they were taken 
 out and planted, and in one year had multiplied into a 
 harvest. It was indeed a wonderful conservation of life 
 which had preserved them for centuries, but can you im- 
 agine anything more fruitless? When they died their 
 fruitfulness began. 
 
 Death, then, is. not one of our enemies. It is deliver- 
 ance from all the toils and troubles of life; it is reunion 
 with loved ones, never to part again. The path lies 
 through the valley of the shadow, and the chill night 
 winds blow tumultuously, but this only leads to the bright- 
 ness of the better world beyond. All our gain lies in 
 death, the pain and peril lie in survival. 
 
 What shall we do with our lives? We may live only to 
 enjoy ourselves and care only for selfish amusement, we 
 may close our eyes to all the sin and misery that reigns 
 in the world, and keep out of sight the whole region of 
 conscience, and so we may win the passing, perishable 
 things of sense. But let us not think that a universal 
 law will cease its operations on our account. This is a 
 process of death, not of life. If we do this, we shall be 
 like the cold, hard corn of wheat, which abideth alone in 
 an isolated death-in-life, incapable of any growth, because 
 kept out of the ground, living for itself. 
 
'M<^7Z 
 
 THE MOUNTAINS AND THEIR 
 SUGGESTIONS. 
 
 'HEIR crowning rocks tower 
 above us, and we almost 
 look to see the angels 
 alight, and their shining 
 garments flash out against 
 the blue sky. A thin 
 white cloud floats up now 
 along the mountain's ver- 
 dure to its undimmed 
 crest, just such as we be- 
 lieved in happy child- 
 hood bore angels. Alas, 
 that we have grown wiser! 
 But why mourn the sweet 
 credulity of earlier days? 
 Knowledge has brought 
 pain, but reveals truth 
 overtopping the wonder and bliss of dreams. We would 
 be loath to barter the larger, ricker pleasures of added 
 
 31 
 
THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 years, surely, for the child's heedless joy. From the 
 humming bird, who scarce sways the scarlet blossom it 
 woos at our feet, to the massive, superb peak almost kiss- 
 ing the zenith, what a range of creation and thought! 
 We bow in heart, adoring, to the Maker of all. He num- 
 bers alike the hairs of our head, and sows the universe 
 with myriad worlds; those worlds, shining upon us from 
 their far heights, a reproach to our murmurings and rest- 
 lessness. Mountains and stars tell us of fresh hopes and 
 eternal repose. Even unbelief Nature sways to reverence. 
 We knew one between whose riper faith and child worship 
 there yawned a chasm of infidelity. Often a stroll in 
 God's fair forests awoke in him the latent religious 
 instinct, while doubt clouded it in God's sanctuary. 
 From the mountain peak, when John Randolph saw the 
 sun rise, flushing the illimitable circumference of view 
 with light and glory, he said solemnly to his body servant, 
 the only one present, "Never doubt there is a God." 
 Such wonder of landscape and tint, such dome of sky, 
 mocked at a chance creation. Sooner far shut from 
 thought proud St. Peter's architects, and say that aisle 
 and dome and altar and ornaments were blown together 
 by idle breezes. But Bible faith, worshipping the Crea- 
 tor, gathers many an association dear and sublime from 
 sacred pages. How the most notable of these haunt 
 about mountains! On Mount Ararat rested the ark and 
 the remnant of our race above water that whelmed a' 
 world's woe and wickedness. Mount Moriah uplifted the 
 altar that put to proof Abraham's surpassing faith, and 
 brought, as ever, proportional blessing. Amid " thunder- 
 ings, and the lightnings, and the noise of trumpets, and 
 the mountain smoking," rang the law of a holy life from 
 Mount Sinai. A Balaam and a Moses alternate grand 
 dramas on Mount Pisgah. From two mountains, responsive 
 blessings on the righteous, and cursings on the wicked 
 nation, were uttered. God revealed to Elijah on Mount 
 Carmel and Mount Horeb two chapters in the Bible 
 which we may never read without bated breath. If we 
 turn from the old to the new, from the dawning to the 
 day of revelation, we remember how the devil, on " an 
 exceeding high mountain," tempted Jesus in his human- 
 ity, with a temptatioij that might not befall other men. 
 
^•i^^» 
 
34 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 "All the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them" 
 rolled at his feet in sumptuous pomp of procession. All 
 that might gladden desire, or thrill imagination, or satiate 
 ambition was there for his use; but with the condition — 
 worship the bestower. "It is written," answers with 
 quelling power. As the " Son of Man," Jesus opposed 
 Scripture to alluring evil, but he speaks "with authority" 
 in his Godhead, when he preaches the sermon on the 
 mount. Who of us that would pray to be his disciple 
 does not long to embody in a saintly life this the fullest 
 of his teachings? Slowly we turn to the Mount of Trans- 
 figuration, though it shines with the supernatural; but 
 at the foot of the cross — Mount Calvary — emotion over- 
 powers. A beautiful ascension from Mount Olivet, and 
 then the Lord our Saviour disappears from view. The pen 
 of inspiration begins with the creation of the world, it 
 closes with the revelation of heaven, and our spirit faints 
 within us at the immensity, the supernal beauty of the 
 vision. What an enlargement of sense to have seen in a 
 single view from the mountain, "that great city, the holy 
 Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God!" Its stu- 
 pendous walls, splendid with twelve diversely colored 
 jewels, and set with twelve lustrous gates, three to a side, 
 each several gate a pearl. Through their broadly flung 
 portals we catch a glimpse of "the mansions" of pure 
 gold, as it were transparent glass, " the river of water of 
 life" overshadowed by its trees of fruit and healing, and 
 we long to enter in. The walls shut out hope, but wide 
 open stand the gates of pearl. They invite all to throng 
 through, only an angel of might guards each, and we must 
 beware to ask the Lord of the city for a passport. His 
 promise is pledged to give freely to those who ask. For 
 all who enter, strong and beautiful in their new immor- 
 tality, there are joy, glory, power and holiness, the pres- 
 ence and the peace of God. 
 
THE LORD OUR "ROCK. 
 
 ■7IHE Bible is specillcally distinguished 
 J from all other early literature by 
 its delight in natural imagery. It 
 is a matter of easy observation in 
 the poetical and prophetical por- 
 tions of Scripture how largely they 
 deal with natural scenery, and the 
 natural features of the earth. 
 Things spiritual are illustrated by 
 things natural, and God's dealings 
 with his ancient people early im- 
 pressed this upon them. There was that mysterious Rock 
 to which they owed their lives during all their desert 
 wanderings — type of that smitten Rock from which the 
 waters gushed forth and followed them in their march. 
 In like manner their descendants were placed in what was 
 then one of the most beautiful districts upon the earth, 
 full of glorious mountains and valleys, so that they be- 
 came by these means auLl by the touch of God's hand upon 
 their hearts, sensible to the appeal of natural scenery in 
 a way equalled by no other people. We find their liter- 
 ature, therefore, full of expressions not only testifying to a 
 vivid sense of the power of nature over man, but show- 
 ing the connection between natural and spiritual things. 
 Rocks they learned to know and love and prize as the most 
 enduring and stable of all things, and therefore- the Lord 
 was " their Rock." 
 
 In that land of mountains, where stood the goodly Leb- 
 anon and the snow-capped Hermon, they became familiar 
 with the grandeur of God's works. The everlasting hills 
 inspired them with ideas of permanence and eternity. In 
 the diversity of the scenery, the rocks, which formed a 
 large part of the landscape^ lost all their ruggedness and 
 roughness, became picturesque in their outlines, and clad 
 in perpetual verdure, were beautiful to the eve. Hov*' 
 
 30 
 
3§ THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 often they found safe refuges in those same rocks, where 
 the enemy could not find them and dared not attack them. 
 The munitions of rocks were their defence, and a great 
 part of the strength of the country. 
 
 Just what the rocks are to the earth, the Lord is to human 
 life — its strength and stability. Human life never amounts 
 to very much unless it has Divine elements in it; man is 
 but the sport of circumstances without them. There is no 
 certainty of safety for any man who has not the Lord in 
 his life. He may have resisted sin for a long time, and 
 been tried often without failing; he maybe considered by 
 his fellow-men noble and upright and true and good, but 
 after all he has no rock in his life. Principle is strong, 
 good habits are even stronger, but nothing less than deep- 
 seated religious convictions and experiences, combined 
 with a firm hold on the "Lord our Rock," and that help 
 which comes from the" Everlasting Hills " of God's grace 
 and power can make one secure. These are the founda- 
 tions of life which are everlasting. They are not vague 
 hopes or shadowy dreams like the architecture of the 
 clouds, but are solid, substantial realities. They are not 
 mere illusions- like those pictures reflected on the bosom 
 of a lake, to be destroyed in an instant by the merest trifle, 
 a pebble dropped by an idle hand, the wing of a passing 
 breeze, a withered leaf falling from its tree, but they are 
 truths which shall last when the heavens themselves shall 
 be rolled up like a scroll. 
 
 Were the truths concerning God destitute of certainty, 
 they might be brilliant indeed, but it would be the bril- 
 liance of the mirage, not of rock, gleaming in the sun- 
 light. We need this element of certainty in our changing 
 lives; in God alone we find it. He never changes. Amid 
 the great mysteriesof life which lie around us unexplored, 
 in 'hopeless confusion, we can feel the everlasting arms 
 underneath us. Amid the perpetual mutations of earth 
 we may cling to the Eternal One, the Rock of Ages, against 
 whom the waves of time and change will beat in vain. In 
 the promise of the Ciospel we have sure ground, beaten 
 hard by the march of earth's wisest and best men, with 
 whom we may with confidence exclaim, " The Lord is mv 
 Rock." 
 
UNDERNEATH THE EVERLASTING 
 ARMS. 
 
 HE eternal "God is thy refuge, 
 and underneath thee are the 
 everlasting arms." Surely no 
 promise could have been more 
 infinitely precious than this, 
 when its words fell upon the 
 ears of the Israelites. It was 
 wonderfully adapted to the cir- 
 cumstances of a people who 
 had been travelling houseless 
 homeless for a long time. The 
 s had a homelike sound. The 
 ^ht of stability and permanence 
 have been like music in the ears 
 is homesick people. Every bless- 
 seemed to be contained in this 
 promise, an abiding and unchanging 
 dwelling-place where no evil could 
 befall them, an everlasting arm to sustain and support 
 them, strong enough to bear every burden, every care. 
 
 The words come down to us as a priceless legacy from 
 the God who is the same yesterday, to-day, and forever, 
 and we may each know for ourselves the comfort contained 
 in them for every weary, heavy laden soul. The eternal 
 God is our refuge, what need we care then if dark clouds 
 
 39 
 
40 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 of sorrow lower, and the bitter waters of affliction over- 
 flow us? God will never leave nor forsake us, and pavil- 
 ioned in his eternal love we need fear no evil. 
 
 And God is not only a refuge, he is a dwelling-place. 
 Too many of us are accustomed to go to God only in 
 times of weakness, or to fly to him as a very present help 
 only in time of trouble. When the clouds gather and the 
 storm breaks, then we turn to God to protect us, but when 
 the storm has passed, and all is bright and fair again, we 
 forget him as if we were now self-sufficient. We make 
 God our refuge only, instead of our dwelling-place; we 
 go to him as a covert for a little season till the danger is 
 overpast, we do not make him our home. If we made 
 God our dwelling-place as well as our refuge, it would 
 altepour lives completely, and increase our happiness an 
 hundredfold. 
 
 Think for a moment what a blessed thing it is to dwell 
 in God; then there is not one trouble that comes to us 
 that we have to bear alone, not one joy that we have to 
 share alone, not one purpose to make alone, not one 
 temptation to conquer alone and unaided. The least event 
 in our history quite as much as the greatest does not hap- 
 pen to us alone, but God shares our life with us, and every 
 moment we are dwelling in him with the everlasting arms 
 beneath and about us. 
 
 What a revolution it would make in our lives if w'e 
 realized this! How many things would be left undone 
 that now are done, how many new duties would be begun! 
 What a new sanctity and sweetness would fill our joys, 
 what deeper responsibility would invest our thoughts and 
 actions, what victories we would gain over temptations 
 that have heretofore defeated us! We would attach anew 
 sacredness and greatness to our common life if we once 
 felt that God was our constant dwelling-place, not simply 
 our refuge in times of distress and trouble. Of course 
 such times will come, but underneath us are the everlast- 
 ing arms, strong enough to bear us up through any trouble. 
 Should we ever be crushed by the burdens and cares of 
 life as they gather about us, we can feel also the tight- 
 ening of those everlasting arms which have borne so 
 many precious souls through deepest waters safely to the 
 other side. 
 
YE MUST BE BORN AGAIN." 
 
 HRIST taught that if 
 there is no change of 
 heart now, there will 
 be no true religion here 
 or bliss hereafter. 
 " Ye must be born of 
 water and of the 
 spirit." This is a 
 moral necessity. It 
 could not from the 
 nature of things be 
 otherwise. " How can 
 two walk together ex- 
 cept they be agreed?" 
 How can you love a 
 holy God while you 
 love and cherish sin? 
 How can you at the 
 same time love the 
 world and the world- 
 crucifying Christ? 
 How can you appreciate and take delight in exercises for 
 which you have no relish? How can you be a loyal sub- 
 ject of King Jesus while in rebellion against him? How 
 can you enjoy the companionship of regenerate souls with 
 whom you have no affinity? Then think of the great 
 hereafter — of heaven. How sweet is that word! It is 
 the condensed expression of beauty, bliss, glory. All 
 want to go thither at last. But do you know that heaven 
 is a perfectly holy world, a purely religious place, a vast 
 temple of incessant worship? Do you know that all its 
 inhabitants from earth are regenerated people, its joys 
 are the joys of holiness, its songs are the praises of re- 
 deeming love, its activities are the sweet obedience of 
 loving hearts? Ask your own conscience solemnly, if 
 you were taken there just as you are, without a thorough 
 
 41 
 
 rt 
 
42 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 change of your affections, would not its very air be 
 oppressive, its services tedious, its employments irksome? 
 Could you sing its songs? Could you shout praises unto 
 him whom you have despised on earth? Verily not! 
 That polluted heart within you would writhe amidst the 
 blaze of infinite purity, and cry out, "This is not my 
 place: I am a stranger to all these persons and enjoy- 
 ments; I am not adapted to them." Yea, we may all sing 
 in mournfully solemn tones: 
 
 " Had I a throne above the rest, 
 
 Where angels and archangels dwell, 
 One sin unslain within my breast. 
 Would turn that heaven to hell." 
 
 Ah I then the loving, faithful Saviour utters a grand 
 moral necessity when he says to us, " Ye must be born 
 again:" God give you grace to see it and feel it. God 
 grant that you may now be impressed as you have never 
 been before with the fact, that whatever other experiences 
 you may have of joy or sorrow, of prosperity or adversity, 
 you must have this. God grant that the words, "Ye 
 must be born again," may ring in your ears and toll their 
 solemn cadences through every avenue of your being un- 
 til you cry out, "Holy Spirit! change my heart. Work 
 thy work of grace in me." Then shall it be done, and 
 thou shalt stand up regenerated, redeemed, disenthralled, 
 in all the dignity and bliss of "a new creature in Christ 
 Tesus. " 
 
GETHSEMANE. 
 
SPEAK THE TRUTH "IN LOVE." 
 
 HERE is sometimes a harshness in 
 presenting truth that effectually ob- 
 structs its way in the mind of the 
 hearer. The study of this subject is 
 a most important one, especially 
 since the temptation to impatience 
 is not uncommon among those who, 
 by reason of a clear perception of 
 the peril of the sinner, are earnestly 
 seeking their salvation. 
 
 One Sabbath evening in a certain 
 church we lately witnessed the sad 
 results of speaking the truth indeed, 
 but not " in love." Among several 
 penitents bowing at the altar of 
 prayer was a voung man evidentjy awakened by the Holy 
 Spirit to a sense of sin. Some one suggested in a cold, 
 unfeeling way that it was proper thus to prostrate him- 
 self; for such a life as he had led sooner (u- later must 
 end in destruction. Now, while all this may have been 
 true, it was too plainly evident that it was not the truth 
 spoken /// Iovi\ for the tone in which the remark was made 
 showed that the speaker believed the young man insin- 
 cere. The manner in which the words were spoken could 
 scarcely fail to produce unfortunate results, for an implied 
 censure was betrayed — an unnecessary prejudice thereby 
 awakened. The peculiar tenderness so necessary in the 
 winning worker was sadly wanting. That seeking soul 
 was immediately set back; the lack of the constraining 
 love of Christ in the instruction given vitiated that in- 
 struction. Indeed, there was precipitated a needless re- 
 volt in the penitent's mind at this, the most critical of all 
 periods. That young man, with but partial views of tlie 
 Saviour as yet, and in a condition to suffer emliarrassment 
 bv any opposing circumstances, utterly N'iclded to ti-mpta- 
 
 44 
 
46 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 tion. The sinful self became dominant. Pride and pas- 
 sion once more rallied. The penitents' seat was quickly 
 abandoned. 
 
 And even until this day the genuine signs of contrition 
 on account of sin have not reappeared. There is at least 
 a possibility, and we think a probability even, that the 
 same instruction imparted in a different spirit at that hour 
 would have ended in the conversion of the young man to 
 a Christian life. Love., burning in the Christian's heart, 
 is absolutely essential to the effective deliverance of the 
 Gospel. Truth, however keen and penetrating, will gen- 
 erally find at least partial acceptance when our words of 
 warning are charged with aU-conqiiering love. 
 
LITTLE SERMONS. 
 
 way of 
 
 NCE let men see not things alone, but the 
 Divine light and life that stream through 
 them, and then shall every day open new 
 revelations; then shall the bird upon the 
 wing and the flower in the field speak to 
 them of God. Every swelling bud and 
 every grass blade peeping from the cold, 
 bare earth these spring days tell a mute 
 story of resurrected life; speak in their own 
 the goodness and mercy of the Heavenly father, 
 
48 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 " Flowers preach to us if we will hear, 
 Lichen and moss and sturdy weed 
 Tell of His love who sends the dew, 
 The rain and the sunshine too. 
 To nourish one small seed." 
 
 Every flower that pushes its way from the dark mould 
 under the revivifying of the sun's rays and the warm rain 
 utters a protest against the cry, "There is no God," and 
 lifts its petals in speechless astonishment at him who says 
 that death ends all, that the grave is man's final destiny. 
 Every petal that opens to the sun on these bright spring 
 mornings preaches a resurrection sermon, and all the lily 
 bells that swing their waxen tongues in the warm breezes 
 are ringing anthems of praise to the Father and Maker 
 of all. 
 
 We too often think of (iod as only a great and mighty 
 Being, terrible in majesty, awful in power. We see his 
 manifestations in lightnings and earthquakes and pesti- 
 lences, and think of him only as one who holds the sea 
 in the hollow of his hand. We seem almost to forget 
 that the same hand that created the vast things of the uni- 
 verse, the stars and planets, suns and moons, that poured 
 out the seas and set the mighty cataracts in motion, also 
 painted the leaves of the tiniest flowers, and fashioned 
 their delicate waxen petals, and hung the lilies of the 
 valley in their swinging green belfries in the fields and 
 woods. If we would study the works of Ciod more among 
 the little things of earth, the bright and beautiful things, 
 we might learn more of his love and tenderness than we 
 ever dreamed of before. He who made the flowers of the 
 field to give forth exhaustless perfume, who clothed the 
 birds with plumage of rainbow dyes and tuned their throats 
 to sweet melodies; who fashioned the pearls in the depths 
 of the sea and draped the sunset clouds in glory — such a 
 Being must love the Beautiful, and who can love it truly 
 and not be pure and wise and good? Deaf must he be to 
 every inward calling, and blind to every outward summons, 
 who can go forth in the fields on a beautiful spring morn- 
 ing and not hear and see that God is good. The birds 
 sing it; the leaves whisper it to one another; the flowers 
 speak it forth; in every little thing Nature tells the story 
 of goodness and love. 
 
HOME WITHOUT SPIRITUAL LIFE. 
 
 HRISTIAN 
 
 parents 
 should spec- 
 ially be care- 
 ful how they 
 strive for the 
 worldly ad- 
 vancemen t 
 of their children at 
 the hazard of their 
 spiritual interests. 
 It fills one at 
 times with a kind 
 of despair to see 
 how those who 
 profess to re- 
 gard religion 
 as all-impor- 
 tant, subordin- 
 ate it to almost 
 every other thing in 
 life; how educa- 
 tional accomplish- 
 ments, and choice of pursuits, and friendships and 
 alliances, are discussed and fixed without this ever coming 
 into serious view. Were it bodily infection it would 
 fill them with alarm, but spiritual danger is" lightly passed 
 by. It is one great reason why Christianity makes so 
 little progress, and why Christian families are constantly 
 melting away into the worldliness around them; while the 
 parents grieve to see their children lost, not only to vital 
 religion, but even to that strength of mind and steadiness 
 
 4 49 
 
5° 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 of purpose which are necessary to any firm position in 
 life. 
 
 Both worlds frequently slip from the grasp in the mis- 
 erable attempt to gain the false glitter of the present, 
 and the bitter waters of disappointment sweep, like the 
 Sea of Sodom, over the ruins of fortune and fame coveted 
 at the cost of consistent principle. Let the kingdom of 
 God and h*is righteousness be sought and maintained in 
 the first place; if worldly position follow, it will be hon- 
 orably borne and usefully employed; and if God do not 
 see fit to give it, there will be sufficient compensation in 
 the pure and imperishable treasures with which he can 
 fill the soul. 
 
FAITHFUL UNTO DEATH. 
 
 HERE is nothing in Pompeii that invests 
 it with a deeper interest than the spot 
 where a soldier of old Rome displayed a 
 most heroic fidelity. That fatal day in 
 which Vesuvius, at whose feet the city 
 stood, burst out into an eruption that shook 
 the earth, a sentinel kept watch by the gate 
 which looked to the burning mountain. 
 ^ -^^ Amidst the fearful disorder the sentinel 
 
 had been forgotten, and as Rome required 
 her sentinels, happen what might, to hold their posts till 
 relieved by the guard or set at liberty by their officers, 
 he had to choose between death and dishonor. Slowly, 
 but surely, the ashes thicken on his manly form; now 
 covering his lips, they choke his breathing. But he was 
 "faithful unto death." After seventeen centuries they 
 found his skeleton standing erect in a marble niche, clad 
 in rusty armor, the helmet yet on his head and his bony 
 fingers still closed upon his spear. 
 
 After the flight of centuries how the thrilling tale still 
 stirs earnest and true souls! B'aithful unto death! 
 
 There comes a great comfort to the soul exercising 
 fidelity. He sows his seed, it may be, in weakness. God 
 gives the increase. 
 
 We are only commanded to do the best we can, leaving 
 results with God. 
 
 In the terrible April gale of 185 1, the lighthouse on 
 Minot's Ledge, near Boston, was destroyed. Two men were 
 in it at the time, and a vast multitude was gathered upon 
 the shore waiting, in anxious distress, for the expected 
 catastrophe. Every hour, however, the bell tolled the 
 time, and ever tiie light pierced the dark raging storm, and 
 bade the sailor beware. No howling blast could silence 
 the one or rising waves extinguish the other. At last one 
 giant wave, mightier than the rest, rose up and threw its 
 arms around the tower and laid it low in the waves. 
 Then alone was the bell silent; then alone did the light 
 cease to shine. 
 
 51 
 
"IF 
 
 NE of the shortest words in 
 the entire language, but 
 one on which hinges al- 
 most every kind of pos- 
 sibility or impossibility. 
 Certainty is something 
 for which mankind would 
 give almost anything at 
 certain times and under 
 many circumstances. But 
 to sift the matter down, because God is infinite and man 
 is finite, the little " if" of our conversation must creep in 
 and occupy its legitimate and unavoidable position in 
 every plan we form, every joy we anticipate, every sorrow 
 we experience. 
 
 In all things pertaining to this life and its conditions, 
 the conditional word must be used, but there are joys we 
 may anticipate, and a state of which we may be certain 
 at last upon a few simple conditions; these met and ful- 
 filled, there remains no uncertain " if" to trouble us. 
 
 "Whosoever believeth on the name of the Lord shall be 
 saved." There is no " if" here. No condition whatever 
 limits the straight, plain assertion of these words save the 
 one of belief. Though the earth should be removed and 
 the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea, it 
 would in no wise affect the ultimate safety of the believer. 
 It is strange that with all the lessons of change, acci- 
 dent, disappointment and uncertainty, which attend all 
 worldly transactions, Christians are willing to disregard 
 the only certainties of which they can avail themselves. 
 Contrast the worried, anxious countenance with which the 
 merchant counts on his profits z/the voyage is a success- 
 ful one, if trade holds secure, //"the stock remains valua- 
 ble, with the untroubled serenity and placidity with which 
 the true Christian can speak of his hopes. The world and 
 everything it contains is but dross compared with the 
 riches of the kingdom of God. 
 
 52 , I 
 
THE VALUE OF TIME. 
 
 EVER, until the golden bowl is 
 broken, will we realize the true 
 value of this, one of the richest 
 of all God's gifts to his finite crea- 
 tures. All material success is 
 born of a just appreciation of the 
 minutes and a proper use of them. 
 A thorough business man acts 
 upon this knowledge, and bases 
 his calculations upon it. Interest 
 is calculated to the day. Rail- 
 road time must be adjusted to the 
 second ; a five minutes' error may 
 cause the loss of hundreds of 
 lives. Men are discharged for 
 allowing their chronometers any 
 variation whatever. Insurance 
 companies date their policies from 
 a certain hour of the day; five 
 minutes earlier or later may save 
 or lose a fortune. In the realm 
 of mind, we should be equally chary of the moments. 
 Any writer knows if the winged thought is not caught and 
 chained at once, it may be gone forever, or may lose the 
 vital force attending its birth. God is brought face to 
 face with us in such vital utterances. There is a vitality 
 i'n them that communicates itself to the reader and makes 
 a vivid impression that no mere repetition of words can 
 convey; in short, there is a difference of a living, breath- 
 ing spirit ^nd a dead letter. 
 
 Our spiritual life and work should be possessed of this 
 vitality. How differently the precious Bible utterances 
 affect us from different lips, even though the speakers are 
 equally sincere! The one, believing that time is short 
 and precious, and realizing this belief, works with this 
 end in view, and no arithmetic can compute the measure 
 
 53 
 
54 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 of his success; the other ma)^ believe the facts, but failing 
 to impress himself with the value of flying moments, ut- 
 ters his belief in words so tame that they fall powerless 
 on his hearers. Should a hand appear writing in living 
 characters on the wall of his room, "This day thy soul 
 shall be required of thee," would there not be life and 
 sound sense — the sense of belief — in his expostulations? 
 Would he not forget himself entirely and hasten to the 
 rescue of the souls committed to his care — hasten as did 
 Lot from the burning cities of the plain? 
 
 I know of a minister, a good one, too, who, after the 
 introductory exercises of Wednesday evening prayer 
 meetings are over, and his opening remarks have been 
 given, seems to have chilled the entire meeting by the 
 slow, measured utterances of his thoughts. The ideas are 
 right, the language is correct, but there is no life-giving, 
 electrical force in them; the meeting has received a check 
 that some magnetic soul must hasten to avert, or the pre- 
 cious moments will be more than lost. Queen Elizabeth 
 realized in her death-agony the value of moments, when 
 she exclaimed, " My kingdom for an hour of time!" And 
 many another tesLimony could be added to this. The 
 greatest minds, the most shining examples ©f culture in 
 every department, can attribute their success, in great 
 part, to a wise disposition of their time. It comes to us 
 but once. Morning, noon, and night are the daily re- 
 minders of youth, manhood and old age; each in its time, 
 and but once for each. Seed-time, summer and harvest, 
 and the winter of death. O that we might write on each 
 passing moment some glorious record for eternity — to 
 shine throuoh the ao-es! 
 
 
CHRISTIAN SYMPATHY. 
 
 V; 7 COLD and unfriendly 
 /,^Yy\ spirit is manifest in tlie 
 - - ' selfishness that often 
 prompts the question: 
 "Am I my brother's 
 keeper ? " while the 
 warm and generous 
 feelings of the great 
 heart of Christianity 
 breathe forth the gen- 
 tle admonitions: "Let 
 love be without dis- 
 simulation," ''Abhor 
 that which is evil, cleave to 
 that which is good," "Be 
 kindly affect ioned one to 
 another, with brotherly love," 
 even " in honor preferring one 
 another." Christian sympathy, so magnanimously exem- 
 plified in the acts of the good Samaritan, comes with her 
 kind words, her balm of consolation, and wipes the tear 
 from the eye of sorrow, binds up the wounds of the suffer- 
 ing, administers to the wants of the stranger, and allevi- 
 ates the distresses of the neglected poor. 
 
 And who that has been imbued with the Spirit can view 
 the scenes of desolation around us without sympathizing 
 
 55 
 
56 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 with those who are afflicted and distressed ; without suffer- 
 ing the tear of compassion to fall, and feeling an emotion 
 of tenderness and sympathy for those who suffer? 
 
 Well indeed may we entertain and cherish this divine and 
 generous principle in our hearts, for she is the loveliest of 
 all the beautiful and attractive graces that adorn the chaste 
 and virtuous soul, so much so, that when she takes up her 
 residence in the human heart, she is as a welcome guest 
 from heaven, breathing peace and love into the soul that 
 heretofore was a stranger to such exalted feelings. She 
 throws her softest rays over those blissful regions of im- 
 mortal delight, without impairing either their beauty or 
 their tranquillity; and sheds her sweetest, soothing balm 
 upon the inhabitants without destroying either their hap- 
 piness or their repose. Her lily is interwoven with the 
 roses which form celestial garlands, and her drops of con- 
 solation mingle with the tears of exquisite delight which 
 glitter in immortal eyes. 
 
 She took up her lasting abode in the bosom of the Son 
 of God, and was the constant companion of the Saviour 
 amid the trying scenes of that way of tears and blood, 
 when, looking upon the city, he exclaimed, "O Jerusa- 
 lem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest 
 them that are sent unto thee, how often would I have 
 gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth 
 her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!" 
 
 She accompanied him in every step of his journey 
 through life, for it is said: "He wept with those thai 
 wept," and " in all their afflictions he was afflicted," and 
 " lo, the angel of his presence saved them." She accom- 
 panied him even to the scenes of his crucifixion and his 
 death, and at last placed her chaplet of cypress upon his 
 conquering brow when he expired on the cross, praying: 
 " Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do!" 
 
 In proportion as we become imitators of the blessed 
 Jesus we shall become the companions of Christian sym- 
 pathy. She will teach us to bind up the broken-hearted 
 and to pour the oil of consolation and the wine of sympa- 
 thy into the wounded spirit. O how grand life becomes 
 when it imitates the acts and cultivates the virtues of our 
 blessed Lord and we in spirit become like him! 
 
THE GRACE OF IGNORANCE. 
 
 iNOWLEDGE is relative. If 
 we may be excused the seem- 
 ing paradox, it is only the 
 wise who know when to be 
 ignorant; w-hen to confess 
 and recognize their limita- 
 tions. There are many things 
 in this life, questions relat- 
 ing to things material and 
 things spiritual, concerning 
 which we must be content to 
 know nothing. In every di- 
 rection around us there is a 
 point beyond which human 
 wisdom cannot penetrate, depths which it cannot fathom, 
 heights to which it cannot ascend. Granting all that 
 science can do, impelled by energy, perseverance, and 
 enthusiasm, yet this must be acknowledged. All earthly 
 wisdom soon finds its Ultima Thule. We are surrounded 
 by the Unknowable. 
 
 " We have but faith ; we cannot know, 
 For knowledge is of things we see ; 
 And yet we trust it comes from Thee 
 A beam in darkness : let it grow." 
 
 We have such a range of philosophies and sciences, of 
 isms and ologies^ so many books and learned men, we ad- 
 vance a little way into so many realms of knowledge, 
 that we forget how we are playing after all only on the 
 surface of things, only picking up the pebbles on the shore 
 of the great ocean of truth. Every grain of sand has prob- 
 lems too deep for our understanding; every flower has 
 questions to make dumb the lips of sages. The mysteri- 
 ous, the wonderful, the eternal, are almost always before 
 our eyes, whether we lift them to the skies or gaze upon 
 the ground. The earth, our beloved terra firma^ is full of 
 
 57 
 
58 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 hidden powers and secret, living impulses of which we can 
 know nothing except in the most superficial way, as they 
 appear in their final and visible results. Our little enclo- 
 sure of rnoist brown earth, to the eye cold, motionless, 
 formless, and unlovely, is in reality the most wondrous of 
 laboratories, weaving beneath our feet the curious tapestry 
 of vegetable forms, selecting and sending up the juices fit 
 to nourish each of the hundred different plants, trees, 
 flowers, shrubs, and grasses that flourish on the surface. 
 Who can boast of his wisdom, realizing what he treads 
 upon and what is going on around him in these summer 
 days ? 
 
 The man of wise and inquiring mind can only be con- 
 tented with himself when he knows when and where to be 
 ignorant. The trouble is that men are always trying to 
 push their inquirie.s beyond the fixed and legitimate bounds 
 of human knowledge. They are forever sending down 
 their plummets to measure that which in the nature of 
 things is immeasurable; trying to Weigh that which is not 
 to be weighed ; to understand that which is not understand- 
 able; to see that which is not seeable. It is in this region, 
 just beyond the pale of what is real and actual in human 
 knowledge, that a number of men who think themselves 
 wise are always groping, blind leaders of the blind, full of 
 speculations and theories, of high sounding and boastful 
 talk that begins with nothing and ends with nothing. In 
 this domain lie the questions relating to such unknowable 
 things as the origin and development of life, the being, 
 the mind, and purposes of God, the exact nature of the 
 Trinity, the location and dimensions of the Heavenly, the 
 employments of the redeemed, the whole destiny of man, 
 the plan of the universe, and a thoustmd other questions 
 akin to these. 
 
 In trying to solve these unsolvable problems thousands 
 of men have wasted their lives, wrecked their intellects, and 
 led astray multitudes of their fellow beings. From this 
 region of misty speculations and baseless theories come 
 more than half the doubts, the unbeliefs, the dark errors 
 and false teachings which vex and distract mankind. From 
 thence come the vain philosophies, the oppressive systems, 
 the harsh and cruel creeds which have sown the world 
 with blood and tears. 
 
rl. ' 'UrJll ! 
 
 ■Ill: 
 
 % "^S^Bf '^'yfj^^'^''' 
 
 ii Ik mmf^ m f 
 
 f 
 
 will-inshrijct 'Chee an 
 
 .eAeI}-tvj€e-in-tr)e-WAY 
 
 w!^iel']-Li)0U-§l3Ait-Go: 
 
6o 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 With respect to these things let us cultivate the grace 
 of ignorance; let us recognize our boundaries, and be wise 
 in those things wherein it is ours to be wise. The field of 
 rightful and legitimate knowledge is wide and curious 
 enough to employ all our powers. Within the realms open 
 to human wisdom and research no Alexander need ever sigh 
 for other worlds to conquer. There is, indeed, within 
 these realms so much that is worth the knowing, so much 
 of beauty and grandeur, so much to fill the mind and en- 
 large the soul of man that he who goes beyond to tread the 
 impenetrable darkness of unknown and unknowable spaces 
 may ascribe it all to his own folly and presumption if he 
 come at the last to realize that his life has been a hollow 
 mockery, a vanity and vexation of spirit. For all else 
 there is the consolation that many things of which it is not 
 ours to know now we shall know hereafter. Let us be 
 content with what it is possible for us to know under the 
 limitations of our earthly existence, and leave the rest for 
 that time when we shall see no more "through a glass 
 darkly," but with the enlarged and clarified vision of our 
 spiritual and immortal being. 
 
THE 
 
 CHRISTIAN'S 
 
 RACE. 
 
 HE Christian life is a race, and is expressed in 
 the Bible in this very manner. A mighty race- 
 course is seen stretching away from our feet 
 upward and onward, and that is the place for 
 the Christian, where men strive for mastery, where they 
 run for an immortal crown. We must not stop to 
 look at transitory things, or the glittering prizes of the 
 world, but keep our eyes on the goal lest we should be 
 distanced in the race, and another step in before us. ^^'e 
 must look to the end, the glorious crown, the great author 
 and finisher of our faith, and press forward. Mind not 
 the things about us, they are not worthy to be compared 
 with the glory that shall be. "Run with patience," and 
 so run that ye may obtain. As to the conditions and 
 qualities upon which success depends, we can well learn a 
 lesson from the old Grecian games. The racers were in 
 earnest; we do well to emulate their assiduity, their 
 singleness of aim and effort, and the engrossment of every 
 power and faculty in one great master passion to win the 
 race or die. They had but one idea, and everything else 
 was of secondary importance. 
 
 That race in which they were to run before the world 
 for a prize was continually in their minds, and it tightened 
 their muscles in anticipation. This was the first grand 
 condition of their success, as it is of all success; for no 
 man ever did anything great with divided energies, ^^'e 
 are running a mighty race for an immortal crown; if relig- 
 ion is worth anything it is worth everything; Shall we not 
 therefore emulate the earnestness of those ancient Greeks? 
 The Christian must live for one thing, and one thing only ; 
 not that he must renounce all the active duties of life, and 
 spend all his days in meditation, for that would no more 
 
 6i 
 
62 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 make a strong Christian thian the close and stifling air of 
 the cave would make a strong athlete. The world is 
 necessary to the true development of Christian char- 
 acter. There must be storm and wind, cares, trials and 
 vexations, and the common business of life in the experi- 
 ence of the Christian to make him strong in the race for 
 eternal life. Every power must be consecrated to God, 
 and every energy concentrated upon his work; then, like 
 an arrow from the bow, like the lightning from the sky, 
 the Christian will spring forward, determined to conquer or 
 die. It is a glorious race to run, and at the goal are the 
 shining forms and loving faces of a great cloud of witnesses, 
 and Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, waiting 
 to bestow upon us the prize of our high calling. 
 
 
MARY MAGDALENE'S REWARD. 
 
 ARY MAGDALENE was one of 
 
 the Saviour's most devoted 
 friends. She had been a deeply 
 afflicted woman, possessed of 
 seven devils. These the Saviour 
 cast out, and ever afterward she 
 loved him with a pure and 
 ardent affection. She clung to 
 him to the last. We often read 
 of her being with him. As he 
 went through every city, preach- 
 ing and showing the glad tidings 
 of the kingdom, it is recorded 
 that "the twelve were with him, and certain women 
 which had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities," 
 
 63 
 
64 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 amongst whom was Mary Magdalene. She seems to have 
 gone with him wherever it was proper for her to go Not 
 easily could she have torn herself away from him. 
 
 When at length the Saviour was taken and condemned 
 and crucified, we find her still clinging to him. Mat- 
 thew says: "And many women were there (beholding afar 
 off) following him from (ialilee, ministering unto him, 
 among which was Mary Magdalene." Gladly would she 
 have alleviated his sufferings had it been in her power. 
 From the cross she followed his lifeless remains to the 
 sepulchre. When Joseph had taken the body he wrapped 
 it in a clean linen cloth and laid it in his own new tomb, 
 which he had hewn out in a rock, and he rolled a great 
 stone to the door of the sepulchre and departed. " And 
 there was Mary Magdalene and the other Mary sitting 
 over against the sepulchre." She was one of the last to 
 leave the place where her dear Lord was laid. As the 
 shadows of evening gathered around her she reluctantly 
 turned away, and " rested according to the commandment. " 
 
 A long Sabbath day was that to her. But at length it 
 was past and in the end of the Sabbath , as it began to 
 dawn toward the first day of the week, very early, while 
 it was yet dark, we find her with the other Mary again at 
 the sepulchre. They had brought sweet spices and had 
 come that they might anoint the body of their Saviour. 
 To her surprise and sorrow she found that it was gone. 
 Then she announced the sad intelligence to Peter and John, 
 whom she met : " They have taken away my Lord, and I 
 know not where they have laid him." These two disci- 
 ples, having satisfied themselves of the truth of her asser- 
 tion, not knowing what to think or what to do, went away 
 again to their own home. " But Mary stood without at 
 the sepulchre, weeping: and as she wept she stooped down 
 and looked into the sepulchre." Possibly she might yet 
 get a glimpse of him. She would at least see the place 
 where her dear Lord had lain. As she looks she sees 
 "two angels in white, sitting, the one at the head, and the 
 other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. And 
 they say unto her. Woman, why weepest thou ? She saith 
 unto them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and 
 I know not where they have laid him. 
 
 And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, 
 
66 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus. 
 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou ? whom 
 seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, 
 saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me 
 where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away. Jesus 
 saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and said unto 
 him, Rabboni, which is to say. Master." It was the lofti- 
 est moment in all her life, a moment never to be forgotten 
 in time or in eternity. She had found her risen Lord. 
 She was the first of all'the disciples to whom he appeared. 
 And thus was she a thousand times rewarded for all her 
 love and for all her painstaking in seeking him. And 
 great will be her reward in heaven. Among the nearest 
 of all to her loved Redeemer will she there stand, and most 
 joyfully will she receive the smiles of his approval. 
 
 jf^ 
 
WALKING WITH GOD. 
 
 Ah, lovely souls like those we've known, 
 Whose lives, one sweet endeavor, 
 
 All crowned with beauty and with bloom, 
 The hand of death did sever. 
 
 Their memory, like the new mown ha)-. 
 Will linger round us ever. 
 
 \LKING with God! What a 
 strengthening, comforting, beau- 
 tiful thought! God by our side, 
 helping us, guiding us, leading us 
 safely whether the way be smooth 
 or rough. We cannot, perhaps, 
 be like the mountains, grand, 
 stately, magnificent, seen from 
 afar and admired by the multi- 
 tude, but we can be like the 
 grassy dell, beautiful with sun- 
 shine and refreshment, fragrant 
 with sweet flowers and jubilant 
 with the songs of birds. The 
 helpfulness in the family circle, if 
 given in a gentle, unobtrusive way, is a training which 
 rapidly uplifts lives. Those are sweet lives which seek 
 to remove obstructing thorns from another's rough path, 
 and there is never a thorn removed from the path without 
 a rose being scattered on one's own. Mild forbearance in 
 
 67 
 
68 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 regard to other people's faults is a necessity to every sweet 
 life — the suppression of unkind words another necessity. 
 
 The sunshine of such lives brightens darkened homes, 
 warms chilled hearts, and illuminates groping souls. It 
 even seems to have the power of opening sightless eyes, 
 Indeed, the power of such lives is wonderful. They point 
 out the right path to the wayward feet and beckon home- 
 ward the lost. They hold cups of water to parched lips, 
 and offer the bread of life to human souls. They scatter 
 good seed with generous and never-tiring hand. What a 
 harvest of trolden sheaves will be theirs! 
 
THE BLESSINGS AND POWER 
 PRAYER 
 
 OF 
 
 I'rayer is the Christian's vital hreatli, 
 The Christian's native air ; 
 
 Ilis passport at the gate of deatli, 
 He enters Heaven b\- pra\er. 
 
 GREATEST of Clod's bless- 
 ings and l)enefits to mankind 
 often lose much of their value 
 to those on whom they are 
 bestowed, from the' very 
 freedom witii which they are 
 dispensed. AN'ater, without 
 which life could not be sus- 
 tained; air, necessary to the 
 breath we draw; sunlight and 
 rain, without which vegeta- 
 tion could not flourish, or our bodies be fed; these and 
 countless other benefits are accepted too often as a matter 
 
 69 
 
70 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 of course, and in far too many cases without a thought of 
 gratitude to the bounteous Giver of each good and perfect 
 gift. But greatest of all the privileges with which hu- 
 manity has been favored, is the rare one of prayer, with 
 its far-reaching influence and almost limitless power. And 
 one great comfort, when thinking of prayer, lies in the 
 fact that application at the throne of grace can never be 
 made at a wrong time. Heaven's doors are never shut; 
 the ear of the Almighty is never so filled with other sounds 
 as to shut out the cry of ever so feeble a plaint directed 
 in faith to his hearing. He that keepeth Israel neither 
 slumbers nor sleeps, and the day and night are both alike 
 to him. No distance so great but it can be spanned by a 
 simple plea poured into the sympathizing ear of the Father 
 who waits to be gracious. There is no such detective as 
 prayer, for no one can hide away from it. It puts its hands 
 on the shoulders of a man ten thousand miles off. It 
 alights on a ship in mid-Atlantic. What-a suggestion of 
 power lies in these truthful words! A wayward son may 
 put thousands of miles between himself and a loving 
 mother, but he cannot get away from her prayers ; they can 
 follow him to the ends of the earth, and he cannot hide 
 away from them. 
 
 To one who is thus dependent on prayer for strength to 
 meet life's varied experiences, a sense of the power is 
 sometimes merged as it were with the consciousness of 
 comfort that lies in continual petitions. It is such un- 
 speakable comfort not only to commend our loved ones 
 to a care which is infinite and all-powerful, but there are 
 so many personal fears to be quelled, so many desires to 
 be presented, so many burdens to be cast upon the Lord. 
 And to one accustomed thus to seek protection, and to 
 l)resent wants and needs, and to seek sustaining grace, the 
 wonder is how any one can live and support the burdens, 
 and meet the varied anxieties and troubles of life,without 
 something stronger and more reliable than mere human 
 aid can supply. 
 
 The habit of prayer commends itself to many persons 
 who seldom pray themselves. A thoughtless, frivolous 
 woman will almost invariably teach her child a little prayer 
 to say at night. There is an unacknowledged and perhaps 
 unrecognized consciousness of the power for good which 
 
TRUE RELIGION NOT DAMAGED. 
 
 n 
 
 lies in that simple prayer from the lip.= of a helpless child. 
 Prayer truly becomes the Christian's " v.'tal breath" and 
 "native air;" it supplies courage and fortitude for every 
 event and emergency of life, it quiets the fears and calms 
 the nerves of the timid, it supplies strength to the weak, 
 it makes the dark hours of the night safe with an unseen 
 presence strong to protect, and robs the night of its lone- 
 liness. It is all-prevailing, all-powerful, robbing death 
 of its terrors, and opening wide the gates of heaven to all 
 who through its mighty power have learned to know the 
 Lord. 
 
 TRUE RELIGION NOT DAMAGED 
 BY ADVERSITY. 
 
 flSFORTUNE never harms the 
 Christian. If a man has the right 
 kind of religion he can go through 
 the severest trials and not suffer 
 spiritual loss. Grace in the heart 
 will not rise and fall with his 
 name; faith will not expand and 
 collapse with his business. If it 
 did, then a fire would burn it out, 
 a flood would drown it out, a panic would scare it out. 
 Satan thought that Job's religion would go with his for- 
 tune. But witness his amazement at his mistake. He 
 beholds the patriarch's family buried, his flocks wasted, 
 his health gone, his wife scolding, and his life involved 
 in direst misery; but his faith is still strong and his 
 religion beautiful and magnificent as an immovable palace 
 of granite, which the storm cannot shake, though ruins 
 are scattered all around. 
 
 The blessings of earth belong to the natural kingdom 
 and are subject to the troubles of tl-ftt kingdom: redeem- 
 ing blessings belong to the spiritual kingdom, and are 
 not subject to the tossings and turnings of fortune. You 
 sit in your homes and laugh at the winds that play with 
 the clouds and trees and waves, for they are shut out and 
 you are shut in. But your soul sits in the home of grace. 
 
72 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 looks out upon the terrors of earth, beholds the distresses 
 and losses of time, sees the storms that play with wealth 
 and fame, and feels serenely safe with God. The tornado 
 cannot invade its shelter. The ruins of the grandest estate 
 on earth cannot bury the soul that fears the Lord. 
 
 Goodness of heart is not proof against adversity. A 
 gracious character is no refuge against earthly harm. The 
 church is not an insurance institution against material 
 losses. But the gusts that beat upon the outer heritage 
 cannot beat upon the inner heritage. The building erected 
 out of material gold and silver and precious stones may 
 come down with a crash; but the inherent value remains 
 to all eternity. 'The calamities of life cannot overthrow 
 it; the river of death cannot overflow it. 
 
 The soul that contains Divine grace is the Lord's con- 
 servatory. It is his blooming garden fenced about and 
 covered over. The snows of winter may fall ; the frosts 
 may flake the fields with the white of death; the piercing 
 cold may bind creation in its glittering manacles; yet the 
 plants put forth their beautiful blossoms in the green- 
 house. So with the person that lives in the love of Jesus 
 Christ. The surface of the sea may be tossed with billows, 
 but the pebbles lie quietly at the bottom; troubles may 
 rush over the limitations of the believer, but the pearls 
 of true grace are undisturbed in the depths of his nature. 
 The eagle can soar above the storm; so can the soul on 
 the wings of hope. The whale can descend below the 
 angry waves; so can the soul in resignation. The .safe 
 can preserve its treasures in the fires; so can the soul 
 through patience. The oak can gather nourishment from 
 the leaves stripped from its boughs by last year's storms; 
 so can the soul gather strength from every distress through 
 which it passes. The character of the true soul, like that 
 of Florence Nightingale in the Crimean War, grows strong 
 by the very distress and trouble which overcome others. 
 
 Calamities help true religion ; they add to its vigor, send 
 its root deeper, malPe its fibres tougher. They fan its 
 coals into flames. Without adversity grace is in danger 
 of smothering under its own ashes. The men who have 
 lived nearest God are they who have seen the vanities 
 of this world through eyes bedewed with tears. Trouble 
 has often caused aching heads to rest on the bosom of 
 
FLORENCE NIGHTINGALE'S MONUMENT, WESTMINSTER. 73 
 
74 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 Jesus for sympathy. Danger has compelled many a hand 
 to clasp hold of the Almighty for protection. Destruction 
 of property has caused many to search after the true 
 riches. The noblest sons and daughters of earth are 
 they who have been purified in the furnace heated many 
 times. The purest of the wheat, the heaviest and the 
 best, is that which is winnowed the most. 
 
 Let us grow more conscious of the soul's independence 
 of earthly things. The soul that lives in Christ is not 
 dependent on the products of business. The body is 
 dependent; the present life is dependent; contingencies 
 arise that make daily supplies necessary. But the soul is 
 independent. It can live, and grow strong, and sing 
 praises, whether its income be twenty thousand a year or 
 twenty cents a day. It can find health and joy, whether 
 it stay in a palace or in a prison. It lives not by bread 
 at all; it lives in the Lord. 
 
 Let us make our earthly losses our spiritual gains. Let 
 not the strength be wasted weeping over the ruins. Let 
 faith arise as an eagle above the world of desolations. 
 From the charred vanities of earth turn the eyes upon the 
 glory of the other world. Be not too anxious for an in- 
 crease of prosperity. He who owns a thousand acres of 
 land here, may not have enough ground to stand on in 
 heaven. He who claims a hundred houses in the city may 
 not have a cottage in the other world. Be brave in trial, 
 and sweetly content, and expect your better things here- 
 after. 
 
GIRDING ON THE ARMOR. 
 
 Satan trembles when he sees 
 
 The weakest saint upon his knees. 
 
 ,() be a Christian means a great deal more 
 than believing in certain doctrines, going 
 to church, or even talking about religion. 
 It means living it. It means having 
 Christ in every deed. We cannot leave 
 out of the most trivial thing. It means we 
 show the world that we love the Lord, and 
 are serving him. We must show them so plainly 
 that there can be no mistake. As you know the 
 well-tried soldier by his tread, his habits, and 
 endurance the moment you see him, so the world 
 must know yOu to be a Christian — a real live Christian — 
 the moment it comes in contact with you. You must 
 
76 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 meet with sinners, as well as half-asleep, careless Chris- 
 tians, and you must live so that your light shall shine clear 
 and above reproach, fearing only, but always, to bring 
 shame upon the Master's name. By your example you 
 must strengthen the weak, and by your unfaltering step 
 and firm hand help the weak-hearted. Let the whole 
 world see the quiet, steady light of your devoted life. 
 Let the perfume of the " white flower of a blameless life " 
 which you wear, scent the air about you till that very per- 
 fume will entice those who breathe it to strive likewise 
 to wear one. Let there be no vain glory or striving after 
 praise for any particular gift; but aspire for no other 
 praise (and it is a great one) than that it may be said that 
 your silent example has won many a heart to Christ. Let 
 an assembly be better for your presence. Where you are 
 let it be known it is safe to be. 
 
 Above all let your light shine at home. There are 
 many dear ones who would be led astray by the careless 
 life of a professed Christian, or be won by your devoted- 
 ness. There are no words so eloquent as a well-lived 
 life — a blameless one. Pray that it may be yours. Let 
 your presence be a signal of peace, your very step music 
 to the tired and discouraged. 
 
 It maybe your sad lot to live with some one who is not 
 at all agreeable; that is, with one so captious that you 
 cannot pass the day without a jar. Try your best, 
 you say, there is trouble; even your kind acts are mis- 
 construed and resented. There are some people with 
 whom it is very difficult to live. You wish your lot had 
 been cast elsewhere, while it may be that your lot was cast 
 just there and nowhere else, because the Lord wants your 
 example and nothing else to bring that wanderer to the 
 Lord. This example may be the particular work sent 
 you. It is hard work indeed, and one the world will 
 never know anything about ; but the Master, who knows 
 just how hard the work was, and how patiently and 
 bravely you performed it, will reward you. Trust the 
 Lord. His help is ever present. Be strong and of good 
 courage. Never forget that the responsibility of being a 
 Christian is a very great one; for you not only ruin your 
 own soul if you sin, but you may ruin the souls of those 
 who watch and copy your example. 
 
DON'T BE TOO BUSY. 
 
 ^^N this busy age, when the bound- 
 aries of life are so enlarged by 
 rapid communications, and action 
 is the rule of the hour, the duty 
 of meditation is often overlooked. 
 People are too busy for medita- 
 tion, or dreaming, as they call it; 
 they banish meditation entirely 
 from practical life and divorce 
 religion from business. On the 
 contrary, religious life and feel- 
 ings must go hand in hand with every-day life. Religion 
 is not a creature of the cloister; it is not locked up in the 
 church on Sunday night. We come to church on Sunday 
 to learn religion, to feel its motives, and to deepen all 
 good impressions as well as to gain them. When this is 
 over we have not done with religion for the week; we 
 have been learners, and now we are to go home and prac- 
 tise what we have learned; but this we cannot do if we 
 never think again of the holy lessons of the Sabbath. 
 
 77 
 
78 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 Meditation, strictly speaking, is a serious, devout con- 
 templation of divine things; It presupposes quiet and 
 solitude, and such meditation is at once a means of grace 
 and a Christian duty. It is something that no one can 
 get along as well without as with. Dr. Bonar says, " In 
 order to grow much in grace we must be much alone. It 
 is not in society, not even in Christian society, that the 
 soul grows most vigorously." In one single quiet hour it 
 will make more progress than in days in company with 
 others. There is always danger of losing all sense of the 
 value of familiar things by neglecting to consider their 
 merits and their importance to ourselves. Many wonder 
 why the Bible seems so uninteresting to them, and why 
 they cannot throw themselves into it as they can into 
 other books. It would be more wonderful if they could 
 get interested in it, reading it as they do, or taking it 
 up at long intervals. If you treat any other book in 
 that way it will seem uninteresting and dry. Perhaps 
 you read it by chapters with no sense of its connection, or, 
 perhaps you read a few verses in a cursory way. All 
 readers of the Bible should take the advice that Abbe 
 Wenkelman gave to a young sculptor when he sent him to 
 the Apollo Belvidere as the most perfect specimen of art. 
 " Go and study it, and if you see no great beauty in it to 
 captivate you, study it again. If you still discover none, 
 study it more; go again and again; go until you feel its 
 beauty, for be assured it is there." So, readers of the 
 Bible, you should study it well, and if you do not at once 
 realize its beauty you should go again and again, pray 
 over it, study it, meditate upon it, until you feel it, and 
 then it will impress its lineaments upon your soul and 
 become the model of your daily walk and conversation. 
 
LITTLE THINGS. 
 
 ITTLE notes make 
 the sweetest of music, 
 and the grandest of 
 harmonies, as well as 
 the greatest of results 
 in the material world, 
 is brought about by 
 the smallest of 
 causes. Human na- 
 ture is very much the 
 same in all ages, and 
 although customs and 
 manners have altered 
 in innumerable ways 
 since the Bible was 
 written, we find many 
 mutual sympathy which 
 menof old times. We read 
 miserable leper who was 
 actually going to continue to be a 
 leper rather than do a small and sim- 
 ple act to free himself from his lep- 
 rosy, and that, too, when no doubt 
 he would have done some great thing 
 gladly. It would have seemed to 
 him in perfect keeping with the 
 eternal fitness of things if the prophet 
 had come out in flowing robes, and 
 stretching forth his hand majestically, had called solemnly 
 upon the name of the Lord. He would have liked the cure to 
 be performed with a pomp and majesty in accord wiiu 
 his own fancied greatness and the greatness of the God 
 in whose name it was wrought. But to be told to wash, 
 and be cleansed thereby, was too simple a thing to be 
 thought of. How much of human nature is manifested 
 in that! Men are apt to connect great results with im- 
 posing deeds only, while little acts seem too insignificant 
 to effect any worthy results. 
 
 79 
 
8o THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 Wehaveonly to think for an instant to see the fallacy of 
 this, and to find a host of illustrations that prove the value 
 of little things, especially to show that momentous results 
 are often caused by the smallest and most insignificant acts. 
 The simple pressure of a child's finger upon a button 
 caused the explosion at "Hell Gate" that caused thou- 
 sands of tons of solid rock to burst asunder and fly in every 
 direction. The same force that draws a pin to the floor 
 holds mighty worlds in their places. So simple is it in- 
 deed that till a few years ago no one thought to connect 
 it with such vast results. 
 
 Strange to say, upon no subject are men so unwilling to 
 trust to the efficacy of simple acts as they are in the mat- 
 ter of the soul's salvation. Men are always willing to do 
 some great thing to be saved. Ever since the fall the 
 despair and dreariness of souls estranged from God, the 
 remorse, perplexity, and fear, have all combined to nerve 
 men to the utmost exertions. They have groped about in 
 the darkness, if, perchance, they might find God. They 
 have touched the door of Eden, and tried its. bolts and 
 shaken its fastenings in the effort to return to primitive 
 innocence. They have torn themselves with briers, and 
 cut themselves with stones in their desire to find the 
 narrow way of life. They have slain whole hecatombs of 
 animals, and waded through seas of sacrificial blood for 
 their souls' salvation. This way and that they have 
 groped for every way but the right way, and all in vain. 
 Eden's doors are fast closed, and the lofty peak of sin- 
 lessness is inaccessible. When all is done man is no 
 nearer God than he v/as at first. What is the trouble? 
 Simply that we are not bidden to do any great thing; 
 God never laid down such a command. So men have 
 made a mistake, and failed to find the way of life because 
 it is so simple. They have tried to do some great thing, 
 when all that God wanted was a childlike faith in Jesus 
 Christ. Until men have learned this lesson, and have 
 utterly abandoned all hope of saving themselves, they are 
 far from salvation. I believe there are but few people in 
 this world who do not appreciate the blessing of salvation, 
 even though they may not have availed themselves of it, 
 and who do not mean to be Christians some day and go to 
 heaven; and yet because coming to Christ is such a simple 
 
CHRIST BLESSING LITTLE CHILDREN. 
 
 8i 
 
82 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 thing that the youngest child can do it, they hold back 
 and search rather for some great thing. 
 
 And how often do those who are professing Christians 
 leave neglected the small, homely duties which should 
 make up their life while they search for some great deed 
 that will better show their love to the Saviour. The little 
 things seem so trivial that they are hardly worth doing, 
 and they do not call for the energy and sacrifice that 
 greater deeds do. And yet it is just these little things, 
 done faithfully as unto the Lord, that make up a life of 
 consecration and devotion to the Master. If love inspires 
 us to our work, the simplest act, the most trivial duty be- 
 comes a part of our worship. 
 
 " That the full glory may abound, increase, 
 Until Thy likeness shall be formed in me 
 I pray. The answer is not rest or peace, 
 But charges, duties, wants, anxieties. 
 Till there seems room for everything but Thee, 
 And never time for anything but these. 
 
 The busy fingers fly, the eyes may see 
 
 Only the glancing needle that they hold, 
 
 But all mv life is blossoming inwardly, 
 
 And every breath is like a litany, 
 
 While through each labor like a thread of gold 
 
 Is woven the sweet consciousness of Thee." 
 
 Our God is too great to need great deeds. If we do 
 our duty just where he has placed us to work for him, it 
 will make no difference whether we labor in an obscure 
 .corner of the vineyard where no great harvest will repay 
 our labor, or whether our works are seen and known of all 
 men. The little things " that most leave undone or de- 
 spised" are great enough to glorify (iod if we do them for 
 h i m . 
 
 ^ 
 
THE LOVE OF GOD. 
 
 LTR ideas of religion and of God ha^e 
 
 changed somewhat since the days 
 
 ^ when our grandmothers handed 
 
 j;; down through- tlie lips of our 
 
 mothers the idea of what religion 
 
 is, and ought to be, and of what 
 
 the dear Lord, who loved us so 
 
 much that he sent his only and 
 
 well-beloved Son to die for us, for 
 
 you and me, is to us. Then he was 
 
 a king whose subjects might not 
 
 even touch the lowest stone at his 
 
 feet, a judge who sat upon the 
 
 judgment seat to condenm the sinner rather than to take 
 
 him in loving arms and say to him, "Go thy way, sin no 
 
 N 
 
 more. 
 
 Now that we have learned to read the precious words of 
 the Bible more from the standpoint of God's love, with a 
 light from heaven's own blessedness shining into and 
 through our eyes, our God has revealed himself as a Father 
 who pitieth his children, who reasons with them, who 
 says, "Son, daughter, give me thy heart." And when we 
 cry out in the discouragement of our hearts, that the de- 
 light of our heart is ceased, our joy turned into mourning, 
 we hear a gentle voice whispering in our ears, " I am 
 God, even thy God — in the day that thou callest upon me 
 I will answer. All that the Father giveth me shall come 
 to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast 
 out." And the voice of love calls: "Art thou weary, 
 heavy laden, come to me and find rest." 
 
 With eyes full of tears we look around and see nothing, 
 it may be, but a stormy sea, a dark and starless night; 
 our bark is drifting helplessly, we are discouraged because 
 of the gloom; but in the sweetest, calmest tones, Jesus, 
 our Saviour, says to us, "Why are you fearful! it is I, be 
 not afraid." 
 
 83 
 
THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 A Christian who really loves God should never doubt 
 the love that our Father gives us. We are helped through 
 nine troubles, and when the tenth comes "our faith fails 
 and we are sure that there will be no further assistance 
 for us, and that being left alone we must perish. Jesus 
 may be asleep in the vessel, or you may think so, but it 
 is only that he is feigning unconsciousness to see if your 
 faith will take you to him for help. 
 
 Our Father loves us, is patient with us, is anxious to 
 help us, and is even more ready to give than we are to ask. 
 
 " A Father's hand we felt, 
 
 A Father's heart we knew , 
 With tears of penitence we knelt 
 And found his word was true. 
 
 " We told him all our grief, 
 
 We thought of Jesus' love ; 
 A sense of pardon brought relief, 
 And bade our pains remove." 
 
 When he really becomes in very truth our Father, the 
 world, its pleasures, trials, and troubles become so very 
 different. What was hard to bear becomes easy, because 
 we know the Father's hand never causes his child one 
 needless tear. When the dear Saviour's hand takes the 
 weight of our burden from us, and we find ourselves at 
 last among the chorus of the redeemed in heaven, our glad 
 voices will have no minor notes to jar the melody, as we 
 at last, "safe at home," sing the praises of our Saviour's 
 love. 
 
 
NOT INCOMPLETE. 
 
 ANY good people, 
 even the best of 
 Christians, mis- 
 interpret God's 
 acts of kindness 
 to us in calling 
 us home. Almost 
 invariably it 
 happens that we 
 mourn the death 
 of a good man, 
 who is often 
 taken out of the 
 world just when 
 his life is in 
 full blossom of 
 beauty ; and we 
 '^ are liable to sigh 
 
 and groan over what at first thought appears to be a prema- 
 ture removal. " But there are no premature removals, no 
 incomplete lives." The death of Henry Ward Beecher 
 perhaps called out more response from the press, and from 
 Christians generally, than that of any other man during 
 the last century. Some mourned that he could not have 
 been spared to complete his Life of Christ, which was left 
 in an unfinished state. But God, who knoweth all things, 
 and ordereth all things, knows best at what time to call 
 his own. Mr. Beecher's life work, although ended in one 
 sense with his death, still was far from complete as to its 
 results here. 
 
 No good man's life*is incomplete, because stilled on its 
 earthly side. There is a heavenly side, and it still grows 
 on in beauty and symmetry. 
 
 To the eye of faith the broken column in our cemeteries 
 is a sentimental falsehood. No Christian life is broken 
 
 85 
 
86 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 short off so, but rises in a symmetrical shaft, and its 
 capital is garlanded with amaranthine flowers in heaven. 
 Apelles, the Grecian painter, when asked why he touched 
 and retouched his pictures with so much care, answered: 
 "Because I paint for eternity." A real, living Christian 
 works for eternity, and if it is God's will that he should 
 go higher, even while in the midst of a noble work here, 
 his life still goes on. No matter how many broken shafts 
 are reared above his coffin lid, he would say if he could 
 speak " Thy will be done." He would echo Dr. Preston's 
 dying words: " Blessed be God, though I change my place 
 I shall not change my company; for I have walked with 
 God while living, and now I go to rest with God." 
 
"FIRST PURE." 
 
 " The wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle 
 and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits." — Jas. iii. 17. 
 
 TRST PURE ". The Bible is 
 a book which has very little 
 to say about appearances. 
 Its subjects are far too real 
 and imperative for that. Com- 
 ing as a rriessage of life and 
 death it has time to deal only 
 with essentials; its author, the 
 all-seeing God, looks into the 
 heart, and with the inner char- 
 acter right in his sight, all is 
 right. Surely there cannot be 
 found any reason in the rela- 
 tions between God and man 
 for the command to avoid the 
 appearance of evil, for nothing as 
 superficial as looks can have any 
 weight with the great Searcher of 
 hearts; his eye probes the innermost 
 depths of character, and finds there 
 all the material for judgment, either 
 acquittal or condemnation. Man, 
 however, cannot do that; all he sees 
 is the surface, the appearance, and 
 his judgment must be formed from 
 them. 
 
 As Christianity, then, is a system 
 
 placed in the world to commend 
 
 itself to mankind and be received by 
 
 them, and as the Christian is a man 
 
 among men, seen, known and judged by them, in these 
 
 facts lies the reason for this exhortation. The inner 
 
 87 
 
 
 \ 
 
THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 character is everything in the sight of God, but that is 
 not all. We are not alone in the world, so for the sake 
 of humanity and those around us, we are to abstain from 
 the appearance of evil. 
 
 It will make no difference in our standing in the sight 
 of God if any one thinks us dishonest or untruthful, but 
 for the sake of example, of morality, of religion, we 
 ought, if possible, always so to act that others cannot 
 think ill of us. As far then as our relations to God go, 
 the command is, "Abstain from all evil," but so far as 
 we stand related to our fellow-men, the command is, 
 "Abstain from all appearance of evil." 
 
 We may be in God's eyes pure in heart, but it is also 
 desirable that we should be pure in outward appearance. 
 We may be, in God's sight, sincere, but it is desirable 
 that we should appear to men to be so. We should not 
 think this command unworthy of divine inspiration, for 
 it rests in the deepest logic. Appearance is one thing, 
 reality another, but the appearance of evil will go far 
 toward familiarizing one with the reality. 
 
 So much for our own sake, and in regard to others 
 there is the example. Whether it be right or wrong to 
 do so, the world does, and is going to, judge of religion 
 by Christians. The appearance is what they see, for they 
 cannot look deeper, so it will be little advantage to the 
 cause of Christ, no matter how consistent we may really 
 be, if we do not seem to the world to be so. The Chris- 
 tian's mission as a light in the world depends largely on 
 his care in avoiding what looks wrong. This is not 
 hypocrisy. The Christian must walk on a higher level, 
 and live in a purer light than others; while thinking 
 most of the heart, he must not be indifferent to the expo- 
 nents of the heart's life and purposes and aims. Without 
 making the outer life the main thing, we must yet try to 
 keep that outer life blameless and without reproach. 
 There is no grander, nobler spirit for any one to regulate 
 his conduct by than that of Paul in his resolve, " If meat 
 make my brother to offend, I will eat no meat while the 
 world standeth." 
 
 We should not be discouraged if we find that we are 
 not always successful in our efforts to abstain from the 
 appearance of evil, for it cannot be denied that this is 
 
89 
 
90 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 an uncharitable, censorious world in which we live, with 
 a strong S3^mpathy with what is evil, and a desire that 
 everybody above its level should be brought as low as 
 itself. There are persons who, like the tarantula, suck 
 poison from the sweetest flowers; there are malevolent 
 spirits among men who do not care for the good and 
 noble, but, like wasps which fly at the incipient decay of 
 the ripest fruits, seize on the least appearance of imper- 
 fection. There are many who study human nature as old 
 Zoilus searched the poems of Homer, simply to find out 
 the defects and errors. 
 
 It is far nobler and better, with magnanimous gener- 
 osity, never to form a bad opinion of an action if it is 
 possible to construe it as good; unfortunately those who 
 are able to do this are the exception and not the rule. 
 The vast majority are too much like the restless sea, 
 liable to be ruffled by every gust of passion, open to all 
 impulses; and many are prone to take even the good and 
 speak evil of it. 
 
 What then is our line of duty? It will not do any 
 good to denounce these uncharitable judgments as wrong, 
 unjust, and unworthy of notice. We all know that they 
 are wrong, but that does not prevent them, so we must 
 take things as we find them, and with an eye to God's 
 glory adapt ourselves to them. We ought to care in some 
 measure what the world says, and if the cause of the 
 adverse judgments be something indiscreet in our con- 
 duct, something in appearances that is against us, then 
 though all may be right within, we ought to abandon our 
 evil appearances. Whether we realize it or not, the cause 
 of Christ is bound up in us, and when we suffer from dis- 
 regard of appearances, the Church of Christ suffers too. 
 
 We err when we speak indiscreetly, or act imprudently, 
 or allow appearances which are liable to misconstruction, 
 for by all these things we may injure the cause we love. 
 There is great need of humble, prayerful, earnest effort, 
 not only to be right, to be holy, to be beautiful within, 
 but to let that inner light shine so brightly upon the outer 
 world that there shall be no occasion to suspect evil, 
 because there shall be no appearance of it. 
 
THEN PEACEABLE." 
 
 'T was said in our hearing 
 not long ago, of an ex- 
 cellent and useful Chris- 
 tian woman who had just 
 passed away, that " she 
 lived such a quiet life — 
 she did so much good in 
 a quiet way." She was, 
 indeed, one of those 
 gentle, patient, earnest 
 workers who come and 
 go in their appointed 
 ways like those beings of 
 light who wait upon 
 God's children, but of 
 whom we cannot even 
 hear the rustle of a wing. 
 They speak to our hearts, 
 yet not in words; they 
 touch our lives and guide 
 us by the hand, and yet 
 we hear, we see them not. 
 Yet God knows all the 
 quiet lives that are lived for him. He marks them with 
 his eye as he marks the sparrow's fall. No kindly deed, 
 nor act of love and charity, is unnoticed by him who 
 seeth all things, "even the secret and hidden things 
 among the children of men." 
 
 For the highest example of gentleness we have only to 
 look to him who went up and down among the hills and 
 plains of Judea eighteen centuries ago healing the throng- 
 ing multitudes, and blessing even those who touched but 
 the hem of his garment. From the manger at Bethlehem 
 
 91 
 
92 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 to the cross on Calvary, it is all the record of a meek and 
 quiet life. We can never think of our Saviour in any 
 other way than as one whose every word and deed was 
 gentleness itself. We cannot but think of him, some- 
 times, as moving in and out and among the multitudes, 
 and up and down the streets and by-ways of the land, 
 so gently and noiselessly that the sound of his foot- 
 steps was scarcely heard upon the ground. We know 
 that on more than one occasion he passed out of the 
 midst of a multitude when they knew it not. We know 
 that he walked upon the waves of Galilee, while rash and 
 faithless Peter sank beneath. We know also that when 
 the Scribes and Pharisees tried to draw him into a noisy 
 disputation a few quiet words from him put their sophis- 
 try to flight; and when he was reviled, he reviled not 
 again. And in all his wonderful works Christ never 
 sought publicity. Again and again he charged his dis- 
 ciples and those whom he had healed that they " should 
 tell no man." He taught both by precept and example 
 that " when thou doest alms let not thy right hand know 
 what thy left hand doeth." Jesus was indeed a King, 
 but no heralds went before him to trumpet his appear- 
 ance; he was a Conqueror, but no triumphal arches were 
 erected in his honor: he was "very God," but he never 
 spoke in Sinai thunders, nor transfixed the hearts of men 
 with the bolts of wrath. 
 
 The greatest forces in nature are the quiet ones. That 
 mysterious power called gravitation,- which links the uni- 
 verse together as with a mighty chain, acts as noiselessly 
 as thought itself. The sunlight falls upon- the earth as 
 softly as a dream, and yet it draws the sea into its 
 embrace, and makes the earth throb with life. The 
 atmosphere silently eats its way into the hearts of rocks, 
 and crumbles down temples and pyramids. The most 
 stupendous works of the Almighty swing in their orbits 
 without a jar or tremor. And so with the most wonderful 
 works of human hands. The mighty Corliss engine 
 moves with more apparent ease than the noisy little clock 
 upon the mantel. It is everywhere the quiet things that 
 serve the highest purposes. 
 
 We should not, then, complain because our lives must 
 needs move in quiet channels. It is not the roaring, 
 
THEN PEACEABLE." 
 
 93 
 
 dashing, impetuous streams, but the deep and silent rivers 
 that bear the ships to the sea. It has been said that the 
 quiet power of a serene and holy life is the greatest 
 power in the world, next to the might of God. Who has 
 not known, and been blessed by knowing, some of those 
 gentle souls whose very presence seems a balm to 
 wounded hearts, whose voices fall upon the ear like a 
 benediction from heaven, and whose hands, laid upon an 
 aching brow, seem to woo to themselves the pain. It was 
 of one of these gentle, loving natures that Whittier thus 
 writes : 
 
 " The blessing of her quiet life 
 Fell on us like the dew : 
 And good thoughts, where her footsteps passed, 
 Like fairy blossoms grew. 
 
 Sweet promptings unto kindly deeds 
 
 Were in her very look ; 
 We read her face as one who reads 
 
 A true and holy book. 
 
 And half we deemed she needed not 
 
 The changing of her sphere ; 
 To go to heaven, a shinmg one, 
 
 Who walked an angel here." 
 
GENTLE AND EASY TO 
 ENTREATED." 
 
 BE 
 
 ITY is one of the strongest 
 elements of Christ's char- 
 acter—compassion for the 
 wants and sorrows of 
 others. It is said that the 
 artists who have repre- 
 sented the Saviour's face 
 have given us the picture 
 of a man burdened with 
 his own sorrows. That is 
 just where all such repre- 
 sentations fail, and must 
 fail. If it were possible 
 to put on the canvas a true 
 Christ, it would be pre- 
 eminently a gentle, sym- 
 l)athizing Christ, divinity 
 trembling through lines of 
 finest sensibility, with a 
 mouth shaped by words 
 of compassion, and eyes fathomless with unutterable pity. 
 Until such things are possible to the brush, all pictures 
 must be failures, and we must draw our devotion from 
 the word pictures of inspiration. The Saviour was al- 
 ways specially responsive to the sufferings of mankind; 
 perhaps it was on the principle that those who are whole 
 need no physician, that the most touching and the truest 
 of the revelations speak of his pity. We know that he 
 was far from irresponsive to human joy, and the occasion 
 of his first miracle was one of happiness — a wedding feast 
 in Cana of Galilee — and the miracle itself was one tend- 
 ing to promote the enjoyment of the feast. We may be 
 sure that he always rejoiced with those that rejoiced 
 as well as wept with those that wept; and we can imag- 
 ine that his presence on a festive occasion gave a better 
 
 04 
 
"GEXTLE AXD EASY TO BE EXTREATEDr 95 
 
 and holier zest to enjoyment. Nevertheless his mission 
 as the Saviour of the world seemed to place him natu- 
 rally among the burdened and distressed, for he no doubt 
 saw, as no man could see, that there was some lack in 
 every pleasure, that laughter is not always the echo of 
 happiness. 
 
 Suffering appeals more powerfully to all sympathies 
 than joy, and if we feel suffering to be the strongest of 
 the world's appeals, how much more would Christ? 
 Would he be indeed the Christ, the Saviour, if the cry 
 of distress had not reached his ears more quickly than the 
 laughter of the gay? We expect to find him just where 
 the evangelists place him most often, bending over the 
 sufferings of mankind. Sometimes in the house of joy, 
 when there was a holy purpose to be served by his pres- 
 ence there, sometimes in the retirement of the mountain 
 top when the weariness of the flesh demanded solitary 
 communion with his Father, but for the most part with 
 his eyes fi.xed steadily on the suffering before him. 
 
 A thousand years had passed since David sang the 
 beautiful shepherd's Psalm, when another was born in 
 the same town of Bethlehem who was like David, his 
 type, the good shepherd, but his sheep were men. His 
 heart was full of the true shepherd pity, when he looked 
 on the multitudes, infinitely better than sheep, v 'lich con- 
 gregated in the cities and villages, worse off, perhaps, 
 in some respects than the flocks which were pastured 
 around Bethlehem, beneath the shepherd's watchful eye. 
 All who had come before him were false leaders who 
 gained admittance to the fold that they might kill and 
 destroy, and great had been their execution. The true 
 Shepherd had compassion on the multitude; he showed it 
 as he went through the villages, telling the good news of 
 the kingdom of God, healing all sickness and disease 
 among the people. They were a woefully neglected flock 
 upon which his eye fell as he went to and fro. He saw 
 their suffering everywhere, on the couches of the sick, 
 the beds of the diseased. They lined the streets where 
 he passed, and were let down from the roofs where he was, 
 and they were spread upon the seashore where he taught. 
 Physical ailment, bodily infirmity, it was that ailed; but 
 none the less did it touch his pity, for this compassion- 
 
96 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 ating Shepherd took in the whole range of suffering, the 
 distressed body, aching brow, and weary limbs. 
 
 Besides their bodily distress, he saw their soul trouble; 
 they were as sheep having no shepherd; under that he 
 saw the great spiritual meaning. Why did they wander 
 to and fro along hard and thorny roads, up rugged moun- 
 tains and down into dark valleys? It was the unrest 
 within them, the longing of sheep for a shepherd, the 
 inevitable longing of the homeless for a shelter, the rest- 
 lessness of a soul seeking its God. Multitudes were scat- 
 tered abroad in the weary search for rest and peace, 
 without a shepherd's guidance. 
 
 He is moved with infinite compassion as his thoughts 
 go out to a wide world, composed of such as these, and 
 because he pitied, he delivered. And not only those who 
 suffered outwardly did he pity, for oft-times the heaviest 
 sorrow is borne in silence, and hidden within the bosom, 
 and no sound betrays the secret grief. Others, too, were 
 claimants on his pity who did not know their own need of 
 compassion, who were content with their barren lives, and 
 heeded not the call of the shepherd. The all-searching 
 eye of the Saviour penetrated this abject contentedness, 
 and then his pity was most profound, since they realized 
 not their own need and would take no steps to fill their 
 empty hands. Sometimes it is not the greatest but the 
 least sufferers who are the most to be pitied; the dis- 
 tressed and starving may have currents of spiritual life 
 flowing through them, but there is a poverty of heart and 
 soul infinitely more pitiable. 
 
 Over all these forms of suffering and want the Saviour's 
 pity brooded tenderly, even as it does to-day over his fold, 
 and we need never fear that we are in any distress too 
 deep for his loving pity to succor and rescue us. 
 
-FULL OF MERCY."— FORGIVENESS. 
 
 " Let b^'gones be bygones ; 
 
 Your heart will be lighter 
 When kindness of yours with reception has met ; 
 The flame of your love 
 
 Will be purer and brighter, 
 If, God-like, you strive to forgive and forget." 
 
 •yi^ OVE and forgive even your enemies. " I can 
 
 never forgive him," is a remark we so fre- 
 quently hear that we often do not realize its 
 awful significance. Some one beautifully 
 and truthfully remarks: "He that cannot 
 forgive others breaks down the bridge which 
 he must pass himself; for every one has need 
 to be forgiven." Thomas Adams says: "The 
 angry man is like a ship sent into the sea, which hath 
 the devil for its pilot." How easily forgiveness could be 
 granted if anger were not allowed to burn too deeply in the 
 soul. It is an easy matter to stop the fire that is kindled 
 only in a little chaff; but if it once have taken hold of 
 matter that hath solidity or thickness it soon inflames and 
 consumes the entire building. 
 
 One might naturally suppose that the anger of mortal 
 
 7 97 
 
98 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 man should be mortal like himself. But with many, it is 
 a question whether they or their anger die first, or whether 
 death takes away both together. Our Saviour taught the 
 doctrine of forgiveness of enemies. So contrary is this 
 spirit to the natural inclinations of the unregenerate heart, 
 that when one of our venerable missionaries read to a 
 number of Hindu youths from the Sermon on the Mount 
 the passage, " I say unto you, love your enemies, bless 
 them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, 
 and pray for them who despiteful ly use you and persecute 
 you," so deep and intense was the impression produced on 
 them, that one exclaimed in ecstasy : "Oh! how beautiful, 
 how divine ! This is the truth !" And for days and weeks 
 he could not help repeating: "Love your enemies, bless 
 them that curse you," etc. ; constantly exclaiming: " How 
 beautiful! surely this is the truth!" Nor could he rest 
 until he had renounced his false gods and their senseless 
 worship and accepted the truth as it is in Jesus. 
 
 Another example illustrating the same truth is found in 
 an incident which occurred in the seventeenth century. 
 A Turkish grandee in Hungary made a Christian nobleman 
 his prisoner and treated him with the utmost barbarity. 
 The slave, for such he was, was yoked with an ox and 
 compelled to drag the plow. But the fortune of war is 
 changeful; and the Turk fell into the hands of the Hun- 
 garians, who. said to their enslaved fellow countryman: 
 " Now take your revenge upon your enemy." This was in 
 accordance with the custom of the age, and the Turk, 
 supposing as a matter of course that he would be tortured 
 to death, had already swallowed poison, when a messenger 
 came from his Christian slave, telling him to go in peace, 
 he had nothing to fear. The Moslem was so impressed 
 with this heavenly spirit, that he proclaimed with his 
 dying breath, "I will not die a Moslem, but I die a 
 Christian; for there is no religion but that of Christ 
 which teaches forgiveness of injuries." A forgiving na- 
 ture is the direct result of the teachings of Christianity. 
 
 "What can Jesus Christ do for you now?" said an in- 
 human slave-master when in the act of applying the lacer- 
 ating whip to an already half-murdered slave, "Him teach 
 me to forgive you, massa," was the beautiful reply learned 
 at the feet of the blessed Master, 
 
'FULL OF MERCY."— FORGIVENESS. 
 
 99 
 
 We should forgive our enemies even as Christ forgives 
 us, quickly, freely, fully. "As we forgive others their 
 trespasses " so shall we be forgiven. Forgiveness is the 
 characteristic symbol by which the true Christian is 
 known. Every sincere follower of the Master will feel at 
 all times a readiness to forgive others: and by this the 
 Christian may know that God hath sealed the forgiveness 
 of his sins upon his own heart. 
 
'AND GOOD FRUITS." 
 
 &d^^^ 
 
 E may be exceeding punctili- 
 ous in all the outward forms 
 and ceremonies of a Chris- 
 tian life. We may attend 
 church regularly, and ev^en 
 pray morning and evening 
 during the week — the Phar- 
 isees did as much. If it is 
 form, and form alone, if 
 there is not in us a living 
 Christianity; if the fruits 
 of our profession cannot be 
 found in our daily lives — 
 take care, Christian! God 
 judges by the fruits. Pro- 
 ^1 ^^--^ -^==jfL- ^ fessing to serve him here 
 
 (hJ S^'M^- ^^■^^%%^i\^'tf^'\ "-*" earth will not avail you 
 ^)f _V>W/^^^.3SS4Vl^S^at tl^g bar of God. There 
 
 will be many at the last day 
 who will cry, " Have we not 
 prophesied in thy name, 
 cast out devils and done 
 many wonderful works?" 
 Then shall he say unto 
 them, " I never knew you. 
 Depart from me, ye that 
 work iniquity." 
 
 It thus behooves us as 
 true followers of Christ to look well to our daily life, for 
 there we shall find the evidence of our hope. If we are 
 truly Christians, trusting in Christ alone, and striving to 
 do his will, we cannot hide our Christian profession. 
 " No man lighteth a candle and putteth it under a bushel." 
 If our hearts are enlightened from on high, the flame will 
 
 lOI 
 
THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 burn brighter and brighter, continually shedding light 
 upon our pathway; and our companions and those round 
 us will take knowledge that we have chosen the good part 
 that cannot be taken away from us. 
 
 With every such man, it matters not where he may be 
 placed, or what may be the environments of his daily life. 
 He may be rich, or he may be poor; he may be well, or 
 languishing on a bed of sickness; he may have one talent 
 or ten— it matters not; nay, he may even now be bowed 
 down with the infirmities of old age, and already begin- 
 ning to cross the river; still he will be sustained by a 
 firm and sure hope, and be enabled to look up with con- 
 fidence and cry: "Though I walk through the valley of 
 the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with 
 me; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me." 
 
 Happy for us, if we can thus look back upon our lives, 
 feeling in our inmost souls that our purposes and desires 
 have been right before God; that we have striven to do 
 our whole duty, and preserve a conscience void of offence. 
 Then are we ready and waiting for the coming of the 
 Master, and can feel the blessed assurance that " We have 
 fought a good fight; we have kept the faith; and that 
 henceforth there is laid up for us a crown of righteousness, 
 which the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall give." 
 
BREAD UPON THE WATERS. 
 
 
 TRAVELLER going to China at the 
 right season of the year would doubt- 
 less be interested in their method of 
 planting rice in that country. They sow 
 it in the mud, and then immediately turn 
 on a flood of water, so that the whole field 
 becomes a shallow pond. One might think 
 that the seed was drowned. But let him 
 w^ait a few weeks and then go and view one 
 of these artificial lakes, and from all its 
 surface he will see the green shoots sprout- 
 ^ ing, and day by day growing taller, till at 
 
 last the water is no more seen, and the shallow pool has 
 been transformed into a field of rich, waving grain. 
 Casting bread upon the waters expresses this Oriental 
 method of planting, and sometimes it is actually their 
 bread they sow, for even when the spring comes on and 
 finds their supply scanty, instead of eating it all they will 
 rather cast it upon the lake. They may go hungry for 
 weeks and live on a pittance, for the bread which they 
 cast into the water in the spring causes the crop on which 
 they are to live next autumn and winter, and they are 
 content to cast it into the water now, being sure to find 
 it after many days. In Egypt they have a river which 
 by its spontaneous overflow saves men all the trouble of 
 irrigation. There the Nile has from time immemorial 
 
 103 
 
I04 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 been rolling down its rich deposits of earth, making the 
 land fertile enough to fill the granaries of the East. 
 There they scatter their seed upon the still submerged 
 fields, leaving to nature the harvest. It is a precious 
 deposit that they cast upon the waters, not seed merely, 
 but bread. A portion of every harvest must go back to 
 the soil, if there are to be any harvests in the future. It 
 is so much abstracted from that which would be made 
 into daily bread, and it is therefore equally precious. 
 There is always a risk involved in returning it to the 
 vicissitudes of the season, and the uncertainties of the 
 soil. We do not know surely whether it will prosper; 
 nevertheless, to keep it is to waste it. If the husbandman 
 would have increase, he must sow his seed with faith in 
 an ever-watchful Providence. The law of the harvest is 
 so well understood that no one ever grudges the seed, 
 precious though it may be. 
 
 It is strange that we cannot reason thus with regard to 
 spiritual sowing and reaping. How hard it is for many 
 to cast their precious bread upon the waters I If it were 
 only seed, something that could not be used except for 
 sowing, it would be far easier, but bread has its distinct 
 value, it stands for that which is useful to one's self. 
 This point marks the limit of too many people's benefi- 
 cence and charity. They give to the point where they 
 begin to feel it, and then straightway stop. Can that be 
 called generosity, in any true sense? In the way of con- 
 tributions to the Lord's cause, to the various departments 
 of Christian work at home and abroad, what real sacri- 
 fices do we make, what luxuries do we deny ourselves that 
 we may offer something to the Lord ? 
 
 In the far west and in foreign climes are men who have 
 given up all the comforts of life in the midst of civiliza- 
 tion, and all the pleasures of Christian society that they 
 might preach Christ to the ignorant and degraded. Have 
 we ever cast a single precious thing, something that 
 required self-denial, upon the waters of home and foreign 
 missions? Where is the bread that we ought to cast upon 
 the waters? Have we been casting only crusts and 
 crumbs upon the stream, have we been offering to the 
 Lord that which cost us nothing, only what we did not 
 need our.'^lves? Then we have determined our own har- 
 
io6 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 vest. The waters will subside some day, and when we 
 look for abundant increase we shall find only a harvest of 
 crusts and crumbs for ourselves. 
 
 True, the water seems an uncertain receptacle of our 
 bounty, but nevertheless we are commanded to sow. A 
 common plea for neglect is this uncertainty. The 
 expression has been converted into a proverb for uncer- 
 tainty, and an excuse behind which many take refuge. 
 "Like sowing upon the waters" has come to mean fruit- 
 less efforts. Men say we can't see the result of our 
 efforts, we can't see where our beneficence goes, therefore 
 we will do and give nothing. But God's command is to 
 do and give if it is uncertain. Cast thy bread upon the 
 waters, never mind seeing where it goes, leave that to 
 God. All sowing is to a certain extent committing 
 ourselves to uncertainty, but in sowing upon the waters 
 the uncertainty is indefinitely increased. The soil is hid- 
 den, and we cannot tell where the waif of the waters will 
 settle. 
 
 No doubt we like to see and select the place where our 
 seed is to grow, but if the Egyptians insisted upon that 
 they would starve to death. Moreover the prudence of 
 the agriculturist may be praiseworthy, while the same 
 thing in a spiritual worker may be blameworthy. It is 
 a lamentable want of trust in God to do nothing but that 
 of which we can see the good. In whose hand is the 
 bread cast upon the waters, in whose hand but His who 
 holdeth the waters in his palm? He who guides each 
 grain sown over the fields to its prepared place under the 
 water, and cares for and cherishes it till it grows, can he 
 not guide and direct each Christian effort to a noble 
 determination ? 
 
 It is often the duty of the Christian to give, even when 
 he cannot be certain of results. Loyalty to God and faith 
 in God's providence makes this a duty. In the Master's 
 field the soil is often hidden, and always has been to a 
 greater or less extent; the Christian therefore has no right 
 to confine his efforts to what he considers hopeful cases. 
 Whatever the work of love, it is sure of its reward, and 
 if at any time it seems to be all sowing and no reaping, 
 and you grow discouraged, remember the sure promise, 
 " Thou s halt find it after many days. " 
 
WHAT IS PRAYER? 
 
 HAT is prayer? It is the lifting 
 of the heart, the human heart — so 
 full of wants, so anxious and 
 troubled about many things, so 
 full of regrets for the past, so 
 burdened with cares of the pre- 
 sent, so over-burdened with the 
 necessary and possible wants of 
 the future— the asking, craving, 
 agonizing for things whose name 
 is legion. God is not only the 
 hearer but the answerer of prayer. 
 He is not like the earthly father 
 whose child comes to him asking 
 for what he wants, but who is too 
 busy or too indifferent to attend to his child's wants. 
 Far different is it with the dear Father above. He 
 
 107 
 
io8 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 hardly waits for his child to speak, so ready is he to 
 hear. He says, in sweetest tones, "What is it, my child? 
 Is the burden too heavy for you? Are your shoulders 
 aching from carrying it? Does your frame tremble from 
 the exertion of steadying it? Listen! I loved you before 
 the world was." He knows all about that burden; it was 
 tested by him according to your strength. Nor was any 
 of it laid upon you until he knew that you could carry it 
 — nay, he holds the corners thereof, so that the weight 
 may not fall upon you. And now bring it to him, and he 
 will help you to carry it, so that it will be light. Have 
 you a heavy cross to carry ? Do not look about you to 
 see if there is a lighter one than yours, for rest assured 
 that, if you ask, he will help you to bear it. Is it a cross 
 of sorrow, poverty, loss, the absence of health? Ah! 
 there the minor chord is sounding, that means that truth 
 compels you to admit that with such a thorn in the flesh 
 evil is ever present with you; that your life is a burden, 
 that the sun is dark at noonday, that the moon gives no 
 light at night, that courage is gone from you, and like 
 Jonah (when his gourd, that had become dear to him, 
 withered) you are ready to exclaim, when you are faint 
 with the heat, " It is better for me to die to than to live." 
 
 But the answer that your Heavenly Father gives to you 
 is, " My child, lean more upon me. Come to me. Ask 
 in prayer for help, and I, the Lord, your Father who 
 loves you, will make the cross so easy, will rob it so 
 greatly of its power to hurt, that you will no longer be 
 loth to bend beneath it, but will go singing on your way 
 toward Heaven." It is good to remind ourselves that 
 such help can be obtained; it is good to remember that 
 Jesus taught us to say "Our Father"; to ask for daily 
 bread, and that we may love God's will; to ask forgive- 
 ness for our sins; deliverance from temptation; to be 
 shielded from evil, and finally to be brought into full 
 view of the everlasting glory. 
 
 Does your finite mind think that to be answered it must 
 be according to your dictation ? Ask the myriads of those 
 who have so earnestly prayed in years gone by for what 
 God in love withheld, if the answer was not received over 
 and over again in the utter thankfulness for not having 
 been gratified, not having the gourd; because now they 
 
WHAT IS PRAYER? 
 
 log 
 
 can see where the worm would have come up to destroy 
 the pleasure that they might have hoped for. 
 
 But more than this; while a large part of prayer con- 
 sists of petitions to our Heavenly Father to grant us those 
 things that we need: true prayer is more than this. It is 
 not mere petition; behind and besides this, it is the feel- 
 ing that is down deep in our hearts that prompts the de- 
 sire; it is the spring from which bubbles up the fountain 
 of yearning for God's blessing; it is the coal that kindles 
 the fire upon the altar that will waft the incense up into 
 the very presence of God; it is the outcome of the heart 
 full of love that is precious in his sight. 
 
 " Have you no words? Ah, think again ! 
 Words flow apace when we complain." 
 
 Take your sorrows, your joys, your trials right to God, 
 whose ear is never closed to his children's cry, and take 
 it in the accents of true prayer. Do you ask where to 
 take it? 
 
 " There is a place where Jesus sheds 
 The oil of gladness on our heads; 
 A place than all besides more sweet, 
 It is the blood-bought mercy seat." 
 
THE ANCHOR OF THE SOUL. 
 
 ROM many noble ships which leave 
 port in strength and beauty no tid- 
 ings of safety are ever heard. 
 Some incoming vessel may report 
 a signal of distress heard in the 
 darkness, and a fruitless search ; or 
 perhaps a letter may be found in a 
 bottle, but that is all that is ever 
 known. Upon some beach is a 
 broken wreck, the sport and play- 
 thing of the breakers, all that is 
 left of the stately ship which sailed away so gallantly. 
 But what is a wreck on the beach to a wreck on the shores 
 of eternity? The ship may go down with all hands on 
 board, and yet it may be well with them. The ocean may 
 be for them the gate into the heavenly city whence they 
 shall go out no more, but this wreck of the soul is a hope- 
 less thing, and yet so easily accomplished. It seems only 
 necessary to let a soul alone and let it drift, and by some 
 terrible tendency in itself it will dash upon the rocks. 
 You need not touch the tiller, but some magnetic attrac- 
 tion will draw it swiftly into danger. 
 
 If you add the winds of temptation and sin to accelerate 
 its speed, it seems to fly on its destructive course. Surely 
 amidst these perils we need a sure and steadfast anchor, 
 and this we have in hope. As the huge anchor goes down 
 into the great deep and fastens its iron tooth upon the 
 moveless rocks, holding the ship like a giant arm, so the 
 Christian's anchor of hope goes up into the heavenly 
 sanctuary and fastens itself upon Jesus, and we are held 
 safely forever, sure and steadfast. Hope is desire and 
 expectation, and if we are hoping for some great earthly 
 good or pleasure in the near future, it helps us greatly to 
 bear present pain or evil. All pain that is not perpetual 
 is attended with consolation in the thought that some 
 time it will be over, so we can see the cheering power of 
 hope. Thus the Christian hope acts. It reaches up to 
 heaven and whispers to the soul, this light affliction is 
 
^5- 
 
 _^i^ \|^ 
 
 
 f-EBREw; yi rtl 
 
THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 but for a moment, then comes the great good ; heaven will 
 atone for all sorrow here. God's people meet adversity 
 with courage, one trial after another, shock succeeding 
 shock, because they are anchored safely, and have trust 
 in God, and a sublime hope in his present favor and his 
 future blessing. 
 
 It is a glorious thing to have this anchor of the soul, 
 but we must not expect wrong or impossible things from 
 its use. For one thing we must not fasten it to visible 
 things. That floating log, the world, will not hold. You 
 must not throw it on the deck of any passing vessel or 
 together you will go to shipwreck. Our anchor must 
 fasten upon the invisible things of God. Hope that is 
 seen is not hope, but the unseen things are eternal. Let 
 us hope in God, in Christ, in heaven, and never fasten our 
 soul to the passing things of time and sense. Let go the 
 anchor, let out the chain far out of sight down to the 
 immovable rock, believing in him whom we have not seen, 
 and this hope we shall have as an anchor of the soul both 
 sure and steadfast, which .entereth into that within the 
 veil. 
 
IN THE SHEPHERD'S CARE. 
 
 N familiarizing a lit- 
 tle child with what 
 would be otherwise 
 incomprehensible to 
 it, we tell a little 
 story that illustrates 
 the truth we desire 
 it to learn. So 
 Christ was wont to 
 fix truths in the 
 minds of his follow- 
 ers by using such 
 facts as were com- 
 mon to their every- 
 d a y life. In St. 
 John X. I, we have a 
 true and beautiful 
 allusion to the sheep 
 and their shepherd. In the Holy Land, where he was 
 talking, flocks of sheep were then and are now seen. Such 
 flocks of sheep consist perhaps of a hundred or more sheep 
 and lambs. The shepherd has a name for every one, and his 
 peculiar way of calling them, and they follow him; but a 
 stranger's voice frightens them and they run away. Some- 
 times a little lamb thoughtlessly skips here and there 
 until it wanders away and is lost. But the shepherd 
 knows the number as well as the name of each one of the 
 flock. So he leaves the ninety and nine with the dog who 
 is trained to care for them, and goes to seek the lost one. 
 When it is found, tired and frightened, how tenderly he 
 8 113 
 
114 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 takes it up, and opening the front of his Icjose gown or 
 frock, with what gentle tenderness he puts the little lamb 
 inside against his warm heart; and its bleatings cease, 
 and the weary eyes close in sleep. 
 
 God's will is worked out in a way that often astonishes 
 even those who serve him. When Joseph's brethren, to 
 get rid of him, sold him into bondage in Egypt, they 
 little thought that they were thereby providing him a home. 
 For Joseph's sake, and because they were a thrifty race, 
 Pharaoh invited them through him to settle in Egypt. 
 And Joseph told them to ask for the land of Goshen, 
 which was a goodly land, and as shepherds were an abomi- 
 nation to the Egyptians, he knew it would be granted to 
 them, and it was. And there they kept their sheep, as 
 their descendants did in the days when Christ was 
 on earth; when he was their shepherd and they were 
 the sheep. Abel was a shepherd, for when the first- 
 ling of his flock was accepted he lost his life. That 
 shows u§ that even before the time that the sons of Jacob 
 kept their sheep in Goshen there were shepherds and 
 sheep. 
 
 The Messiah is often called a shepherd. Isaiah speaks 
 thus of him: " He shall feed his flock like a shepherd; he 
 shall gather the lambs with his arms and carry them in 
 his bosom." And in another place we read: "Awake, 
 O sword, against the shepherd and against the man that 
 is my fellow, saith the Lord of hosts: smite the shepherd, 
 and the sheep shall be scattered and I will turn mine 
 hand upon the little ones." Paul writes to the Hebrews, 
 calling Jesus the " great shepherd of the sheep." And 
 St. Peter tells the elders of the churc that " when the 
 chief shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of 
 glory that fadeth not away." 
 
 So the dear shepherd, Jesus, cares for the sheep, not 
 only for the strong ones, but the tender lambs, those 
 whose feet easily tire; who faint by the wayside; the 
 very ones who wander away into strange fields, and for 
 whom the shepherd has to seek. Is it not a pleasant 
 thought, that we belong to him? Will it not be safe to 
 be folded when the night of death comes, by one who 
 knows each one by name? Is it not now worth while to 
 learn to know and obey that gentle voice that in the 
 
IN THE shepherd's CARE. 
 
ii6 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 day the sheep are divided from the goats will say: 
 "Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom 
 prepared for you from the foundation of the world." 
 And is it not the highest wisdom so to live that we may 
 be among the number who shall then go into life eternal ? 
 " The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want; he maketh 
 me to lie down in green pastures; he leadeth me beside 
 the still waters." What a joyful home heaven will be 
 when, having found all the lost sheep that he came to save, 
 the shepherd shall bring them rejoicing to that blissful 
 place, into which we are assured that there shall in no 
 wise enter anything that defileth, neither shall 
 there be any need of the light of the sun, for the light of 
 our blessed Saviour's countenance will fill the whole place 
 with joy and with light. 
 
THE WHEAT AND THE TARES. 
 
 ruts into which 
 cover, and that 
 
 ARVRSTS are the result of 
 seed sowing. Good harvests 
 can result only from sowing 
 good seed and by properly 
 preparing the soil. Every 
 farmer knows that he must 
 plough, and perhaps subsoil, 
 before he can reasonably ex- 
 pect a crop. The earth gets 
 tired of producing, and by 
 running the subsoil plough 
 deep into the clay and turn- 
 ing it over, he is opening up 
 the rain will fall, and which the snow will 
 when the spring days are here, the ground 
 
ii8 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 will be so invigorated that it will bring forth abundance 
 for the harvest. 
 
 So the seed is sown in good time. The sun by day and 
 the dew by night fall upon it: it has to die to live; the 
 seed germinates, the blade appears, and springing up, the 
 wheat forms heads; they fdl, they swell, they turn to a 
 golden yellow, and lo! the time for the harvest is near. 
 The farmer's toil is I'ewarded when his men, swinging the 
 cradle to the monotony of their harvest song, lay great 
 swaths of wheat in even rows up and down the field. 
 Then the binders come and bind the grain, stacking the 
 wheat that it may be carried to the barn where the grain 
 is threshed, and the wheat separated from the tares, which 
 are burned. 
 
 Is there no lesson for us in all this? Christ said that 
 the field is the world, and Christians were compared to 
 the wheat ; and among the wheat Satan sows tares. Day 
 follows day; the weeks, months, years roll together, and 
 the Christian life is being developed. The love of Christ 
 is at first only as the little wheat grain, but if the germ 
 of sincerity is in it, it will at last come to the full fruition 
 of the life eternal. 
 
 It is a great comfort to know, when Satan desires to sift 
 us as wheat, that the Saviour has prayed for us that our 
 faith fail not. How is it, are the tares springing up among 
 the wheat? Are you fearing that when "his fan is in his 
 hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor, and will 
 gather the wheat into his garner," you may be found as 
 the chaff? Has Satan sown the tares of sin in your heart, 
 so that the good seed is well nigh choked? Weed them 
 out before they are well rooted. Ask the dear Lord to 
 help you, and never grow weary until they are burned. 
 
 The path is rough, my father! Many a thorn 
 Has pierced me; and my feet all torn 
 And bleeding, mark the way. Vet thy command 
 Bids me press forward. Father, take my hand. 
 
 Then safe and blest, O lead to rest, 
 Lead to rest, lead to rest, 
 
 O lead to rest Thy child! 
 
GOD'S SPECIAL CARE. 
 
 OD'S special care extends over all his works 
 and to each one of his creatures. We can 
 begin at the lowest point, and trace his 
 care up to the highest creations. Not even 
 a sparrow falls to the ground without his 
 notice. We may pluck a daisy from the 
 midst of a meadow full of them, or we 
 may g:4ther a hundred, and we shall find each one of them 
 as carefully shaped and as complete in all its parts as if it 
 were the only object of God's creation. May we not then 
 trust his care for us? Untold myriads of just such perfect 
 flowers are created and die every year in solitudes where 
 no human eye beholds them, not only beautiful and per- 
 fect, but under the microscope showing a delicacy and 
 care of construction which, while it increases our wonder, 
 shows that God has bestowed his direct care upon each. 
 We may look at the animal kingdom, the thousands of 
 beasts and birds which never knew human care. They 
 are every one the special objects of God's care. The 
 sparrow chirping on the hedge during the stormy winter 
 does not fall to the ground without our Father's knowl- 
 edge. He feedeth the young ravens and the young lions 
 which cry for lack of food. He giveth them their meat 
 in due season. 
 
 119 
 
THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 And then, rising to the rational creation, to man, he 
 careth for each one of us. Jesus spoke of God's care in 
 clothing the flowers and feeding the animals as a proof of 
 his special care for human beings. We have been made 
 capable of knowing and loving him, and we need his care. 
 Whoever we may be, whatever our circumstances, we may 
 be sure that God cares for us, not only in the mass, but 
 individually we have his regard. He calls every one of 
 us by name, and distinguishes each by special dealings. 
 Every soul has an individual life, and an individual his- 
 tory ; then, as we are each a separate creation, so we are 
 each a separate care to God. We are shut out from fel- 
 low creatures in the seclusion of individuality that we 
 may be shut in more closely with God. We differ from 
 others that God may deal with each of us personally, that 
 he may know us, love us, watch over us individual 1}'. 
 God gives us special care, because he needs various 
 workers. 
 
 Each of us is sent into the world to do some particular 
 work in some special place, and the very specialty of each 
 one's experience brings things to him in an aspect which 
 cannot be exactly the same to any other. What a thought 
 of precious comfort, that each one of us is the object of 
 God's care as much as if we were the only being in the 
 universe. Surely it is a balm for every sorrow, to think 
 that we may cast ourselves and our burdens upon God's 
 infinite care. 
 
THE CHRISTIAN'S POSSESSIONS. 
 
 AUL says "All things are yours." And 
 when we consider the matter it would 
 seem as if there were nothing on earth 
 or in heaven, in time or eternity, to 
 which the Christian cannot lay claim. 
 Estimate religion as a matter of profit 
 and see if it does not pay. Test it, 
 weigh it, measure it, learn what is in it, and see if godli- 
 ness is net profitable. Is it degrading to religion to ap- 
 peal in this way to selfishness? Not altogether, though, 
 it is not of course the highest motive, but it is an appeal 
 that we often meet in the Bible. Salvation is called the 
 pearl of great price; the hid treasure; the one thing need- 
 ful. Godliness is profitable; all things belong to the 
 Christian. When men ask. What is religion worth? is it 
 profitable? will it pay? Religion takes her stand on that 
 level and says, I give all things to those who buy me. 
 
 121 
 
THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 What do we find in the catalogue of Christianity's treas- 
 ures? We find not only death and things to come, but 
 also the world and life and present things; it gives prom- 
 ise of the life that now is as well as the life that is to 
 come. We are surprised when we see that the world is 
 mentioned first in the list of the Christian's possessions. 
 Are we not to give up everything for Christ, and what have 
 we in the world? Here we are mistaken; it is only our 
 sins that we must give up, so there is nothing in the world 
 which does not belong to the Christian, save that which is 
 a bane and an incumbrance; and for everything that he 
 gives up he receives twofold more even in this present 
 world. Life and all that makes it good and joyous and 
 glorious belongs also to the Christian. He will never ask, 
 with the wearied pleasure- seeker. Is life worth living? 
 His life is linked with the infinite, is full of fresh joy, is 
 sacred to earnest work, and goes on into eternity. The 
 Christian's life has a side that satisfies the soul. All who 
 are busy by day and weary at eventide need the bright 
 radiance of salvation, a true spiritual religion which will 
 enter into every relation and transaction of toil, and not 
 only regulate them, but give energy of heart and strength 
 to fulfil them. 
 
 The present life is the Christian's in the noblest, high- 
 est sense, and will be until it is merged in the Sabbath life 
 of eternity. Death, too, is the Christian's, for to one 
 whose life has been hid with Christ in God death is an 
 ally, a servant, a ministering spirit who comes to open the 
 radiant gates of an eternal world to the immortal soul. 
 Death is gain to the Christian, for it ushers him into the 
 joys of things to come. The treasures laid up in heaven, 
 they, too, are the Christian's. When mortal life is ended, 
 with its scheming and its planning, the things to come are 
 his eternal reward, and we cannot put in words the mean- 
 ing of this climax nor sum up the value of the inheritance 
 of the saints in light. All things are ours, through Christ. 
 
^y 
 
 f/.'' 
 
 BURDEN-BEARING. 
 
 01) will let us bear our burdens all by our- 
 selves, if we are determined to do so. He 
 has promised to sustain and help only 
 those who cast off on him their troubles 
 and cares. Those of us who will not 
 heed this promise, but prefer to go about 
 ^_. _ laden down with griefs and perplexities, 
 
 ^^ will be permitted to do so. This thought 
 
 is one which should prove of great value from its truthful- 
 ness and sound sense. God, all merciful and kind as he is 
 is not going to force us to accept the gracious promises ot 
 his word The Word abideth forever, and every promise 
 is sure and steadfast, but it is only whosoever will that 
 can be benefited thereby. The will and purpose of the 
 individual determines whether in each case the comfort can 
 be applied and divine aid accepted. Many a sutferer 
 from physical disability, after having tested the healing 
 
 123 
 
124 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 power of some potent remedy, has been heard to declare, 
 "Had I dreamed of the virtue contained in such medicine, 
 I might have experienced this unspeakable relief long ago; 
 but I had no faith in its efficacy until driven to give it a 
 trial." In many cases God allows his children to be 
 brought into places where they must exercise some faith, 
 or sink in despair. At such times, how repeatedly faith 
 has proved itself indeed an anchor to the soul ; yet the 
 wonder and the pity is that such lessons can be forgotten, 
 and the old habit is continually resorted to of trying to 
 rid the shoulders of burdens too heavy to be borne, in some 
 other way than by casting all our care on him who careth 
 for us. The Bible is not taken literally enough, even by 
 staunch believers in its doctrines. So cramped and ham- 
 pered is the human heart and understanding by earthly 
 and everyday-life surroundings, that it would seem as if 
 an impression existed that the all-powerful Father in 
 heaven was hampered too, and his power bounded by 
 natural events. 
 
 It is a helpful, wholesome thing to let the mind dwell 
 on the limitless power of God. Keep the thought by you, 
 that God is always a very present helper. Do not wait 
 until the stress of some extreme experience forces you to 
 think of faith and trust as a last resort. Here is comfort 
 and help for every day's needs, freely offered, and ready to 
 be bestowed if you will only will to avail yourself of the 
 blessing. In time of trial think to yourself, " Well, now, 
 how useless to attempt carrying this heavy burden unaided 
 and alone, when God Almighty waits to be gracious and 
 wants to assist me." Only a personal test of what is 
 meant by "divine assistance" can ever prove its great 
 value. The lamentable tendency of many of the lax 
 doctrines of the present day is, undeniably, to weaken a 
 literal acceptance of many of the truths of the Bible. 
 Christians cannot be too watchful, lest through too gen- 
 eral and impersonal views they fail to apply the promises 
 of God when and where their help is most needed. Prove 
 these things for yourselves; "taste and see that the Lord 
 is good." Make an honest, prayerful effort to cast your 
 burden, what ever it may be, on the Lord, and your heart 
 will be filled with gratitude at finding how divinely you 
 will be sustained. 
 
A SPIRITUAL ATMOSPHERE. 
 
 " The feeble soul, a haunt of fears, 
 Forgot his weakness in thy sight." 
 
 PR] N I T Y and 
 
 spirituality go 
 hand in hand. 
 I he theme, as 
 g 1 \ e n above 
 and as we wish 
 to present it, 
 has no relation 
 to atmospheric 
 conditions i n 
 our natural 
 world, either in 
 Its ordinary 
 phases of the air 
 w e breathe, or 
 m its phenom- 
 enal appear- 
 ances. It was 
 suggested by 
 the story of an 
 experience that comprehends that last change which 
 awaits us all. This story was of a brave soul — a faith- 
 ful, earnest, inspiring minister of the gospel — one who 
 had a message,and who felt the "Woe is me," until he 
 delivered it. That man battled for his life against the 
 advance messengers of consumption. Repulsed again and 
 
 125 
 
126 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 again, he fought like a hero, until at last his strong 
 spirit was obliged to recognize the truth that further 
 resistance to the law of decay must be useless. 
 
 Then, from the sharp agony of the acceptance of the fact 
 that he could never hope to stand again in any pulpit to 
 hold up Christ to needy souls, could not hope to extend 
 his earthly love and care over a large family of children 
 through their years of development, came to this brave 
 soul a beautiful and rare experience. He began to cast 
 his spiritual eyes over toward the fair country of sure 
 ease from care and pain, and he saw things there that he 
 described not in words, for they were to him, as to that 
 vision-seer of the long ago, unspeakable; but he had so 
 taken them into himself that they became a part of his per- 
 sonality, so far that it created an atmosphere for even his 
 family. 
 
 "I do not understand how a fond wife has strength to 
 bear the trial of seeing such a husband gradually fade be- 
 fore her eyes," remarked one to whom the story was told. 
 "The secret lies in being able to get into this spiritual 
 atmosphere, " answered the other. "Ah, yes!" answered 
 one who had listened; but there was a tugging at the 
 heart-strings as she remembered how her own loved one 
 had at one time been for weeks at the border-land of this 
 mysterious country, and had looked over, and how she her- 
 self had not been able to recognize the atmosphere, if, in- 
 deed, it had surrounded him. Her loved one had not died, 
 he had been saved, it seemed under protest, yet saved to 
 her longer. After the caller had departed, her words with 
 regard to this spiritual atmosphere lingered with the wife, 
 and she said within herself, " I'll ask John about it when he 
 comes." 
 
 When John at last came in he seemed to bring a fresh 
 breeze with him, and taking his seat by the side of the 
 window where his wife sat, waited for a word from her. 
 After a long silence from the little woman, John looked 
 steadily into her face, and noticing her in a brown study, 
 asked: "Has anything serious happened, little wife?" 
 "Oh, no, John," the wife answered, "only — only I was 
 thinking about an — atmosphere, that was all." 
 
 John opened his eyes and gave a long look out of the 
 window, where everything seemed sombre and gray under 
 
A SPIRITUAL ATMOSPHERE. 127 
 
 the influence of the gathering forces of the storm. It was 
 plainly to be seen that John was very far from conceiving 
 of the altitude of his wife's vision. Turning his eyes again 
 to her face, he caught the perplexed, far-away expression 
 that rested there, and remarked: "I really do not under- 
 stand you, my wife. " Then she told him all she had heard 
 with regard to the atmosphere which the dying man had 
 made in his home, and added: "I have been a little puz- 
 zled, John, when I remembered that there seemed no such 
 atmosphere in your sick room when you were very near to 
 death, or was it that I could not get into it ?" 
 
 " I am sure that there was no atmosphere of this kind, 
 my wife. This brave man of whom you speak has nothing 
 more to do with the world's work, his interests lie iicna on 
 the other side. Whilst he was fighting for his life his 
 energy made an atmosphere peculiar to itself that inspired 
 others with courage; now that his" rest awaitshim, he lives 
 in anticipation of it. He is really tarrying in the land of' 
 Beulah." 
 
 Among our memories there is one of a New England 
 town whose leading church was an exceedingly proper 
 church, its standard of propriety being as old as its edi- 
 fice. To this church, for many 3^ears, one had ministered 
 according to a flawless theological code, as the church 
 members regarded it, and had never once preached a ser- 
 mon that had shocked their sense of propriety. But there 
 was no spiritual atmosphere in that ministry. Never had 
 the people been bidden to tarry whilst the good man went 
 up into the mount. To be sure they had never been left 
 to the temptation of making idols after their own devis- 
 ing. But, in the end, would it not have been well if they 
 had been left for a time, and been shocked by finding their 
 own weakness, if the thunder and lightning from the mount 
 could have been heard and seen by them, and, at last, the 
 good old doctor could have come back, not the proper 
 minister that went up, but a man with a shining face, 
 an inspired man, bearing the law — a sacred mission — that 
 he had received from the Lord himself? The preacher let 
 things take their course because he disliked to disturb the 
 old order of things by a new atmosphere. 
 
 After his removal by death a young man without much 
 experience in the ministry, but with a spiritual experience 
 
128 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 daily deepening through communion with the Master, came 
 to minister to this people. Those who, hungering and 
 thirsting, had been waiting for the revelation of God, 
 breathed a new, deep life; but those wedded to traditions 
 began to feel uneasy, and to compare his preaching with 
 the old standard, first to find fault with his theology, and 
 at last w4th his motives, until this man with a needed mes- 
 sage found it best to leave the church, where so few seemed 
 to be able to breathe in the atmosphere which he created; 
 but his atmosphere remains for the benefit of those whose 
 spiritual lungs were healthy — until this day. 
 
 Through all the callings of life the true worker distin- 
 guishes himself by a power that creates an atmosphere — 
 too rarefied often for those who are diseased, yet it is not 
 his to question whether the majority will feel exhilarated 
 by it. It is his to ask only : " Is it the Spirit's bidding ?" 
 Such an one, obeying this spiritual necessity, can never 
 ask whether his words and work will make him popular, 
 never can speculate whether his singular life will place 
 him on the side of failure, as the world has it; and when 
 he sees worldly friends turning away because of the "at- 
 mosphere," he may, in the loneliness of his own soul, cry 
 out, as did the great spiritual Teacher: " Will ye also go 
 away ?" Yet if he persists in faithfully declaring the whole 
 truth, he will finally stand forth victor and king, in the 
 highest realm of conception, and receive his crown and 
 reward hereafter. 
 
 |[mi»lil:»!Mll>iiliiililiiiil.wliifiibJalklliMlliiiii!iHM^^^^^ 
 
A GOOD NAME, 
 
 F a truth " A good name in 
 man or woman is the 
 immediate jewel of 
 their souls." Strange 
 how often the jewel is 
 bartered for a mess of 
 pottage. Happy is he 
 who makes choice of a good name at the beginning of life 
 and keeps it to the end. 
 
 Mackenzie writes, "As a rill from a fountain increases 
 as it flows, — rises into a stream, — swells into a river, so 
 symbolically are the origin and course of a good name. 
 At first its beginning is small ; it takes its rise from home, 
 its natural source; extends to the neighborhood, stretches 
 through the community, and finally takes a range propor- 
 tioned to the qualities by which it is supported ; its talents, 
 virtue, and usefulness the surest basis of an honorable 
 reputation." 
 
 " I had a good name until I became so greedy for gold," 
 wept a young man in his prison cell, and his cry might be 
 echoed over the length and breadth of the land. Bacchus 
 once offered Midas his choice of gifts. He asked that 
 whatever he might touch should be changed to gold. 
 Bacchus consented, though sorry that he had not made a 
 better choice. Midas went his way, rejoicing in his newly 
 acquired power, which he hastened to put to the test. He 
 could scarcely believe his eyes when he found that a twig 
 of an oak which he had plucked became gold in his hand. 
 He took up a stone, it changed to gold. He touched a sod, 
 
 9 I2g 
 
I30 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 it did the same. He took an apple from a tree you would 
 have thought he had robbed the garden of the Hesperides. 
 His joy knew no bounds, and when he got home he ordered 
 the servants to set a splendid repast on the table. Then 
 he found to his dismay that whether he touched bread it 
 hardened in his hand, or put a morsel to his lips it defied 
 his teeth. He took a glass of wine, but it became liquid 
 gold. In consternation, fearing starvation, he held up 
 his arms to Bacchus and besought him to take back his 
 gift. Bacchus said: " Go to the River Pactol us, trace the 
 stream to its fountain-head, then plunge your head and 
 body in, and wash away your fault and its punishment." 
 Hence Midas learned to hate wealth and splendor and to 
 prize a good name only. 
 
 So we say to those who have chosen gold or anything 
 else rather than a good name. They will surely yet regret 
 their choice. The only remedy is to go to the fountain- 
 head, Christ Jesus, and there be washed whiter than snow. 
 
GOD'S DISCIPLINE. 
 
 WELL-KNOWN artist 
 once described the sensa- 
 tions with which he wit- 
 nessed the burning of a 
 lawn. To his practiced 
 eye the grass was a picture 
 of verdure as it swayed to 
 and fro in the brisk spring 
 breeze. True, there were 
 spots where it was not 
 quite as even as it might 
 have been, and despite its 
 general greenness small 
 patches of brown showed 
 here and there. Yet the 
 whole effect was one of 
 freshness and beauty, and 
 it seemed unwise to burn to the earth so much that was 
 pleasant to look upon. The artist ventured a remonstrance. 
 " My friend," said the gardener, " if you come this way 
 in the summer, I shall be glad to show you the effect of 
 to-day's scorching and withering along the lawn." 
 
 "And," added the artist, "I did visit the spot in the 
 summer, and I never trod a turf of such velvet softness, 
 such perfect evenness and such living green before. " The 
 man acquainted with the imperfections and needs of the 
 soil understood perfectly what the effect of that scathing 
 process would be, and his art, seemingly so unwise to the 
 untaught, was that of an expert, and the wisest possible. 
 Who of us has not been interested and amused in watch- 
 ing the methods of a mother bird, in teaching her birdlings 
 how to fly. It often becomes necessary for their tender 
 little mothers to push the helpless creatures from the nest 
 in order to force them to use their wings, being uncon- 
 
 131 
 
THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 scious of possessing such things until forced to discover 
 and use them. The lessons imposed upon the young during 
 school days, and the restrictions of parents and teachers, 
 are often seemingly arbitrary and needless. But who 
 would desire to witness the conduct of an undisciplined 
 child? If discipline is necessary in forming the outward 
 conduct, how much more in forming and perfecting the 
 Christian character! 
 
 The Scriptures from beginning to end form a continuous 
 story of the fiery discipline God exercised over the people 
 and nations of the Bible times. But the results invariably 
 justify and prove the wisdom of the measures employed. 
 
 Paul, in his fatherly exhortations to the Hebrews, 
 charges them not to faint when rebuked of the Lord. 
 Christ tells his followers plainly that in the world they 
 shall have tribulation, and tribulation and discipline we 
 understand here as synonymous terms. Trouble and trials 
 are sure to yield the peaceable fruit of righteousness to 
 all who are properly exercised thereby. Out from every 
 form and kind of discipline comes renewed and pure en- 
 joyment to the child of God. The great training school 
 of God's providences yields many rare and valuable prizes. 
 There are many sweets along the way. Discipline is 
 merely temporary, and is strictly discipline, not punish- 
 ment. Accept it as a good soldier — and many times be- 
 fore the final crown of victory adorns the brow, there will 
 be flowers and sunshine to reward the patient endurance. 
 
A PREPARED LIFE. 
 
 T is such an overwhelming comfort to know 
 that our life with its flashes of happiness, 
 its vicissitudes, its cares, its sorrows and 
 perplexities, has been prepared for us by 
 ' the dear Father, who alone knows what is 
 best for us. Trusting him, we cannot be 
 surprised on the turning of any corner by 
 meeting any emergencies beyond our power to endure; for 
 with the emergency comes the grace that we need, the fit- 
 ting of the back to the burden. 
 
 From the cradle to the grave our life is one of progres- 
 sion; we cannot stand still, for as the shuttle flies, so our 
 days and weeks fly past us, carrying their record with 
 them, as we keep on to the close. We make many mis- 
 
 133 
 
134 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 takes, great and small, and there is left many a gap in 
 the symmetry of our lives, but the Father is quite able to 
 weave out of them a beautiful whole; we make plans but 
 do not finish them; we commence to build but are not 
 able to complete. We sit before the wheel, and as the 
 shuttle flies, dragging the threads of warp and woof 
 through the loom, sometimes a thread breaks, and the 
 fabric is imperfect, and although it may be so joined to- 
 gether as to be imperceptible to the unpractised eye, yet 
 the break is there, and makes a blemish. 
 
 God's work is without wrinkle, or spot, ar any such 
 thing. He gathers up the ravelled ends, smooths the dis- 
 jointed work, and we become complete in him who died 
 for us — our Jesus, our Saviour, our Friend. 
 
 Our life is manifestly a life of faith. We believe in 
 the God we see not, yet love. Jesus says: " I am he that 
 liveth, and was dead; and behold I am alive forevermore. " 
 What a comfort it is to believe in a living Christ — not 
 one that was crucified, buried and lost, but one who lives 
 and reigns forever. Thomas was not with the other dis- 
 ciples when Jesus came to them after his resurrection, but 
 he was glad when he saw Jesus, because he could put his 
 finger in the print of the nails which had suspended him 
 from the cross. To-day our Lord is risen, and sits by the 
 right hand of the Father, and we are glad to hear echoing 
 down through these thousands of years the words, " Blessed 
 are they that have not seen, yet have believed." 
 
 Our prepared life has many rough spots in it; we are 
 not promised any full tide of prosperity on which to float 
 to heaven; we cannot expect to be carried upon flowery 
 beds of ease while we await our Lord's coming, so that 
 we can go in to the marriage supper. Stop a moment and 
 think! Would we choose, would we prefer such a life? 
 In ordering the golden vessels for the tabernacle they 
 were to be of beaten gold. The ore was to be melted, 
 beaten, burnished, worked, until it was strong and beauti- 
 ful. What does an uncultivated garden produce but 
 weeds? What good would a life that was inert, unpro- 
 ductive, undisciplined, do for character ? We know that 
 "character groweth day by day, and all things aid it in 
 unfolding." That little word "all " holds a vast amount 
 of meaning for us: it means our cares, little troubles, 
 
136 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 slips, mistakes, trials, joys; and every one of them aids 
 in unfolding character — our character — that will never be 
 fully developed until in heaven we no longer see darkly. 
 In the light from the throne we shall also see that every 
 trial is allowed by the gracious love of the Father, who 
 in preparing our life filled it full to overflowing of mercy, 
 help and love. 
 
 We will not then regret the blind eyes that now trouble 
 us, and if we could return there would no longer be any 
 cry upon our lips except, "Lord! that I might receive my 
 sight to behold the wonderful things that thou art ever 
 showering upon the path of our prepared life." Beloved, 
 now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear 
 what we shall be: but we know when he shall appear, we 
 shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. 
 
A CITY OF REFUGE. 
 
 N the Bible we are told that when a man 
 accidentally killed another, God ordered 
 Moses to furnish him with a place or city 
 of refuge to which he might flee and where 
 he might remain in safety. 
 
 Of such cities there were three on each 
 side of Jordan, as can be seen by Joshua xx. 7. On the 
 
 137 
 
138 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 west Kedesh of Napthali, Shechem and Hebron; on the 
 east Golan, Ramoth-Gilead and Bezer. These cities of 
 refuge were not only for the children of Israel, but for all 
 strangers who resided in the country. It was not contrary 
 to God's will that the injured should seek r-evenge. Moses 
 says: " An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth." He did 
 not therefore forbid the desire for redress, but provided a 
 place of refuge to which the accidental slayer could run. 
 It is said by some writers that good roads and sign-posts 
 were made to facilitate the escape. After the escape re- 
 venge is said to have been sought upon some member of 
 the slayer's family; and thus feuds were kept alive for 
 thirty and forty years. 
 
 Among the nations of antiquity the temple, especially 
 the horns of the altar, were supposed to be guarantees of 
 safety; but in some cases the Hebrews in violation of this 
 dragged the culprit even from the altar and put_ him to 
 death. 
 
 When Joab was flying from King Solomon he "caught 
 hold upon the horns of the altar. " But thereat the king's 
 command he was slain. 
 
 We have not perhaps killed any one, but sinners as we 
 are, do not we need a city of refuge to which we can flee? 
 In Heb. iv. i8 we find that a refuge has been furnished 
 for us. Wherefore, "that by two immutable things, in 
 which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a 
 strong consolation who have fled for refuge to lay hold 
 upon the hope set before us: which hope we have as an 
 anchor to the soul, both sure and steadfast, which enter- 
 eth into that within the veil." 
 
 ■ What more can we want or need ? Christ overcomes the 
 law, stands between us and an avenging God, and with 
 his dear arms shields us from every harm through time and 
 eternity. 
 
"WATCH!" 
 
 HORT and emphatic as is this 
 command of our Saviour, it in- 
 volves a whole volume of cau- 
 tion and warning. To make it 
 the more impressive he extends 
 the injunction to make it reach 
 and apply to all readers of the 
 Scriptures for all time to come. 
 " And what I say unto you, I say 
 unto all, watch I " This watchful- 
 ness was not meant to be put into 
 practice merely at an hour when 
 the thief or when death might be 
 expected, but it was to prove a 
 safeguard at all times. The exact 
 time of peril is rarely known, so 
 the only safe way is to be continu- 
 ally on guard. But the watchful- 
 ness of which the Saviour speaks 
 is far more comprehensive, we take 
 it, than would at first appear. The 
 caution is one not only for the 
 time of danger, of death, but 
 ^^^T ^">1) '^ '■' should stand by as a kind of watch- 
 -^^\ ••^~?'^'^^^ word for life. Years ago a teacher, 
 wrote in our copy-book at school 
 a motto which has followed one pupil, at least, through 
 life thus far: "Learn to live as you would wish to die." 
 This involves a rule which if followed will make life 
 worth living, will rob death of all terror, and rid the mind 
 of all forebodings as to the future. 
 
 A life of watchfulness is a life of safety. There is a 
 very strong lesson for parents to be found in this brief, 
 sharp text of Scripture. Parents often wonder where their 
 children have learned certain things they have never taught 
 them, and where they have acquired certain habits and 
 
 139 
 
I40 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 tendencies never learned at home. The old alarum, the 
 " watch" of the Bible, has been mated to a degree by the 
 phrase " eternal vigilance" of late years. And if eternal 
 vigilance, which is only a longer term for the word watch- 
 fulness, is the price of peace and safety in a worldly sense, 
 the same conditions apply in matters of vital and spiritual 
 importance. 
 
 The trouble too often is that parents relax a strict watch 
 over their children before they have sense enough to dis- 
 cern just what is right and what is wrong, and before 
 they have strength to resist temptation. If only every 
 mother blest with the care of little children would take 
 time at night to ask a few searching questions, it would 
 be a great help toward keeping the little feet in the right 
 path. Ask a child gently and lovingly at bedtime if it 
 has said or -done anything during the day which it thinks 
 mamma would be sorry to know. Try it. Night is an 
 impressive time to susceptible childhood, the hour favor- 
 able for frank confessions and tender confidences. It very 
 often would be a great relief to unburden the heart of 
 some little conscious sin. Get at the child's heart and 
 have it in your keeping, then keep over it an eternal 
 watch, that is, in so far as the word eternal can apply to 
 the bounds of time. 
 
 As the children grow older try to know just where they 
 spend their time when out of the house. Make the attrac- 
 tions of home so great that when evening comes it will be 
 the rule to stay in, and the exception to go away from 
 home in quest of entertainment or pleasure. And then — 
 a matter of great importance — know what they are reading, 
 and be sure to know who is the author of the books they 
 read. It will take time to give the mind a taste for the 
 right kind of reading, but a relish once formed for only 
 good books will almost invariably prove an abiding one. 
 Watch at every point and at all times. Watch even as 
 you would pray, without ceasing. Watchfulness is not 
 peevish anxiety. It is not a restless prying about with 
 troubled eyes. It should be a calm, never-ending vigil- 
 ance, an earnest, persevering effort to see and judge wisely 
 our own desires, motives, and deeds, and also those of the 
 children committed to our care. It is to adopt as our 
 motto the watchword given us by Jesus, our Master. 
 
GOD'S INSTRUMENTS. 
 
 full we 
 
 §^^01) uses very humble instruments 
 ~ to carry out his great works. Gid- 
 eon had but an empty pitcher and 
 a lamp, yet he put to flight with 
 them the host of Midian. With 
 an oxgoad Shamgar defeated 
 the Philistines, and with a rude 
 si mo- David slew the giant Goliath 
 Simple instruments these to accomplish such 
 great results, and by a no less simple instru- 
 ment God works out the salvation of mankind. 
 Bv the foolishness of preaching he saves 
 them that believe. What has the preacher? 
 Only a small vantage on the side of God, 
 e have been exposed for six days together to 
 ight of the world's temptation. Only a short 
 141 
 
142 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 hearing for a matter of life and death — but some thirty 
 minutes to get at the separate hearts of men, to convince 
 them of all their weaknesses, to shame them for all their 
 sins, to warn them of all their dangers, to try by this way 
 and that to stir the hard fastenings of those doors where 
 the Master himself has stood and knocked, yet none has 
 opened, and to call at the openings of those dark streets 
 where wisdom herself has stretched forth her hands and 
 no man regarded. 
 
 Who is the preacher? an angel? No, though he might 
 have been. Every Sabbath morning the windows of 
 heaven might have opened, and into every sanctuary of 
 eafth a shining messenger might have been sent into 
 the pulpit, and when he had veiled his glory with his 
 wings, might have taken up the wondrous theme of Jesus 
 and his love. Gladly would the angels do it, if com- 
 manded, for such is the work they love. Rather than 
 fill the highest earthly throne, an angel would feel hon- 
 ored to fill a pulpit and tell the story of the cross. But 
 such is not their mission. While they are deeply inter- 
 ested in the success of Christ's cause, while their wonder- 
 ing eyes are upon the sinner who can resist the Saviour's 
 love, while they make heaven's arches ring with trium- 
 phant songs over one sinner that repenteth, rejoicing in 
 the salvation of a soul even more than mortals do, yet 
 their interest is at best only the watching of spectators. 
 
 Crowding the corridors of heaven they look down with 
 eager eyes and beating hearts as the battle rages here and 
 there, Satan and his forces on one side, men and the cross 
 on the other. As we fight against principalities and 
 powers and rulers of darkness, they love to see us buckle 
 the armor tighter, grasp the sword more firmly, and lift 
 up the cross more valiantly. But they are not permitted 
 to lend a hand to help, else gladly would they leave the 
 heights of heaven, and, lighting on the sanctuary, sound 
 a trumpet note of encouragement which would thrill the 
 pulses of the languid, and inspire new life in the 
 wounded. Eagerly would they raise this or that fallen 
 brother, tenderly would they bind up wounds where the 
 arrows of the adversary had struck, and zealously would 
 they enlist new recruits, furnishing them with the helmet 
 of salvation, and putting in their hands the sword of the 
 
144 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 Spirit. Yes, gladly would they do the preacher's work, 
 and honored would they feel to be sent visibly to watch 
 with folded wings beside a sick bed. 
 
 Surely this work of preaching were worthy of an angel's 
 power and eloquence and knowledge, and would seem to 
 demand angelic messengers. But instead of this, in the 
 pulpit is placed a poor, frail, dying man, tempted and 
 tried and sinful, living the same life his hearers live, 
 beset with the same infirmities, needing the same salva- 
 tion. Surely this is an humble instrument which God 
 has chosen; the treasure of the Gospel is committed to 
 earthen vessels, sometimes of the coarsest clay, rude and 
 misshapen. Yet God's wisdom is never so apparent as 
 in this. Who can speak more truly of sin than a sinner? 
 Who can tell so rapturously of pardon as a pardoned man? 
 Who can plead so well for Christ as one for whom Christ 
 pleads? And who can tell so touchingly the story of the 
 cross as one who has been weeping beside it himself? 
 
 The preacher must needs be a man. Those white-robed 
 angels never felt the misery of sin; how could they preach 
 like those who have had experience of guilt, have felt the 
 serpent's sting and have fled to the Rock of Ages for 
 peace, and joy, and life? Men are best fitted to preach a 
 Saviour, to plead with men for God, and with God for 
 men. Truly God hath chosen the foolish things of the 
 world to confound the wise, and the things of earth that 
 are weak and despised, he hath chosen for his instruments, 
 and they accomplish his great purpose no less truly than 
 if he had sent angelic messengers to fulfil his will. 
 
 ^r 
 
 ^^^"^^ 
 
 '\*^ _ 
 
 ■"'^^.^v . 
 
 \ i^-^ 
 
 «Si| 
 
souls, 
 
 IS LIFE WORTH LIVING? 
 
 LAS, how often the old question comes 
 knocking at the door of our tired 
 souls! How many weary, overbur- 
 dened souls have answered it with a 
 terrible negative by peremptorily 
 summoning death without God's sanc- 
 tion. Such awful presumption sends 
 a thrill of horror over even a world- 
 ling. But Christians take a different 
 view^of life from the fact that they 
 believe in love and intelligence at the 
 helm, and even as rowers in a boat turn 
 their'backs to the shore and trust to the 
 man whose eye is fixed upon it, so 
 should we proceed in duty through 
 life — turning our backs from our anx- 
 ious cares for the future, and leaving 
 the guidance of them all to God, who 
 is at the helm. Had these tortured 
 who found life unendurable, trusted in God, they 
 
 lO 
 
 145 
 
146 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 would have been guided safely until the Lord, in his own 
 good time, had called them. 
 
 The root of tne trouble may be, and often is, that peo- 
 ple forget that happiness is ;/^7/ the end of life. If one 
 could remember in life's emergencies that adversity is the 
 true touchstone of merit he might hope to rise above it. 
 
 We can answer without pausing for thought that some 
 lives are not worth living. If every storm weakens us, 
 every breath of wind chills us, every thorn in our path 
 discourages us, every blast from the furnace shrivels, we 
 are faint and weak indeed. One might appropriately com- 
 pare such lives to that of those unhappy victims where the' 
 prisoner Is put in a cell, which, at the first entrance, pre- 
 sents an air of comfort and ease; but after being a few 
 days confined, he observes the dimensions of his chamber 
 beginning to contract and day by day the sides draw 
 closer, till the hapless inmate at last is crushed to death. 
 
 Lives are worth living, if they answer the purpose for 
 which they were given. And such lives, how ineffably 
 sweet and fruitful they are! God's smile beams upon 
 them, and all humanity is conscious of the fact. Some 
 of them, perhaps most of them, are quiet lives — no osten- 
 tation, no bustle and stir, only earnest, faithful, and con- 
 scientious doing of whatever their hands find to do. But 
 "tiniest insects build up loftiest mountains." Broad 
 bands of solid rock which undergird the earth have been 
 welded by the patient, constant toil of invisible creatures, 
 working on through the ages, unhasting, unresting, fulfill- 
 ing their Master's will. On the shores of primeval 
 oceans, watched only by the patient stars, these silent 
 workmen have been building for us and for themselves 
 the structure of the world. 
 
 We ought to begin life as at the source of a river, grow- 
 ing deeper every league to the sea; whereas, in fact, 
 thousands are like men who enter the mouths of rivers and 
 sail upward, finding less and less water everyday; and 
 in old age they lie shrunk and gaping upon the dry ground. 
 If youth is still yours, thank God and build the founda- 
 tions strong, so that you may be able to give an earnest 
 affirmative to the question heading this article. No regret, 
 nor grief, nor remorse, nor desire can regain a lost youth — 
 there is only one spring-time in the year. But whether 
 
75 LIFE WORTH LIVING? 
 
 147 
 
 young or old, we can solve the problem whether life is 
 worth living only by doing all God requires of us, offering 
 our "bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God." 
 The Psalmist answers" Yes" with a chime as sweet as that 
 of silver bells when he says, " The righteous shall flourish 
 like the palm tree; he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. 
 Those that be planted in the house of the Lord, shall 
 flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bring 
 forth fruit in old age." 
 
CHARACTER. 
 
 T has been truthfully said, that 
 character is what a person is, 
 and reputation what he seems 
 to be. Now we are all some- 
 thing, consequently we all 
 have character; we all seem 
 to be something, hence we all 
 have reputation. Each one of 
 us has been endowed with a 
 will-power, enabling him to 
 choose for himself what he 
 will be. One of the last 
 recorded acts of Joshua was 
 to assemble the tribes of Israel 
 at Shechem and say to them, "Choose ye this day whom 
 ye will serve," thus asserting that power of choice rested 
 with the people. This power of choice rests as much with 
 the people now as it did then. Good and evil are in the 
 world; we may choose between them, and according to our 
 choice so will our character be. 
 
 It is of vital importance to ourselves that we choose the 
 good. A good character will tend to give us a good rep- 
 utation; and the wise man said, "A good name is rather 
 to be chosen than riches." It v/ill also keep us from doing 
 much that is wrong, and cause us to do much that is right. 
 A good character is also of importance to others, for it 
 makes one a friend to be relied on when fortune frowns as 
 well as when she smiles. If by any means you chance 
 to be in need, this friend will ever remain firm and ready 
 to lend a helping hand. 
 
 In the formation of character, the study of the Bible 
 and a realization of the truths therein contained, is of the 
 utmost consequence. Train up a child in the way he should 
 go, says Solomon, and when he is old he will not depart 
 
 148 
 
CHARACTER. ^49 
 
 from it. Even the most favored man meets with many 
 difficulties in this life. There are trials to withstand and 
 temptations to overcome; and if the enemy sees himself 
 about to be vanquished he will be ready to effect a com- 
 promise. But a man nefeds the stability of character 
 which will enable him to meet all such proposals with an 
 immediate and unconditional refusal. 
 
 Christ is the great example to be followed. He was firm. 
 After fasting for many days, when he must have been suffer- 
 ing the extreme pangs of hunger, he was tempted of the 
 devil to turn stones into bread; then he was taken to a 
 pinnacle of the temple and tempted to cast himself down; 
 and then he was taken up into a high mountain and shown 
 the kingdoms of the earth, and promised them if he would 
 fall down and worship Satan. But Christ resisted all 
 temptations. He had so great stability theit his character 
 could not be overturned, neither by Satan nor all the 
 powers of darkness. 
 
 The broader we make the foundations of our character 
 on the bed-rock of truth, and the lower their centre of 
 gravity, so far as anger, hate, jealousy, and other wrong 
 emotions are concerned, the greater will be their stability. 
 And if the foundations are very broad and-the centres of 
 gravity very deep, there is but little danger of our char- 
 acter being injured by Satan or any one else. The fifteenth 
 chapter of the Apostle Paul's first letter to the Corinthians 
 closes with these characteristic words, " Therefore, my be- 
 loved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abound- 
 ing in the work o/the Lord, knowing that your labor is 
 not in vain in the Lord." 
 
THE TRIBUTE MONEY. 
 
WILL IT PAY? 
 
 that 
 
 'HE question of gain or loss is one 
 that is always uppermost in 
 men's minds, when they are 
 undertaking any new scheme 
 or engaging in any new pur- 
 suit. "Will it pay?" is the 
 question that arises involun- 
 tarily, and if the question is 
 answered in the negative, 
 it almost invariably decides 
 ~ li ""-.-—- ""' the fate of the undertaking. 
 
 It is not strange, therefore, 
 when we come to the consideration of so solemn a 
 question as that of the soul's salvation this thought comes 
 to our mind. Centuries ago Peter asked the self-same 
 question of our Saviour. " Behold we have forsaken all, 
 and followed thee; what shall we have therefore?" 
 
 It was not much that the disciples had left, only their 
 nets and boats, but it was as much to them, and just as 
 hard to forsake, as the great wealth of the young man who 
 turned away sorrowfully because he could not bring him- 
 self to give it up. They had given up their all, their life 
 and livelihood, and the associations of their youth. They 
 loved the water as all who have lived by it do ; the smooth 
 stretches of Gennesaret formed the dearest spot in the 
 world to them, yet at a word from Christ they had forsaken 
 home and family and occupation; the question now was, 
 What shall we have therefore? 
 
 It is a question w^hich more than one disciple has asked, 
 and a question which stands squarely across the threshold 
 of the Christian life. If we become Christians must we 
 really renounce all the world, and turn aside from all its 
 gains and pleasures? We stand here on ground that must 
 place where Christ meant us thus to stand, but on either ex- 
 treme, the right and the left, there are places of danger. 
 On the one side is a marsh which will sadly hinder the feet 
 
 151 
 
152 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 of a disciple, on the other side is a Vanity Fair where 
 heedless pilgrims are beguiled until they forget the race 
 that is set before them. 
 
 If we look over the one side we shall find a motley throng 
 of hermits, their homes in the dens of the earth ; and of 
 pillar saints, raised high in their isolation; of religious 
 beggars, denying themselves, to live upon frugal charity. 
 These are the products of bygone ages, but they are rein- 
 forced in these later times by a sad sort of Christians, who 
 think if they love Jesus, they must by just so much cease 
 to love their home and family; who are constant-ly mak- 
 ing close examinations to see whether they love their dear 
 ones better than God, and are continually going through 
 a process of getting ready for the wife, or husband, or 
 children to be taken away, which renders them constantly 
 melancholy and sad. But surely this is a mistake. We 
 know that if the ascetics and hermits and their kind of 
 Christianity had continued, the whole world would be 
 wrapped in heathendom to-day, and we know that God or- 
 dained the family relation, and implanted human love in 
 the heart. If there had been so great a conflict between 
 these things and himself, he would not have endowed us 
 so richly. 
 
 God gave us our possessions and comforts, and meant us 
 to enjoy them. Is it reasonable to suppose that because 
 one is a Christian, a follower of Jesus Christ, the very Son 
 of God, he has thereby forfeited all the comforts of life 
 and thrown away all worldly gain? Is it true that every 
 one except Christians can have gold and silver and pleas- 
 ure, and they cannot have them, because they are heirs of 
 heaven? Does God give all his bounties to his enemies 
 and reserve none for his children? This is absurd rea- 
 soning, and any healthy mind can see the folly of it at 
 once. So far from this being true, the fact is that love 
 for God intensifies all our lawful affections, makes hus- 
 band and wife dearer to each other, renders children more 
 loving, and hallows and sanctifies all possessions. 
 
 Of course we cannot expect to accept the Gospel with- 
 out some loss, but let us see what it is that the Christian 
 must give up. Upon examination we find that the Chris- 
 tian need give up nothing which his new heart would want 
 to keep, or would think worth having. He takes with 
 
WILL IT PAVi 
 
 153 
 
 him everything which one's senses have a right to enjoy, 
 and besides this he gets everything that it is possible for 
 the soul to experience, and in the possession of this quick- 
 ened energy and power, can look over the v\orld and say, 
 " He gives me all things richly to enjoy." 
 
 Then what does the Christian sacrifice? Only the 
 things that he is far better without; some pet sins and in- 
 dulgences perhaps, to which his heart clings. But he is 
 far better off without them. You know there can be more 
 of a man when there is less of him. When pride and self- 
 ishness and intemperate desires are abandoned, that which 
 remains of the character is greater and better than the 
 whole mass was before. It costs an effort at first to give 
 them up, but these things must be sacrificed with a ruth- 
 less hand, for they are only blemishes upon a life after 
 all. It is a blessing to get rid of them, even though it 
 cost sacrifice and, struggle, and self-denial. 
 
 When we stand in the great hereafter we shall not be 
 disposed to look back upon or think much of what we have 
 given up for God; we shall see that the gain is infinitely 
 greater than the sacrifice. Against every self-denial and 
 sacrifice that goes down on the debit side, we may put to 
 God's credit the daily and hourly preservations, the mer- 
 cies new every morning and fresh every evening, and the 
 goodness and mercy that have followed us all the days of 
 our lives. 
 
"PEACE, BE STILL!" 
 
 |ERILY, of the height and depth and 
 breadth of God's love no one can 
 fully know. If Christ dwells in our 
 hearts and they are thus rooted and 
 grounded in love, through faith, 
 they will become strong to appre- 
 hend the love of God. Storms of 
 sorrow may come, waves of distress 
 may beat around us, but the dear 
 Lord, who never causes his child a 
 needless tear, knows all about it, 
 and even though we may think that Jesus is asleep, he 
 will say to the waves, "Peace, be still." 
 
 God's love covers all our sins; it hides us in the hollow 
 of his hand; restless and careworn as we are, it shields us 
 beneath the wings of the dove of peace It brings rest to 
 the weary, the entering into the rest that remaineth for 
 the people of God, not after death only, but now, as soon 
 as we choose to claim it. 
 
 God's love abides with us not only now, but always and 
 forevermore; not only for time but eternity. What has 
 God's love done for you? Are you hiding in it from the 
 wrath that belongs to the children of disobedience? Is 
 God's love the precious boon that you- crave above all 
 else? While it is unfathomable, is it also so interwoven 
 with your desires that darkness is made light? 
 
 Do you owe the dear Lord anything? Has he given 
 you life, health, strength, your home, your daily bread? 
 Is it because of God's love that Christ has died for you, 
 that though your sins be as scarlet they may be washed as 
 white as snow? Does he abide with you in the house, 
 walk with you by the wayside, live in you ? Get low down 
 before God, forget self, learn to see only Jesus, and then 
 say, 
 
 " Take my love, my God; I pour 
 At thy feet its treasure store ; 
 Take myself; and I will be 
 Ever, only, all for Thee. 
 All to Thee, all to Thee, 
 Consecrated, Lord, to Thee." 
 
 154 
 
CHRISTIAN CHEERFULNESS. 
 
 ^UCH of the success of life is due 
 to Christian cheerfulness. There 
 is no one whose bistory is not 
 sprinkled here and there with vexa- 
 tions, disappointments, and trials; 
 but then, a cheerful spirit helps 
 wonderfully in bearing them. Sup- 
 pose when the troubles come, you 
 go about with a long face, moan- 
 ing over what hurts you, constantly 
 fretting about your losses, disap- 
 pointments, worrying about what 
 is inevitable. How much do you gain ? What is there at 
 the end of the turmoil of mind that you have raised, but 
 an hundredfold more of trouble than you had before? 
 
 If you so lament and worry, is your life a benediction 
 to any one? x\re you a help to any one who is trying to 
 get on in the Christian life? Do any of God's little ones 
 find strength and' renewed courage from being with you? 
 Are the burdens that are borne on men's shoulders any 
 easier to carry because you try to lift even the least lit- 
 tle corner of them? 
 
 But, you say, " I never harm anybody. I never add to 
 any one's cares. I never hold any one back who is try- 
 ing to get on in the Christian life." Stop a moment and 
 think. Do you exist in a little world that is made for 
 you alone? Then, if you do live in a world of God's 
 creating, a busy world in which every life touches every 
 other, where men and women are striving for daily bread, 
 where the wail of the poor, the hungry, the sinful, is aris- 
 ing in an awful, solemn chorus to the ear? of the dear 
 Father of us all, is it nothing to you? Can you afford, 
 with the realities of eternity staring you in the face, to 
 say, " I am not my brother's keeper?" 
 
 There goes a sad, weary one whose life is full to the 
 brim of anguish, who has not a place in which to lay a 
 tired head, to whom even the sun is veiled in shadow; 
 and sometimes, when eyes ache with looking for some- 
 
 155 
 
156 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 thing better, they are turned upward to heaven to see if 
 even there a ray of comfort may come to pierce the low- 
 ering clouds. And when no answer comes to the ears not 
 attuned to the whispers of the still, small voice, they turn 
 to look at you, and seeing only a gloomy brow and heavy 
 eyes, they are not bettered by the minor chords of your 
 voice, nay, judging from your own lack of cheerfulness, 
 they are persuaded that religion is as comfortless and 
 useless as anything they have tried; and they become 
 reckless, hopeless, and discouraged. 
 
 Go to some of the many missions in the city that are 
 established to help the helpless; see how eagerly they 
 watch those who have a word to speak for Jesus; and 
 above all, see how even for the moment a cheerful face 
 reflects upon their own. A religion which can bring 
 cheerfulness and happiness is surely worth seeking. And 
 so you come to realize what a blessed thing cheerfulness 
 is. It is the reality that puts into every trial and every 
 disappointment the blessed " Lprd's will," that makes 
 them so much easier to bear. 
 
 Cheerfulness must be genuine, not put on as a mask 
 that can be removed at pleasure; it must be the outcome 
 of a healthy soul,- the shining forth of the light that is 
 within you, the real, actual cheerfulness of one who is 
 not insensilDle to the troubles and trials of this life, but 
 who lives above them and endures them with cheerful 
 patience because he is true to hi-s convictions of Christian 
 life beyond. 
 
HE SMTH." 
 
 T seems easy enough to understand that one's 
 life may reach such a degree of anxiety 
 that there is a hopeless outlook as to un- 
 ravelling it. On every side plans are 
 hemmecfin by the/;w and cons; one reason 
 points to a decision in one direction, another 
 reason in another; friends advise one 
 course when our own judgment recom- 
 mends' another; and in a weary, hopeless 
 way we sit down, and wish the mists would 
 clear away that hide the light for which 
 our hearts, as well as our eyes, ache, and 
 we despair more and more as to what is 
 
 best. . , 
 
 In such seasons of deep and sore trial 
 the Christian has a secret pass-word which 
 robs them of all power to harm beyond 
 what we are able to bear. It is the precious words, " He 
 
 saith it is best." , ^ ., j , 
 
 The darkest part of the night is just before the dawn. 
 " Sorrow may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the 
 morning." It is well to look at it in this way, to remem- 
 ber that after a few hours of night, of trial, of suffering, 
 there comes the eternal day. , t . ^ 
 
 At the marriage of Cana in Galilee, when Jesus turned 
 
 157 
 
158 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 water into wine for the needs of the feast, the mother of 
 Jesus said to the servants, "Whatsoever he saith unto 
 you, do it." 
 
 The substance of this comforting thought is thus not 
 only " He saith," — but " whatsoever he saith." Are you 
 to do the whatsoevers of his loving commands? Will 
 you say: 
 
 " Saviour, I weary of this ceaseless mind. 
 
 That needs must spin and spin its tangling thought ; 
 That needs must weave what thou dost bring to naught. 
 Rest I would find! 
 
 "Not thoughts of thee, but thine own self impart! 
 Ever I learn thy precepts and thy way, 
 \<tV l^now not how to follow and obey. 
 Teach thou my heart!" 
 
A STRANGER AND A PILGRIM. 
 
 sj HE Psalmist said of himself: "I am a 
 stranger in the earth." And this 
 world was to him a scene of perpetual 
 warfare. In some sense, and really in 
 the highest sense, this is true of the 
 Christian. Every Christian may adopt 
 the language as his own. We are all 
 strangers here. If we were to cross 
 the ocean and to mingle with the peo- 
 ple of some foreign land, not only 
 would the faces of all be unfamiliar, 
 but they would all be to us of a 
 "strange speech," and in vain should 
 we seek to communicate with one an- 
 other. We should be strangers in a 
 strange land. 
 
 And in yet another important sense 
 we are strangers in the earth. For the 
 most part we are strangers to the inner 
 life of others, to their thoughts and 
 feelings, their joys and sorrows, and they are alike 
 strangers to ours. " Every heart knoweth its own bitter- 
 ness. " The world within ourselves is for the most part 
 known only to God and to our own hearts. It is but 
 little comparatively that others know of our inner lives, 
 our trials, our secret sins; and our efforts to overcome 
 them are known only to the all-searching eye. 
 
 But not only are we strangers in the earth, but we are 
 also pilgrims here. The world is not our home. We are 
 on the march rapidly passing through it. We are hurried 
 on from one stage of the journey to another, and shall 
 soon be gone, and done forever with all earthly things. 
 Truly may we all say: "We are strangers before thee, 
 and sojourners, as were all our fathers; our days on the 
 earth are a shadow, and there is none abiding." Nor 
 would we have it otherwise. The true Christian can truly 
 say — 
 
 " Heaven is my home." 
 
 159 
 
i6o 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 Nor shall we be strangers there. We shall know our 
 best friend, the Lord Jesus Christ, and dwell forever in 
 nearness to him. We shall know the holy angels, some 
 of whom were ministering spirits to us whilst we were 
 strangers here. And we shall know all the millions of 
 the blood-washed saints, amongst whom will be many 
 whose names and lives have already become familiar to 
 us, and whose examples have proved so helpful and so 
 dear to us while yet here in the house of our pilgrimage. 
 In no true sense shall we be strangers there. Most 
 delightful will be our converse as the everlasting years 
 shall roll on. We shall compose one great, happy family, 
 and we shall all fully know each other, and in like man- 
 ner be known. 
 
GOD 'OUR FATHER." 
 
 UR FATHP:R.— There is nothing 
 sweeter to the Christian than 
 this. We are not like children 
 who must go out from our 
 Father's house in the morning, to 
 spend the working day away from 
 him, and only to come back to him 
 at evening. No; we are with 
 him, and he with us, all the day 
 through. We never leave his 
 presence ; he is beside us through 
 all our work, our weariness, our 
 perplexity, our worry, all the 
 day. And we may tell hijn what 
 we want, and how we are feel- 
 ing — not stiffly and formally, 
 twice a day at morning and even- 
 ing, but as often as we please. 
 He will not weary of listening to us, if we do not weary 
 of speaking to him. We need not limit ourselves to 
 morning and evening prayer. Twenty times,* and far 
 more than that, as you go through your day's work, the 
 eye may look up for a moment, the heart may be lifted 
 up; the brief word may carry up to God's ear the story of 
 your need and of your trust in him. 
 
 Sitting down to your desk and taking up your pen, if 
 that be your work, O you do not know how much better 
 you may do it for just covering your eyes with your hand 
 for a minute and asking God's blessing in prayerl Or, 
 dealing with your fellow-men — some of them impracti- 
 cable and wrong-headed enough — some of them sharp-set 
 and low-principled enough — some of them provoking and 
 stupid enough — how much better you will keep your tem- 
 per amid the provocations of business; with how much 
 clearer head and kinder heart you will treat your fellow- 
 sinners for a word of silent prayer! If you desire to 
 n i6i 
 
l62 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 influence any for good, remember how wisely it has been 
 said that the shortest road to any human heart is found 
 by God, and explain to your heavenly Father all you wish 
 to do. Every little pain will be better borne and every 
 little joy enhanced by a moment's silent mention of them 
 to God. You can, alone with him, speak of a host of 
 little things which really make a great part in your 
 thoughts and in your life, yet which are less suitable for 
 speaking of in united prayer with other people. 
 
FAITH OF WOMAN. 
 
 HE intuitions of woman are 
 more spiritual than those of 
 man. His slower nature 
 enables him to reason more 
 logically perhaps at times, 
 but he often climbs labo- 
 riously to the mountain top 
 and finds a woman there be- 
 fore him who has reached 
 the same altitude without 
 such effort. She simply 
 used her wings of faith and 
 they carried her even more 
 safely and speedily than his 
 reason ever could carry him. 
 Emerson says: "All I have 
 seen teaches me to trust the 
 Creator for all I have not seen." Here is an expression 
 of the value of faith from one who thought profoundly. 
 Paul says: "Faith is the substance of things hoped for," 
 and especially to woman has this spiritual substance been 
 largely given. A good woman has more faith than a good 
 man. It is natural for her to trust with confidence in a 
 higher power, and in this respect, as in many others, she 
 is far superior to her husband. 
 
 But without faith woman is a wreck. If old-time 
 standards are swept away, she seeks to formulate a relig- 
 ion of her own, and she worships idols of her own creation. 
 She becomes a cynical, despondent creature, dependent 
 upon some human love it may be, as in the case of George 
 Eliot, who, after the shipwreck of her faith, sank into the 
 very depths of despondency. The voices that come to us 
 from beyond the walls of Doubting Castle have always in 
 them a moan of pain, especially if the voices are those of 
 women. In the breast of woman is the well of tender- 
 ness, whose waters keep the world pure. Worship is to 
 her a necessary part of living. She must worship at some 
 shrine, and when God gave the command, " Thou shalt 
 
 163 
 
164 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou 
 serve," it was not that the act of worship could benefit the 
 Creator, but the created. In the earlier ages of the world, 
 when human beings were in their infancy, it was neces- 
 sary to say, as to wilful children, "Thou shalt!" or " Thou 
 shalt not !" but, like older children now, we learn the 
 goodness of our Father in leaving us no choice but to 
 obey. 
 
 God will more and more reveal himself as a God of 
 love, as the world advances, because the time has come 
 when love has a greater influence over mankind than 
 fear; and one evidence of the truth of the Bible is its 
 eternal adaptability to human needs. Am I troubled 
 about the doctrines of the Bible? about its system of 
 rewards and punishments? While my little child is 
 unable to comprehend my first benevolent thought toward 
 her, she must be taught by the only system she can under- 
 stand — a smile her reward, a frown her punishment. She 
 is restrained by a command as she older grows — she may 
 not understand why the command is given — yet obedience 
 is required for her own perfect development It is only 
 when in the maturity of powers, after childhood has 
 passed away, that the parent will be able to take the child 
 into his counsels and tell the why and the wherefore, and 
 show that love lay deep at the root of every command. 
 
 ^ yo 
 
 m 
 
SEEKING RELIEF IN PRAYER. 
 
 ■' In every joy that crowns my days, 
 In every pain I bear. 
 My heart shall find delight in praise, 
 Or seek relief in prayer." 
 
 ELIEF we all seek in our troubles and 
 trials, but not all in the same way. 
 Some resort to the intoxicating cup and 
 seek thus to drown their sorrows. Some 
 seek to divert their minds by foreign 
 travel. Some fly to scenes of pleasure, 
 to the ball-room or the theatre. Some 
 
 plunge more deeply into the business and cares of life; 
 
 and others engage more eagerly in literary pursuits. 
 
 Almost numberless methods are tried. The only true 
 
 method, and that which will give permanent relief, is that 
 
 165 
 
1 66 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 suggested by the heading of this article. It is by telling 
 our griefs to God, and seeking his grace. 
 
 The little child is an example to us in this regard. In 
 its troubles, it runs to its parent. It flies to its mother, 
 and freely tells her all its sorrows. The child of God, 
 in all his trials, should always resort first of all to his 
 Heavenly Father. Turning away from all other sources 
 of relief, he should goat once to the "God of all comfort." 
 This is his precious privilege. Here we are all invited to 
 come, and with the assurance that we shall not come in 
 vain. "Cast thy burden upon the Lord and he shall sus- 
 tain thee." "The Lord is nigh unto all them that call 
 upon him, to all that call upon him in truth." He is 
 graciously nigh unto them to hear their cry and to help 
 them. Such is the testimony of thousands. Such has 
 been the experience of all who have made the trial. 
 
 They have thus tasted, and seen that the Lord is good, 
 and can say with the Psalmist: "I called upon the Lord 
 in distress; the Lord answered me, and set me in a large 
 place." 
 
 And when you have prayed to God about your distresses, 
 and cast them upon him, learn to be silent and be at 
 peace. Your affairs are his affairs. If you have tried to 
 live as his servant, and to do all things to please him, 
 he is your partner in business, and the real head of the 
 iirm. He can protect you from misfortunes; but if he 
 wants you to serve him in trouble, it is because he can 
 make trouble do more for you than prosperity. " Rest 
 in the Lord." The great life you live in him is your 
 true life, and none of the uncertainties or accidents of 
 your external condition can touch it. An inward peace 
 is possible to you and me while surrounded by agitation, 
 and our hearts may rest while we are maintaining a 
 strenuous conflict with difficulties. Be a child again; 
 God is your father. Rest in him; his love is wonderful, 
 his power is wonderful. The life he lives is beyond the 
 reach of storm and of peril, though he cares for us in all 
 our cares. Think of him, if you can, rather than of your 
 wrongs. Think of him, if you can, rather than of the 
 calamities by which you are menaced. 
 
DESPONDENCY. 
 
 liRRE seems to be a natural tendency 
 on the part of some people persistently 
 to look upon the dark side of things, 
 and to look forward to the future with 
 gloomy forebodings, no matter how 
 bright and unclouded the day may be. 
 Almost every phase of human nature 
 was represented among our Lord's dis- 
 ciples, and the despondent disciple was by no means 
 wanting. Thomas always looked upon the dark side of 
 things, but the Saviour had no harsh, reproof for him; he 
 seemed rather to pity than to blame him. For his own 
 sake he wished that Thomas could rise above his gloomy 
 tendencies. So it is with all desponding Christians. 
 Christ does not rebuke them. Very patiently he puts the 
 truth before them, tries to dispel the gloom and bring 
 them out of the shadows, and make their hearts glad. 
 
 167 
 
1 68 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 There are many causes of spiritual despondency, and 
 as often as not they may be physical causes. The body 
 may affect the mind. Ill health, unpropitious surround- 
 ings, continual over-work, may darken the horizon of the 
 mind until not a star is visible. It may be a hereditary 
 disposition, or the result of many and keen disappoint- 
 ments, or of sad and bereaving providences. It may, too, 
 be a natural desire to exact demonstration for the founda- 
 tion of faith ; any or all of these things may cause despond- 
 ency, and he who knows our frame and orders all our 
 circumstances takes all these things into account. He 
 remembers that we are but dust, and deals very gently 
 with the despondent. 
 
 Yet he tries to lead them, as he did Thomas, into a 
 larger, brighter place. There are too many disadvan- 
 tages connected with despondency to let it go on unhin- 
 dered. There are disadvantages to the persons themselves ; 
 they miss great peace and serenity of mind and are apt 
 to become captious and irritable. Despondency takes 
 the heart out of a person, and though he may go on with 
 Christian service, it is with a burdened feeling. 
 
 There are positive disadvantages, too, to the church. 
 Despondent people take the heart out of others. If this 
 were better, or that were remedied, there might be hope 
 of better things, they say, but there are so many things 
 that are wrong that they can hardly see any good. Every 
 Christian should be loyal to the church of his choice. If 
 there are evils they cannot remedy, they should not blazon 
 them abroad. Speak only of the good things, uphold 
 them, and be loyal to your own church. But close con- 
 tact with the Master is, after all, the great remedy for 
 despondency. If we cannot look on the bright side of 
 things we should go and look into Christ's face. The 
 case of the despondent soul that is not saved is far sadder 
 than that of the despondent Christian. One who despairs 
 of salvation, who has grown spiritually desperate and 
 says, " There is no hope for my soul," is in the saddest of 
 all conditions, and needs comfort most deeply. 
 
 One of the causes of such despondency is the judgments 
 of God, the severer dispensations of Providence with 
 which the Almighty sometimes visits people. The real 
 meaning of all afflictive providences is that our Heavenly 
 
DESPONDEXC V. 1 6 9 
 
 Father still loves and cares for us, and tries by these calls 
 to bring us to himself, but oftentimes they are misinter- 
 preted into intimations of wrath, and crush out all hope. 
 
 Sometimes the discovery of one's sinfulness produces 
 deep hopelessness. Such was the case with the disciple 
 who betrayed his Lord. When Judas realized the crime 
 he had committed, and found it was too late for reparation, 
 his heart stood still, appalled. Like an icy chill the 
 thought stole over him, "There is no hope," and out into 
 the night he went to end by voluntary death his wretched 
 days. Any one who is brought to deep conviction of sin 
 feels somewhat of that great despair. 
 
 Then, too, not only the discovery of our sins, but a 
 long unsuccessful struggle against any one of them, may 
 produce a feeling of despondency. If any one begins the 
 conflict with some easily besetting sin, be it great or 
 small, the love of strong drink, or a hot temper, or an 
 ungovernable tongue, and in that conflict proves unsuc- 
 cessful for a time, then there comes over his soul a dark 
 cloud. 
 
 This despondency may be a Satanic suggestion. If the 
 enemy can get us so fast in the castle of despair, that we 
 make no efforts to escape, he counts us as his own. Feel- 
 ings of despondency, however originated, are apt to pro- 
 duce different effects. Sometimes they produce utter 
 misery. A profound melancholy seizes the soul and 
 embitters every moment, but a more common result is 
 that of recklessness. Like a nerve that has ached itself 
 to death, the soul may get past feeling and smile into 
 insensibility. One may believe in a measure all the 
 threateningsof God's law, and yet feel them no more than 
 a stone. Letter indifference and insensibility take posses- 
 sion of the mind, and the old life is pursued with careless 
 apathy. Sometimes recklessness follows despondency, 
 and this is the saddest of all results. 
 
 But there is really no cause for spiritual despondency. 
 There is no human being, however straitened his spir- 
 itual circumstances, who may not, while he draws the 
 breath of life, turn unto God and be saved. The will of 
 God, the promises of God, the power of God all forbid 
 despondency, and bid despairing souls turn to the One 
 who is mighty to help. 
 
BE NOT WEARY IN WELL DOING. 
 
 ^E not weary in well doing. 
 We are not to work 
 always, and even when 
 we are at work we learn 
 that many things do not 
 follow our bidding, and 
 we must wait upon 
 theirs. More and more 
 we learn this truth as 
 years interpret to us our 
 own limitations, and the 
 force of the great tide 
 upon which we and all 
 things float. Our pa- 
 tience is quite as much a measure of our wisdom as our 
 enterprise; nay, what folly stamps every enterprise which 
 is not begun in the patience which can bear delays as 
 well as in the courage that can dare risks! Children of 
 time, when we are doing our best we must wait God's 
 hours for opportunity in our special aims; and, above all 
 our special aims, we must lean upon Him to carry us for- 
 ward in the one divine way which earthly power may ac- 
 cept but not control. Blessed is the office of true patience 
 in relation to time. Vast is the loss it saves by keeping 
 for efficient action the time and thought saved from fret- 
 ting and struggling against what cannot be helped. Vast 
 is the gain it secures by keeping the soul calm before (rod, 
 accepting the allotments of his providence, and watching 
 wisely the lessons of the events which it cannot control. 
 Are there not twelve hours in the day? said he who con- 
 secrated them alike by his waiting and his work, whose 
 crowning sacrifice, alike in its act and its sufferance, il- 
 lustrated the worth of time, and leaves upon its track the 
 alternate footprints of labor and patience to mark the 
 way of eternal life. Blessed are the hours to us, when 
 calmed by his patience as well as quickened by his fidelity. 
 
AFFLICTION 
 AND 
 TRIBULATION. 
 
 ORE trials and deep afflictions 
 are often the portion of the 
 Christian's heritage here. 
 Often, like the Prophet Elijah, 
 we are inclined to be despond- 
 ent therefrom. But affliction 
 is frequently the fire that con- 
 sumes the dross and separates it from the finer metal. 
 So essential is this that the all-wise Father has seen fit 
 that every redeemed soul shall pass through some fiery 
 furnace of trial in this life, and the fact that one's way 
 is beset with much affliction and many temptations shows 
 that it is the highway that God has ordained that his 
 children should travel as they journey heavenward. What 
 does he say? "In the world ye shall have tribulation." 
 And in Hebrews, " For whom the Lord loveth he chasten- 
 eth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth." Peter 
 writes, " Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery 
 trial which is to try you." And Paul adds, "For verily 
 when we were with you, we told you before that we should 
 suffer tribulation, even as it came to pass and ye know." 
 
 But the afflicted may ask, Why is this ? Let us see what 
 James says: "Blessed is the man that endureth tempta- 
 tions, for when he is tried he shall receive the crown of 
 life which the Lord hath promised to them that love him." 
 And Paul exultingly cries, "Yea, for our light affliction, 
 which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more ex- 
 ceeding and eternal weight of glory," and he goes on to 
 say: "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time 
 are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall 
 
172 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 be revealed in us." Again he says: "If we suffer, we 
 shall also reign, with him." And in Revelations we read: 
 " These are they which came out of great tribulation, and 
 have washed their robes, and made them white in the 
 blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne 
 of God, and serve him day and night in his temple, and 
 he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. 
 They shall hunger no more, neither shall the sun light on 
 them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst 
 of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto 
 living fountains of waters, and God shall wipe away all 
 tears from their eyes. " 
 
LABORING IN THE VINEYARD. 
 
 " Hast thou not agreed with me for a 
 penny a day ? " 
 
 OW much has been written and 
 said about this parable I It is 
 impossible to explain it by any 
 worldly reasoning, but how 
 easy to understand when we 
 grasp the real meaning! 
 
 The Lord of the vineyard is 
 the great head of the Church. 
 He sees fit to call many in 
 infancy and youth to labor in 
 his vineyard, to be his chil- 
 dren by covenant, to call him 
 Abba, Father. Others heed the 
 summons in early manhood or 
 womanhood, and put their 
 hands to the plough. Again, 
 some (very few) are obedient to the Master's call for 
 laborers when old and feeble, perhaps unable to do any 
 great work. Still, when evening comes, when death 
 calls to rest, or the laborers stand before the judgment 
 seat, each will receive the same, "a penny," in the words 
 of the parable, eternal life in the deep meaning of the story. 
 The Master can give neither more nor less than eternal 
 life to his disciples. He gave every man a penny. 
 
 Now, would those who have sought and found Jesus in 
 early life, who have labored in the Church all their lives, 
 exchange places with those who followed the prince of 
 this world for many years? When the end comes and we 
 all stand before the throne shall we regret one day or one 
 hour or one minute spent in doing God's work in his 
 vineyard? It is true that those who remained outside, 
 blind to the Master's call till life was almost over, will 
 receive just the same pay in one sense, but think of all 
 they missed — the sweet communion, solemn feasts, de- 
 lightful labor, and daily intercourse with the Master! 
 So we will not complain, nor grudge them their pay, 
 though earned late, by little service. Only let us be sure 
 that we are hired, and the recompense is sure to be ade- 
 quate and satisfying. 
 
 173 
 
SUFFICIENT UNTO THE DAY. 
 
 '(i^M^^^i^^^f^ ILL men ever learn that the Bible 
 ^^iPS^^^V^s means what it says? Modern adage 
 has added its weight to the wis- 
 dom of the Scriptures and assured us 
 there is no use in attempting to cross 
 bridges before coming to them. If 
 only fear of the future, dread of com- 
 ing evil, could be stricken out of life, 
 much of the pain and suffering en- 
 dured would be stricken out at the same time. But after 
 all, there is much of pathos in this timid shrinking, which 
 it cannot be denied arises from what has been endured of 
 adverse fate. If " a burnt child dreads the fire, " so one 
 who has met and been overcome by misfortune can never 
 forget the discomfiture of the sad defeat. Yet does not 
 fear become a misfortune of itself? Many may have read 
 the old legend of how Fever appeared before the king 
 and asked leave to slay a thousand victims. Permission 
 was granted him, but when the given time for his rav- 
 ages to cease had arrived, ten thousand men lay dead. 
 The king at once summoned Fever to his presence. 
 "How is this?" he asked; "I gave consent to your con- 
 quering a thousand, and lo! ten thousand men lie slain." 
 "I slew but the single thousand granted me to," Fever 
 replied, "but Fear killed the other nine." Even so, work 
 kills a victim or two at times, but does not worry slay 
 more than work? One of our religious papers revived 
 recently an old saying as quaint as it is brief and simple, 
 "Do the next thynge." And strive our best, that is the 
 most that can be done. 
 
 Fear and Worry stand deplorably in the way of many 
 a Christian's progress. It would seem that in vain the 
 Saviour counselled His followers to take no thought for 
 the morrow, and our course too often implies doubt as to 
 the truth of the assurance that the morrow shall take 
 thought for the things of itself. The concluding words 
 
 174 
 
SUFFICIENT UNTO THE DAY. 
 
 175 
 
 that sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof do not nec- 
 essarily mean that only evil will come with the day. One 
 of our most reliable commentators says with regard to 
 this passage: "We shall indeed find that sufficient unto 
 the day is the evil thereof, and have no need to anticipate 
 pain and sorrow. We shall also find that the day will 
 bring its comforts and supports with it." 
 
 There is one verse of the Bible which promises exemp- 
 tion through one strong power from much of dread and 
 worry — " Perfect love casteth out fear." Fear indeed has 
 torments. What spectres a timid imagination will con- 
 jure up! What untold misery and depth of painful appre- 
 hension a licensed fancy will create! What greater tor- 
 ment need a poor mortal suffer than that which arises 
 from a morbid, faithless, nervous fear of future events? 
 All the teachings of Holy Writ enforce the chief need of 
 human beings and point to the source of supply. Simple 
 love for the Saviour, perfect love for him, a firm reliance 
 on his strong, powerful arm, will disarm all fear, dispel 
 all apprehension, vanquish each spectre of evil. The 
 very simplicity of the remedy, like that once prescribed 
 of old, seems to detract from its efficacy to poor, short- 
 sighted man. It takes great faith, unfaltering resolution, 
 and indomitable courage to meet life in a worthy, manly 
 way. It requires but an unwavering belief in the Saviour 
 and his precepts to realize that sufficient to each day will 
 be its evils and its conflicts, its comforts and its blessings, 
 but free to every soul of man is the perfect love which 
 casteth out fear. 
 
 ,,;^^^. 
 
A BELOVED 
 DISCIPLE. 
 
 the Sea of Galilee a father 
 and his sons were fishing. 
 All night long they had 
 toiled and had caught 
 nothing. They seem to 
 have been men in good 
 circumstances, for they were able to minister to the wants 
 of the Saviour; but having been out in their boat all night 
 and having taken no fish, they were weary and left off try- 
 ing to catch fish, and were washing their nets. But at 
 Jesus' command they took in such a draught of fishes that 
 their boat began to sink. 
 
 How like that is to ourselves in our striving so hard to 
 obtain success, and when it is granted to us we do not 
 know what to do with it, but cry out for help! No doubt 
 John expected to be always a fisherman as his father was, 
 but Jesus often has other work for us to do besides that 
 which we may have chosen, and when he calls us, as he 
 did call John, we must forsake all else. 
 
 One does not need to be old before being able to do the 
 Lord's work, for John is supposed to have been the young- 
 est of all the disciples, yet he was beloved. At the last 
 supper, as they reclined upon their couches to eat, accord- 
 ing to custom, Jesus, about to leave his disciples, told 
 them that one should betray him. The Beloved Disciple, 
 leaning back on Jesus' breast and looking up into the 
 face which he so tenderly loved, asked, "Lord, is it I?" 
 Long years afterwards, when he was grown too old to say 
 much, and had lust the power to walk so that he had to 
 12 177 
 
178 
 
 THE CHRISTIAX LIFE. 
 
 1)6 carried to the assemblies of the people, he would reach 
 forth his hands and say: "Little children, love one an- 
 other;" and when they did not understand why he would 
 not talk more to them, he added that if they obeyed the 
 command of love they had the whole of the Gospel of 
 Jesus Christ. 
 
 Are we beloved disciples? In the day that " He shall 
 sit as a refiner and purifier of silver," when the jewels are 
 fastened together will our souls be a part of the crown of 
 rejoicing? And when the years are too heavy upon us to 
 admit of our doing the Lord's work, shall we not as be- 
 loved disciples spend our time talking of the love that in 
 our state of life is teaching us to take our part in the new 
 song that will be sung before the throne by the redeemed ? 
 
PUT YOUR HEART IN IT. 
 
 HIS c|uality of /icartiiii'ss is what makes 
 all the difference between poor work 
 and useful work, between what is 
 real and true and what is hollow and 
 superficial in the purposes and deeds 
 of men. To put one's heart into 
 anything means to put one's self into 
 it, and when was ever anything no- 
 ble, or great, or useful in the high- 
 est or the lowest degree, performed 
 in this world, that did not involve 
 the putting in of self? The famous 
 saying of one of the old masters, that he mixed his paint 
 with brains, is but another way of expressing a great gen- 
 eral truth, applicable to all master work, whether it be in 
 painting a canvas, or writing a poem, or building a 
 house. It must be done with the mixing of brains, or 
 with what is the same thing, a mixing of heart, a mixing 
 of self. The average man, to say the least, is not a very 
 strong or a very wise or great being. Measured by the 
 standard of the Infinite, his noblest endeavors are weak 
 and puny beyond comparison. Measured by the standard 
 of Nature's handiwork, the results of his skill and crafti- 
 ness are insignificant. 
 
 How then can a man do less than put forth the best 
 there is in him, since that falls so far short of perfection? 
 And this always and everywhere, whether the thing to be 
 done calls for the exercise of brains or hands, whether it 
 is carving a statue or digging a ditch. Heart, heart, 
 heart, is what is needed for the world's work of every 
 kind, be it such as is called great, or such as is termed 
 menial. And most of all it is needed for spiritual work, 
 for the saving of sinners, for the regeneration of men. 
 Want of heart here means failure from the beginning, 
 utter failure and disaster. The sermon, the prayer, the 
 exhortation, the spiritual counsel, the teaching, that does 
 
 179 
 
i8o THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 not have heart in it, the spirit of a sanctified heart, is de- 
 void of the very thing that carries the sermon, the exhor- 
 tation, the counsel to the consciences and souls of men. 
 Words of counsel that do not come from the heart are like 
 arrows made of pith; however finely formed and beauti- 
 fully finished, they fail to carry to the mark; they have no 
 weight, no momentum. A man may succeed very well in 
 some kinds of mechanical work even though it is done in a 
 listless, careless, indifferent manner, but when it comes to 
 working for God, to soul-saving, there can be no success 
 without the merging of the whole being in the work, the 
 putting in of self. 
 
 It is a very easy matter to shuffle over religious duties 
 with a loose and careless spirit; but to work from the 
 heart and with the heart in earnestness and seriousness of 
 purpose,— this costs an effort. One may work, after a 
 fashion, with hands or feet or brain or tongue, while the 
 heart itself is engaged in matters far away, or in pursuits 
 entirely foreign to those before them. But such work is 
 not the best work ; it is superficial ; it is of little real 
 value. The heart must work with the hands, or the re- 
 sults will be poor and unsatisfactory, both to ourselves 
 and to others who seek to benefit by them. Heart work 
 demands concentration of purpose, definiteness, and single- 
 ness of aim. It demands a gathering of all the energies 
 into one line of action; a united effort towards one end. 
 It presupposes self-control; an ability to curb vain and 
 profitless thinking, and bring the mind into constant and 
 serious attendance upon one thing. And this heart ser- 
 vice is the only kind of service that is acceptable to God. 
 We may work for others with only our hands, and receive 
 our wages in due season, but if we do God's work we 
 must work with the heart or there is no recompense for 
 us: we shall be counted as unprofitable servants, unworthy 
 of our hire. We serve a Master who " looketh upon the 
 heart," who knows its secret motives and purposes, and 
 all mere outward show of zeal and devotion is mockery 
 in his sight. Heart work is true work,- — the noblest, 
 highest, and best service which man can give, and the only 
 kind t^>at will insure a heavenly and eternal reward. 
 
CALLED AND CHOSEN, AND 
 FAITHFUL. 
 
 HESE three adjectives 
 describe the character 
 of Christ's followers. 
 The first two belong to 
 God's part and the last 
 to ours. It is by a Di- 
 vine call that we are 
 made partakers of the 
 benefits of redemption. 
 The influence of the 
 Spirit by which we are 
 translated from the 
 kingdom of darkness 
 into the kingdom of 
 light is a calling. In the spiritual world a nation or in- 
 dividual becomes by the call of God that which he in- 
 tends them to be. God forces no one into his kingdom, 
 he compels no recruits into his army, he drives no work- 
 men into his vineyard; he simply calls, sometimes very 
 gently, and those who are his own obey. To all alike 
 comes the call, and the only dift'erence between a sinner 
 and a saint is that one is deaf to the voice, and the other 
 gladly hears and answers it. 
 
 That God's people are not only called, but chosen, is 
 to many anything but a pleasing thought, for it seems 
 to them to close the door of mercy to some, perhaps to 
 themselves. But God never refused any one who came to 
 him for salvation; he has pledged his word that who- 
 ever Cometh to him shall in nowise be cast out. It is 
 easy to decide whether or not we belong to the number of 
 the chosen. If we love religion and spiritual things, God 
 has chosen us to receive them, for unless God had given 
 us that desire and that love, we would never have had 
 
 i8i 
 
1 82 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 them. God has chosen his people to be holy; if any one 
 believes in the Lord Jesus Christ he is elect; if any one 
 truly desires to leave sin and live unto God there is mercy 
 in store for him. 
 
 No decree passed in the unknown ages of eternity will 
 keep any one out of heaven if he is growing in holiness, 
 but without holiness no one can see the Lord. This is 
 the character of the chosen ones. By patient continuance 
 in well doing they seek for glory, honor, and immortality; 
 and the vast multitude now rejoicing with the Lamb bear 
 witness that this is the way to obtain eternal life. 
 
 The third characteristic of Christian followers is that 
 they are faithful. This belongs to our care. Called and 
 chosen we are by God, but faithfulness is the task com- 
 mitted to us. To be faithful to Christ is our work. 
 Many of us have made solemn vows, that are registered 
 ineffaceably in heaven, to devote ourselves to him. Upon 
 all of us lies the obligation to be his, whether we recognize 
 it or not. Let the pulse of heavenly affection beat 
 strongly and steadily in us, let our love to Jesus burn like 
 the sun. As his devotion to us was unchecked by the 
 indignities he endured and the agonies he suffered, by the 
 grave he entered, so let neither life nor death, nor angels, 
 nor principalities, nor powers, separate us from him. Let 
 this above all be our motto, faithfulness to our Master. 
 Then, when he comes bringing our rewards with him, he 
 will give to every man according to his work, and will 
 say to those who are faithful, " Blessed are they that do 
 my commandments, that they may have right to the tree 
 of life and may enter in through the gates into the city." 
 
,. ONE 
 ^^^^ RESTFUL 
 DAY 
 
 N the midst of the mad 
 rush of life, jostling at 
 elbows with our fellow- 
 man, hurrying hither and 
 thither through every 
 wakeful hour, agonizing 
 to reach the goal on 
 which we have fixed our 
 eyes, filled with plans of 
 the present and the future 
 to get our daily bread, 
 or grasp success in this 
 venture or that, what a 
 boon one restful day is! 
 
 What IS a ;r./A/day? Is it the f ^i""^^f .^^ ^.''^^^ 
 wishes, the culmination of our plans, the acme of bh s 
 that follows our having placed our feet upon a pinnacle 
 
 of happiness, the intoxication of P^e^^^^^^^f^^l^^.^'^.^^Ji 
 flowing cup, the having wrung from possibilities the all 
 
 but impossible success? . , „f all no-pc; 
 
 Philosophers cannot give it to us; wise men of all ages 
 canno show us how to possess it. The loveliest cloudless 
 day that ever dawned is not all that we crave, or if theie 
 were no night to follow it, we would never see the stars 
 l.i twinkle in the sky. If we had not -;l^d upon the 
 rou-h seas, we would never enjoy to the full the fair haven 
 of rest If blessings fell thick and fast, there would be 
 no thankfulness for deliverance from crosses. If here 
 were no planting through weary hours,, there would be no 
 o-atherino- of fruit and flowers. . 
 
 " The foundation of all rest comes from what is within 
 ourselves. A soul satisfied of God, a heart at peace u .th 
 
 183 
 
l84 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 itself and the world, brings rest. Not only beyond the 
 confines of life, not only on the other side of death the rest 
 remains, it is ours now, to-day, this moment. Will not 
 one restful day condone for the weary weeks of the labor 
 that never seems to diminish — will not one day with Jesus 
 rest us? You remember that when Moses and Elias van- 
 ished there remained "Jesus only." Is anything else 
 needed to bring rest ? Whether of the twain shall be given 
 to us, Barabbas, or Jesus which is called Christ? If we 
 have the dear Saviour with us, if he is so near that we 
 can whisper to him, — 
 
 " Saviour, I weary of this ceaseless mind. 
 That needs must spin its tangling thought, 
 That needs must weave what Thou dost bring to naught, 
 Rest I would find. 
 
 " Not thoughts of Thee, but Thine ownself impart! 
 Ever I learn Thy precepts and Thy way, 
 Yet know not how to follow and obey. 
 Teach Thou my heart." 
 
 — what else can we need to bring rest ? Does Jesus turn 
 a deaf ear to our cry does he permit us to be driven 
 away? Ah!*no, very gently the hand that was pierced for 
 us is laid upon our heads, and the sweetest voice that 
 angels ever heard is saying, "Peace be unto you;" and 
 behold he is in the midst! 
 
 Do we long for only one restful day? The soul that is 
 satisfied is always at rest, because it has gone to the foun- 
 tain and been cleansed from sin; God's will is ours; 
 whatever befalls us comes from the hand of One who never 
 errs; not one needless tear can fall from eyes that are 
 fixed upon him; not one cross is too heavy for us to carry, 
 because before it was laid upon our shoulders he measured 
 it to our strength; and then, lest it might be too heavy, 
 he held the corner of it. Christian had upon his shoul- 
 ders a big burden that caused him to fall into the Slough 
 of Despond; but when he had climbed a hill he saw a 
 cross, and when he reached the cross his burden fell off. 
 Then he said, "He hath given me rest by his sorrow, 
 and life by his death." So we learn that at the cross the 
 burden of life falls away, and through Jesus we obtain 
 life, rest, and peace. 
 
THE JOY OF THE MORNING. 
 
 ACH day the sun rises in the East, and 
 sends his light into every home. He does 
 not seem to be stationary, as is the fact, 
 but as if he came up out of a sea to come 
 up higher and higher from the horizon; 
 shooting great flecks of golden splendor 
 into every cloud, gilding the mountain 
 tops, touching every leaf on the trees with 
 light, and laying beauty alike upon the homes of the rich 
 and the abodes of the poor. 
 
 In yonder small house, at the corner of the lane, as 
 you turn from the highway to go to the mill, a mother has 
 been watching through the darkness of the night the fitful 
 slumber of her sick child. As the weary hours crept on 
 she felt so sad, so utterly discouraged, that it seemed as 
 if hope had died in her heart; she never heard the crickets 
 chirp; she gave no heed to the whirr of the night birds; 
 she did not notice the fact that the wheql at the mill had 
 been stopped; she forgot that to some people daylight 
 was past the dawning; she never looked out to seethe 
 myriads of stars in the sky; for her there was nothing but 
 the blackness. There was not much in the world that she 
 could call her own, but the child was hers, and its sick- 
 ness made her rebellious; for the time she lost faith in 
 God, her fellow-man, herself. Over the whole world there 
 was cast an impenetrable pall; it was night, dark night, 
 till the sun should rise in all its glory and bring forth the 
 joy of the morning. 
 
 In grander solitude a lone man sits in his prison cell; 
 the walls are of stone, not so hard, though, as the hearts 
 of his judges; the one window through which light and 
 air could come is barred; the door is locked, and when 
 he shakes it he only bruises his fingers, in his efforts to 
 escape. Outside the last streak of daylight has faded, 
 twilight has deepened into night, and the stars, that have 
 been called the " forget-me-nots of the angels," have 
 
 185 
 
1 86 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 studded the sky. He sees them twinkle, but they only 
 make the darkness more perceptible, and he paces his 
 stone floor, weary of night, waiting for the morning. 
 
 Out upon the angry sea a vessel rocks, now rolling, then 
 pitching; now wave-swept, then rising as if it were a ball 
 to be tossed here and there. Sad eyes look up from that 
 vessel to see if it is possible that through any rift in the 
 utter darkness even one ray of light may penetrate. 
 But although there comes the swift thought of the little 
 child who said that " if the wrong side of heaven is so 
 beautiful, what must the right side be, the star-gemmed 
 firmament holds no beauty for those eyes, for the stars 
 are set in the darkness, and that to them means sadness, 
 sorrow, despair. 
 
 But lol in the East there comes a light; the sun arises, 
 and through the small windows of the little house in the 
 lane his beams peep, transfiguring the well-worn carpet ; 
 and across the face of the sick baby the mother sees the 
 flush of returning health, and falling upon her knees she 
 breathes out earnest thanks for the joy of the morning. 
 That joy floats in through the grated window of the pris- 
 oner's cell ; and as he opens his anxious eyes,' into them is 
 cast the golden light; forthwith the new life seems to cry 
 out to him to take courage, that hope is not dead, only 
 sleeping ; and that before long the coveted blessing of free- 
 dom will open the iron door and send him forth a free 
 man. And the light beams around and over the waves 
 and shows the sailor where to find a safe harbor. 
 
 "Watchman, what of the night ?" The morning cometh. 
 Are we so weary of the little self-denials, the little crosses 
 which the dark side of life brings, that we cannot comfort 
 ourselves as the gloaming gathers about us with the same 
 thought that yet there will surely follow a bright, happy, 
 God-given sunshine on the morrow ? The joy of the morn- 
 ing will repay us for everything that seemed to shut out 
 all hope; and beyond the river there will be the "many 
 mansions, the city that hath foundations, and the Lamb 
 who is the light thereof." 
 
OUR TENDER SHEPHERD. 
 
 aie many lessons 
 taught us in nature, whose 
 significance, as applied to 
 Christian things, is more 
 deeply impressed upon the mind than 
 much that is said or written. While 
 sitting upon the broad veranda of a beautiful home on the 
 north shore of Long Island, this charming Sunday morn- 
 ing in June, we are reminded as never before, by scores 
 of sheep grazing about the fields, how frequently they 
 were employed as figures to express the peculiar care 
 which our Lord feels and exercises for his people. This 
 symbolism is often announced with special strength, as 
 if he would assure his followers that in the sacrifice he 
 
 1S7 
 
1 88 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 made he would be always the good Shepherd giving his 
 life for the sheep! 
 
 In the Eastern world, doubtless, the force of this passage 
 IS more clearly seen than here. We can hardly appre- 
 ciate the feelings of the shepherd for his flock, Even 
 though he has a vast number under his care, he knows 
 every feature of every sheep. He gives names to each of 
 them, and they know him, too, and come at his call, 
 "whithersoever he goeth. " In danger they fly to him for 
 protection, and feel safe when near him. As he would 
 guard his own fireside, so he defends them, and the little 
 ones, nursing the feeble and even laying them in his 
 bosom as he would his own child. 
 
 Now all this is a most apt and beautiful figure of 
 Christ's care over us. It almost ceases to be a figure, 
 and becomes a sweet reality when we. think of the ex- 
 ceeding force of the illustration. Does he not say, " I am 
 the good Shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known 
 of mine ?" And how comforting to feel that we are of his 
 flock, that lie has chosen us for his own — gathered us into 
 his fold — set his mark upon us, and trained us to know 
 and follow, obey and enjoy him. He is so good to us. 
 Oh, how sure we are of this! Does he not show it daily, 
 hourly, yea, every moment of our lives? 
 
 He saw us wandering far away, and came to seek and 
 save us; when we were perishing took us in his arms, laid 
 us in his bosom, brought us home to himself, and nurtured 
 us with more than parental care; and how he guards us 
 from danger, foes within and foes without, seen and un- 
 seen. Our enemies are many and mighty, and their wiles 
 so deceitful that we should fall into snares and be lost, 
 if the same grace that rescued us did not care for us on 
 the way! 
 
 He feeds his sheep, too! The finest of food is theirs! 
 He calls them to the storehouse, and throws its doors 
 wide open, to enter and be filled. He brought me into 
 his banqueting house and his banner over me was love— 
 his mercy to those who fear and love him will endure for- 
 ever ! " The good Shepherd giveth his 1 ife for the sheep. " 
 This crowns the evidence of his matchless goodness, — 
 "greater love hath no man than this, that he lay down his 
 life for his friends!" 
 
OUR TENDER SHEPHERD. 
 
 189 
 
 " But while Christ died to have us reconciled to him in 
 God, how near this great condescension on his part brings 
 us." What a privilege to look to him as lambs to a shep- 
 herd, who will not only feed, defend, and save his flock, 
 but give up his very life for them rather than suffer one to 
 be plucked out of his hand! Do we think enough of this, 
 and our relationship to him, and above all, of the infinite 
 obligations that rest with us? These are ties that, made 
 strong and holy by his love and sacrifice, should draw 
 us nearer and still nearer to his feet, causing us ever- 
 more to trust in him for safety, for strength, for daily 
 food, for the bread that perisheth, for the bread that 
 Cometh down from heaven and for life everlasting. 
 
 Surely he is our " tender Shepherd," our great High 
 Priest, our living Saviour, Prophet, King! These may be 
 common metaphors, so common that we need sometimes 
 to have our attention called to them, to take in their true 
 significance as on the Sunday morning in question it came 
 to us. If in our deep experience of life, amid the thorns 
 and flowers that grow along the highway, we can only 
 regard the Saviour in this light, happy will it be for each 
 of us. Let us think of him as our good Shepherd, and 
 of ourselves as his sheep, bearing his name, known to 
 him, and following " whithersoever he leadeth" through 
 this hard travel of life, which at best is short and weary, 
 and gathered at last into the great fold, " to go no more 
 out forever." 
 
 " Then shall we find a settled rest, 
 
 While others go and come, 
 
 No more a stranger or a guest. 
 
 But like a child at home." 
 
LESSONS OF THE DAY. 
 
 ^OT a day passes but into the 
 mind has been borne some 
 lesson either of peril, hope, 
 or warning. To-day a great 
 man falls, to-morrow the 
 dread tidings of disaster from 
 fire, flood, or accident shock 
 and tire the heart with their 
 oft-repeated, relentless story. 
 The forces of Nature mean- 
 time roll on with unperturbed 
 and resistless e.xactitude and 
 energy, and man, so far as 
 his outward life is concerned, 
 seems but a mere circum- 
 stance of creation, subject to Nature's in- 
 exorable and despotic rule. 
 
 Of but one thing can mortals be certain: 
 everything in the realm of Nature dies. 
 The leaves fall, the blossom decays, and in 
 process of time the tree itself suffers blight 
 and death. But in the Spring the great 
 lesson of life's renewal is taught. The sun 
 grows warmer day by day, the frost is ooz- 
 ing from the softened, expectant earth, and 
 already in the country the moss is show- 
 ing green and fresh close to the bosom of 
 old Mother Earth. The pussy-willows are 
 sprouting gray and furry on the parent 
 stem, and very soon the green grass and 
 cheery little crocus will refresh the eye with 
 their glad appearing. Progression becomes the order of 
 the day, and ere long, responding to Nature's irresistible 
 
 190 
 
LESSONS OF THE DAY. 191 
 
 call, field, orchard, and garden will burst into spontaneous 
 bloom. In the garden will be certain plants on which 
 special care has been bestowed. By dint of ceaseless nur- 
 ture and patient cultivation a degree of culture is reached, 
 making the stately rose-tree a very marvel of loveliness 
 amid the other beauties of the rose-bed. And as with 
 the plants, so with the human mind in its superior growth 
 and intelligence. 
 
 The question has often been raised as to whether or not 
 there are degrees in heaven, places to which the soul 
 attains at once on entering, having been fitted for such 
 placing while on earth. Pray, how could it be otherwise! 
 A great soul has just gone forth from the midst of us. The 
 eloquent preacher, the powerful orator, the best type of 
 a representative American citizen of ripe scholarship and 
 advanced age, has passed on to fulness of life, the life ever- 
 lasting. What incalculable heights of bliss and spiritual 
 advancement is that soul capable of entering upon and 
 appreciating now! Is it not worth while making all pos- 
 sible progress while on earth, that the greater may be the 
 capacity of the soul for the enjoyment of the delights of 
 heaven ? 
 
 At the ai)pointed time the inexorable decree of Nature 
 asserts itself and the body suffers decay even as the grass 
 or the flower of the field, but what matters it that the 
 shell crumbles back to earth while the soul lives on to 
 countless ages of — what ? 
 
 Ay, that is the great question for each to determine for 
 himself. But how piteously the great consideration is 
 overlooked and evaded. Moses, the servant of God, de- 
 ploring the indifference of the people of his charge con- 
 cerning these things, exclaimed: "O that they were wise, 
 that they understood this, that they would consider their 
 latter end!" For the end is but the beginning. When 
 the harvest, which is the end of the world, shall come, 
 the spring-time of the soul is at hand. Heed the lesson 
 of the day. Strive so to live that at the last it may be 
 said of us as of a wise man lately departed, " a great soul 
 has entered into eternal life." The true life has just 
 begun. 
 
EVERY-DAY CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 T is our every-day life that reveals 
 
 exactly what kind of Christians 
 
 we are. We cannot always form 
 
 a proper estimate of Christian 
 
 character by seeing others now 
 
 and then, or passing a day or two 
 
 in their society at intervals. We 
 
 are generally thrown into the 
 
 society of friends upon pleasant 
 
 occasions. We meet them upon 
 
 life's holidays oftener than in the 
 
 usual routine of daily duties. We 
 
 greet them upon social occasions 
 
 when they are prepared to meet us 
 
 with pleasant words and loving 
 
 smiles. 
 
 It is easy then to smile and speak kindly. It is easy to 
 
 wear a cheerful look when the burden and task are put 
 
 away from them, and when free from the influences that 
 
 chafe and fret the body and soul. 
 
 Divine grace is not always required upon occasions 
 like this to win the good opinion and approval of others. 
 There is often enough natural goodness about human be- 
 ings to bring to the surface of their lives those genial 
 graces which charm other eyes and win the respect and 
 confidence of those with whom they come in contact. But 
 these can scarce hold good in the every-day life. Divine 
 grace alone can sustain the soul when the burden is heavy, 
 and care and troubles appear at every step. There is not 
 enough moral strength in the natural heart to sustain it 
 when the body is weary, and the poor weak arms are 
 just ready to let fall the burden. 
 
 When trial, discouragement, and disaster all combine to 
 
 193 
 
EVERY-DAY CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 193 
 
 render the life-path dreary, then the blessed faith in Christ 
 alone can hold those unpleasant influences in check, and 
 still the troubled waters. With the abiding Comforter in 
 the soul, it is as easy to smile and appear cheerful in ad- 
 verse circumstances as for the worldling to be happy in 
 the hours of peace and prosperity. 
 
 It is this every-day life that builds up our Christian 
 character. If we overcome the daily annoyances we grow 
 strong and heroic, and it soon becomes, if not a pleasant, 
 at least a cheerful, task to do, bear, and suffer. The service 
 of Christ is one that grows lighter and more pleasant 
 as the years go by. It never galls or inflicts needless 
 wounds upon those who are engaged in it. 
 
 It is this that exerts a lasting influence over the world. 
 It is this that tests the value of religion, and proves to 
 others that it is pure gold, and not a mere profession. It 
 weighs and measures the golden treasure in a way which 
 proves its great worth, and the sceptic himself stands con- 
 founded and silenced. 
 
PERFECT TRUST. 
 
 MOTHER was awakened in 
 the still, small hours of the 
 night by the touch of her lit- 
 tle boy's hand. He said, 
 " Mamma, I don't know what 
 is the matter; I can't sleep, 
 and I've tried ever so long." 
 .She took him up, laid his head upon 
 her breast, and folded his hands in 
 hers ; in a few moments he was sleeping 
 the sweet sleep of happy childhood. 
 Mother's embrace and touch of hand, 
 with his implicit confidence, brought re- 
 ^^"^ pose. I wonder why we grown-up, restless, 
 faulty children cannot in our troubles cast 
 (jurselves thus confidingly into the "everlasting arms." 
 It cannot be that we doubt God's ability to care for us, for 
 we know that he is omnipotent and able to do ail things. 
 It is not that we doubt his love, for every day evidences 
 that, and we have his word that though the mother may 
 forget her child, yet his love will never fail us. It must 
 be our unreasonable want of trust, whereas we should ever 
 feel perfect confidence in our Father. 
 
 The way may be dark, the body very weary, and the 
 feet sore from the thorns in the path, still we should re- 
 member that all our trials are disciplinary — no atonement 
 through suffering is worked out by us, but by our sorrows 
 our characters are rounded, polished, and perfected. This 
 trustfulness of little children should often reveal a 
 loving Father to us, even in this world, and when " the 
 leaves of the judgment book unfold," how clear will be the 
 revelation — all in love. 
 
 
 194 
 
OUR OLD ENEMIES. 
 
 lE lift up our eyes 
 and see our old 
 enemies, like 
 sly, crafty foxes, 
 pursuing our 
 footsteps. W e 
 shall assuredly 
 fi n d n o help 
 or mercy in 
 the direction of 
 the pursuing 
 enemy, but the 
 outlook is full of 
 hope if we only 
 glance i n the 
 right direction. 
 Moses told the 
 Israelites that 
 they should see 
 no more again forever the enemies who were pursuing 
 them. That blessed assurance will come to us some day. 
 It may not be now, nor to-morrow, nor for weeks nor 
 months, but some day, constant resistance will bring us 
 the consciousness that our easily besetting sin is dead, 
 that it has lost its hold upon us forever. Where is our 
 strength? Behmd us are the hosts of sin; our strength 
 surely is not there. We gauge our own puny strength and 
 wisdom, it is insufficient; we look upon ourselves and see 
 how weak we are, but when we cease to look at our 
 enemies and ourselves and lift our eyes above, there 
 moves the angel of our deliverance, none other than Jesus. 
 When we hear the tramping of temptation and the discords 
 
196 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 of warring elements, the angel of the Lord moves behind 
 us and comes between us and the enemy. 
 
 The chosen Israelites were in bondage in Egypt, and so 
 are many of God's chosen ones. The state of Israel in 
 Egypt was one of severest depression; at every point they 
 were overborne and were under the lash of a tyrant; if 
 their manhood tried to rise and assert itself, a blow in the 
 face was the response. This is the condition of those who 
 are in a state of sin. Some of God's freemen have been 
 many years under the lash of Satan; they may boast of 
 their liberty and think themselves free, but sin is slavery 
 and continual oppression. At last the children of Is- 
 rael escaped from Pharaoh, and by a strong hand and a 
 stretched-out arm God delivered them. Suddenly they 
 turned to look behind them, and- behold the Egyptians 
 were after them, their old enemies were close upon their 
 heels. This is just the experience of Christians; old 
 enemies pursue them, years of sin are behind them, and 
 old associations are hard to break. Satan is close behind 
 them, making special efforts to reclaim them as his own. 
 
 We ought not to expect to escape from all our enemies 
 at once; one cannot throw off his past as he would throw 
 off an old garment. Old slaveries, old tyrannies, old 
 recollections, old habits will assert themselves in one 
 way or another. It is mare than a step from sin to holi- 
 ness, it is a long way from evil to goodness, from dark- 
 ness to light, from the depths of nature to the highest 
 attainments of grace. There will be many a struggle, 
 many a reappearance of the old self. Judas was cast down 
 in the dust by his sin and there he stayed. Peter fell as 
 deeply, but looked at Christ and rose again. So every 
 true Christian will rise stronger than before, and look 
 more at Christ and less at self. It is our chiefest blessing, 
 that we have not a human judge to stand before. God 
 does not expect us to step from Egypt direct to his throne; 
 he leads us through the Red Sea and the wilderness and 
 the long wanderings and daily discipline, but he only asks 
 that at each day's close we should be a little stronger, a 
 little nearer, a little more devoted. 
 
 Like the Israelites we are in a wilderness; but ours is a 
 wilderness of sin. We have left Egypt, but not yet 
 gained Canaan; we have had long and bitter experience 
 
198 
 
 THE CHRISTIAX LIFE. 
 
 of sin, and it has made us weak; we have been under a 
 powerful and remorseless enemy who has never spared us, 
 but has been very severe with us, but we have been re- 
 deemed by a gracious and Omnipotent Saviour, and so 
 though our old enemies are pursuing us as if they would 
 never give us up as long as there remains a single chance 
 of winning us back to their old allegiance, we are safe if 
 we look unto Jesus and lean upon his strength. 
 
 While we remember the fact that our own enemies are 
 still pursuing us, let us hot be uncharitable and censorious 
 to others who are just beginning the Christian life. Let 
 us remember that they have just escaped the grasp of their 
 enemies, so it is not strange if now and then, in spite of 
 their best efforts, they are overtaken and fall. There are 
 always people ready to condemn and crush them. There 
 are thousands of men who never notice the stars swinging 
 in order and beauty in their appointed places, who do 
 stop and mark the falling star. There are many who pass 
 over a hundred moral victories without a word of praise, 
 who glory over one fault. Because a Christian cannot 
 step from the world to heaven, they exaggerate and hold 
 up to criticism every fault, all that is unwprthy a Chris- 
 tian, and exult over it, forgetting that old enemies clo not 
 bid a new-born soul Godspeed in the way to heaven, but 
 pursue them hotly even after they have started out towards 
 the promised land. 
 
MORAL BEAUTY. 
 
 IRTUE, wisdom, and goodness, 
 those graces of character which 
 constitute moral beauty, like the 
 loadstone, never lose their power 
 of attraction. The beauty that 
 shines forth from a pure and 
 sweet-tempered Christian soul far 
 transcends, in all those qualities 
 which command and hold a wor- 
 thy admiration, the transient 
 charm of mere outward adorn- 
 ment either of nature or art. 
 
 Purity of life and character is 
 one of the essentials of this type 
 of loveliness. Good thoughts, 
 good motives, good companion- 
 ships, are the influences that help 
 to mould the mind into a form of 
 real and lasting beauty. Evil companionships frequently 
 lead to an impure heart — a foul and diseased imagination 
 that discovers itself in the outward features, in spite 
 of all that art or skilful dissimulation can do. There is 
 nothing more repulsive or hideous than a corrupt, sin- 
 disfigured character brought into sharp contrast by the 
 weak, shallow disguises of outward show and gaudy attire. 
 Meekness, patience, kindness, charitableness, a self- 
 denying spirit — these are the vestments of the highest 
 type of beauty— the kind which commands not only the 
 admiration of the best of men. but is admired by God 
 himself. 
 
 " Beautiful faces they, that wear 
 The light of a pleasant spirit there, 
 It matters little, if dark or fair." 
 199 
 
WHAT ARE WE DOING? 
 
 is a very serious question, and 
 one which we should often ask 
 ourselves, What are we doing, 
 you and I, for the dear Saviour 
 who has redeemed us, bought us 
 with his blood, paid such a price 
 for us? If we can only give a 
 cup of cold water to one of his 
 little ones, if given in his name, 
 it is something for him. Said an 
 aged disciple: 
 
 " I have reached the borderland 
 ♦ ' T^M^f/Kr^M ^^^^ ^^^ only waiting for the sum- 
 
 ^^«wl\^Ei"\ K mons to meet my Lord. As I look 
 
 about me to-night I see new faces, 
 few, I was about to say, for there 
 is only here and there one face that met with us in 
 this place of prayer fifty years ago — ay, twenty-five 
 years — and how many changes even in ten! The nearer 
 we live to the dear Lord the more he will show us, if we 
 ask him what we can do for him, and I must say from my 
 experience that none ask in vain. 
 
 200 
 
WHAT ARE IVE DOIXG? 
 
 " If you really wish to do something for the dear Lord he 
 will show you how and when to do it. He will teach 
 you to speak a loving word of comfort to some weary pil- 
 grim, footsore, struggling on in life's journey through toil 
 and hardship; or to give of your substance as he hath 
 prospered you in furtherance of the cause of Christ. But 
 withal do not forget to implore the blessings of the dear 
 Lord on all your efforts, and you may be certain he will 
 be sure to hear and answer your prayers. Try it and 
 prove it; you will find it true." 
 
 Few who heard Father Payson's remarks that evening 
 ever forgot them or his appearance as he stood like one 
 of the patriarchs of old leaning on his staff. The very 
 next morning as the day was dawning the village church 
 bell tolled for one of eighty years. The news soon spread 
 far and wide that Father Payson was dead. When they 
 went to call him in the morning his Bible lay open on the 
 stand by his bedside, his spectacles lay on the open page, 
 but Father Payson " was not, for God took him." 
 
"NO GOD." 
 
 HE celebrated astronomer 
 Kircher, having an ac- 
 quaintance who denied 
 the existence of God, took 
 the following method to 
 convince him of his error. 
 He procured a very hand- 
 some globe, or representa- 
 tive of the starry heavens, 
 which he placed in a 
 corner of the room to at- 
 tract his friend's observa- 
 tion, who, when he came, 
 asked from whence it came and to whom it belonged. 
 
 "Not to me," said Kircher; "nor was it ever made by 
 any person, but came here by mere chance." 
 
 "That," replied his sceptical friend, " is absolutely im- 
 possible. You surely jest." 
 
 Kircher, however, seriously persisting in his assertion, 
 took occasion to reason with his friend on his own atheis- 
 tical principles. 
 
 "You will not believe," said he, "that this small body 
 originated in mere chance, and yet you would contend 
 that those heavenly bodies, of which it is but a faint re- 
 semblance, came into existence without order or design." 
 Pursuing this train of reasoning, his friend was at first 
 confounded, next convinced," when he cordially confessed 
 the absurdity of denying the existence of a God. 
 
 To a thoughtful mind it seems incredible that any in- 
 telligent human being could deny the existence of our 
 King of Kings, could refuse, dare refuse to do him hom- 
 age. What but omnipotent power could plan and keep in 
 motion such a world as ours? While I am writing it is 
 winter. Looking out of my window I see snow and ice, 
 the leafless trees in their cold shrouds; but is this picture 
 
 202 
 
NO GOD." 
 
 203 
 
 to continue? Ah, no! the ice and snow will pass away 
 when the Spring comes with its balmy breath. The trees 
 will bud and blossom, the grass will spread its velvet 
 mantle, the buttercups and daisies will spring up by the 
 wayside, and the violets in the meadows. The streams will 
 be loosened from their frosty prison, the birds will sing 
 their songs of thanksgiving, the browsing cattle will lap 
 the clear water from the running brook. Everywhere 
 will be life and growth and beauty; did it all come by 
 chance? Trtily it is only the fool who hath said in his 
 heart, "No God," for to prove it, one would need to be 
 himself a god and to travel abroad over the surrounding 
 universe till he had exhausted it. He must search back- 
 ward through all the hidden recesses of eternity; traverse 
 in every direction the plains of infinitude; he must 
 sweep the outskirts of that space which is itself in- 
 terminable, and then bring back to this little world of 
 ours the report of a universal blank, wherein he had not 
 met with one movement of a presiding God. For man not 
 to know of a God, he has only to sink beneath the level 
 of our common nature, but to deny him, he must be a 
 god himself; he must arrogate the ubicjuitv and omni- 
 science of God himself. 
 
CAUSE AND EFFECT. 
 
 . -»^ — Qu c,t2Lnd beside some great artist as he 
 paints. Every color glows, every line 
 is alive, every touch is true, and under 
 his skilful hand the canvas becomes a 
 counterpart of nature and the land- 
 scape stands out in wonderful perspec- 
 tive. You wonder at his skill which 
 prevents all mistakes and makes the 
 picture true in every detail; you could 
 not do it, nor could he, if he painted for the first time. 
 The skill he exhibits is a sum total, the effect of a long 
 series of causes. It began years ago in the schoolroom, 
 and from that it has grown until the present. Let us 
 watch the effect of wrong-doing. A young man takes 
 an intoxicating draught. It is a simple act and may not 
 be attended with any very serious results in the present ; 
 but that act is a cause, and every cause will have its 
 effect. We would not consign him to degradation and a 
 nameless grave now, but the probability is that that cause 
 will act until in after-years the strength of manhood will 
 break under the burden of disease, the open, cheerful 
 countenance will become the bloated face, the free, spring- 
 ing step will give way to a swagger, and the bright, quick 
 intellect will become beclouded and dull. 
 
 Let us look at the effect of goodness. One has faith in 
 the Lord Jesus Christ and in the reality of spiritual 
 things; he is shaping his life on the great principles 
 which the one perfect model laid down; and who can 
 doubt but that such a one will become a son of God and 
 enter into an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, that 
 fadeth not away ? 
 
 Causes produce their own effects, legitimate effects, and 
 as one sows, so he shall reap. As travellers are descend- 
 ing through the pass of St. Bernard they are cautioned by 
 the guide not to utter a single word, as the very vibration 
 of the voice may loosen some part of the overhanging snow, 
 
 204 
 
CAUSE AND EFFECT. 
 
 205 
 
 which will result in an avalanghe, sweeping everything be- 
 fore it. Who would think of an effect so formidable from 
 a cause so small? The voice loosens only a small piece 
 of snow, but that in falling becomes a cause for a larger 
 fall, until the glacier is moved and the mountain is shaken 
 to its foundation by the avalanche. Who can tell what 
 moral effect a single word may have? It is a cause which 
 starts a series of causes, and thus progressing the effect 
 becomes tremendous. But few pay any regard to such 
 effects; they seem such a long way off that they cannot 
 affect us, and yet they are the most serious things in the 
 universe. However indifferent we may be, these causes 
 are at work and will bring about their results. Beware 
 what causes you set in motion, lest the effects bring you 
 and others life-long sorrow! 
 
GOD'S OMNISCIENCE. 
 
 ^^l^- ONG ago when our Saviour was upon 
 Wr^J^ earth it was said of him that he 
 needed not that any should testify 
 of man, for he knew what was in 
 man. How wonderful a thing is 
 this part of God's omniscience! 
 It is a knowledge at once to us sad 
 and joyful. It is so far from being 
 possessed by man that it cannot 
 even be said that we know our- 
 selves, much less any human being 
 around us. Much often depends 
 upon our knowing the motives, the 
 hidden springs of action, the sincerity and real purpose 
 of another. How differently we would act sometimes if 
 we could really see below the surface, and know what is 
 in man. All are not w^iat they seem I Some wear masks, 
 sometimes over their faces, and more often over their 
 hearts; it is universal experience as well as an inspired 
 declaration that " the heart is deceitful above all things." 
 It would be a great amount of knowledge to see all of a 
 man's actions, to tear aside the veil from the hours when 
 he is alone, to note every motion and attitude, and leave 
 no part of his life unaccounted for. Simply to know all 
 external acts in every moment of life would be knowledge 
 far beyond human capacity, and yet it would hardly begin 
 the real knowledge of the man. Perhaps not a hundredth 
 part of a man's character ever takes outward form, and 
 what is in man is an unexplored realm. It includes all 
 the past history of the race and encompasses all the 
 future: it enters into every detail and takes account of 
 every day, every position, and every circumstance. Only 
 the omniscient One knows all that is in man, and it is 
 
 206 
 
GOD'S OMNISCIENCE. 
 
 207 
 
 worse than folly to attempt to hide anything from his all- 
 seeing eyes. 
 
 Our past life has been full of sin; he knows it better 
 than we do. Why try to hide it ? Why not rather tell it 
 to him and gain his pardon? We can be sure that we 
 tell our story in an appreciative ear when we whisper it to 
 Jesus, for as very man as well as very God he knows what 
 is in man. He knows and pities; he knows and saves. 
 
THE FATHER'S WAY. 
 
 AVE you a heavenly Father — is 
 there a Being to whom you can 
 go as children go to a parent, 
 and with the simplicity of a little 
 child of whom the Saviour said, 
 " Suffer them to come" — can you 
 look up, though it may be with 
 tearful eyes, and say, " Father, 
 not my will, but Thine?" Do 
 you feel that no matter what hap- 
 pens, no matter what is contrary 
 to your desires, no matter how 
 untoward circumstances may be, 
 you can still love the hand that 
 smites? Even when the chastening for the present seem- 
 eth to be grievous, can you still say, "Not my will, but 
 Thine?" 
 
 Life under such circumstances becomes all peace, and 
 contentment, and satisfaction. Though seas of trouble are 
 rough, and sometimes threaten to engulf you; although 
 your roses with their perfume carry many thorns ; although 
 the sun smites your gourds; although the almond-tree shall 
 fail, the grasshopper become a burden, and desire shall 
 cease; yet you can still cry out aloud, " I desire to be, to 
 have, to know nothing, but what is best; all that I desire 
 to have is only what is according to the Father's way." 
 
 208 
 
THE WAY OF PEACE. 
 
 20d 
 
 H 
 
GOD'S CRUCIBLE. 
 
 ^^,-i^ E c 
 
 ry out sometimes in agony when 
 we see our beloved ones cast into 
 the crucible of trial. How can 
 (rod do so? we question, in doubt- 
 ing sorrow. Let us comfort our 
 hearts by believing that it is 
 eno.ugh that he does put this griev- 
 ous burden upon them, and that it 
 will only work for good. 
 
 " I want to take that likeness home with 
 me," said a lady to an artist. " But, madam," 
 he expostulated, " it is out of the question; it 
 ^) is not yet finished." "Not finished!" in sur- 
 
 prise. " Why, what more can you do to it ?" 
 she asked, looking at the lovely pictured face of one of 
 her darlings. "Ah," he said, "it must be touched and 
 retouched before I shall allow it to leave my studio." 
 
 It is so with God — the divine artist. To us our 
 friends — some of them at least — may seem to be perfect, 
 but the Omniscient knows they are not. He will not rest, 
 nor allow them to rest, until they are "refined" unto the 
 utmost limit of which they are capable. 
 
 " Great Master! touch us with Thy skilful hand, 
 Let not the music that is in us die. 
 Great Sculptor! hew and polish us ; nor let, 
 Hidden and lost, Thy form within us lie. 
 Spare not the stroke ; do with us as Thou wilt ; 
 Let there be naught unfinished, broken, maimed ; 
 Complete Thy purpose, that we may become 
 Thy perfect image, O our God and Lord." 
 2IO 
 
FULL AND FREE FORGIVENESS. 
 
 HERE are shrinking, 
 introspective natures, 
 who must always look 
 back upon sins com- 
 mitted, remorsefully 
 regarding them as de- 
 termining the final 
 estate of the soul. 
 They are so consti- 
 tuted that they never 
 can, of their own 
 selves, without help, 
 see the absolution 
 offered freely and fully from the Father upon repentance. 
 It may be the result of an unbalanced mind, or of peculiar 
 circumstances, or of defects in training, but there are those 
 who thus sit in sackcloth all their days — the wine of life 
 turned to poison, the energies of mind and heart rusted, life 
 not worth living, sorrowing always over the past. 
 
 To deal rightly with one in such a condition, the priest 
 of absolution must be wise and true and tender, having 
 his hand, as it were, upon the key-note of the Father's 
 love and justice, and being informed by an experience, 
 personal and deep. He must possess an unerring spiritual 
 insight, and, while tender and sympathetic, must be a 
 
 211 
 
THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 surgeon for the soul that will not allow the searching 
 probe to stop short of the bottom of the diseased spot. 
 
 There are some natures so constituted as to make them 
 in the highest sense priests of absolution. A true mother, 
 with insight sharpened by love, and with sympathies kept 
 alert for her child's needs, when she gathers the weeping 
 penitent one to her heart and whispers, " Dry your tears 
 and think no more about it. You are sorry, I have for- 
 given you, and I am sure God, who is even more kind and 
 sympathetic than I, forgives you too " — she perhaps is the 
 highest type of this priest. Those of us who have thus 
 received absolution, do we not think so? It is a great 
 blessing to thus possess this rare gift of leading repentant, 
 despairing souls so close to the Master that they may 
 touch his garment and feel conscious of his forgiving 
 power. 
 
LITTLE SINS. 
 
 heed it 
 
 ^'^F0ST men who fail to obtain salva- 
 *? tion are brought into a state 
 ^^1 of misery by prevaricating with 
 themselves, and not living up 
 to the judgment and resolves 
 of their own knowledge. They 
 miss their way to heaven, not 
 because they do not know it, but 
 because they know it and do not 
 They deceive' themselves by some 
 se "hope; they are allured here and there 
 ^j some shadowy form of doctrine or belief 
 that offers nothing better to them in their 
 hour of bitter extremitv'than blank despair 
 and unavailing regret. How many fly in the face of then- 
 convictions of right and duty simply because they think 
 that somehow in the future the wrong will be atoned, and 
 thev will escape the punishment justly due them for their 
 folly and impietv. They run blindly toward destruction, 
 thinkino- that somehow God's restraining grace will in- 
 terpose "to save them before they reach the fatal_^ hour 
 that hurls them from time into eternity. "Surely, they 
 sav within themselves," this is a little thing." And then 
 the downward course begins. The " little things grow 
 to be o-reat things, and what was at first a slight swerving 
 from the path of rectitude becomes a wide divergence. 
 The self-deceiving power of sin— how it blinds men s eyes 
 to their own highest and truest and best interests! promise 
 ino- them bread^and giving them a stone; mocking them 
 at^lastwith the pangs of remorse, and the accusations ot a 
 conscience whose warnings they have so long ignored. Let 
 every one consider the truth of the words: Be not de- 
 ceived ; God is not mocked, for whatsoever a man soweth 
 that shall he also reap." 
 
 213 
 
CROWNS. 
 
 ROWNS or garlands were given to the suc- 
 cessful competitors at the Grecian games. 
 These were made of parsley, pine, and oak, 
 and although they soon perished they were 
 highly prized by those who gained them. 
 Our Saviour was crowned with thorns in 
 mockery by the Roman soldiers, an especial 
 insult. It is said that the Spina C/iristi\ 
 although abundant in the neighborhood of 
 Jerusalem, cannot be the plant of which it 
 was composed, because its thorns are so 
 strong and large that it could not have been 
 woven into a wreath. Probably some thorny 
 shrub is meant; possibly, and we think quite 
 likely, it may be the Arabian ni/bk, whose round branches 
 are flexible and pliant, and can easily be woven into a 
 crown and whose sharp thorns inflict painful wounds. In 
 color this resembles the triumphant ivy-wreath; and 
 that would add to its ironical purpose. 
 
 For us there remains a crown of glory which, unlike that 
 of the winner of the race, fadeth not away. Our race may 
 endure for a long time, but at the end, if we keep our eyes 
 fixed upon the goal, which is heaven, we shall receive the 
 crown of life which the Lord hath promised to those 
 who love him. 
 
 "Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a 
 crown of life." 
 
 214 
 
WHAT IS REST? 
 
 praise of all men. The 
 power to rule the state 
 only in a happy home 
 
 a book of Persian 
 tales there is a 
 beautiful legend 
 about Rabbi Judah 
 and his brethren, 
 who, as the seven 
 pillars of wisdom, 
 sat one day in the 
 Court of the Tem- 
 ple at Jerusalem 
 disputing about 
 rest. One said 
 that it was to have 
 attained sufficient 
 flocks and herds, 
 yet without sin. 
 The second, that it 
 was fame and 
 third, that it was possession of 
 The fourth, that it consisted 
 The fifth, that it must be in the 
 old age of one who is rich, powerful, famous, surrounded 
 by children and children's children. The sixth said that 
 all were vain unless a man keep the ritual law of Moses. 
 And Rabbi Judah, the venerable, the tallest of the broth- 
 ers, said, "Ye have all spoken wisely, but one thing more 
 is necessary. He only can find rest who to all things 
 addeth this: that he keepeth the tradition of the elders." 
 There sat in the Court a fair-haired boy, playing with 
 some lilies in his lap, and, hearing the talk, he dropped 
 them with astonishment from his hands, and looking 
 up said, " Nay, nay, fathers : he only findeth rest who 
 loveth his brother as himself, and God with his whole 
 heart and soul. He is greater than fame, and wealth, 
 and power; happier than a happy home, happy without 
 it, better than honored age; he is a law to himself, and 
 above tradition." The doctors were astonished. They 
 said: "When Christ cometh, shall he tell us greater 
 things?" And they thanked God, for they said: "The 
 old men are not always wise, yet God be praised that 
 out of the mouth of this little one has his praise become 
 perfect.'" 
 
 215 
 
MY PRESENCE SHALL 
 THEE." 
 
 GO WITH 
 
 efit. 
 
 HA'l' a comfort this is! No 
 burden is too heavy if we 
 are thus favored. No disci- 
 plinary tests Avill fail to 
 produce their intended ben- 
 No schemes of evil, though 
 formed against us with consum- 
 mate skill, will succeed. More than 
 this, God's presence with His people 
 is an infallible sign of the truth of 
 religion. 
 
 The outpouring of the Holy Spirit 
 upon a church is, for this reason, the 
 most effectual means of exterminating 
 all forms of infidelity and vice in the 
 community. Moses said, " Wherein 
 shall it be known here that I and thy 
 people have found grace in thy sight? is it not in that 
 thou goest with us?" 
 
 How are we to live so that this benign, invisible 
 presence will evermore be our portion? This question 
 has but one answer, namely, the voluntary and habitual 
 exercise of believing prayer. The Psalmist said, " I 
 have set the Lord always before me: because He is at 
 my right hand, I shall not be moved." 
 
PLANNING AND DOING. 
 
 f'^<^/vv 
 
 VERV ONE knows there 
 is a very wide differ- 
 ence between planning 
 and doing, but how few 
 gain practical wisdom 
 from the knowledge! 
 One rises in the morn- 
 ing after a night of re- 
 freshing sleep, and_in 
 the fresh vigor gained 
 from the rest makes great 
 plans that are to be car- 
 r i e d out before the 
 shades of night gather 
 once more over him. 
 Yesterday just as many 
 plans were made, just as 
 great things were to be 
 accomplished, but 
 then — ah! but they were not done. The plans of to-day 
 will be just as ill-matured, and those of to-morrow will 
 follow in like manner. 
 
 The young are ever hopeful ; they sneer at the idea that 
 they may be unable to do great things. What if they had 
 thought to accomplish more than was possible; life is 
 long and life is gay, and to-morrow will do just as well; 
 the blossoms of to-day fall, but the buds will be blossoms 
 to-morrow, and perhaps far more beautiful ; and if they 
 do not bloom with to-morrow's sun there is the next 
 day, and time enough. Hope may not be quite so 
 reckless in middle age, but hope still lives. The farmer 
 plants his seed to-day to reap it in one of the to-morrows, 
 and he does it. The merchant, the man of business, the 
 head of the house — they are all alike, sowing to reap, 
 over and over again. 
 
 It is pretty much the same with the Christian. He 
 sees a little corner of the Lord's vineyard that needs to 
 be cultivated, and he says in God's name that he will do 
 
 217 
 
2l8 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 it; but does he do it — does he not plan without perform- 
 ing? Was not his plan formed in an idle, careless way, 
 without feeling the great wrong of which he is guilty in 
 not doing all he can to pay the vows he has made? Do 
 we realize what we are doing when we deal thus with the 
 dear Lord who is so patient with us, when we promise so 
 much and perform so little? 
 
 After the heyday of life comes old age, and how differ- 
 ent all is then! The days become so short, the noon-day 
 sun comes so soon after the dew of morning, and in the 
 twinkling of an eye the evening stars are shining. There 
 is less planning and more doing then, but the " keepers 
 of the house" begin to tremble, the grasshopper is a bur- 
 den, and the "years draw nigh when thou shalt say, I 
 have no pleasure in them." How we shall regret if we 
 have then been only hearers and not doers of the Word. 
 Lost opportunities will then rise up before the mental 
 vision, and on how many possibilities to do God's will 
 the door will have been shut! If we have been up and 
 doing it will be only a blessed waiting. 
 
 " Only waiting till the reapers 
 
 Have the last sheaf gathered home; 
 For the summer-time has faded, 
 
 And the autumn winds have come. 
 Quickly, reapers! gather quickly, 
 
 All the ripe hours of my heart; 
 For the bloom of life is withered. 
 
 And I hasten to depart." 
 
NOT OUR OWN. 
 
 N Eastern allegory runs thus: 
 A merchant, going abroad for 
 a time, gave respectively to 
 two of his friends two sacks of 
 wheat each, to take care of 
 against his return. Years 
 passed : he came back, and 
 applied for them again. The 
 first took him into his store- 
 house and showed them to 
 him; but they were mildewed 
 and worthless. The other led 
 him out into the open country, 
 and pointed out field after field 
 of waving corn, the produce 
 of the two sacks given him. 
 How frequently striking contrasts similar to the above 
 are presented to our view! Two who have started out 
 with equal abilities, one content to let his talents lie idle, 
 the other resolved to produce as large a harvest as pos- 
 sible ; one, after years, can show over his barren talents 
 "nothing but leaves;" the other with glowing gratitude 
 can point to ripened grain and luscious fruit, and can 
 look forward to the appreciative words of commendation, 
 "Well done, thou good and faithful servant." 
 
 It is a common mistake for people who have but one 
 talent to think that, because they only have one, they are 
 justified in folding it in a napkin. If only one, we are 
 required to cultivate it, and it often brings forth fruit a 
 thousandfold. It is not the number but the use of talents 
 that fills the world with blessing. From a single dollar 
 actively employed princely fortunes have sprung. The 
 feeble shout of a tiny child has saved the thundering 
 train from wreck, and snatched a hundred souls from 
 
 2IQ 
 
2 20 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 death. In all lands the widows' mites have filled God's 
 treasuries. He who will do nothing until he can do a 
 great thing will never do anything. Krummacher tells 
 of a countryman, the owner of great estates, noted for his 
 wisdom and prudence, who was obliged to go on a jour- 
 ney for several months. He called his son, and gave him 
 charge of all till his return. The youth was dismayed at 
 the task, but his father bade him farewell and departed. 
 The youth undertook the work with much fear, but 
 took courage and said, " My father hath confided it to 
 me; therefore I must fulfil my work." So he wrought 
 vigorously and improved greatly. After many months 
 the father returned and found the estates, the flocks and 
 herds all in good order; and the fame of his son spread 
 through all the country. Then the father praised the 
 good management of his son. The son said, " But, my 
 father, what if I had had ill success?" The father smiled 
 and said, "I knew your abilities, but you did not know 
 them. I wished to give you self-reliance; therefore 1 
 demanded a great thing of you. You were a youth; but 
 now you have become a man." 
 
 Our Father has demanded great things of us. Better 
 than any human friend he knows our abilities, and will 
 judge accordingly. He has given them to us to be used, 
 and we are to remember that we are not only to enjoy our 
 own talents but see that they are used for others. 
 
 "Talents are seeds by heaven's good gift bestowed 
 To render back their incense unto God. 
 Talents are deeds to do, or duties done, 
 Whate'er their number be, five, two, or one 
 As is their use, so is their worth; 
 As is the impulse given 
 They wither here upon the earth, 
 Or ripen here for heaven." 
 
RESTRAINING GRACE. 
 
 E know not how sinful 
 we might be, what 
 w i c k e d c r i m e s we 
 might commit, but for 
 grace of God re- 
 straining us. But we 
 sometimes seem to 
 forget this ; w e 1 o o k 
 about us and see mis- 
 ery, oftentimes the re- 
 sult of wrong-doing as 
 well as of ignorance, 
 ly of crimes too horrible to be 
 feelings of pity sometimes min- 
 sense of justice in the punish- 
 criminal ; but how many of us 
 why it is that we differ from 
 the very w.orst, and who has made us to 
 differ; or that we might be as bad as any, 
 except for God's restraining grace? 
 
 In the earlier history of the Bible we read 
 that the Lord himself appeared to one man, 
 who was about to commit a great crime, 
 and said, "I also withheld thee from 
 sinning against me;" and we may call to 
 mind many instances where God's people 
 were prevented, in a remarkable manner, from doing 
 what would have been harmful and sinful, as well as led 
 to do that which was right. 
 
 In the New Testament our Saviour said to his impetuous, 
 erring, wilful disciple: "Simon, Simon, behold, Satan 
 hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat; 
 
 221 
 
THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not." This 
 is perhaps one of the chief arguments in favor of a special 
 Providence, which so many in this day seem to ignore, 
 and even pretend to disbelieve — an overruling, guiding 
 Hand, which not only leads us in the right path, but puts 
 hindrances in the way to prevent us from doing the wrong 
 thing. 
 
 To the earnest reader of the Bible no other argument is 
 needed; its pages are full of special providences, and it 
 is a comforting thought that we may ask for, and expect 
 not only to have grace and strength for daily duties and 
 trials, but deliverance from evil; and even with the 
 temptations that must assail us, there will be provided a 
 way of escape, so that we may be kept from sinning 
 against God. " But for all this, I will be inquired of, 
 saith the Lord;" so let us see to it that we seek the 
 Divine guidance and grace, and then if we are withheld 
 from sin, and there is any good thing in us, let us give 
 God the glory, and say with Paul: "By the grace of God 
 I am what I am." 
 
UNDER SEALED ORDERS. 
 
 GOVERNMENT vessel was about 
 to leave the dock, to sail away for 
 some unknown port. No one knew 
 her destination, whether it was to 
 be near by or far away. Those 
 who had loved ones on board felt 
 sad and anxious. Were these loved 
 ones to be within reach of cheering" 
 words, of letters full of love and 
 encouragement, or were they to be 
 sent afar to some foreign port from 
 which no word would come in weary weeks and months? 
 This question could be asked many and many a time, but 
 there was no echo to the words, no answer to be had. The 
 ship was to sail under sealed orders ; orders from the Navy 
 Department, sealed by the Government seal that could 
 not be opened until.it was far out at sea, and away from 
 all possible communication with the land. 
 
 The Captain of our salvation sends us away on sealed 
 instructions. Whither? You do not need to know. You 
 might not like your destination; you might object to the 
 buffeting waves; the billows of trouble might threaten to 
 wreck your soul; the harbor might be hard to reach. and 
 the rocks of danger might lie between you and it. Do 
 you care? Does it matter to you if the passage is a 
 stormy one when you know that safety is at the end? that 
 the Father is at the helm, and that he neither slumbers 
 nor sleeps? Therefore take courage, and whether you 
 find yourself in storm or sunshine, by day or by night, go 
 forth boldly under "sealed orders." Let the peace of God 
 that passeth understanding abide with you, and rest confi- 
 dently in the full assurance that God knows and cares for 
 his own. 
 
 
 w 
 
 M 
 
 % 
 
 s 
 
 g: 
 
 
 m 
 
 s 
 
 223 
 
WAITING ON THE LORD. 
 
 RE you praying to-day, Christian reader, 
 for the conversion of the world and the 
 well-being of your own soul, and do you 
 ^ believe that prayej" will be answered? 
 Then you must not rest in your belief 
 after a few feeble petitions, but follow 
 always, day and night, the command of 
 the Psalmist; "Wait on the Lord: be of 
 good courage, and he shall strengthen, 
 thy heart: wait, I say, on the Lord." It 
 will not do simply to pray occasionally, once a day or once 
 a week, whenever you think of it. You must be waiting on 
 the Lord with your soul full of importunate pleading, 
 hour after hour, day after day, for weeks and months if the 
 Lord see fit to tarry so long. 
 
 What if Jacob had put forth his strength but for a little 
 against his unknown antagonist and* then given up con- 
 quered instead of wrestling all night by the brook-side? 
 What if, even at break of day, he had granted the petition, 
 "Let me go," without further request? He would not 
 have gained the blessing, would not have had power with 
 God and prevailed. So neither will you unless you go 
 and do likewise. 
 
 Even Jesus Christy who at the grave of Lazarus prayed 
 to his Father, " I know that thou hearest me always," was 
 wont to spend whole nights alone in prayer. Is there 
 hope of your prayer obtaining readier answer than those 
 of the Son of God himself, who even in the agony of the 
 garden called again and again upon a Father's sympathetic 
 heart before the ministering angel came ? 
 
 What are we that we do not need to say with David: 
 " O my God, I cry in the day-time, and in the night sea- 
 son I am not silent" ? And what is the testimony of those 
 unto whom God hath granted gracious answer? Is it not 
 that the burden of prayer was never lifted from their souls 
 day or night until the hearer himself gave them their 
 heart's desire? Therefore, "Wait, I say, on the Lord," 
 for "whatsoever ye shall ask in faith, believing, that 
 shall ye receive." 
 
 224 
 
NEITHER COLD NOR HOT. 
 
 'OW many persons there 
 are in the world who are 
 of an undecided char- 
 acter — that is, without 
 firmness or stability of 
 purpose, vacillating 
 here and there, blown 
 about with every wind 
 of doctrine, now on one 
 side, now on another, 
 advancing opinions one 
 day only to correct them 
 on the next, never know- 
 ing what they do or do 
 not want, and bothering 
 every one who does. 
 The world never k'nows 
 where to find them, and 
 worse yet, the church 
 never knows where to find them. Is any one willing 
 that such a verdict be uttered against him? 
 
 Laodicea was a large and wealthy city of Asia Minor. 
 It was known by another name until, having been greatly 
 enlarged by Antiochus II., it was called after his wife, 
 Laodice. The soil was fertile and there was much wealth 
 among the people. The ruins of a great amphitheatre, 
 one thousand feet in extent, with many of the seats still 
 remaining, have been found by recent travellers; but to- 
 day all is still as the grave, and not an inhabitant remains 
 to tell of the once opulent city. No sound of the flocks of 
 sheep is heard there; only traces can be found of the city 
 walls; and the fragments of pedestals and the remains of 
 numerous seats rising one above the other, are all that 
 tell of luxurious theatres where the people were amused. 
 
 Yet in Laodicea was once established a Christian 
 church, to which Paul addressed some of his letters: and 
 
 15 
 
 225 
 
226 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 it was one of the seven churches to which special messages 
 were sent by Christ after his ascension. In Rev. iii. 15,16 
 we read these fearful words: "I know thy works, that 
 thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or 
 hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither 
 cold nor hot, I will spew thee out of my mouth." 
 
 How is it with us? Are our souls burning within us as 
 Christ talks with us by the way? Are we up and doing 
 in the service of God ? Have we taken to ourselves the 
 "whole armor of God: with our loins girt about with 
 truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness, our 
 feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace; 
 having the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, the 
 sword of the spirit, which is the Word of God: and pray- 
 ing always to make known the mystery of the Gospel" ? 
 Or are we like the Laodiceans, "neither cold nor hot," 
 not to be depended upon, good for nothing in the work of 
 the Lord? Let us be careful lest coming suddenly he 
 find us sleeping at our post, with lamps untrimmed, and 
 ourselves unprepared to go in to the marriage supper. 
 
GOD'S LAWS INFLEXIBLE. 
 
 lARD and severe, men call them, and 
 chafe at their restraints and seek to 
 free themselves from their restric- 
 tions. But did you ever stop to real- 
 ize that the very existence of the 
 world itself depends upon these 
 laws? The whole universe is under 
 law, every particle of it is bound as 
 by an iron fetter, and no device of 
 man can for an instant free it from 
 its pressure. Law is the world's 
 existence. By blind obedience only the globe keeps its 
 place, and is clad with such grace and beauty. 
 
 In the vegetable kingdom all transmission of life is ac- 
 cording to God's original enactment that every herb and 
 tree should bring forth seed after its kind; accordingl)' 
 like produces like, and this law reigns supreme over all 
 vegetation. The stupendous changes which have taken 
 place since creation have not weakened this law one whit. 
 The cedar and the oak of to-day are the cedar and oak of 
 long ago; neither in form or development or color or fibre 
 are they materially changed. The odors which greet us 
 in spring-time are from the same flowers which perfumed 
 the garden where man walked in innocence with his Cre- 
 ator. The thorns and thistles with which God cursed the 
 land are the thorns and thistles which to-day encroach 
 upon our gardens. Each plant produces its like seed 
 after its kind. The law of the harvest is immutable; 
 that which is sown is that which shall be reaped, and for 
 this we ought to be thankful, for it is a beneficent provis- 
 ion of God, and implicit obedience to it is the only hope 
 of creation. Law must close its iron hand around' every 
 seed that is planted, or all is confusion and uncertainty. 
 
 Gravitation is a law — that mysterious force by which 
 all matter attracts and is attracted. The whole universe 
 is under that law. Ever since chaos fled from the mighty 
 moorings of the Eternal Spirit, every plant has swung in 
 
 227 
 
228 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 its ceaseless orbit, and every dew-drop has sought the 
 bosom of the flower under the resistless rule of this law. 
 This was the original law of formation from the plant to 
 the drop of dew. Those majestic worlds and ours were 
 rounded into spheres, in systems and in clusters, by this 
 one law. The mountains rose up on their foundations, 
 the sea fled to its level, brooks and rivers started towards 
 the ocean, the dry land smiled in beauty after its bap- 
 tism, the dew-drop assumed its tiny sphere, the man was 
 placed upon the earth to walk upright in the image of 
 God. Neither then nor since has any atom ceased to 
 obey, and obedience to that law of God is our only 
 safety; it stands between a living universe and the gulf 
 of annihilation. 
 
 The moral law is as much God's law as any of these 
 natural ones. If there are any degrees the argument be- 
 comes stronger in the spiritual than in the natural world. 
 If God vindicates his natural laws, how much more shall 
 he vindicate the laws which make up his moral adminis- 
 tration! If God says sin shall be punished, we maybe 
 sure it will be, just as sure as that any natural law will be 
 fulfilled. Some people say that God is too merciful to 
 punish sin. Did the fire ever cease to burn because a 
 saintly martyr was in its grasp? No, because it is the 
 law of fire to burn, and it is executed on saint and fiend 
 alike. God is merciful, but it is under immutable 
 ordinances. 
 
 The laws which hold the universe together must be 
 upheld, and the moral laws are equally important. In 
 temporal things it certainly matters greatly whether men 
 attempt to gather grapes from thorns or figs from thistles, 
 but does it matter less in spiritual things what the harvest 
 of men's actions shall be? 
 
 God's laws are no insignificant things to be broken with 
 impunity. They are immutable, adamantine ordinances, 
 set to guard all great and universal interests, lifting 
 themselves up as impassable barriers between sin and 
 holiness, and as long as God reigns they will never be 
 relaxed in one tittle of their righteous requirements, nor 
 fail one jot of their full vindication. 
 
GRACE WILL TELL. 
 
 HERE is an old saying 
 that "blood will tell." 
 Put a nobleman, reared 
 and educated to his po- 
 sition, into rags and a 
 home of poverty, yet 
 in some way the mark 
 of rank will betray 
 itself. And, vice versa, 
 dress the rude and un- 
 taught beggar in royal 
 purple and send him to 
 court, and out through kingly vestment and princely sur- 
 roundings will stand the unconcealed character, lacking 
 and faulty at every turn. 
 
 A man elderly, bent, and having the appearance of one 
 hampered by narrow means, entered the prayer-meeting 
 one evening. He was a stranger to all present, and one 
 of the deacons who noticed the odd figure on the back seat 
 wondered vaguely whether his devotional attitude was 
 induced by fatigue or due reverence for the time and 
 place. But during a somewhat protracted pause which 
 occurred during the service, the stranger slowly shambled 
 to his feet and essayed to offer prayer; and before he had 
 said "Amen," all the people in the vestry knew that the 
 man who had just prayed in their hearing was the son of 
 a King, the man who like Prince Abraham of old "walked 
 with God." For the grace that dwelt in the lowly Chris- 
 tian's heart was unhampered and unchecked by his temporal 
 condition, and the minister wished that the voice of the 
 poorly dressed stranger with the bent form and napless 
 coat could often be heard in their meetings of prayer. 
 Sometimes the life of the Christian seems crusted over 
 
 229 
 
230 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 with worldly cares and ambitious desires. But ever so 
 slight a touch of the Master's hand will rouse the slum- 
 bering spirit of grace yet dwelling in the heart. Only see 
 to it that it is there. Make sure that grace, the religion 
 of Christ, is implanted in the soul, and it will be sure to 
 manifest itself. If grace dwells within us, grace per- 
 fected, even the salvation of the soul is assured us. And 
 it will tell in some way in the life we live. That which 
 finds lodgment in the heart must influence the words and 
 deeds, not only our own, but of those with whom we asso- 
 ciate. We are only blessed when the light or grace within 
 us so shines that others, seeing our good works, will be 
 led to glorify our Father who is in heaven. 
 
TAKE NEAR VIEWS. 
 
 O the Christian the first j'ears of his 
 life are spent in looking ahead; 
 the last in taking nearer views. 
 He trusts in God, puts himself 
 under entire subjection to the Di- 
 vine will, desires to know no 
 other, prays for daily bread, to be 
 led step by step, and never for an 
 instant doubts that for one meal 
 and for one step he is trusting the 
 dear I-ord to care for him. In youth he keeps an eye 
 upon the far-away future, planning for the days that have 
 not yet dawned, taking thought for the morrow that may 
 never come, and although feeling that everything is in 
 subjection to what (iod wills, forgetting the little French 
 proverb, L' /lo/nine propose, iiiais Dicu dispose (" man pro- 
 poses but God disposes"), he goes on drawing plans for 
 farms and store-houses that are to hold the grain that may 
 never be cradled, and setting up looms that may never 
 hold warp and woof of any fabric, and casting the wheels 
 that may never be needed to run the engine. 
 
 In the vineyard of the Lord each of his dear children 
 has his portion of work ; and according to his work so his 
 reward shall be. " Do men gather grapes of thorns or figs 
 of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good 
 fruit." If you raise thorns and thistles no good reward 
 can come to you. In this light we can all judge ourselves 
 by ourselves; holding ourselves and our work in the light 
 that God gives, and proving it to be of the kind that shall 
 bring forth good fruit to the glory of the Father. 
 
 But after a while, when we grow weary of making plans 
 that we can never carry out, we begin to take short views. 
 We can never count with any certainty beyond the present 
 
 231 
 
232 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 moment; we all have a to-day, but who has a to-morrow? 
 We do not any longer make plans far ahead, for by expe- 
 rience we have learned how very useless it is to do so. 
 Even if the clouds in our horizon are dark and lowering, 
 even if we are beset round about by an impenetrable 
 hedge of seeming impossibilities, at God's time, if we ask 
 for help, the clouds part and the sun shines through, a 
 way is opened in the hedge and we rejoice. 
 
 We have learned not to carry to-day the burdens of to- 
 morrow, to cross in imagination any bridges until we 
 come to them, for we might be like the couple who quar- 
 relled while walking fourteen miles as to how they were to 
 cross a certain bridge, and when they came to it the 
 waters were dried up and they went over on dry ground. 
 It is good to take note of Abraham Lincoln's reply to a 
 discouraged friend: " My rule through life has been never 
 to cross the Great Bigmuddy Creek till I came to it." 
 
 And when we have learned to take these near views, 
 when we can just thank the dear Lord for the care of yes- 
 terday, for the blessings of to-day, and fully trust him to 
 show us the same goodness for to-morrow, then and then 
 only can we cry out with the Psalmist: "Every day will 
 I bless thee; and I will praise thy name for ever and 
 ever." 
 
THE BRANCH AND THE VINE. 
 
 'T is self-evident and most clearly 
 
 understood that a branch cannot 
 
 bear fruit except it abide in the 
 
 vine; but I am afraid it is not 
 
 clearly understood that a man 
 
 cannot bear fruit except he abide 
 
 in Christ. That branch-* which 
 
 the gardener has pruned off and 
 
 which lies with withering leaves 
 
 by the roadside, we know is 
 
 at the end of its fruitage; but 
 
 what of the Christian who has 
 
 no near vital connection with 
 
 Christ, who has cast himself off and lies 
 
 at a distance from his Saviour? Christ 
 
 says it is no worse with the vine than with 
 
 the man. " As the branch cannot bear 
 
 fruit of itself except it abide in the vine, 
 
 no more can ye except ye abide in me." 
 
 It is the Christian's great duty to bear 
 fruit to the glory of God. Next to the 
 salvation of his own soul comes the fruit- 
 age. No one is translated to heaven as soon as he obtains 
 a title-deed to the blood-bought inheritance. We are to 
 remain here in a state of pupilage, that we may be pre- 
 pared and trained for the upper kingdom ; and not for 
 that end alone, but that we may be lights to the world, 
 that we may finish the work God has given us to do, and 
 that we may glorify God in our bodies and spirits, which 
 are his. Do we realize as we ought that this work only 
 begins when our souls are saved; that we must show 
 our faith by our works? The Epistle of James, the epis- 
 tle of straw as it was at first called, which narrowly es- 
 caped being thrown out of the New Testament canon as a 
 forgery, as a contradiction of Divine teaching, was pre- 
 
 233 
 
234 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 served by Almighty wisdom for a high use. James says: 
 " Thou hast faith and I have works. Show me thy faith 
 without thy works, and I will show thee my faith by my 
 works." It is a fair challenge, and while we have never 
 come to place works on an equality with faith, or trust in 
 works to save us, yet we have come to see that faith can- 
 not be shown without works. It is dead then. It is like 
 a vine cut off from the branch without vitality enough tt) 
 put forth a single twig or fruit. 
 
 If anything can keep our modern civilization from 
 paralysis, it is this Epistle of James, for it gives the kind 
 of preaching which is needed. Faith will produce some 
 kind of works; if there be none, faith is dead. The 
 illustration of such a life is that mutilated branch sepa- 
 rated from the parent tree. 
 
 It is as evidently then the Christian's duty as it is the 
 vine's function to bear fruit. It is worth noting too, 
 that the way to bear fruit is plainly implied. Fruit-bear- 
 ing and abiding in Christ are in.separably connected; the 
 exhortation to the one is the exhortation to the other; they 
 cannot be separated. We have various duties to perform, 
 and their faithful performance constitutes fruitfulness. 
 Now, what is the best way of doing all these things? 
 Shall we fix our attention upon each one separately as it 
 devolves upon us? Shall we undertake them as so many 
 duties that must be done at such times? That is oneway 
 to do, but there is danger in that way of being cumbered 
 about much serving. There is danger of duty becoming 
 a task and a bugbear, something to be dreaded, and from 
 which we would escape if we could. There is danger of 
 many duties making life a burden instead of a joy, for 
 really such a spirit is an attempt to bear fruit of oneself. 
 Now, instead of that, suppose we commence further back 
 and further in. Suppose we reach for an inspiration 
 which will assist in any duty, whatever it may be, and all 
 duties, no matter how many. Assuredly that would be 
 the better way, and that is what the Saviour wants us to do. 
 Abiding in Christ is the secret of constant, spontaneous, 
 increasing doing of duties which glorify God — of fruit- 
 bearing. 
 
 The term abiding in Christ means an intimate commun- 
 ion with him. In a spiritual sense we are to make Christ 
 
236 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 the abode of our souls, to identify ourselves with him. 
 As some one has truly said, the command is not abide 
 with me, abide near me, abide iinder me, but abide /// me. 
 The fruit-bearing branch is not merely in the same place 
 with the vine, nor under its shadow simply; it is in it and 
 abides in it. One life flows through both, the life of the 
 vine. So when our Lord says abide in me, it is as if he 
 said, "Think as I think, feel as I feel, will as I will, 
 choose as I choose, and let my views of all objects and all 
 events be yours because they are mine. Let my wisdom 
 be your wisdom, my strength your strength." It is im- 
 possible to express in words the fulness of meaning, but 
 there is no obscurity in the figure. The branch united, 
 clinging to, and dependent upon the vine; the impossibil- 
 ity of marking where one ends and another begins, the 
 community of life in both, marks a union inexpressible 
 fully in words, but as intimate as it is precious. 
 
 The life thus prescribed is constant. Neither the nat- 
 ural nor the spiritual life of anyone was ever meant to be 
 uncertain. What is there to make us one thing to-day 
 and another thing to-morrow, except in the way of growth 
 and progression? We ought to be different from ourselves 
 at one time and another only because we are better every 
 day we live. Constancy is not, however, a character- 
 istic of the lives of most Christians. We often see a 
 great life shooting out hither and thither, and making 
 great apparent growth, which yet knows nothing of pa- 
 tient endurance. It depends upon excitement and im- 
 pulse only. When these die out it seems to die too. We 
 look for it to accomplish great things and bring forth 
 fruit an hundredfold, but we look in vain. When we ex- 
 pect to hear of the good works of the promising Christian, 
 we find only the melancholy history written by the Apos- 
 tle, " Demas hath forsaken me." Unstable as water, such 
 a life cannot excel. It is worth while to inquire if there 
 be not a counterfeit of true grace which exhibits even 
 greater vitality than the real, and puts out of countenance 
 the steady, modest, silent working of true piety, but 
 which has none of its constancy. 
 
 The growth of the soul is little by little, but unceas- 
 ing; every day finds some addition to its life. It is 
 ever producing the fruits of the Spirit, love and joy, and 
 
THE BRANCH AND THE VINE. 
 
 237 
 
 peace. The fruit is ever coming nearer and nearer to per- 
 fection, the growth of the branch is steadily approaching 
 the symmetry and stability of the vine. The true Chris- 
 tian is day by day reaching forward unto the image of 
 Christ until he arrives at the stature of a perfect man. 
 The reality of this life may be measured by its earnest- 
 ness to grow, its consciousness of present deficiency, its 
 hungering and thirsting after more of all that belongs to 
 the believers of God. We have no right to expect relig- 
 ion to be born at its maturity, for then all that remains is 
 for it to become more infirm and less animated. But we 
 have a right to expect progression from a weak state to a 
 strong one. First comes the blade, then the ear, then the 
 full corn in the ear. So does true religion grow in the 
 heart and life. In that progress we become more pure in 
 heart, more humble in spirit, less selfish in aim, more be- 
 nevolent toward others. By faith let us enter into him as 
 a dwelling-place of our hearts and minds. Seek that he 
 may dwell in us, so that being rooted and grounded in 
 him we may be branches of the true vine. 
 
SELF-DENIAL. 
 
 'ELF-DENIAL, for the sake of self-denial, 
 does no good; self-sacrifice for its own sake 
 is no religious act at all. If you give up a 
 meal for the sake of showing power over 
 self, or for the sake of self-discipline, you 
 are not more religious than before. This is 
 mere self-culture, which being occupied for- 
 ever about self, leaves you only in that cir- 
 cle of self from which religion is to free 
 you; but to give up a meal that one you 
 love may have it, is properly a religious 
 act — no hard and dismal duty, because made 
 easy by affection. To bear pain for the 
 sake of bearing it has no moral quality at 
 all. But to bear it rather than surrender 
 truth, or in order to save another, is positive 
 enjoyment, as well as ennobling to the soul. 
 Did you ever receive even a blow meant for 
 another in order to shield that other? Do you not know 
 that there was actual pleasure in that keen pain far be- 
 yond the most rapturous thrill of nerve which could be 
 gained from pleasure in the midst of painlessness? Is not 
 the mystic yearning of love expressed in words most 
 purely thus: Let me suffer for him? This element of 
 love is that which makes this doctrine an intelligible and a 
 blessed truth. Sacrifice alone, bare and unrelieved, is 
 ghastly, unnatural, and dead; but self-sacrifice, illumi- 
 nated by love, is warmth and life ; it is the death of Christ, 
 the life of God, the blessedness and only proper life of 
 man. 
 
 238 
 
AMBITION FOR GREATNESS. 
 
 found, 
 
 E have plenty of evidence in 
 the Gospels that several of 
 the Apostles possessed an 
 ambition for personal great- 
 ness. Prominent among 
 them were James and John, 
 the sons of Zebedee and 
 Salome. These young men 
 were bright, talented, and zeal- 
 ous. They were full of push 
 and pluck, and entertained high 
 opinions of their Master and 
 the kingdom which he came to 
 Sparkling with the thought 
 that. eminent positions in the new king- 
 dom, occupied by themselves, would 
 afford them a wide range of influence 
 "^^^ and confer upon them the appellation of "great 
 men," they sought, through their pleasing mother, to 
 have Christ grant them the highest seats of distinction 
 and honor which could be created for them. But their 
 "application" was summarily rejected, and a very timely 
 and wholesome lesson was imparted, which doubtless 
 gave them a very different view of greatness from that 
 they had entertained. Yet, it may be observed, Christ 
 did not give a rebuke against the indulgence of a desire 
 to become truly great. Nor did he ever say anything 
 which can be properly construed against the exercise and 
 cultivation of personal ambition of the right kind. There 
 is a certain kind of ambition which is praiseworthy. It 
 is one of the fundamental features and characteristics of 
 true manhood and true womanhood. Strip a man of his 
 ambition and he is robbed of one of the noblest elements 
 of his nature. Destroy that, and the mainspring of a 
 man's energy is broken ; he lies before you little better 
 than a wrecked machine. It would be a sad derange- 
 ment of all that is promising and progressive in man. 
 When God created man, he designed that he should be 
 
 239 
 
240 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 ambitious. In Pope's "Essay on Man," he asks this 
 question: 
 
 " Who knows but He, whose hand the lightning forms, 
 Who heaves old ocean, and who wings the storms. 
 Pours fierce ambition in a Caesar's mind ? " 
 
 Willis, in a poem read at Yale College over fifty years 
 ago, gave this inspiring sentiment: 
 
 " Press on ! for it is God-like to unloose 
 The spirit, and forget yourself in thought. 
 Bending a pinion for the deeper sky, 
 And, in the very fetters of your flesh, 
 Mating with the pure essences of heaven ! 
 Press on ! — ' for in the grave there is no work 
 And no device.' Press on, while yet you may '" 
 
 But a greater man than Willis, even the ambitious Paul, 
 said: " I press toward the mark for the prize of the high 
 calling of God." And there never was a more ambitious 
 man than Paul. The fires of a lofty ambition burned in 
 his bosom, and they bore him onward with resistless en- 
 ergy. In one place, according to the revised version (in- 
 cluding the marginal note), he says: "We are ambitious, 
 whether at home or absent, to be well pleasing to him." 
 In two other places in Paul's writings the word "ambi- 
 tious" is used, showing that the Apostle was energized 
 with a mighty and masterful ambition. And let us remem.- 
 ber that if men were not truly ambitious, they never would 
 become truly great. Hence it follows that there should 
 be a healthful encouragement and cultivation of one's am- 
 bition in the right channels, that we may attain unto a 
 greatness which is bounded by modesty, truth, and prin- 
 ciple. God has no pleasure in an ambitionless man. He 
 tells the sluggard to go to the ant and consider her ways. 
 A marked feature in Christ's dealings with men was his 
 constantly urging them to make the most of themselves. 
 He wanted them to be something more than mere ciphers 
 in society. There were many who did not count in the 
 scale of social and moral influence. They were mere 
 stumbling-blocks in the way of the world's true progress. 
 Christ endeavored to inspire these and others with 
 thoughts and purposes which would lead them out into 
 various fields of noble service, and thus make them am- 
 bitious to enter the path of true greatness. 
 
"JUST ONCE." 
 
 |HE temptation to step aside "just 
 once" from the narrow way comes 
 not infrequently to the young 
 Christian. If Satan can but 
 gain our consent to one de- 
 parture, he knows that succeeding 
 steps in the wrong direction will 
 easily follow. The following ex- 
 tract from the recently published 
 life of Dr. Judson, by his son, may 
 come as a timely word to some 
 tempted and hesitating soul: "A 
 native Christian woman told me 
 that she was about to engage in 
 something which Dr. Judson con- 
 sidered not conducive to her spir- 
 itual good. He sent for her and 
 remonstrated; but she would not give up her darling 
 project. 'Look here!' said he, eagerly, snatching a ruler 
 from the table, and tracing out a very straight line upon 
 the floor; 'here is where you have been walking. You 
 have made a crooked track, to be sure ; out of the path 
 half the time; but then you have kept near it, and not 
 taken to new roads, and you have — not so much as you 
 might have done, mind, but still to a certain extent — 
 grown in grace; and now, w'ith all this growth upon your 
 heart and head, in the maturity of your years, with ri- 
 pened understanding and an every-day deepening sense of 
 the goodness of God — here,' bringing down the ruler with 
 emphasis to indicate a certain position, 'here you stand. 
 You know where this path leads. You know what is be- 
 fore you. Some struggles, some honors, and finally eternal 
 life and a crown of glory. But to the left branches off 
 another very pleasant road, and along the air floats, 
 rather temptingly, a pretty bauble. You do not mean to 
 i6 241 
 
242 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 leave the path you have walked in fifteen years — fifteen 
 long years— altogether; you only want to step aside and 
 catch the bauble, and think you will come back again ; but 
 you never will. Think! Dare you deliberately leave this 
 straight and narrow path, drawn by the Saviour's finger, 
 and go away for one moment into that of your enemy? 
 Will you? Will youl Will you?' 'I have made a great 
 many crooked tracks since,' she added, tearfully, 'but 
 whenever I am unusually tempted I see the teacher as he 
 looked that day, bending over in his chair, the ruler 
 placed upon the floor to represent me, his finger pointing 
 along the path of eternal life; his eye looking so strangely 
 over his shoulder, and that terrible "Will you?" coming 
 from his lips as though it was the voice of God; and I 
 pray for help, just as Peter did of old.' " 
 
COMMON SENSE IN RELIGION, 
 
 F there is anything more than another that is 
 needed to pervade our lives, our thoughts, 
 our actions, it is common sense. It is need- 
 ful in the home, the office, the shop, the fac- 
 tory, in fact in every grade of life, and not 
 less in our religion. Every man and woman 
 needs it; and while all cannot be giants in 
 intellect, all cannot attain to the pinnacles 
 of earthly splendor, every one can, whether 
 in the palace or the hut, lay claim to a live necessity for 
 common sense. It is a balance-wheel in every emergency. 
 A necessity arises, something must be brought to a defi- 
 nite point at once, and while some are dallying, wringing 
 their hands, and crying out to know what is best to be 
 done, he who is possessed of common sense is alert, seizes 
 the opportunity to act, and danger is averted, success is 
 achieved. How many times in every one's life are mis- 
 takes avoided, blunders shunned, and the point of van- 
 tage gained by using common sense. Try it, and see if it 
 is not the very best possible way to get along. Do not 
 creep behind some one else; do not shirk your own de-- 
 cisions, but stand up bravely upon your own ship, and 
 with the wheel of common sense to guide the helm you 
 will be brought to a safe harbor. 
 
 243 
 
" JESUS OF NAZARETH 
 
 BY." 
 
 PASSETH 
 
 INNER, know you that the time is com- 
 ing when, in your great fear and anguish 
 and bewilderment, you will hide your- 
 self in the dens and in the rocks of the 
 mountains, and say to the mountains and 
 rocks,"Fall on us and hide us from the face 
 of him that sitteth on the throne, and 
 from the wrath of the Lamb," unless the 
 " Great Physician," who is now passing by, 
 stop and heal you of your malady, put a 
 white robe upon you, and write his Father's 
 name upon your forehead? 
 
 And who is this Great Physician? Jesus 
 
 of Nazareth ! And he is now passing by — 
 
 it may be, never to return. He alone, of 
 
 all that are in the heavens, or under the 
 
 heavens, can save you from the wrath to 
 
 come. Oh! call upon him, as did blind Bar- 
 
 tim^us of old, " Jesus, thou Son of David, have 
 
 mercy on me!" Heed not the world and the 
 
 devil when they charge thee to hold thy peace, 
 
 but "cry the more a great deal," " Jesus, thou vSon of 
 
 David, have mercy on me!" 
 
 And he will hear thee — will stop. With infinite conde- 
 scension and love unbounded, he will notice and call to 
 you : " \Vhat wilt thou that I should do unto thee ?" Then 
 fall at his feet, and say, " Lord, that I might be made 
 clean;" and he will put forth his hand and say, " I will; 
 be thou clean;" and from that moment thy sins are 
 forgiven thee. 
 
 -44 
 
JESUS OF NAZARETH PASSETH BY 
 
THE REAL SOURCE OF POWER. 
 
 f^ '" ^TT? KiHT from on high can light up the 
 
 ' ' — ' darkest and most rugged of places. 
 
 At rare times many of us have our 
 mounts of vision and our moments 
 of surprising others with pictures of 
 the glories of our spiritual land- 
 scape; but what we need to-day in 
 our Christian experience is the 
 equanimity of conscious and con- 
 stantly indwelling power. How 
 shall we gain this power? Tons of 
 religious manuscript have been written, and thousands of 
 voices have been engaged in prayer and ih argument, much 
 of it, alas! profitless, because there was not a wise recog- 
 nition of the elements of spiritual power. 
 
 It is surely singul'ar when we can have the real power 
 that we take its semblance instead. Weonly half believe, 
 and thus we never convince. What we want first is to sur- 
 render ourselves to the simple close-at-hand truths of the 
 Gospel. Half-surrender people are without deep convic- 
 tion, and therefore without power. 
 
 .Paul's power came through his convictions; all of the 
 apostles who have since the foundation of the world lifted 
 the flaming torch of truth to light the path of bewildered 
 wayfarers, have held the never-dying flame within their 
 own souls. 
 
ASK AND YE SHALL RECEIVE. 
 
 FTER nights and 
 days passed in 
 i^sleeplessness and 
 anxiety under the 
 strain of an unex- 
 pected and over- 
 whelming calam- 
 ity, when the brain 
 seemed too be- 
 numbed to think 
 and to formulate 
 its requests in 
 prayer, at length 
 the thought 
 comes, " Why not 
 ask that this bur- 
 den be borne for 
 __ you?" To carry 
 
 '^ . " it alone will kill 
 
 "^ you shortly. 1 1 
 
 might have been even worse than it is. Thank God that 
 it i*s not, and ask him to carry it for you. And with the 
 very uplifting of the heart, there will come relief. All 
 things whatsoever ye shall ask in his name, believing, 
 ye shall receive. All things. Is anything too much to 
 ask, or is anything too great for God to give? 
 
 Asking from our fellow-men is a different matter. _ We 
 may get'^our requests granted, and we may meet with a 
 more or less courteous or even discourteous refusal. We 
 have to trust much to the temper and disposition of the 
 person from whom we ask the favor we desire. But with 
 God it is a different matter. He needs not to be ap- 
 proached with caution, or even with any hesitancy. We 
 can bring our requests timidly or boldly. He under- 
 stands our desires, and will give us the proper answer 
 
 247 
 
248 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 to our requests. Let us therefore come boldly to the 
 throne of grace, and look for help in every time of 
 trouble. The cares and trials of life are many. We see 
 not the way clearly before us. By prayer shall we get 
 the burdens of life lifted and light shed upon the dark- 
 ness around us. 
 
 Most Christians could multiply instances in which an- 
 swers to prayers have been signal and significant. We may 
 not always clearly see the way in which we are led, even 
 in the gaining of our requests, but most certainly we are 
 led, and that by a Father's hand. We get much that we 
 do not ask for. We are in daily receipt of blessings in- 
 numerable which come to us like the sunlight and the 
 dew. 
 
 But much else certainly does come to us because we pray 
 for it. If we seek we do find. If we ask we do receive. 
 And past experiences strengthen our faith. If we have 
 once received we shall yet again find mercy, for 
 
 "He who hath led will lead; 
 He who hath fed will feed." 
 
 Yea, even unto the end of the journey the rugged places 
 shall be made smooth unto our feet, and the bread and 
 water upon our way shall be sure. By asking much shall 
 we do much, for the Lord shall increase our strength if 
 we be of willing mind, and opportunities will open on 
 every hand to him who seeks to do good. And the differ- 
 ence between asking much and asking little shall make 
 the difference in our lives, whether they be meagre 
 or full of blessings to ourselves and others. At the 
 Fulton Street Prayer-meeting which I attended lately, a 
 gentleman arose and said that he always made it a habit 
 to go to Go^ first, that God might sometimes send him to 
 others, but that he never applied to any one without first 
 laying his case before God, who would invariably direct 
 his footsteps. If this were always the rule of our lives, 
 how much of suffering we might oftentimes save both our- 
 selves and others. Ask indeed we must, but first let us 
 ask of God. If he directs us to human help, well and 
 good. If not, his plans and ways are devious, and in him 
 will we trust, securely resting on his promise, "Ask and 
 ye shall receive." 
 
INDIVIDUAL RESPONSIBILITY. 
 
 \0T) does not regard men in the mass, 
 though there are some who seem to 
 think that he is so great as to over- 
 look the individual in his care for 
 the aggregate. But there is an in- 
 finity of littleness which does more 
 to illustrate and exalt the power of 
 God than the infinity of greatness. 
 Any being with an arm strong 
 enough could chisel the mountains, 
 any one with a hand large enough 
 could hold the ocean; but it is not 
 the strong arm alone nor the great hand alone which 
 could fashion an insect or paint a flower. He who does 
 both must combine delicacy the most wonderful with 
 power the most mighty, and such is our God. It is as 
 individual persons that God always has and always will 
 regard men, not as a mass. As long as we can pluck in 
 the wildest glades of the mountains a flower that is as 
 perfect in all its parts as the mountain itself, we may 
 know that God cares for individuals. 
 
 What is an individual ? Very different certainly from 
 a creation of circumstances. However powerful our en- 
 vironment may be, it is not omnipotent; yet we often fall 
 into an error of judgment about this. We say we do not 
 see how a man can help being just what he is; it is only 
 what might have been expected under the circumstances. 
 But why might this have been expected? Only because 
 the person is weak, not because the circumstances are 
 strong. There is never a sin we fall into but we might 
 have escaped it. There is never a temptation into which 
 we fall but we see afterward how we might have resisted 
 it. It has been our own fault, and no plea of the power 
 of circumstances will avail with the God who sees us as 
 individuals. We have a will given to us, active and 
 indomitable, which can override even the most adverse 
 
 249 
 
250 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 circumstances and make them stepping-stones in the heav- 
 enly race. No person is in any sense a creature of chance, 
 but is rather the sum total of causes which he himself has 
 set in motion, the resultant of forces which he has held in 
 his hand all his life. We all make ourselves. Great 
 orators, great statesmen, scholars, or poets are self-made 
 men; but so also is a great drunkard or a great fool. We 
 have had opportunities, we have held clues in our hands, 
 we have made discoveries, we have had strength ; whether 
 we have used these things and profited by them or not, we 
 are self-made. If we look into the past we can see just 
 what amount of good or evil we have extracted from 
 everything, and how we have thereby been making our- 
 selves. We are individually responsible for what we make 
 of ourselves, atid God will so judge us. 
 
DOING HEARTILY. 
 
 r is one thing to hear, but quite 
 another thing to do. Jesus knew 
 how easy it was to make one 
 thing stand for the other, and 
 that his disciples might not 
 make such a mistake, he charged 
 them to be doers and not hearers onh'. 
 The dear Lord calls to us, and we an- 
 swer, "Speak, Lord," and then words 
 of gracious love are told us, words of 
 hope, and joy, and comfort. We are 
 called children, the children of a Father 
 who knows just what is best for each one 
 of us; just how much discipline is neces- 
 sary to fit us for the kingdom; just how many trials are 
 needed to bring us to the foot of the cross; just how many 
 pleasures we can bear without being led away from him; 
 just how much praise is healthful to encourage us in the 
 way to the heavenly home. 
 
 Li former times when a race was run, the victor was 
 crowned with a wreath of laurel, and the judge spoke 
 words of congratulatory praise. That did not prevent 
 him from trying to win another race, it only made him 
 the more anxious to win; and the louder the applause 
 that greeted him' the more he agonized to deserve it. 
 That is the way God deals with us. We are running a 
 race; we are trying to win the prize of high calling that 
 is before us. Better than any laurel wreath is our reward — 
 the life with God in heaven. 
 
 Do you ask what heaven is? Who knows? The Bible 
 does not give us any tangible idea; it is a place of rest, 
 of happiness, of joy, but better yet, it is a place where 
 Christ is; where we will do and enjoy whatever God wills, 
 and from which we will go no more out forever. But we 
 must earn it; we must not only do God's will, but we 
 
 251 
 
252 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 must do it heartily. How impatient we become with those 
 who are bidden to do service for us if they lag, if they only 
 do things in an indifferent way, as if it was only because 
 they were obliged to do it: not with the gracious pleasure 
 that makes us feel as if we asked a favor instead of issu- 
 ing a command. Hearty service is tenfold more welcome 
 than that which is only endurable. 
 
 Doing heartily for the Lord those things that he wills 
 is what he desires. When so much has been done for us; 
 when our Saviour left the joys of heaven, the presence of 
 the Father, to die for us that we might not perish, but 
 have everlasting life, is it too much to expect that what- 
 soever lies before us in the line of duty will be done with 
 our might; that in our manner of doing it we may mani- 
 fest to all men the love that we possess for our God? 
 "Whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and 
 not unto men, knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive 
 the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord 
 Christ." 
 
PERVERTING THE TRUTH. 
 
 OR some reason the present age 
 seems to be one of unusual doubt 
 and inquiry. Christians are heard 
 asking the views of each other as to 
 whether this or that pleasure should 
 be participated in by church mem- 
 bers. Then questions arise con- 
 stantly as to whether the teachings 
 ^r rAj 1 \ m i and precepts of the Bible are to be 
 / f/fl K\ taken in an entirely literal sense. 
 
 /' ;'// v) '^o ^'^ old-fashioned, or perhaps it 
 
 would be better to say, to an cld- 
 time, Christian, these doubts and 
 queries seem out of place, for the 
 time was when truths of Scripture 
 were accepted as meaning just what they say. With a 
 due regard for those parts of the Bible which are plainly 
 intended to be allegorical and illustrative, this would 
 seem to be no more than reasonable. The laws of busi- 
 ness are bbserved and adhered to with a fidelity which 
 shows how desirous men and women are to present only a 
 fair and creditable rule of conduct in their transactions 
 with one another. But when it comes to obeying the best 
 and greatest of all known laws, the divine law of relig- 
 ion, sad to say, even professing Christians are prone to 
 question and wonder and give themselves all the license 
 conscience possibly will allow. 
 
 What every person entering the Church of Christ should 
 do first of all, is to resolve firmly to resist evil and every- 
 
 253 
 
254 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 thing tending to evil, to obey the law and the whole law 
 of God. And any one already professing the name of 
 Christ who has been inclined to waver and evade the plain 
 requirements of a religious life, ought to at once pause 
 and determine to thrust out of his life and daily practice 
 whatever is at variance with the revealed law of the 
 Scriptures. What more pitiable than to see any one who 
 has espoused an important and sacred cause, placing him- 
 self in an attitude to invite the thief of irresolution and 
 unbelief to enter his mind and heart, stealing away his 
 best and most valued interests in life! What dutiful child 
 would ever think of questioning with other children as to 
 how far he could go in acts of infidelity and disobedience 
 without fear of detection or punishment from his parents? 
 And then such questionings as have been hinted at on the 
 part of Christians are mostly a mere pretence. In every 
 human breast God has implanted a conscience which is 
 faithful in its promptings, and rarely fails to dictate with 
 unerring fidelity the best course to be pursued at all times 
 and under all circumstances. 
 
 The truth is, it is often too hard to obey the strict yet 
 simple command of the Master, to come out and be sep- 
 arated from the world, or from worldlings, as the text 
 implies. What Christians need most in our day is the 
 firm, resolute will to shut and bolt the door of indecision, 
 forcibly resist the devil, and cause him to flee. The 
 pleasures of the world are too shallow to be trusted, too 
 fleeting to be at all relied upon. Religion is abiding. 
 No period of time, no course of events, can weaken its 
 mighty power. Embrace it, cling to it, adhere with in- 
 domitable resolution to its requirements as set forth in 
 the Gospel; its teachings will never betray those who 
 trust it, but it will yield a thousand dear delights even 
 before, through its saving agency, " we reach the heavenly 
 shore, and walk the golden streets." 
 
A RAINBOW IN THE CLOUDS. 
 
 E all know what a rainbow is; 
 that it is the refraction of the 
 beams of the sun in passing 
 ' the drops of falling rain; the 
 rays being separated into the 
 prismatic colors are then re- 
 flected from the cloud opposite 
 to the sun and the spectator. 
 I'he rainbow is the token of 
 the covenant which God made 
 with Noah when became forth 
 from the Ark, that the waters 
 should no more become a flood 
 to destroy all flesh. 
 
 Of the colors noticed in the 
 Bible only white, black, red, 
 yellow, and green are men- 
 tioned; only three of these are 
 prismatic (white and black 
 being the absence of color). Blue, indigo, violet, and 
 orange are omitted. Yellow is very seldom noticed, and 
 
 255 
 
256 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 is apparently regarded as a shade of green. This latter 
 color is frequently referred to, and conveys the idea 
 of something vigorous and flourishing. Newly plucked 
 boughs are said to be green; and a different meaning is 
 that of sprouting, or putting forth of leaves. 
 
 The only fundamental color of which the Hebrews ap- 
 pear to have had any clear conception is red; and even 
 that they do not often use. Some writers have attempted 
 to explain certain passages in Revelations by telling us 
 that by emerald, green is meant; that for jasper we should 
 read yellow, etc., etc. ; but for ordinary minds it is safer 
 and better to believe that the picture given to us conveys 
 the idea of pure, brilliant, transparent light. White was 
 the symbol of innocence; the raiment of angels, the robes 
 of glorified saints, and whatsoever is pure and good, and 
 pertains to the kingdom of Christ. 
 
 Sorrow causes the blackness of night to hover about us, 
 and our hearts grow weak in the darkness, for there is no 
 light, no hope, no God for us to see. Despair seizes upon 
 us, and in our agony we cry aloud for help. We hear the 
 mutterings of the thunder, we see the flash of the light- 
 ning, and we lose all hope; discouragement reigns, and 
 we feel very sure that God is not in the tempest. But it is 
 only through spiritual warfare that we become strong. 
 When the storm has passed away, when the angry clouds 
 have gone over, although the effects of nature's disturb- 
 ance have not disappeared, the sun comes out and there 
 appears overhead the rainbow of promise. 
 
 The Captain of our salvation tells us to take to our- 
 selves the whole armor of God, that in the great day we 
 may be able to stand; but if we do not know how to use 
 them, of how little service are the helmet of salvation, 
 the sword of the spirit, the shield of faith, and the prep- 
 aration of the Gospel of peace with which our feet are 
 shod. We must fight and learn to use our own armor, 
 that with our loins girt about we may take to us the 
 breastplate of righteousness. 
 
 There is a bow of promise in every dark cloud; be- 
 hind the blackness the sun is ever shining; and back of 
 the cloud, the darkness, and the rainbow, we always have 
 the King on his throne, and nearer to us the dear Jesus, 
 
A RAINBOW IN THE CLOUDS. 
 
 257 
 
 who says, " Fear not, little flock; it is your Father's good 
 pleasure to give you the kingdom." 
 
 "Why then not walk beside him, 
 Holding his blessed hand, 
 Patiently walking onward 
 
 All through the weary land ? 
 
 "Dwelling beneath his shadow 
 
 In the burden and heat of the day. 
 Looking for his appearing 
 
 As the hours wear fast away." 
 
 17 
 
"WORDS FITLY SPOKEN." 
 
 r was a lovely 
 morning late in 
 winter. Al- 
 though the air 
 was crisp and 
 cold, and the 
 newly fallen 
 snow swept 
 do\\n in showers from the 
 branches of the grand old 
 maples, which gave to the 
 exterior of our home its 
 chief charm, there was that 
 in the sunbeam and in the 
 air, as well as in the lights 
 and shadows here and 
 there upon the snow, which suggested thoughts of the 
 beautiful spring-time, with its warm sunshine, its wealth 
 of flowers, and luscious fruits to come. It was a luxury 
 to breathe the morning air, and to enjoy these foreshadow- 
 ings of spring, after a long, dreary winter. 
 
 But the sunshine was all without, for within a beloved 
 friend had long been ill; and such was the nature of the 
 malady which had prostrated him, and such the circum- 
 stances attending his illness, that all cheerfulness had for- 
 saken him. 
 
 I spoke to him of the beauty of the morning, and 
 brought from among the plants and vines which luxuri- 
 ated in a sunny window, one which had been a special 
 favorite of our loved one, a beautiful fuchsia, laden with 
 flowers and a profusion of buds in various stages. " Not 
 now, I cannot see it now," were the words, faintly said, 
 in response to my efforts. 
 
 A few hours passed, during which the watcher sought, 
 under an aspect of cheerfulness, to conceal the feelings of 
 
 253 
 
"WORDS FITLY SPOKEN." 259 
 
 hopelessness which for some time past had been gradually 
 becoming stronger, even to a settled conviction. 
 
 A friend who, until then, had not fully realized the 
 condition of the invalid, called to see him. Entering 
 with a smiling face, and avoiding all allusion to the ap- 
 pearance of the sufferer, he spoke of the lovely morning 
 and the speedy advent of spring; then, in bright, happy 
 tones, of the pleasure in store for all, when the invalid, 
 restored to health, would be able to mingle with friends 
 who were anxious to see him again among them. The 
 dull eye brightened as the pleasing picture was sketched, 
 and then the idea dawned upon him that perhaps he might 
 still be spared to his family and friends. 
 
 Other words of cheer and deeds of kindness followed. 
 The look of hopelessness and suffering little by little 
 passed away. The heart so long heavy because of finan- 
 cial losses consequent upon the long illness, became 
 lighter as it opened to the friend whose attentions were 
 unwearied. Other visits followed, and tempting delica- 
 cies often came, which were enjoyed the more because the 
 invalid knew that in other homes he was thought of, and 
 that these were the overflowings of the sympathy felt for 
 him in those homes and hearts. Kind messages and 
 tokens of remembrance, many of them of great intrinsic 
 value, and all priceless to him to whom they were sent, 
 because expressions of regard and sympathy, all came, 
 and often borne by the same faithful friend. 
 
 At length, after many weary months, we felt that our 
 loved one was saved. 
 
 Those were truly " words fitly spoken," and the deeds 
 of love which accompanied the words attested the sincer- 
 ity of the regard to which the words gave utterance. 
 
 As we see the evidences of returning health upon the 
 face so recently very pale and haggard, our hearts are 
 filled with gratitude to the Great Giver of all good for 
 putting those precious words of cheer into the heart of 
 our friend. 
 
 May it not be that the progress of disease could some- 
 times be checked if only cheerful words were spoken in 
 the sick-room? If "little words of kindness, little deeds 
 of love," are sweet to those in the vigor of health, how 
 much more so to those who are shut out from participa- 
 
26o 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 tion in the enjoyments of active life, and deprived of the 
 privilege of labor and the profits resulting therefrom! 
 
 With how little sacrifice either of time or of strength 
 might those who are well bear to the sick some message 
 so full of encouragement as to turn the scale, and call 
 back to life one who might otherwise go down to the 
 " narrow house." 
 
 Are there no sick and sorrowing ones to whom we may 
 go with cheering words and loving deeds, in the spirit of 
 him who went about doing good? 
 
 With such a high and holy example, let us " go and do 
 likewise." 
 
RECOGNITION IN HEAVEN. 
 
 
 E here know but little 
 
 about heaven. And yet 
 
 we know all that in our 
 
 present state we need to 
 
 know. We know the way 
 
 there, and it should be 
 "^ our great endeavor to 
 walk in that way, and to get there. 
 And we know that it is a perfectly 
 holy and happy place; that all of 
 its employments are such as holy 
 beings most delight in; that there 
 the great Father more immediately 
 dwells, and reveals his glory; that 
 there we shall see the blessed 
 Saviour face to face, and be like 
 him, and that we shall have for our associates the holy 
 angels and the spirits of just men made perfect. " There 
 shall we see, and hear, and know all that we desired or 
 wished below." 
 
 As regards the extent of our acquaintance in heaven we 
 
 ?6i 
 
262 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 are not informed. It has been a question of interest with 
 some, whether we shall there recognize the friends that 
 have been dear to us here. I think that there can be but 
 little doubt in this regard. It may be that they will be 
 among the first to meet and to greet us on our arrival 
 there. I certainly and confidently expect to meet there 
 all those friends in Christ to whom I have here sustained 
 endearing relations, and to hold pleasant converse with 
 them. I anticipate this as one of the pjeasures of that 
 blessed world. 
 
 I expect also to become acquainted with all those em- 
 inent saints of whom I have read, both of the Old and the 
 New dispensation. I expect to behold, at a distance it 
 may be, the faces of Abraham, of Moses, of David, of 
 Peter, and John, and Paul, and other worthies of whom 
 the time would fail one to speak. And although there 
 will be there a great multitude, which no man can num- 
 ber, of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and na- 
 tion, it is probable that I shall become acquainted with 
 them all, and with all the important facts of their history. 
 How long it will take I cannot say, but there will be 
 ample time; nor will knowledge be gained by the slow 
 process by which it is here acquired. We may need no 
 introduction there. All will be of one family, and bear 
 the image of their common Saviour, and there will be 
 among them all most friendly and familiar intercourse. 
 There will be no reserve and no concealments. The great 
 Father will be known to all, so far as they shall be capa- 
 ble of comprehending him. And rnost intimately shall 
 we know our Saviour and our fellow-saints; and to know 
 will be to love, to trust, and to enjoy. And so shall 
 there be " fulness of joy, and pleasures forevermore." 
 
POWER IN RIGHT MUSIC. 
 
 C^S^- 
 
 HEN we say, "right music," 
 we do not mean the " first- 
 class music" of which now- 
 adays there is such rich 
 provision, where skill, exe- 
 cution and sound are all that 
 the people can carry away 
 with them. The music of 
 God's house should do a 
 deeper work than that. It 
 should be adoration, and 
 bring solace to many a pained 
 and penitent spirit. 
 
 Works of art are good in 
 themselves, but oftentimes 
 they are far above the masses, 
 
 ^1 T^Oi'^'^ '/-^^^^-^-^//"^-'^ ^'^^ even the average church- 
 C«^i^ AVM/^=^?fe.^^^V^;>^ goer. The organ may be 
 
 grand, and the most elaborate 
 music may be given by a 
 trained quartette, but it never 
 has touched and never will 
 touch the deep spirit of the 
 people. The angels who sang 
 above the manger, and now 
 sing around the throne, can 
 give us a true idea of its 
 magnificence. When all the 
 people sing, the preacher is more eloquent. There is a 
 great deal of truth in the old statement, "Fill the church 
 with Gospel music and his Satanic majesty will freeze on 
 the top of the steeple." Of course if there is no congre- 
 gation, you cannot have good congregational singing, but 
 if you do have a large assembly and a good leader, it is 
 grand singing, because timid people and people with poor 
 voices all sing, and the discord is drowned. There are 
 
 263 
 
264 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 times when the voice of a multitude is truly wonderful, 
 and there are other times when a single sweet voice leads 
 to repentance and the Saviour.' 
 
 No money or renown can reward a great composer who 
 gives to the world such hymns as " Am I a soldier of the 
 cross?" "Rock of Ages," or "Jesus, lover of my soul." 
 The hymn, if not written with the soul of the author in 
 it, is not worth singing in church or anywhere else. Of 
 what use are heartless hymns? Did they ever do any 
 good? The beginning of every line should start at the 
 heart of the Master, and end with our own. 
 
 The Bible has two great hearts — the praying heart and 
 the singing heart. The praying heart sways before the 
 mercy seat like the golden censer before the Tabernacle, 
 and the singing heart warbles forth its praises for mercies 
 given, and tells alwaysof the works of God. The grand- 
 est song-book ever written is the Bible. When David 
 kissed the marble lips of his boy he sang, " I shall go to 
 him," and among the tombs Jesus sang, "I am the resur- 
 rection and the life." So the songs of David thundered 
 through Jerusalem when the Ark of God was being brought 
 from Obed-edom. 
 
 There was evidently a large place given to music in the 
 ancient Church. There were songs of mourning, but there 
 were days of singing. The ancients loved music greatly. 
 Among the Hebrews, Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans, 
 there were many stringed instruments, and marvellous 
 were the tunes and the hymns associated with them. 
 
 You read in various places where singers were appointed 
 to sing. Nehemiah put singers, joyous men, over the 
 house of God. David's songs, too, were sung by the human 
 voice and accompanied by instruments. Upon the news 
 of victory, you hear an outburst of song, and when the 
 tribes came up to the Temple you remember their service 
 of song. 
 
 What was prophecy but a song in anticipation of the 
 coming Redeemer; or the Gospel, but the advent song 
 of redeeming love ? So in a less fervent spirit, per- 
 haps, song accompanied the birth of Jesus, and was the 
 worship of the Primitive Church. Hear David's songs of 
 deliverance in the prayer-meeting at Jerusalem, and from 
 the sorrowful hearts at the "Last Supper." 
 
266 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 The Lord's people do not as a general thing realize the 
 immense power there is in right music and song. The 
 people's own singing should attract them to the house of 
 God. And no one can appreciate the power of Christian 
 song in the prayer-meeting and church worship upon the 
 morals of a people. 
 
 Many and many a conversion has been brought about by 
 the singing of a Christian song, the tender, earnest singing 
 that tells of Calvary and the victory of the resurrection; 
 for a hymn without a heart is like a heartless sermon ; God 
 cares nothing for either. 
 
 Beethoven's affections were great, his reverence for God 
 profound. This accounts for the pathos in every strain of 
 the great composer's music. Take those old hymns, " All 
 hail the power of Jesus' name" and " Rock of Ages;" im- 
 mortal words, living water is always gushing out of them, 
 and can the effect be anything but gracious? Surely 
 thirsty souls can drink and rejoice. 
 
 It is said that John Newton led more souls to Christ by 
 his hymns than his preaching, and Paul recommends " sing- 
 ing and making melody in our hearts unto the Lord." 
 How many broken strings may be mended in human hearts, 
 and trained perhaps for the great orchestra of heaven by 
 the singing of some touching hymn. Somehow or some 
 way everybody can do this, and though the singer may in 
 time be forgotten, the words of the song will long be re- 
 membered, and may work out an "exceeding weight of 
 glory" to them who are exercised thereby. 
 
LIGHT AND LOVE. 
 
 OD is love." " I am the Light of the 
 world." Two wonderful propositions! 
 God is love and Jesus is light; so as 
 ' God and his only begotten Son are 
 one God, love and light are one. 
 Let us consider how love is light. 
 God so loved the world that he sent 
 his Son to be the light of the world. 
 Thus the love sends the light and is 
 the light. Think how the love of 
 God prompts the ministers of the Gospel to carry light 
 into dark places, to bring light to darkened intellec s 
 Think how love inspires to deeds of heroism and self- 
 denial, as light causes the seeds to swell and burst in 
 their efforts to obtain more light by means of branch and 
 
 1 P3.VGS 
 
 To ioveand light let us add liberty, the glorious liberty 
 wherewith Christ doth make us free, free from sin Light, 
 love and liberty! Three priceless gifts granted to every 
 disciple; light to guide us on our way, love to encompass 
 and shield us from danger, liberty to forsakesin and ac- 
 cept salvation. Uay we have grace to walk in the light, 
 and love the liberty with which Christ has made us free. 
 
 267 
 
ALONE WITH GOD. 
 
 N every instance the man 
 who prevails in prayer is 
 alone in his communion 
 with God. Abraham 
 leaves Sarah behind 
 h i m w h en he pleads 
 for Sodom ; and if he 
 fails it is because he 
 ceases to ask before God 
 ceases to grant. Moses 
 is by himself beside the 
 bush in the wilderness. 
 IS alone when Christ comes to 
 an armed man. Gideon and 
 are by themselves when commis- 
 to save Israel. Once does Elijah 
 child from the dead, and Elisha 
 same, and in each case not even 
 lothers come in while the prophet, 
 nth God, asks and receives. So 
 :iel, so of Daniel, 
 lough others are present, Saul jour- 
 to Damascus is alone with Christ 
 le light breaks upon him. Cor- 
 is praying by himself when the 
 angel flashes upon his solitude, nor is 
 any one with Peter upon the housetop 
 when he is prepared to go to the Gentiles 
 for the first time. One John is alone in the wilderness; 
 another John is by himself in Patmos, when nearest God. 
 It is when alone under his fig-tree in prayer that Jesus sees 
 Nathaniel. All religious biography, our own closest com- 
 munion and success with God, show what Christ means, 
 when, as if it were the only way to pray, he says: "And 
 thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when 
 thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in 
 secret, and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward 
 thee openly." 
 
 268 
 
EUROCLYDON. 
 
 CURIOUS wind 
 is the Euroclydon. 
 The name was 
 given to a gale 
 that at the present 
 time is called a Levanter. 
 It is described as a whirl- 
 wind or typhoon, accom- 
 panied by terrific gusts 
 from the high mountains. 
 And before we speak of the celebrated voyage mentioned 
 in the history of Paul, let us notice that he had been tried 
 as to his faith in Jesus of Nazareth before Festus Porcius, 
 the Procurator of Judea, and in the presence of Herod, 
 Agrippa, and Bernice, his sister, who had come to him in 
 great pomp. It was to entertain them that Paul was 
 brought forth into the judgment-hall of the palace. 
 
 No fault was found with his manly defence of his faith, 
 and he would have been set at liberty if, as a Roman, 
 he had not appealed \nito Caesar (Nero the Emperor). 
 Therefore Julius, a centurion of Augustus' band, received 
 Paul and certain other prisoners, and set sail with them 
 for Italy. Julius was very kind to Paul, and when, the next 
 day after they had sailed, the ship touched at Sidon, the 
 apostle was granted liberty to go ashore and see his friends. 
 Many days thereafter they sailed slowly on account of 
 adverse winds, and they kept close to the islands, for 
 their sailing was dangerous, and they began to look about 
 for a safe harbor. 
 
 269 
 
270 THE CHRISTIAN LITE. 
 
 The south wind blew softly, and supposing the danger 
 passed, they drew up their anchors and sailed close by 
 Crete. But just as they thought themselves safe, a tempes- 
 tuous wind arose, called Euroclydon, and the ship was so 
 caught that they had to let her drive. This trying north- 
 easterly gale had continued fourteen days and nights, nei- 
 ther sun nor star .coming into view in the dull, leaden sky, 
 and the heavy rain falling over them made them look for< 
 ward to certain shipwreck, and they lost all hope of safety. 
 
 rhere was great danger that they should be driven into 
 the Syrtes, on the North African coast. The Syrtes or 
 quicksands (the word being derived from Sert, an Arabic 
 word for desert) were an object of peculiar dread to sailors. 
 The drifting sands, the intense heat along the shore, the 
 shallow water, and the rocks that were hidden under the 
 current, added to the north-easterly gale, were enough to 
 alarm all those in the ship. 
 
 But the dear Lord had them in keeping, and although 
 they were doomed to lose the ship, to teach them a lesson 
 for not hearkening to his message through his servant, 
 Paul, yet they were saved, and the two hundred three 
 score and sixteen souls escaped safely to land, some on 
 boards and some on broken pieces of the ship. 
 
 Do we need to go to the Mediterranean to find an 
 Euroclydon ? God often speaks to us, but we do not 
 listen because our ears are occupied with the south wind 
 that blows softly, lulling our senses and luring us to de- 
 struction, and then to save us, even if by the shipwreck 
 of all that we care for and possess, there arises an Euro- 
 clydon. For days and nights, winds blow and toss us 
 about, not a star by night, not a ray of sun by day comes 
 into our sight, and we grope about in the gloom, agoniz- 
 ing to find a place to cast anchor; quicksands so treacher- 
 ous that their shifting particles threaten to draw us upon 
 the rocks that will shipwreck us are before us; and while 
 we grope, Jesus says, "Peace, be still," and immediately 
 there is a great calm. Did we think he was asleep, deaf 
 to our danger while the wind beat the ship, so that it was 
 likely to sink? Why are we so fearful — why is our faith 
 so small? Ah! even the wind and the sea obey him. 
 
 Through fourieen days and nights of storm, Paul, who 
 loved God, and who had been told that he would be brought 
 
EUROCLYDON. 
 
 271 
 
 safely to land, never lost courage. Is it any harder for 
 us to trust God to bring us through an Euroclydon? 
 
 Learn to wait ! Life's hardest lesson, 
 Conned perhaps through blinding tears, 
 
 While the heart-throbs sadly echo 
 To the tread of passing years. 
 
 Constant sunshine, fondly welcomed. 
 Doth not ripen fruit or flower; 
 
 Giant oaks owe strength and greatness 
 To the tempest's scathing power. 
 
 Thus the soul untouched by sorrow 
 
 Aims not at a brighter state: 
 Joy seeks not a brighter morrow; 
 
 Only sad hearts learn to wait. 
 
 Human strength and human greatness 
 Spring not from life's sunny side; 
 
 Heroes must be more than driftwood 
 Floating on a waveless tide." 
 
THE PRINCE OF PEACE. 
 
 His name shall be called the Prince of Peace." — Isa. ix. 6. 
 
 HE rest of the Prince of Peace 
 comes only to the soul that 
 ^ treads the path of obedience. 
 That path may be full of thorns, 
 it may lead us into thickest 
 darkness, to bear mental and 
 physical suffering daily, to take 
 up the innumerable duties of 
 the household or of the work- 
 shop, to go forth like Abraham, 
 not knowing whither. Be it so! 
 As with him, every step of the 
 way will be sweet, holiest rest 
 to our souls. That rest is " the 
 rest of faith." The sun shall 
 no more go down for such a 
 traveller. Pillowed upon the bosom of Jesus, yet mount- 
 ing still higher with unfaltering footsteps — up, up the 
 steeps of life to the final goal — we shall enter at the last 
 upon that rest which " remaineth for the people of God." 
 But even this shall not be inactivity, nor selfish enjoy- 
 ment, nor consummated revelations. Onward! upward! 
 in the songs of those who" rest not day nor night," in the 
 ceaseless disclosures of infinite love, in the ever-increas- 
 ing glory of the " beatific vision." Oh, bright land, so 
 restful even in anticipation, thou art not very far away! 
 When our weary feet shall press thy sacred soil, when our 
 eyes shall feast upon thy ever-widening landscape, one 
 voice shall rise above the acclaim of the innumerable 
 company of the redeemed — the voice of the Lamb before 
 the throne. That voice, "I will give you rest," ofttimes 
 has stilled the tempest of our earthly grief. Now, ever- 
 more, it shall be the full, increasing melody of our celes- 
 tial home. 
 
IS 
 
 TTir I'RIXCE OF PEACE. 
 
GIVING UP OLD HOPES. 
 
 ANY years ago I prepared a 
 sermon, in which it was 
 my endeavor to persuade 
 all who might listen to it 
 to give up any hope that 
 they might cherish. I 
 took the ground that many 
 hopes are worthless; that 
 they must be given up 
 soon or late, and that it 
 would be wiser to give 
 them up now, than when 
 too late to get something 
 better. And I also went farther, and said that even were 
 a person's hope a good one, it would do him no harm to 
 relinquish it and to hope anew. 
 
 But I postponed preaching the sermon from time to time, 
 until I finally destroyed it and it was never preached. I 
 felt that while the preaching of it might be beneficial to 
 some, it might be harmful to others. I feared its effect 
 upon some of God's dear, trembling children; I would not 
 break the bruised reed, nor quench the smoking flax, and 
 so I hesitated and finally gave the sermon to the flames, 
 which I have never seen cause to regret. 
 
 But there is many a long-cherished hope that must 
 fail when God shall have taken away the soul, if not be- 
 fore; and the sooner ifis relinquished the better. It is a 
 hope that was taken up without any good reason, and it 
 has never been attended with any appropriate fruits. Its 
 possessor does not live essentially different from what he 
 did before, nor from the mass of men around him. He 
 gives no satisfactory evidence that he has ever been born 
 again. He is controlled by worldly principles. His affec- 
 tions are supremely on earthly things; and for these he 
 lives supremely, making it his great aim to get worldly 
 goods. Better, a thousand times better, were it for such a 
 man had he no hope. So long as he clings to the one that 
 he already has, he will not seek a better, and there is great 
 danger that he will die sheltered in a refuge of lies which 
 the first view of eternal realities will forever sweep away. 
 
 274 
 
ADVANTAGES OF 
 CONFESSING 
 
 CHRIST. 
 
 ISTINCTLY from 
 our Saviour's lips 
 comes the declara- 
 tion, " He that is 
 not with me is 
 against me," and 
 the words are plain 
 and unequivocal. 
 They have a seri- 
 o u s meaning for 
 all who are not dis- 
 t i net i V e 1 y with 
 Christ on the 
 Lord's side, for 
 they contain a 
 declaration of war. 
 There are only two 
 parties in religious 
 matters ; there are 
 only two camps, only two 
 sides. Are we with Christ 
 and working in his cause? 
 If not we are doing harm. 
 There are many persons who 
 need to have this truth 
 pressed upon them. They 
 endeavor to steer a middle 
 course in religion; they are 
 not as bad as many sinners, 
 but still they are not saints. 
 They feel the truth of 
 Christ's gospel when it is brought before them, but they 
 are afraid to confess this feeling. Because they have 
 
 275 
 
276 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 these feelings they flatter themselves that they are not as 
 bad as some others, and yet they shrink from the standard 
 of faith and practice which Jesus sets up. They are not 
 boldly on Christ's side, yet they are not openly against it. 
 But this sentence of our Lord's cuts the ground from be- 
 neath the feet of those who hesitate about standing openly 
 on the Lord's side. People say that this entering into 
 fellowship with the church is a very serious matter; it 
 must not be decided hastily; and so on the ground of its 
 seriousness it is postponed, and postponed indefinitely. 
 It is really too serious a matter to be put off from time to 
 time. The one thing that we should dread is this, that 
 when the voice of the Master is heard saying, "Take my 
 yoke upon you," we should stop for a moment and 
 listen, and then pass on and give him no answer. That is 
 indeed a very grave and serious responsibility to take, and 
 when he invites us to the feast of his love, to turn away 
 in indifferent silence is truly a serious matter — a responsi- 
 bility to be dreaded. 
 
 There is ever a separation existing between the follow- 
 ers of the Lord and the world, and it must needs be a 
 wall of separation, for Christians, vv'hile they are in the 
 world, are not of it. 
 
 The Lord justly asks some mark of distinction from 
 them, not that he may know them, but that the world 
 may, and the brethren may. Surely it is not possible to 
 be a secret Christian. We cannot surrender ourselves 
 wholly to the Master, and yet refuse the public acknowl- 
 edgment of his authority. 
 
 In the kingdoms of this world no one is admitted to the 
 privileges of citizenship without a profession of allegiance, 
 and surely it is not unreasonable that as much should 
 be expected from those who desire to enter God's kingdom. 
 "I cannot decide to be a Christian," is the answer of 
 many upon whom the claims of Christ are urged, but they 
 forget that they do decide whenever the subject is brought 
 before them. To say, " I cannot decide for Christ to-day," 
 is another way of saying, "I can and do decide to refuse 
 the service of Christ to-day." A choice is made one 
 way or the other, for it only requires a negative position 
 to be in direct opposition. 
 
 We must allow, at least, enough to God's wisdom to be- 
 
ADVANTAGES OF CONFESSING CHRIST. 277 
 
 lieve that he instituted the Church and its sacraments for 
 some purpose which could not otherwise be accomplished. 
 That purpose evidently was to make palpable the differ- 
 ence between his people and the world. How, then, can 
 a man keep the fact of his being a Christian secret, when 
 Christianity has been made to assume a visible, organized 
 form by its author ? A Christian is one, moreover, who 
 obeys Christ, and desires to follow all his commands. 
 How can one be a Christian who leaves out of account the 
 tenderest and almost the last of his Saviour's commands, 
 " This do in remembrance of me?" This simple, touching 
 service, so full of tender associations, commemorates the 
 Saviour's dying love. Can any one hope that he is a 
 Christian whose lips have never touched the sacramental 
 cup, and thus obeyed Christ's dying command? 
 
 One of the reasons for public confession is the useful- 
 ness of the act. How much more one's zeal is drawn out 
 when he has declared himself for any cause, and he par- 
 takes of the spirit of the party! That which is kept con- 
 cealed within is apt to lose much of its hold upon us; it 
 is by speaking of it and acting upon it that we feel most 
 of its impression and influence. There is no feeling more 
 strengthening to any one than the feeling that he is not 
 standing alone. So it is a joy to feel that one is part of 
 a great system working for one end, to feel that he is a 
 fellow-laborer with apostles, martyrs, prophets, saints, 
 even with Christ himself. . We can never be fully aware 
 of the usefulness of the ordained means of grace. The 
 public worship of God is of inestimable value to mankind. 
 In the midst of the cares and toils of life God is known 
 in his palaces for a refuge. There the tempted are suc- 
 cored, the weak are strengthened, the wandering directed, 
 and the oppressed relieved. The sanctuary opens a door 
 for the weary and heavy laden to enter and refresh them- 
 selves. According to his promise Jesus is with his Church 
 to the end of days; there he is most often found of his 
 people, and draws most graciously near to them, supply- 
 ing all their needs with the riches of his grace. It is a 
 source of strength to feel, therefore, that we have a place 
 there as well as a secure retreat. 
 
 Merely joining the Church is not a source of safety, 
 simply to profess faith in Christ is not to possess it; and 
 
278 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 Without faith we cannot be saved. All who are enrolled 
 upon the records of the Church have not their names 
 written in the Lamb's book of life, so by the safety of a 
 public declaration is meant merely that it fortifies individ- 
 uals against temptations and evil influences. It puts the 
 longest possible distance between the old life and the new. 
 It cuts us off forever from the old life of sin, and hence- 
 forth we are bound to serve the Lord. 
 
 But far above both of these considerations is the greater 
 one that by declaring ourselves upon the Lord's side, we 
 gain the consciousness of having obeyed Christ. Not 
 in the sense of a recommendation would this reason be 
 urged, but because our consciences rest freer from the 
 charge of ingratitude, when we remember all that Christ 
 has done for us and can look up into the face of our 
 Saviour, and say, " Touched by thy love I give myself to 
 thee, O Christ." 
 
 There is, of necessity, something which precedes public 
 confession — the work of grace on the heart. If we do not 
 believe on Christ, and determine to take him as our Sa- 
 viour, of course there will be no profession to make, save 
 a false profession; but if we purpose to give ourselves to 
 Christ, and take him for our portion, then it should be 
 done openly; for this is the standard by which we are 
 judged, "He that is not with me is against me." 
 
 ,_^xj^ .xjl^^^-j^ ,c^>^ «ji>^ ..jt^ .8?. )<^^.E^^ ja~_>^^^,jfe>-,^jsfej_.^to.^jfe.^gt>:^^.^V jjf 
 
 P ' A* ' . ' ' .'Ak T 
 
OUR 
 RESPONSIBILITY. 
 
 ID each professing Christian 
 in the world to-day realize 
 the tremendous responsibil- 
 ity that rests upon all be- 
 lievers to make their faith 
 known to those who are yet 
 in darkness, to spread the 
 Gospel of glad tidings to 
 their perishing fellow-men, 
 and act as men would do 
 under a sense of such re- 
 sponsibility, we should not 
 have to wait long for the complete regeneration of man- 
 kind. If we believe in our hearts, as we profess to do, 
 that those who do not make their peace with God in this 
 life have no opportunity for repentance hereafter and are 
 doomed to eternal despair, a doctrine which the Bible 
 plainly teaches, how can we do less than manifest the 
 utmost concern for the conversion of our fellow-men and 
 especially those who are dear to us by ties of blood or 
 friendship? If we saw one whom our hearts held dear 
 carelessly drifting down a rapid stream towards a plung- 
 ing cataract and inevitable destruction, how quickly we 
 would sound the note of warning ; with what frantic energy 
 we would hasten to rescue him from the fatal flood. We 
 would not give him up in despair because of his indif- 
 ference to his own fate, or his repeated rejection of prof- 
 fered assistance. No; we would follow him with increas- 
 ing energy of appeal, and in an agony of soul that words 
 cannot express, to the verge of the cataract, if haply we 
 might reach him even there. How can we show less so- 
 licitude for the safety of those who are slowly but surely 
 drifting down the river of life to a fate far worse than that 
 encountered in the foam of a material cataract ? 
 
 In this respect our demeanor towards those who are out 
 
 279 
 
280 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 of Christ, our feeble efforts in dissuading friends from 
 evil courses, our apparent unconcern respecting even those 
 who are very near to us by ties of blood, practically belies 
 our profession of belief in the awful fate which awaits 
 those who die unrepentant. It is one of the most incom- 
 prehensible things to the sceptical mind that men who 
 assert their belief in the eternal punishment of the wicked 
 should put forth so little effort to save others from such a 
 terrible end. And it is not strange that this should be 
 looked upon as a practical denial of the assertion itself. 
 Men are too frequently disposed to shift the responsibil- 
 ity of this work of evangelism upon the shoulders of the 
 few — upon the ministry, upon the teacher of the Sabbath- 
 school, upon the more devout brethren of the church. 
 They act as though, having made their own profession 
 of faith, they have fulfilled all the duties which God re- 
 quires of them. Seemingly assured of their own salvation, 
 they wrap their cloaks of righteousness about them and 
 pass on unmindful of the fate of those who are perishing 
 in their sins. Such are selfish Christian lives — very little 
 of Christ and very much of self. If a man has found a 
 goodly treasure, a boundless and inexhaustible supply of 
 sweet and precious things, he will not be so ungenerous as 
 to keep his discovery to himself, since there is enough to 
 supply all who can come — all the world if need be. 
 Neither will he who has once tasted of the riches of redeem- 
 ing love, who has drunk at the fountain of the water of 
 life, desire to keep that knowledge to himself. Rather 
 will he cry aloud in the fervor of his soul to all his fellow- 
 men, "O come, and taste and see that the Lord is good." 
 
HOW ARE WE BUILDING? 
 
 E are building a structure, not as 
 an ornament, not for time only, 
 but a building of far more im- 
 portance and of far greater 
 duration. 
 
 " Our to-days and yesterdays 
 
 Are the blocks with which we build." 
 
 Slowly and silently the work is 
 being- carried on, so silently that 
 those who stand nearest to us 
 cannot see our work. They hear 
 no sound; yet in the solemn 
 silence we are building — build- 
 ing for eternity ! 
 
 Every word, good or bad ; 
 every deed that is noticed by the 
 all-searching eye of God; every 
 thought, pure as those of the 
 angels or smirched with sin; 
 every impulse born of a God- 
 given spirit, or every sin-laden 
 action of which we need to feel ashamed, one and all are 
 the material with which our structure will be raised. 
 
 Shall the temple that we raise be strong in the Lord, 
 fitted for the Master's use, worthy to be commended at the 
 last day? Or, shall our building, which we have raised 
 during 'the years of our life, be only fit to be cast down 
 and trodden, as unfit for a part of that city where " there 
 shall be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, neither 
 shall there be any more pain. The city has no need of 
 the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it, for the Lamb 
 is the light thereof " ? 
 
 Are we in God's sight building for our own salvation, 
 for our own comfort and peace here and hereafter ? How 
 are we building for eternity ? 
 
 " We shape ourselves the joy or fear 
 Of which the coming life is made, 
 And fill our future's atmosphere 
 
 With sunshine or with shade." ^ 
 
 281 
 
THE MASTER IMPULSE. 
 
 N this, it seems to me, we have the 
 secret of a Christian life. A man is a 
 Christian when the master-motive of 
 his life is love of Christ, when that 
 is the germ which assimilates and co- 
 ordinates all its forces. Jesus Christ 
 is the central form cf Christianity, and 
 he who loves him supremely is adopted 
 into the family of the redeemed. Sometimes in 
 reading the New Testament we wonder at the 
 absolute self-assertion of Christ. He claims a 
 place in the heart above that given to the most 
 sacred of human relationships. " He that loveth 
 father or mother more than me is not worthy of 
 me: and he that loveth son or daughter more 
 than me is not worthy of me." (Matt. x. 37.) 
 The reason is that for the man to belong to 
 Christ at all, the love of Christ must be the de- 
 sire which crystallizes his life; the co-ordinat- 
 ing germ which determines what he shall be. 
 Wheat and tares may grow together in the field; but if 
 the tares are assimilating to themselves the forces of the 
 earth, and leaving to the wheat only a starvi'ng and sickly 
 growth, you cannot properly call that " a wheat field." 
 One must be first; " No man can serve two masters. " The 
 stream cannot flow both ways at once. One must be 
 first in the Christian heart, (iod will put up with a great 
 many things in the human heart, but there is one thing 
 he will not put uj) with — a second place. 
 
 282 
 
LIGHT IS SOWN FOR THE 
 RIGHTEOUS. 
 
 Ntheirpilgrimage 
 through this world, the 
 people of Ciod often 
 walk in darkness. The 
 light does not always 
 shine upon their path. 
 Sometimes they are in 
 the dark as to their 
 being the people of 
 (iod. They are exer- 
 cised with doubts and 
 fears in this regard. 
 Sometimes the face of 
 their Father is hidden 
 from them. They do 
 not always walk in the 
 light of his countenance. And not infrequently his provi- 
 dences concerning them are veiled in darkness. " Gloomy 
 clouds his ways surround." So it was with respect to 
 
 283 
 
284 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 Job and Jacob and David. And so always has been 
 and still is with respect to large numbers of God's dear 
 people. 
 
 But let them take courage. Light is sown for them; 
 sown by the hand of their Father; and it will spring up 
 in an abundant and joyful harvest. Sooner or later light 
 will arise unto them, and gladness will cheer their hearts. 
 So it is oftentimes here in this present w^orld. Here not 
 infrequently the clouds break, and the shadows flee away. 
 So it was in the case of Jacob, who so sadly grieved for 
 the loss of his beloved Joseph. Instead of going down 
 into the grave unto his son mourning, as in his sore 
 bereavement he said he would, the cheering news at 
 length came to him that Joseph was yet alive, and that 
 he was governor over all the land of Egypt. The cap- 
 tivity of Job, too, was ere long turned, and the Lord 
 blessed his latter end more than his beginning. And 
 David was permitted to sing: "Thou hast turned for me 
 my mourning into dancing; thou hast put off my sack- 
 cloth, and girded me with gladness." Nor have similar 
 experiences been uncommon with the people of God in 
 all ages. If not sooner, it has often been their experience 
 that at even-time it has been light. 
 
 But it is more especially in another world that the har- 
 vest of light and gladness shall be reaped. More or less 
 of darkness may attend the people of God all along their 
 pilgrimage here to the end. But they will bid a final 
 farewell to it all at death. Then they will be intro- 
 duced to a world of which it is said: "There shall be 
 no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of 
 the sun, for the Lord God giveth them light, and they 
 shall reign forever and ever." No more shall they be 
 troubled with perplexing doubts as to their spiritual state. 
 No more shall their Father's face be hid. No more shall 
 dark providences frown upon them. " The Lord shall be 
 their everlasting life, and the days of their mourning shall 
 be ended." 
 
 " Immortal light and joys unknown 
 Are for the saints in darkness sown ; 
 There glorious seeds shall spring and rise, 
 And the bright harvest fill our eyes." 
 
THE DEVICES OF 
 
 THE TEMPTER. 
 
 HE devices of the tempter to 
 
 win men away from God are 
 
 manifold and contrived with 
 
 the greatest cunning. He does 
 
 not tempt all men in the same 
 
 way; he is as various in his 
 
 devices as the chameleon in 
 
 his colors. What a difference, 
 
 for instance, between the 
 
 tempter of Judas to the dark 
 
 deed of betrayal, and the 
 
 tempter who came to Christ with words 
 
 of Scripture upon his lips. Judas 
 
 needed no perversion of Scripture to 
 
 tempt him — the greed of his soul was 
 
 sufficient; but on the other hand the one 
 
 possible chance of tempting the Son of 
 
 God was through the Scriptures 
 
 Every one is tempted according to his 
 nature and circumstances, and where 
 one form of evil fails another is tried. 
 The great fact confronts us all, whether 
 we are Christians or not, that we have a 
 great enemy who is continually devising 
 mischief against us. In the case of 
 those who are out of Christ, the one ob- 
 ject of the tempter is to keep them away 
 from him, and if he succeeds in this 
 purpose his object is gained. His de- 
 vice with them is to blind their eyes to the truth, to lull 
 them into security and keep them in fancied peace, and if 
 the conscience can be quieted and the higher faculties be- 
 numbed, then the soul is his. 
 
 Christ was tempted immediately after his baptism, so 
 285 
 
2 86 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 we need not be surprised if the enemy makes his fiercest 
 onslaughts upon us just after some high spiritual privilege. 
 His malevolence and jealousy cannot endure the sight of 
 our communion with God. He sees our happy state of 
 mind, and how joyful our hearts are, and then he comes 
 and tries to change our joy into levity, our relation into 
 presumption. It is no unusual thing for a young Chris- 
 tian to descend from the top of the delectable mountains 
 into the valley of humiliation; even in the hour of the 
 first love there has been more than one who has fallen 
 directly into sin. 
 
 Then comes a sudden revulsion of feeling, a loss of all 
 joy and peace. We feel as if we were greater sinners 
 than ever, and had never found Christ at all, and this is 
 one of the devices of the tempter to bring men to despair. 
 Oftener he has a subtler device than that, one that takes 
 more time to develop, but is more likely to have lasting 
 results, and, strange to say, that device is not to tempt the 
 young Christian at all. We deal with one who is an adept 
 in cunning arts and wily snares, so we must'expect strange 
 things. -He will not put an obstacle in the young Chris- 
 tian's path; he will give him a free path and let him go 
 singing on his way; but there is the deepest philosophy 
 in this. Oftentimes there is not much to be gained by 
 tempting one who has just found Christ; the heart is too 
 much taken up with his love to have room for anything 
 else, and so our enemy leaves the soul unmolested to en- 
 joy its happiness. But we can foresee the effects. Days, 
 weeks, and even months go by — the longer time the more 
 danger — and all is well. We begin to think that the 
 Christian life is the easiest thing in the world, and it is 
 no trouble to do right, while we wonder how the enemy 
 ever gained the ascendancy over us. Poinding no temp- 
 tations in our path, we begin to relax our watchfulness, 
 to call in the sentinels as unnecessary, and cease to pray for 
 the strength we never feel the need of, and so the device 
 of the tempter succeeds. All these months of quiet have 
 had that one end in view, to catch the soul off its guard 
 and keep it so much at ease that it will cease to be 
 watchful. Such a period of calm, when muscles are 
 relaxed and the soul at ease, is the enemy's grand oppor- 
 tunity. Then, if ever, there is need of increased watchful- 
 
THE DEVICES OF THE TEMPTER. 287 
 
 ness and a determined effort against che carelessness that 
 does not seem sinful. For the enemy will come with 
 subtlety; he will take care not to alarm us 'with too open 
 a temptation; his approach will be with the serpent's 
 guile, and his motto, " Little things lead to great things." 
 
 He will persuade us to see how near we can come to 
 danger and not be hurt ; how much we can associate with 
 ungodly companions; how much vice we can see without 
 becoming vicious; how much unholy conversation we can 
 hear without losing our spirituality. But there is danger 
 there. If we go nearer and nearer to the edge of a 
 precipice we will come within the actual reach of gravi- 
 tation, which compromises with no one. The Christian 
 who runs no risk willingly is the one to be relied upon. 
 Many fall through being too remiss, but none through 
 being too scrupulous. If we avoid that which is evil and 
 keep close to Christ we are safe. Sometimes the enemy's 
 device will be to lead us into little sins first, persuading 
 us to do or leave undone something so minute, so near the 
 boundary of good and evil, that it can hardly be called a 
 sin. They used to bridge chasms by shooting an arrow 
 across to the other side, carrying a thread as fine as a film, 
 but that thread drew after it a small string, and that 
 string carried a rope, and the rope a cable, so that soon 
 the impassable gulf crossed by a thread was spanned by a 
 bridge. Our arch-enemy is wise enough to profit by this 
 device and use it for his own purposes. 
 
 It is only a thought that he shoots into the mind, but 
 the thought brings desire, and desire is father to the act, 
 and the act strengthens into habit — strong and hard to 
 break. Let us remember, when tempted to despair of 
 fighting this cunning enemy, that we have a great High 
 Priest wearing our own nature, who by being tempted 
 himself is able to sympathize with and succor all who put 
 their trust in him. 
 
:^.; 
 
 THEIR EYES WERE HOLDEN. 
 
 told hi 
 heard 
 
 WO of the disciples (one named Cle- 
 1^ opas, the other, some conjecture, 
 Luke) were going from Jerusa- 
 lem to Emmaus, a village that lay 
 some sixty furlongs, or seven and 
 a half miles, from the city, prob- 
 ably to enjoy the warm baths that 
 were for public use. As they 
 journeyed along the steep road up the moun- 
 tain they talked no doubt of Jesus of Naza- 
 reth. Along came another traveller, as it 
 seemed to them a stranger in Jerusalem; and 
 he asked of what they were conversing that 
 they looked so sad. • With astonishment they 
 m that, even if he were a stranger, he ought to have 
 of Jesus, a prophet, a mighty man who had been 
 288 
 
THEIR EYES WERE HOLDEN. 289 
 
 doing such wonderful things, and whom the chief priests 
 and rulers had crucified; and this to their disappointment, 
 for the)^ had hoped that he was their coming Messiah, 
 who was to redeem Israel. He chided them for believing 
 that Christ was not to suffer death in order to enter into 
 glory — quoting many predictions from the writings of 
 Moses and the prophets concerning the Christ. 
 
 They did not know that he was talking of himself, 
 for " their eyes were holden that they should not know 
 him." And so they reached the little village and the 
 house of Cleophas, and although the stranger seemed to 
 desire to go farther, they persuaded him to tarry and 
 sup with them before returning to the city of Jerusalem 
 to hold the sacred meeting, with the doors closed for 
 fear of the Jews; at the same time Jesus lifted up his 
 hands to bless them, and said, "Peace be unto you." 
 And while they broke bread after he had blessed it, their 
 eyes were opened and they knew him. 
 
 Do you live in the great city of Jerusalem? do you 
 enjoy its cares and its pleasures, day by day ? Do you 
 walk in a valley of shadows, or up the steep hill to the 
 sunlight? Are you alone, are you tired and foot-sore, is 
 the climbing hard? As you get up two steps do you fall 
 back two ? Can you see afar off the streets paved with gold, 
 the gates of pearl, and the light of the city, which is the 
 Lamb ? Do you carry a heavy cross that would be lighter 
 if you looked up to the Saviour who bore a heavier cross 
 out to the place called Golgotha, be5'ond the gates of the 
 city? Do you fret because you can never lay the cross 
 down ? Do you forget that 
 
 " Thy weary path shall lead in light, 
 
 And hope e'en now makes sorrow bright " ? 
 
 Have you not entered into the rest that remaineth for 
 you, not after death, not beyond the grave, but here, to- 
 day, this moment? Can you not just take it? Are you 
 walking alone? Your eyes are holden that you cannot 
 know that at your side, talking with you, is the dear 
 Saviour whom you seek. So near that your gentlest 
 whisper comes to the ear that is ever open to the cry of 
 his children. Are your eyes holden wilfully? Do you 
 not see Jesus with white robes washed in his own blood 
 
 19 
 
290 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 beside you? Do you have to walk many furlongs with 
 him without seeing him ? Is the village to which you are 
 going to enjoy your own pleasure the only object to which 
 you look with such longing eyes that they are holden so 
 that you cannot know him? 
 
 Open your eyes and see Jesus at your side, able and 
 willing to do far more for you than you can ask or think. 
 Live with the certain knowledge that Jesus is Y»'alking 
 beside you, quite near, talking with you as friend with 
 friend — your Elder Brother. 
 
 " Live! though h'fe hath deepest sadness, 
 Still it fits thee for the end, , 
 And with grief is mingled gladness, 
 Blossoms o'er the thorn bush bend. 
 
 " Hark ! from out the shining portals 
 Comes a gush of spirit-song: 
 List, ye pale and sorrowing mortals, 
 Learn to suffer and be strong." 
 
THE DAILY TASK. 
 
 " Awake, my soul, and with the sun 
 Thy daily stage of duty run; 
 Shake off dull sloth, and joyful rise 
 To pay thy morning sacrifice." 
 
 HE inspiring words of this grand 
 old morning hymn are full of 
 power to call us cheerfully to the 
 routine of life, to help us to con- 
 tentment with our lot, and to 
 beget within us a joyful and 
 peaceful submission to the will 
 of Providence and the call of 
 duty. It is very true that the 
 contemplation of our day's work 
 is dreary enough ; we have pur- 
 sued the same monotonous round 
 perhaps for many days or years, 
 and each succeeding day brings 
 with it only the promise that its 
 predecessors have brought — a 
 round of well-known and oft-performed duties. 
 
 Yet to those who are called upon thus to pass their days 
 upon earth, there is very much in such a life that is cal- 
 culated to instruct us in those weighty matters and eternal 
 things which go to make up that perfected nature becoming 
 to those who entertain the hope of an immortal state of 
 existence. " I,et patience have her perfect work," says the 
 Apostle. Truly patience is a wonderfully perfecting 
 principle, and when incorporated fully into the Christian 
 life leaves little to be desired; yet let all the other moral 
 virtues be present, if patience be lacking we come sadly 
 short of even that degree of perfection which will satisfy 
 the demands of an unbelieving and exacting world. Pa- 
 tience is more than mere endurance. Many have learned 
 to endure who have not learned to be truly patient. 
 
 It is not until we realize, by having the truth constantly 
 forced upon us, that we are among that large number who 
 
 291 
 
292 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 have been called by God to perform tedious and per- 
 haps for the most part apparently trivial duties — not 
 until then, we being faithful, does the peace of a con- 
 tented life reign within us. And that peace brings with it, 
 too, in most cases, the best opportunity to rise to higher 
 and more useful things. It is rarely indeed that truly 
 great or good lives have not grown in a most natural way 
 out of the faithfully performed routine of average life; 
 and if those of us who are discontented with our daily 
 tasks have not learned this truth, and are impatient 
 because we imagine we might more profitably employ our 
 time for ourselves and others, we leave unlearned a most 
 useful lesson. 
 
 The faithful performance of our daily task — be that 
 task a great or an humble one — discharges our responsi- 
 bility in the sight of God as effectually in the one case 
 as in the other. Great minds are called to do great 
 things, and if the possessors of great talents do not ulti- 
 mately bring them into use, the reason will almost inva- 
 riably be that they have not patiently performed those 
 humble duties which would, like stepping-stones, have 
 led them to the haven of their desires. There is too 
 much ambition among Christians to do something impor- 
 tant and striking. Such an ambition is evil, since it 
 begets a spirit of proud impatience and entails the 
 great loss of a peaceful and contented mind. The truth 
 is often lost sight of that, even if the ambitious should, 
 by dint of hard work, attain the object of their hopes, 
 and be talked about as having done something of impor- 
 tance, the risk is exceedingly great, and they will forfeit 
 the blessing promised to the poor in spirit. If we are 
 destined to fill a striking position in life, the sooner 
 we learn faithfully and patiently to perform our daily 
 tasks— however humble and mean they appear to be — the 
 sooner shall we fulfil our destiny. 
 

 
 ->^ 
 
 ■-'.-^ C*v~ ^5*'" 
 
 
 SUNLIGHT IN AUTUMNAL DAYS. 
 
 REARY November is usually 
 associated with the 
 thought of chilling winds, 
 the falling of rustling 
 leaves, sombre skies, and 
 days that are " the saddest 
 of the year." Yet how 
 often in walking abroad 
 
 J on a November day the air 
 
 is found to be bracing, 
 
 clear, and delightful. 
 
 True, the mellow light of 
 
 the earlier fall no longer 
 
 lies athwart the pathway, 
 
 and no song of birds greets 
 
 the ear, but there are yet 
 
 gleams of bright sunlight, 
 
 and cheery sounds are in 
 
 ery much to be enjoyed in November 
 
 breezes are somewhat crisp as they 
 
 293 
 
2 94 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 whisk to and fro, there is health in the ruddy glow they 
 send to the cheek, and the walk or drive can be a brisk 
 one with no fear of suffering either from heat or cold. It 
 is time for sunlight to grow pale, for leaves to fall from 
 the trees, for puss to seek the cosey chimney-corner rather 
 than the breezy roof, and for the canary to enjoy the 
 shelter of the warm sitting-room rather than the broad, 
 free outlook from the piazza beam. Seldom, and yet 
 more seldom, do the older members of the family care to 
 venture out, for the uncertain sunlight is too suggestive 
 of the caprices of the weather-vane, which may fly around 
 from westward to eastward point so suddenly that one 
 of those trying colds might be the result which elderly 
 people especially dread to have "settle in the fall," too 
 often to "stay by" all winter. Never is the pleasant 
 shelter of the snug home more enjoyable than when the 
 winds begin to whistle, the leaves to go scurrying by, and 
 everything outside of the house indicates the change 
 that is creeping over the great world of nature. But over 
 all the glad sun yet shines, and despite the bare hedges 
 and leafless trees, the cold ground and hurrying feet, the 
 blessed sunlight smiles and dances. And if its beams rise 
 late and depart early, it is only because in obedience to 
 Nature's laws it must be so. Old age is fittingly likened 
 to the declining sunlight of autumnal days. Many and 
 many a weary toiler longs for the fervid heat of summer 
 to be past, and the cooling breezes of autumn to come and 
 refresh the overworked brain and feverish brow. There 
 is something restful in the hush of nature when the season 
 of growth and of harvest is past. It would seem that the 
 tired earth is resting after having brought forth bread 
 for the eater. 
 
 When the autumn of life comes on there has usually 
 been quite enough of labor and anxiety experienced to 
 make the quiet, restful days full of welcome. Nor need 
 they be at all devoid of sunlight — the rare, sweet sunlight 
 of God's loving grace, and the calm, clear shining of a 
 peaceful, contented existence. Jhis is presuming, of 
 course, that the life is a religious one, that God and 
 Christ dwell in the heart and make sunlight there. It 
 would be hard to imagine anything much sadder or more 
 desolate than an old person with no love for God or relig- 
 
295 
 
296 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 ion in the soul. It seems as though a long life spent 
 without God or the fruits of the Spirit must prove an 
 empty and utterly sunless existence at the last. Seneca 
 says: "There is nothing more disgraceful than that an 
 old man should have nothing to produce as a proof that 
 he has lived long except his years." A wasted life! 
 What more deplorable picture could be contemplated? 
 The sun never looks upon the world through autumnal 
 skies, but everywhere it views its fructifying influences; 
 the corn it has helped to ripen, the flowers it has bright- 
 ened, the hearts it has gladdened with its glorious rays. 
 But for an old person to look back over a life unillumined 
 by rays from the Sun of Righteousness, unhallowed by 
 Christly deeds, unblessed by the sweet influence of relig- 
 ion, is sad indeed. 
 
 We venture to hope, however, that there are few if any 
 such lives among the readers of " The Christian Life." 
 The very cares against which human nature cries out, the 
 afflictions, the adversity, the pain, in short, the general 
 discipline of life, is blessed in making religion a neces- 
 sity as well as a comfort and support for nearly all, long 
 before old age brings some relief from constant toil and 
 care. And in like manner as the welcome sunlight comes 
 creeping in at the closed window, shining along the floor 
 and resting on every object it can reach, the same genial, 
 cheerful sunlight in autumnal as in summer days, even so 
 let our dear old friends remember that the sunlight of 
 God's love is ever about them. And unjike the sunlight 
 which warms the earth, the diviner light never grows dis- 
 tant, nor its rays pale and uncertain, but like goodness in 
 the soul, and like the path of the just, it grows brighter 
 and brighter, and "shineth more and more unto the per- 
 fect day." 
 
THE WILL OF GOD. 
 
 01 NG the will of God is para- 
 mount to every other considera- 
 tion. Those of us accustomed 
 in years gone by to the study of 
 the Assemblies' Shorter Cate- 
 chism have been taught that 
 " man's chief end is to glorify God 
 and enjoy him forever." From 
 this it would seem naturally to 
 follow that the end of life should 
 be, not only to secure one's own 
 salvation but also the salvation of 
 as many others as possible. If Chris- 
 tians believe that the wicked shall go 
 away into everlasting punishment and 
 the righteous into life eternal, it would 
 seem that the winning of souls must be 
 paramount to every other consideration whatever. 
 
 Christ came to save souls, but what says he concerning 
 the terms of salvation? "Not every one that saith unto 
 me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; 
 but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in 
 heaven." And what says the Saviour of his own mission 
 on the earth? "Lo! I come to do thy will, O God." It 
 will in deed and in truth be the maximum achievement of 
 any life after it is over, to have done the will of God. 
 And this means so much, so very much more than merely 
 having actively done good in a general way, or even 
 having won souls to Christ. It involves cross-bearing, 
 the patient endurance of manifold temptations, a willing- 
 ness to forgive that almost limitless number of offences — 
 the " seventy times s'even." It means a fearless facing of 
 every event sent into our lives, with no cowardly attempts 
 to creep under or to soar above, or in any way to elude 
 meeting and accepting the will of God. 
 
 2Q7 
 
298 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 A strict performance of a Christian's duty will almost 
 inevitably call for deeds involving" the "doing good" and 
 the " winning souls " which attach so strongly to every 
 truly consecrated life. Yet the lonely sentinel, the bed- 
 ridden professor, the deaf mute — all, in every state and 
 station of life, can learn to do the will of God. Very 
 often it requires great faith, great strength, many prayers, 
 to do and meet what we know or feel to be the will of 
 God, but it is an achievement when at last this can be 
 done with calmness and serenity. There is little danger 
 that any one truly desiring to do the will of the Father 
 will be left in the dark as to what duty requires. David's 
 prayer is one that all can offer, that should often be on 
 the lips of all Christ's followers: "Teach me to do thy 
 will; for thou art my God." 
 
 
CONQUER AS YOU GO. 
 
 
 t^iis 
 
 OES a skilful general, as 
 he advances into an ene- 
 my's country, leave cities 
 behind him half subdued, 
 fortresses half dismantled, 
 armies half subjugated to 
 rise in his rear and attack 
 him unexpectedly ? We 
 must adopt the same tac- 
 tics in the Christian war- 
 fare: Conquer as you go; 
 keep your enemies in front 
 of you. Have you an evil habit? Don't try to get 
 around it; don't overlook it or leave it partially subdued, 
 but attack it bravely, manfully; conquer it wholly, and 
 then march on. Have you done an injury to a fellow- 
 man ? Have you been unjust or dishonest or false ? Make 
 reparation now; repent now. Don't try to cover up your 
 sin; don't try to forget it, to ignore it; repent of it, 
 overcome it, and then pass on your way. 
 
 You will find enough sins to overcome in your pathway 
 every day of your life, without having to suffer annoyance 
 froni the unrepented follies of the past. The memory of a 
 wicked deed committed years ago, a wrong for which you 
 have never made reparation, may come down upon you 
 when you least expect it, to drive you with its keen lashes 
 into abject despair. It is better not to " let the sun go 
 down upon j'our wrath," upon sins unatoned, wrongs unre- 
 quited; and better still, as far as possible to avoid the 
 necessity for making such reparations. You need all the 
 
 299 
 
300 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 grace in your heart to withstand present trials and 
 temptations, and to conquer the foes of to-day. 
 
 STRENGTH FOR TO-DAV. 
 
 Strength for to-day is all that we need, 
 
 As there never will be a to-morrow; 
 For to-morrow will prove but another to-day, 
 
 With its measure of joy and sorrow. 
 
 Then why forecast the trials of life 
 
 With such sad and grave persistence, 
 And watch and wait for a crowd of ills 
 
 That as yet has no existence ? 
 
 Strength for to-day — what a precious boon 
 
 For the earnest souls who labor! 
 For the willing hands that minister 
 
 To the needy friend or neighbor! 
 
 Strength for to-day, that the weary hearts 
 
 In the battle for right may quail not, 
 And the eyes bedimmed witli bitter tears 
 
 In their search for truth may fail not. 
 
 Strength for to-day, on the down-hill track, 
 
 For the travellers near the valley; 
 That up, far up on the other side 
 
 Ere long they may safely rally. 
 
 Strength for to-day, that our precious youth 
 
 May happily shun temptation. 
 And build from the rise to the set of the sun 
 
 On a strone and sure foundation. 
 
 Strength for to-day, in house and liome. 
 To practise forbearance sweetly; 
 
 To scatter kind words and loving deeds 
 Still trusting in Ood completely. 
 
 Strength for to-day is all that we need. 
 As there never will be a to-morrow ; 
 
 For to-morrow will prove but another to-day, 
 With its measure of joy and sorrow. 
 

THIRTY-AND-EIGHT YEARS. 
 
 > /HERE have been very few of the 
 ) I children of men who at one time 
 or another have not known the 
 wearing of illness, not only by 
 observing others, but by a per- 
 son a I experience of greater 
 or less degree. How many 
 weary days and nights have they 
 passed, how often have they 
 wished for the darkness to hide 
 the glaring sun from their ach- 
 ing eyes; and as often have they pined for the shadows 
 of night to gather, that its dews might cool the fevered 
 nerves. Twenty-four hours seem an eternity of time in 
 which to suffer, yet they count for but one day. What 
 would you think of thirty-and-eight years? Or, to realize 
 more fully the time that is held within that period, let it 
 be reduced to days, and you have 13,880. If one day's 
 agony is unendurable, " if your heart faints within you 
 ere its close," could you endure fourteen thousand days 
 of suffering? 
 
 Close by the temple in Jerusalem there was, by the 
 sheep-market, a pool or reservoir for water, that was 
 between three and four hundred feet long and seventy-five 
 feet deep. Attached to the market was an open building, 
 supported by colonnades; thither went a " great multitude 
 of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for 
 the moving of the water." Jesus had gone up to keep 
 the feast of the Passover, in the month Abib; and he 
 went, as he always did, in order to help the sick and the 
 suffering, to the pool of Bethesda. 
 
 The pool was fed from ancient reservoirs under the 
 temple. An old writer describes it as two pools, one fed 
 by periodical rains, the other (according to tradition) 
 
 302 
 
THIRTY-AND-EIGHT YEARS. lo^ 
 
 being of a reddish color, from the fact that the flesh of 
 the sacrifices was washed in it before being offered. 
 But, according to a tradition that held until 1102 a.d., 
 it was the largest one, close by St. Stephen's gate, that 
 answers to the Bethesda of the time of Christ. 
 
 John tells us that at a certain season an angel troubled 
 or stirred the waters of the pool, and that whosoever 
 stepped into it after the coming of the angel, was cured 
 of his disease. What anxiety must have been in the 
 hearts of the weary, waiting ones! How the poor, the 
 lame, and the blind must have waited in suspense for the 
 troubling of the water! and what agony it must have 
 been when the moment came and no one was there to help 
 the sufferer down into the water! There were two flights 
 of steps, one of thirteen and one of sixteen steps, with a 
 platform of twelve feet between them; that was a long 
 journey for the helpless to traverse before the pool was 
 reached. Jesus saw a man lying there who had been sick 
 during thirty-and-eight years, and he said unto him 
 " Wilt thou be made whole?" How eagerly the man must 
 have looked up from his bed on the porch, as he told 
 Jesus that there was no one to help him! And immediately 
 the man was made whole. 
 
 Are you lying beside a pool of Bethesda waiting for 
 human help? Have you been blind, lame, helpless, weary 
 of sin, often discouraged — one of a multitude waiting 
 for an angel to perform a miracle? Have you been wait- 
 ing for the " certain season" for twenty, thirty, fifty years? 
 Can you not look up and see Jesus standing by your 
 Bethesda ? Do you not know that he was " compassed 
 with infirmity," "tempted in all points like as we are, yet 
 without sin," our Saviour, who knew sorrow and suffered 
 from grief? Would you be made immediately whole? 
 It is so easy to say "Lord, help me," and when you do 
 say it, the angels in heaven will rejoice over your praises; 
 and your songs, once begun, will never cease until one 
 day in the many mansions you should know the Beloved, 
 even as you are known. 
 
 -4^^^— Fat-T- *^* — g~F~* — m — *" 
 
BUT ONE PETITION. 
 
 I ERE it your privilege to present 
 one petition, and but one, at the 
 mercy-seat, and that in the words 
 of Scripture, what would that pe- 
 tition be? Such a privilege was 
 allowed Solomon, and he chose 
 what, in the circumstances, was a 
 wise thing for him to ask. As for 
 myself, I think that mine would be 
 that of David, in the tenth verse of the 
 fifty-first Psalm: "Create in me a clean 
 heart, O God: and renew a right spirit 
 within me." I can think of nothing that 
 I so much need for time, or for eternity, 
 as this. Were I to possess all other things, and to be 
 destitute of this, I should be poor indeed. The treasures 
 of this world would be unsatisfying, even while they 
 lasted, and that would be but for a brief time. I must soon 
 and forever leave them all, and enter on eternity; and 
 
 304 
 

 Psalm, 
 
 J (.-£ 
 
3o6 
 
 BUT ONE PETITION. 
 
 then, without a clean heart and a right spirit, I must be 
 wretched wherever my abode may be. Without such a 
 heart, I could not enter the abode of the blessed, for 
 nothing shall enter there that defileth. Only the pure in 
 heart shall see God. Even though I were allowed to enter 
 that holy place with my sinful heart, I could not be happy. 
 I could have no fellowship with God, nor with the holy 
 angels, nor with the blood-washed saints; nor could I 
 take any satisfaction in their holy pleasures and employ- 
 ments. I should be miserable, even in heaven. Holiness 
 is an indispensable qualification for that holy place. 
 
 My petition, therefore, would be. " Create in me a clean 
 heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me." With 
 such a spirit I shall be more happy in this present world 
 than I should otherwise be, and with such a spirit I shall 
 be prepared to dwell in the presence of God, where there 
 is fulness of joy, and at his right hand, where there are 
 pleasures forevermore. 
 
"HE WILL BRING IT TO PASS." 
 
 RINC; what to pass? All the 
 desires of our foolish, igno- 
 rant hearts ? No ! Thank 
 Ciod that his love and mercy 
 spare us any such lifelong 
 misery as that gift 
 would bring upon us. 
 When we pray God 
 to grant our petitions 
 according to his own 
 wisdom and knowdedge 
 of what would be best 
 for us, because " we 
 know not what to ask 
 for as we ought," we 
 place ourselves i n 
 God's hands to do for 
 us as he sees best. In 
 no other way can we 
 claim answer to 
 prayer. Christ, our Saviour, while here upon earth, said 
 that "Whatsoever ye ask in my name, believing, ye shall 
 receive." Yet furthermore he himself taught us to pray, 
 "Thy will, not mine, be done." 
 
 Have we any claim to the promise of answer to prayer 
 if we approach him in a spirit contrary to that which his 
 professed followers are expected to possess? 
 
 Submission to his will we must have, but our father has 
 given us the blessed privilege of coming to him and telling 
 him our wants, asking of him "whatsoever things we de- 
 sire." Not some things, not a particular class of things, 
 not great things, but everything. 
 
 Have we any right to suppose our father in heaven so 
 different from Christ? And was there anything too small 
 or insignificant to escape his notice? Can we find one 
 
 307 
 
3o8 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 single instance of a single individual, however humble or 
 wicked, who failed to secure his attention? Is the world 
 too large? Is there any danger of an omnipotent, omni- 
 present God overlooking one of his creatures? Ourchief- 
 est joy and blessing come from the fact that God has a 
 plan in life for each one of us. And our answers to prayer 
 depend entirely upon the help or hindrance the answer 
 might be to that line of living. Why cannot we overcome 
 that perverseness of heart which cliafes at restraint, and 
 grows sick and faint over deferred hopes? Remember, 
 God knows just exactly when that petition, so earnestly 
 asked, can be granted so as not to retard our Christian 
 growth; or if the prayer were for another, just the mo- 
 ment to render him the best possible good. 
 
 Cannot we trust it to him? " He will bring it to pass." 
 Or cannot we trust our Creator to change or improve upon 
 our poor human plans? The Apostle James tells us that 
 the "trying of our faith worketh patience," and to let 
 " patience have her perfect work." He clearly states that 
 this waiting on the Lord is essential to the perfect man 
 in Christ Jesus. It is a distinct and important part in 
 our Christian education, without which we are found 
 wanting. " Cast not away, therefore, your confidence, 
 which hath great recompense of reward." Oh, let us all 
 who bear his name cast from us all these miserable doubts 
 and fears so unworthy of him, and in whole-hearted ser- 
 vice, truly and entirely, commit our way unto the Lord, 
 not hoping but knowing in his own good time "he will 
 bring it to pass." 
 
TREASURE IN EARTHEN VESSELS. 
 
 AUL was writing one of his letters 
 to the Church at Corinth ; he was 
 encouraging them to do the things 
 which were right, to shun those 
 that were evil. Factions had arisen 
 in the Church, using the name of 
 certain that had preached to them, 
 and even of Christ, in their bitter conten- 
 tions. 
 
 The news of their condition was conveyed 
 to him by members of the household of Chloe. 
 It is not known whether this woman was a 
 member at Corinth, or whether she merely had 
 friends there; but she seemed to have the good of the 
 Church at heart. 
 
 Corinth was a great place for commercial and manufact- 
 uring enferprise. Its wealth was so celebrated as to be 
 proverbial; but so also were the vice and profligacy of its 
 inhabitants. Venus was worshipped, and evil reigned. 
 
 The epistles to the Corinthians are supposed to have 
 been written about a.d. 57; the first from Ephesus, the 
 second from Macedonia, shortly before Paul's second visit 
 to Corinth, which, we are told in Acts, lasted three months. 
 We may conclude that there were many Jewish converts 
 in the Corinthian Church, though it would appear that 
 the Gentiles predominated. Stephanas, Crispus, Caius, 
 and Erastus were among the eminent Christians who lived 
 in Corinth. 
 
 The city has lost its grandeur; it is no longer the home 
 of wealth and learning, but is shrunk into a wretched 
 village, which is on the old site, and bears the same name, 
 which, however, is often corrupted into Gortho. 
 
 There were formerly to be found the baths erected by 
 Hadrian, now a crumbling heap of bricks; the remains 
 of an amphitheatre, with subterranean arrangements for 
 gladiators; the ruins of the ancient Greek temple; the 
 old columns, which have looked upon the rise, prosperity, 
 and desolation of three successive Corinths. 
 
 309 
 
3IO 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 To such a city, and to the Church that had been gathered 
 there, Paul wrote his epistle. In it he tells them that 
 they had renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, and 
 as the love of God had shined into their hearts, they 
 should remember that the treasure was held in earthen 
 vessels, and that although death worked in them, it was 
 only a death into life; the death of the body, the earthen 
 vessel, and the resurrection of the same. For although 
 the earthly house for which we are caring so much must 
 perish in the grave, yet God had prepared a body that 
 should be raised incorruptible; that through Christ, who 
 knew no sin, yet was made to pay the penalty of sin for 
 us, we might be made the righteousness of God through 
 him. 
 
 We are the earthen vessels of which Paul speaks; what 
 treasure have we hidden in us? What is a treasure? It 
 is something that we prize; something that we would not 
 sell, nor give away, nor lose; we are so fearful of loss 
 that we have hidden it. Where? 
 
 Is it like the leaven that a woman hid in three meas- 
 ures of meal ? Have we sowed it in a field? Or, have 
 we hid it in the field, so that when a man finds it he counts 
 it such a rare thing that he is willing to sell all that he 
 has to buy it? What is our treasure? Is it unto eternal 
 life, or is it unto eternal death? Is it treasure of corn, of 
 oil, of wine, of honey? Or, is it gold, silver, or brass? 
 
 Let us lay up treasures in heaven, where they can neither 
 be hurt nor destroyed. The good treasures of the heart 
 are holy thoughts and affections, the keeping of our God's 
 commandments, loving the dear Saviour who died for us, 
 and being always prepared for the marriage feast, so that 
 when our Lord cometh he will say, "Well done, good 
 and faithful servants, enter into the joy of your Lord." 
 
WORK THAT ENDURES. 
 
 ^ . M^^^^^^ ®^iiP N one sense a large proportion 
 
 of the world's toilers do not 
 choose their own work. Cir- 
 cumstances largely beyond per- 
 sonal control seem to shape out 
 the particular calling it becomes 
 their destiny to follow. Deplorable 
 as it is, yet men and women are 
 continually saying, " Could I but 
 begin life over again, I should never 
 J choose my present occupation," or, 
 "Could I only begin again a busi- 
 ness career, my present employment 
 would be the last one in which I 
 would engage." To our thinking, 
 some of the most expressive words used to describe human 
 life are contained in the familiar lines: 
 
 "In devious way 
 The hurrying stream of life may run." 
 
 Life is in very truth a restless, hurrying stream, winding 
 its tortuous, devious way, pushing us often sorely against 
 our will, with its strong, resistless current, into the paths 
 our unwilling feet must tread. The first occupation of 
 which we have historical record is that of our great fore- 
 father Adam; nor was he allowed to choose in the matter. 
 "Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden 
 of Eden to till the ground from whence he was taken." 
 No choice for Adam. Li the sweat of his brow he was to 
 earn his bread and find sustenance for himself and his 
 family. This has been the inheritance and lot of man 
 ever since. And even as Cain followed the employment 
 of his father, so thousands of men since his time have 
 followed a father's trade, business, or profession. But 
 whether the work which becomes our own is a voluntary 
 
 311 
 
312 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 choice, or seems thrust upon us, it can be ennobled by the 
 manner of doing it, always supposing it to be of an honor- 
 able kind. Canon Farrar says: "A life spent in brushing 
 clothes and washing crockery and sweeping floors — a life 
 which the proud of the earth would have treated as the dust 
 under their feet; a life spent at the clerk's desk; a life 
 spent in the narrow shop; a life spent in the laborer's hut, 
 niay yet be a life so ennobled by God's loving mercy, that 
 for the sake of it a king might gladly yield his crown." 
 In these sentiments are embodied a fact too frequently 
 overlooked, and that is — any employment may be made 
 to serve a double purpose. Not only may bread be earned 
 by means of the daily occupation, whether humble or of a 
 more exalted nature, but the kingdom of God may be 
 advanced in human hearts by the manner in which the 
 work is done. Right along in the line of a daily duty, a 
 life may become a sermon, a psalm, an active exponent of 
 Christian principle and godly living. And influence is a 
 very abiding power. Dean Stanley rightly says: "Each 
 of us may have fixed in his mind the thought that out of 
 asingle household may flow influences that shall stimulate 
 the whole commonwealth and the whole civilized world." 
 But it will take a long time for any influence or power to 
 affect the civilized world, and this shows how important 
 it is that anything so far-reaching should be of the right 
 kind. It is so generally the rule of the world that every- 
 thing shall quickly pass away, that it is matter for special 
 satisfaction when anything that is said or done in the right 
 direction can be made to endure. In this connection no 
 grander utterances than those of Daniel Webster are at 
 our command at this moment, at least no utterances of 
 man: "If we work upon marble, it will perish; if we work 
 upon brass, time will efface it; if we rear temples, they 
 will crumble into dust ; but if we work on immortal minds — 
 if we imbue them with principles, with the just fear of 
 God and our fellow-men — we engrave on those tablets 
 something that will brighten all eternity." No one can 
 live or work to himself alone. Contact and influence are 
 inevitable as the breath we draw. Neither are they gener- 
 ally inconsequent, because, either for good or for ill, we 
 afl"ect the lives of those about us. x\sthe great statesman 
 has intimated, it is our privilege to work on immortal 
 
3T4 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 minds; is there, then, but one course for Christians to 
 pursue? Time is short, but yet long enough for each 
 Christian to realize that work may be done by each, which 
 will brighten all eternity. Blessed privilege, open alike 
 to rich and poor, to the high and to the lowly, that of 
 living a life so full of Christ that the simplest labor, the 
 arduous tasks, the every-day work, may be a witness for 
 Christ! A kind of life for which a king might indeed 
 "gladly yield his crown." 
 
 " On ! let all the soul within you, 
 For the truth's sake, go abroad ! 
 St ike ! let every nerve and sinew 
 Tell on ages — tell for God !" 
 
 
PERSONAL 
 
 OBLIGATION. 
 
 RECENTLY heard a 
 very intelligent lady 
 say that she would not 
 unite with the Church 
 because she would not 
 dara to take solemn 
 vows upon herself for 
 fear she might break 
 them. She failed to 
 realize apparently that 
 her own personal obli- 
 gation to serve her 
 Lord remained the 
 same even though she 
 " were out of the 
 Church." Obligation 
 was born long before 
 the Church was. The 
 Lord was " King," and 
 all people his subjects, 
 before church organi- 
 zation was thought of. 
 Right is right, and 
 wrong is wrong to all 
 people under the sun. 
 It is a deplorable mistake to think that "belonging to a 
 church" makes our obligations to God, but it is a happy 
 fact, nevertheless, that it is a most delightful and satis- 
 fying help in performing them. 
 
 It was Henry Ward Beecher, I think, who said, " Sink the 
 Bible to the bottom of the ocean, and man's obligation to 
 God would be unchanged. He would have the same path 
 to tread, only his lamp and his guide would be gone; he 
 would have the same voyage to make, only his compass 
 and chart would be overboard." 
 
 315 
 
3i6 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 In I St Cor. iv. i, it reads, " Let a man so account of us 
 as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries 
 of God. Moreover, it is required in stewards that a man 
 be found faithful." In Matt, xxiii. 8, we have this verse, 
 "But be not ye called Rabbi, for one is your Master, even 
 Christ; and all ye are brethren." In ist Peter iv. lo, we 
 find this rule: " As every man hath received the gift, even 
 so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of 
 the manifold grace of God." 
 
 Dr. Gumming, in speaking of personal obligation, says; 
 "It is by each soldier feeling his obligation in doing his 
 part that the army conquers; it is by each bee doing its 
 work that the hive is stored with honey; it is by each 
 insect putting forth all its might that the coral reef be- 
 comes an island and cities rise upon the bosom of the 
 main." 
 
 Personal obligation has its source back of conscious- 
 ness. Whether Christians or not, we are the Lord's, for 
 .we have been bought with a price. Therefore our personal 
 obligation demands that we serve our Saviour, that we sur- 
 render ourselves to him soul and body. 
 
 Spencer relates a story of a beggar who asked something 
 ofalady. She gave him sixpence, saying: "Thisismore 
 than ever God gave me. " " Oh, madam !" said the beggar, 
 "you have abundance, and God hath given all that you 
 have; say not so, good madam." " Well," said she, "I 
 speak the truth, for God hath not given but lent unto 
 me what I have, that I may bestow it upon such as thou 
 art." 
 
 There are few sights so lovely in this world as a person 
 who deeply feels his or her obligation to the Lord (and 
 the world, which, of course, is necessarily included), and 
 resolutely, earnestly and unswervingly performs it, no 
 matter what discouragements are in his way. 
 
CHILDHOOD OF JESUS. 
 
 UST as the plant does not open to 
 the sun till it has cast its roots into 
 the soil to a depth not measured by 
 the eye, so Jesus, by secret and in- 
 tense prayer, drew the sap and life 
 of his soul from the bosom of God. 
 Some favoring circumstance was all 
 that was needed to strike from him, before the 
 eyes of all, the spark divine. This was 
 afforded by the journey to Jerusalem to cele- 
 brate the Passover feast, at the age when the 
 young Jews began to take part publicly in the 
 religious life of their people. This solemn visit to the 
 Temple filled the soul of Jesus with emotion not to be 
 described ; under the symbols he beheld the divine realities. 
 He felt himself truly in the house of God, and perhaps 
 for the first time became fully conscious of the greatness 
 of his mission; he comprehended that he would be called 
 to fulfil those solemn types. When his mother, grieved 
 at his tarrying behind, addressed him in words of tender 
 reproach, he gave that deep and mysterious reply, " How 
 was it that ye sought me? Wist ye not that I must be 
 about my father's business?" 
 
 His precocious wisdom had been already revealed in an 
 interview with the doctors in the Temple; his questions 
 showed such richness of thought and feeling, that the 
 illustrious masters were themselves confounded. The 
 questions of a child are often more embarrassing, by their 
 artless depth, than the arguments of the most consummate 
 
 317 
 
3i8 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 dialectician. They go straight to the truth by the royal 
 road of simplicity. There was not a white-headed rabbi 
 in the schools of the law who could meet the questions of 
 this child of Nazareth. This scene in the Temple was of 
 great moment in the development of Jesus, by revealing 
 him to himself. The next eighteen years he passed in 
 the most complete obscurity. We may not seek to pene- 
 trate their mystery; it is enough for us to know that they 
 prepared him in solitude for his great mission. He spent 
 them in prayer and a holy life. 
 
HIS WAYS ARE NOT AS OUR WAYS. 
 
 
 LTHOUGH the Scriptures tell us 
 plainly that the ways of God are 
 "past finding out," yet human 
 nature is constantly dissatisfied 
 ,. ,,,^ „..»— ^=. that so little knowledo^e is granted 
 
 w^'S*^---i I concerning God and his mysterious ways. 
 </.*^>-/^ And It puzzles poor humanity to a piti- 
 
 able degree that things so often seem 
 merely to " happen " anyway. What has 
 been most earnestly and eagerly sought 
 ciftei IS the very prize which repeatedly 
 eludes the grasp. The fond dream con- 
 tinually lacks realization; the dreaded 
 calamity is the one permitted to fall. Valued possessions 
 slip away and the hand is powerless to stay them. Ad- 
 verse and trying events overtake the bravest and most 
 hopeful, and they are not to be warded off. Great pity 
 arises in the heart of a Christian that any one can be so 
 blinded to the only true and reliable comfort to be found 
 in life as to shut the heart to a belief in the providences 
 of God. It becomes clear, in view of the resistless power 
 and control which manifestly dwell in God and his sover- 
 eign will, that the best his children can do is simply to 
 trust submissively to his will and try in every possible 
 way to further its divine workings. If only men and 
 women would strive to conform to what is felt to be the 
 will of God, the discontent and misery which often haunt 
 and spoil a life would be banished to a very comforting 
 degree. When rebellion and insubordination are utterly 
 fruitless, what folly to beat and bruise the wings against 
 the fetters of restraint. George MacDonald says: "I find 
 the doing of the will of God leaves me no time for disputing 
 about his plans." The great trouble is, mankind is so 
 
 319 
 
320 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 short-sighted that there is no due recognition of the fact 
 that a Supreme Ruler must follow his own plans and 
 manage affairs in his own way in order to bring about his 
 own purpose. We cry for help, then we often wonder* at a 
 state of increased perplexity; but there is lacking that 
 nobility of patience in the human soul which admits of 
 waiting, uncomplainingly, the ripening and perfecting 
 of the purposes of God. Says Flavel : " When God intends 
 to fill a soul, he first makes it poor; when he intends to 
 exalt a soul, he first makes it humble; when he intends 
 to save a soul, he first makes it sensible of its own miser- 
 ies and nothingness." And should any one ask how these 
 things can be affirmed by any man, we think the reply 
 should be: Experience and the lives of those who have 
 gone before us prove each assertion to be true. Over 
 and over again men have testified to such facts, and have 
 found that out of a sense of emptiness has come the ful- 
 ness of the blessing of God. Out of a consciousness of 
 spiritual poverty has come a sense of possessing all things ; 
 out of self-abasement has come the exaltation of a renewed 
 spirit; and out of a sense of sinfulness and nothingness 
 has come an assurance of the salvation which is through 
 Christ. This is often the way in which God sees fit to 
 move upon the heart, producing one extreme state to bring 
 about another; and what seems strange and ill-appointed 
 to finite vision and understanding is often the wisdom and 
 power of God evincing themselves through his unerring 
 methods and plans. Trust and obedience are virtues which 
 must help a soul Christward and heavenward. Trust and 
 obedience will naturally beget love. A lady who was 
 placed in a responsible position in a charitable institution 
 said that at first it washer main desire and effort to make 
 the children love her; obedience, she thought, would 
 naturally follow if only she could first secure the affection 
 of the children placed under her charge. But the fallacy 
 of this belief speedily manifested itself, and the first and 
 main power in securing either love or respect revealed 
 itself to be that of insisting on prompt and invariable 
 obedience. To the untaught and almost unreasoning 
 children the lady's ways and requirements often seemed 
 needless and the restrictions unnecessary, but her testimony 
 was, that obedience and subjection soon convinced the 
 
THE ASCENSION OF OUR LORD. 
 
 21 
 
 33X 
 
322 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 little ones that each rule was a just one; and she added, 
 that once the children learned to obey her, there was no 
 trouble in securing the love she had so desired. In the 
 great school of life we soon learn that our will and wishes 
 must be subordinate to a mightier will than our own, and 
 our wishes controlled by One whose ways are not as our 
 ways, but are as much higher than our ways as the heavens 
 are higher than the earth. A noble nature will not yield 
 obedience to a superior will simply because perforce it 
 must. Who would wish to be " like dumb, driven cattle " 
 because God rules supreme over the objects of his own 
 creation? Willing obedience is sure to bring peace. 
 David, in a song of thanksgiving, says: "As for God, his 
 way is perfect;" and two verses further on he says, 
 "And he maketh my way perfect;" but previous to either 
 of these declarations, he says: " For I have kept the ways 
 of the Lord . . . and as to his statutes, I did not depart 
 from them." Could the lesson be taught more plainly 
 that keeping the ways and statutes of the Lord tends to 
 the perfection of our own ways? 
 
THE HUMAN SIDE. 
 
 T IK) season of the year 
 do we more fully appre- 
 ciate the humanity of 
 Christ than during the 
 Advent and at the 
 Christmas-tide. He 
 came among us the 
 child of Bethlehem, 
 and, as a little child, 
 the little children of 
 each succeeding gener- 
 ation learn to love him. 
 The story of his birth 
 in the manger, because there was no room for him in the 
 inn, is ever new, and children never tire of it. And no 
 teacher or parent who seeks to train the children up to 
 Christian life should omit the opportunity which Christmas 
 time gives of pressing home to the understanding of the 
 children the beautiful thought of the real human boy- 
 hood of Christ. The manger may be forgotten and over- 
 looked in the thought of the miraculous which accom- 
 panied it — ^the glorious song of the angels and the visits 
 of the shepherds and magi, with their costly gifts to lay 
 at his feet. Yet although these anthems have their place, 
 the human nature of our Lord ought not to be set aside 
 and forgotten. As an elder brother, his life will appeal 
 more neafly to the homely every-day lives of the children 
 about us than if we think of him as only Divine. And 
 all this human sympathy is greatly needed in forming a 
 character to fight this world's battles. What would Christ 
 have done had he been in my place? is an every-day 
 matter-of-fact reasoning, while Christ, the Almighty and 
 all-powerful, is much more likely to be forgotten. So at 
 this Christmas season, when glad and joyous ring out the 
 bells, and the anthems are chanted, and merriment rules 
 the day, the babe in the manger should be shown as a real 
 human babe. He came among us, not in power, but in 
 
 323 
 
324 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 weakness. Not as a king, with all the pomp of power, 
 but as a little, unattended child. Not with any outward 
 pomp, or even so very much to distinguish him from ordi- 
 nary children. Yet we find him growing up with a moral 
 nature which needed no checking and reproof ; for although 
 he was oftentimes tempted, just as children nowadays are 
 tempted, to do wrong, he did no wrong. So that he was 
 human, but of a strongly-marked, perfect human character. 
 So when we sing the Christmas carols, let much of their 
 burden be that Christ, our king in glory, was once a child 
 who lived with us; and then shall we more easily remem- 
 ber that God, through Christ, will hear us when we call 
 upon him; and the experience of each child so trained 
 shall be like that of the late Dr. Charles Hodge, who used 
 to say : 
 
 " As far back as I can remember, I had the habit of 
 thanking Cxod for everything I received, and of asking 
 him for everything I wanted. If I lost a book or any one of 
 my playthings, I prayed that I might find it. I prayed 
 walking along the streets, in school or out of school, 
 whether playing or studying. I did not do this in obedi- 
 ence to any prescribed rule — it seemed natural. I thought 
 of God as an everywhere-present being, full of kindness 
 and love, who would not be offended if children talked 
 to him." 
 
li^ 
 
 THE LIVING 
 BREAD. 
 
 READ, in the Bible, signi- 
 fies any manner of food that 
 is necessary for the suste- 
 nance of life. The manna 
 sent from God to feed the 
 Israelites in the wilderness 
 was called bread; but the 
 usually accepted meaning 
 is food made from wheat. 
 One of the earliest un- 
 doubted instances of its use 
 is when the angels visited 
 Abraham in the plains of 
 Mamre; and he bid Sarah 
 make a cake for them. 
 The ancient Hebrews had several ways of 
 making their bread after they had ground 
 the wheat in different kinds of stone mills. 
 Occasionally the grains were mixed with 
 1^-^ other ingredients, such as beans, lentils, and 
 millet, a little water or milk was put to it, 
 and if they were not in haste leaven was 
 added. It was kneaded by the hands or the 
 feet, and left to rise. One of the lesser 
 prophets tells us that their " baker sleepeth 
 all the night." The dough was then divided 
 into round cakes not unlike flat stones in 
 shape and appearance, about a span in diam- 
 eter, and a finger's breadth in thickness. 
 Three of these were required for a meal for 
 a single person; these cakes were sometimes 
 punctured, and mixed with oil, and sometimes were only 
 coated with oil. Sometimes the dough was kneaded a 
 second time, and probably some stimulating seeds were 
 added before it was baked. 
 
 325 
 
 9 
 
326 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 The shew bread of the priests that was put every Sabbath 
 upon the golden table which was in the sanctuary before 
 the Lord, was made into twelve cakes or loaves, to repre- 
 sent the twelve tribes of Israel. They were large in size, 
 as they used two-tenth deals of flour, or about six pints 
 for each one. They were served hot on each Sabbath, and 
 then the stale ones that had been exposed for seven days 
 were taken away ; these could be eaten by the priests alone. 
 It was the proper business of the women of the family, 
 the mistress of the house or one of the daughters, to bake 
 the bread. Baking, however^ as a profession, was carried 
 on by men ; and Nehemiah speaks of the town of the ovens 
 or furnaces. 
 
 As the bread was made in thin cakes, it dried quickly, 
 and being then unpalatable, it was usual to bake daily. 
 Unleavened bread was ordered to be eaten at the Passover, 
 to commemorate the hurriedness of the departure of the 
 Israelites from Egypt. This bread was composed of flour 
 and water, and the thin paste was then spread over a port- 
 able oven or urn in which a fire had been made; when 
 cooked, it was broken off in pieces. 
 
 Bread was also baked in cavities sunk in the ground, and 
 lined with cement. In the oven a fire was built, and it 
 was thus prepared for baking. The portable oven or jar, 
 which was about three feet high, and was heated by wood, 
 or flowers and grass (our Saviour tells his disciples whep 
 he reproves them for the want of faith, " Wherefore if 
 God so clothe the grass of the field, which to-day is, and 
 to-morrow is cast into the oven," etc.), is still common 
 among the Bedouins. When an oven was not to be had, 
 the pastoral Jews spread their bread either over or under 
 hot stones; or, lastly, they roasted it by placing it between 
 two fires made of dried cow-dung, which burns slowly, 
 and therefore answered their purpose. 
 
 The Hebrews did not cut their bread, but they broke 
 it, as did our Saviour when he instituted the Supper. " And 
 Jesus took bread, and gave thanks, and l^rokc it and gave 
 unto them." 
 
 The living bread is he which, having come down from 
 heaven, giveth life unto the world. He says: "I am the 
 bread of life: he that cometh unto me shall never hunger; 
 and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. Your 
 
328 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. 
 I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if 
 any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever." 
 
 " He who hath led, will lead 
 
 All through the wilderness; 
 He who hath fed, will feed; 
 
 He who hath blessed, will bless ; 
 He who hath heard thy cry, 
 
 Will never close his ear; 
 He who hath marked thy faintest sigh, 
 
 Will not forget thy tear. 
 He loveth always, faileth never ; 
 
 So rest on him to-day, for ever." 
 
 ELIJAH FED BY THE RAVENS. 
 
AN OLIVE-TREE. 
 
 XE of the very earliest trees men- 
 tioned in the Bible is the olive, a 
 leaf of which the dove that was 
 sent out of the Ark by Noah had 
 in her mouth when she returned to 
 him, because the waters had not 
 yet dried off the earth. 
 Palestine numbered it among her most valu- 
 able trees, and the land is said to be full of 
 oil, olives, and honey. It is often mentioned 
 in the classics, was dedicated to Minerva, and 
 employed in the crowning of some of the gods. 
 It thrives best in the warm sun; it grows 
 slowly, and lives to a great age; some writers think that 
 some olive-trees are two thousand years old. It is said 
 to be neither large nor beautiful as a tree; its color is 
 of an ashen hue; the bark is smooth, but the trunk is 
 knotty and gnarled. Travellers tell us that its leaves are 
 dark green upon the upper surface, but of a silvery hue 
 beneath. Solomon used these trees in building the Tem- 
 ple, because the wood was hard, and very close in grain. 
 It blossoms profusely, and bears fruit every other year. 
 
 The flower is at first yellow, but it becomes white as it 
 progresses, and at last loses all the yellow except the 
 centre. 
 
 The fruit resembles a plum, in shape and color, first 
 green, at last almost black. It is gathered by shaking 
 the trees, beating them with poles, and by plucking. A 
 full-sized tree, in good bearing condition, is said to pro- 
 duce fifty pounds of oil. 
 
 Shoots come up from the roots, and as the parent tree 
 dies they are ready to take its place. The oil was used 
 in lamps, to anoint the body and hair, to anoint the sick, 
 to pour upon wounds, to use in the bath, to consecrate 
 kings, to assist in sacrifices. Even in the wilderness the 
 Israelites were directed to have "pure olive oil beaten for 
 the light, to cause the lamp to burn always." 
 
 The fruit was first shaken off, or plucked, and then 
 
 329 
 
33° 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 trodden; so one of the lesser prophets speaks of the "oil 
 vats." High winds were greatly dreaded by those who 
 cultivated the olive-tree, for even by the ruffling of the 
 breeze the flowers were apt to fall, job says, " He shall 
 cast off his flower like the olive." The locust also was 
 a great destroyer of the trees, making the "labor of the 
 olive to fail." 
 
 We are told that " the sites of many of the deserted 
 towns of Judah bear witness to the former abundance of 
 the olive where it no longer exists, by the oil-presses, with 
 their gutters, troughs, and cisterns hewn out of the solid 
 rock." 
 
 In St. Paul's arguments concerning the Jews and (len- 
 tiles the olive-tree gives to him a very forcible illustra- 
 tion; and in Romans he gives an allegory of the grafting, 
 growth, and bearing of the fruit of the olive-tree. And 
 he advises his hearers not to have "that blindness in part 
 that happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles 
 be come in. " 
 
A FEW DAYS. 
 
 HE Lord had spoken to 
 Moses from Sinai in the 
 beginning of the second 
 year after he had led the 
 Israelites out of the land of 
 Egypt, to command again 
 the keeping of the feast of 
 the Passover. 
 
 Many days of discouragement had come to them, and 
 oftentimes they wished that they had been left to die in 
 the land of bondage. Sometimes they would be led to the 
 very borders of the wilderness, just at the edge of the 
 promised land, and when they expected to be led into it 
 to find the milk and honey of which they had heard, they 
 were forced to turn back. 
 
 Because of their sins, God had sworn that not one of the 
 people who had come up out of the land of Egypt, except 
 Caleb and Joshua, should be permitted to enter into Canaan. 
 So they travelled around and around in almost a circle 
 for forty years. 
 
 But all this time they were keeping the feasts that were 
 appointed for them. And God led them by a cloud by 
 day and a pillar of fire by night. When the tabernacle 
 was reared a cloud covered it; and at even there was 
 upon it in place of the cloud the appearance of fire. When 
 they were to continue their journey the cloud was taken 
 up, and when the cloud tarried for a few days they tarried 
 in their tents, and journeyed not. 
 
 So God led them on from day to day, from night to night, 
 until they entered into the rest of the land of promise. 
 
 The world is only a great wilderness through which we 
 are journeying to the land of promise beyond all of our 
 weariness, fightings without and fears within. If we attain 
 to a state which we call almost perfection, and then we 
 
 331 
 
332 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 sin, we have to begin all over again; and we go over and 
 over the same ground until we often get discouraged, just 
 as the Israelites did in the wilderness. 
 
 As God led them so he leads us. Are we discouraged 
 because he keeps us quiet for 2^ few day si Moses said, 
 " Stand still, and I will hear what the Lord will command." 
 Cannot we stand still until we hear the still, small voice, 
 until upon our ears falls the whisper, " Be still and know ?" 
 
 Is our life more than a few days of care, of anxiety? 
 We build houses and barns, we sit down to take our ease, 
 forgetting that SXit few days will soon pass. 
 
DOES JESUS CARE? 
 
 HE Sea of Gennesaret, or as it 
 was called in the Old Testa- 
 ment, "the Sea of Chinnereth," 
 received its name from a fertile 
 plain on its northwest shore. 
 It is thirty-five miles south of 
 Mount Hermon, twenty-seven 
 east of the Mediterranean, and 
 sixty-four from the Dead Sea. 
 It is said to measure thirteen 
 miles in length, four to seven 
 wide, and is one hundred and 
 sixty feet deep. It is of vol- 
 canic origin, and surrounded by 
 rocks that rise from its sides to 
 a great height, the top, of some 
 of them being seventeen hundred feet above its narrow 
 pebbly beach. Naturally, as its depression \z so great, 
 extreme heat is occasioned, and in the summer is very 
 trying to the traveller; in winter, snow never lies upon 
 its border, although the neighboring mountains are often 
 whitened by it. 
 
 In the time of our Saviour some considerable towns 
 studded its shores, and the plain of Gennesaret was a 
 marvel of fruitfulness and beauty. But now only two 
 of them remain; the surrounding hills are usually bare 
 and desolate, and though capable of producing figs, 
 olives, and wheat, the country is so much neglected that 
 thorns abound, and while the thorny tote-tree and palms 
 grow luxuriantly, and indigo is cultivated in the iields, 
 ruin is everywhere to be seen. 
 
 Upon the shores of the beautiful lake our Saviour did 
 much teaching; its quiet beauty was hallowed by a voice 
 such as no other man ever possessed. Then, as now, 
 although brackish springs flowed into it, notwithstanding 
 
 333 
 
334 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 the waters of the Jordan rushed into the lake in a turbid 
 torrent, its water is sweet, cool, and transparent. As 
 then, the lake abounds in fish, but even that seems to be 
 ignored, and no longer do numerous boats let down their 
 nets into the sea. Fish are now taken either by being 
 caught in a hand-net by a man who walks in shallow water, 
 or else they are fed crumbs of bread that are mixed with 
 a preparation of mercury, and when dead they are easily 
 gathered from the surface of the water. 
 
 On the lake Peter essayed to walk to Christ, but 
 becoming frightened, he cried out, "Lord, save me, or 
 I perish." Jesus, walking by this sea, saw Andrew and 
 Peter casting their net into it, but at his call they left 
 all to follow him. There was given the parable of the 
 sower who went forth to sow. In one of the towns by its 
 borders, Jesus being moved with compassion because the 
 day was far spent, fed the five thousand with five loaves 
 and two fishes. Crossing the sea, he met the man with 
 an unclean spirit, and healed him. On its western shore, 
 about five miles from where the Jordan enters it, near the 
 city of Capernaum, Christ asked, "Children, have ye any 
 meat?" They had not, but at his command they cast 
 their net, and were not able to draw it in for the multi- 
 tude of fishes. 
 
 And on the same sea when Jesus with his disciples took 
 ship to go over unto the other side, and a tempest arose; 
 Jesus, wearied with his labors, was in the stern of the 
 vessel, asleep. The narrative tells us that, but it would 
 be very difficult to believe that our Lord did not know of 
 their danger, for his eye is never closed when his children 
 need care. And when the disciples called, he rebuked 
 the tempest, and there was a great calm. 
 
 Were those disciples any dearer to him than are we? 
 When waves of anxiety and care far harder to endure than 
 those of the Sea of Cxennesaret are beating upon us, do we 
 feel that our Saviour is sleeping ? Could the ear of the One 
 who died for us ever be closed even to our faintest cry? 
 We are not to go to our eternal home on " flowery beds of 
 ease. " We must not expect Apollyon to be conquered with- 
 out a fight: the wicket-gate is before us, and although, like 
 Christain, we may have to "knock more than once or 
 tAvice," the gate will be opened at our will. 
 
^^-^S^^^^^IT- 
 
 
 STEPS IN THE ROCKS LEADING TO MT. SINAI. 
 
336 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 The trouble with us is, that we grow faint in well-doing; 
 our hearts are altogether fixed on our own strength, and 
 not upon what we can obtain from above. 
 
 Our Jesus is ever beside us, near us; so near that he can 
 put out his hand and quiet the waves that threaten to over- 
 whelm us; and when we feel our danger we have only to 
 say, " Lord, carest thou not that we perish?" And almost 
 before we have uttered the words there will be a great 
 calm. 
 
THE CHURCH AT LAODICEA. 
 
 \-/>f^ 
 
 AODICEA was a large 
 and very wealthy city 
 of Asia Minor. Its 
 earlier name was Dios- 
 polis, but after it was 
 enlarged by Antiochus 
 it was named for his 
 wife Laodice. After 
 that it was destroyed 
 by an earthquake, but 
 was at once rebuilt by 
 Marcus AuTelius. Now 
 it is nothing but a scene of utter desola- 
 tion, but so extensive are the ruins that 
 it is said fully to justify the vivid de- 
 scriptions that are given of it by Greek 
 and Roman writers. 
 
 A Christian church was early gathered 
 in the city, but not, presumably, by St. 
 Paul. When he wrote from Rome to the 
 Christians at Colosse, and sent a greet- 
 ing to the church at Laodicea, it is 
 thought that he had never yet visited it. 
 In subsequent times it became a Chris- 
 tian city of eminence, the See of a bishop 
 and a meeting-place of councils. It was 
 destroyed by the Mohammedan invaders; 
 and it is now a scene of utter desolation. 
 It is thought by some writers that Paul's letter to Phile- 
 mon is the letter to the Laodiceans. 
 
 The church at Laodicea did not consist of people who 
 were firm in the right, but of those who were wavering. 
 St. John writes that they were neither cold nor hot, but 
 lukewarm; and he counsels them to buy only gold that 
 had been tried in the fire. 
 
 We all know how very uncomfortable a thing the uncer- 
 22 337 
 
33^ TUB CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 tain friend is. Just at the moment when we expect decided 
 words, deeds, actions, there is nothing but a wavering 
 spirit, neither cold nor hot, just a lukewarm love that 
 really amounts to nothing, and in despair we turn aside 
 from him, and wish that we might know just where to find 
 him. 
 
 If you are in trouble; if sorrows are thick about you; 
 if the "grasshopper has become a burden," and you need 
 love, cheer, comfort, can you endure to be met by such a 
 lukewarm love that your heart aches more than before you 
 sought the help ? 
 
 If you look into the eyes of your little child, and instead 
 of the look of glad surprise that you have a right to expect 
 the tones of your voice will call up, you see only an in- 
 difference that chills the love that is welling up from your 
 heart, and sending to your words the deep, full echoes 
 that love alone can give to them, can you endure to see 
 only flitting shadows of appreciation in the eyes of the 
 child? Would our God endure in the children whom his 
 Son died to redeem luke-warmness? When he says to 
 us, " My son, give me thy heart," when he reaches out an 
 arm to save, sets his eyes to watch, and bends a listening 
 ear, when he holds out to us the Everlasting Arms to keep 
 us from falling, could we receive the gifts, help, blessings 
 indifferently ? 
 
 God loves happy Christians just as earthly parents love 
 happy children. If you love him, hold up your head, and 
 let all the world see that you have learned to love Jesus. 
 Why do you want to be always looking at the ground at 
 your feet, intently watching for rough places, for rocks 
 of offence, for pitfalls, for miry depths? Surely you have 
 forgotten that the Everlasting Arms are about you, and 
 that the angels who are sent forth to minister to the loved 
 ones do bear you up that you may not stumble. 
 
 " And Thy guiding hand still held me, 
 Though my feet would turn and slide, 
 Held me while I wandered blindly, 
 That I might not turn aside. 
 
 " Now I know Thou hast been with me, 
 And Thy face again I see. 
 And I feel Thy hands upholding, 
 Helping and directing me." 
 

 
 ///' 
 
 ^/. ' 
 
 T'.lBl'I'I' ■' ' J|l()" 
 
34° 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 Paul knew that the wealth and sins of the Laodicean 
 Church had distracted the Christians there, and to him who 
 so emphatically preached to them to stand up and fight 
 like men, it must have been very discouraging to know 
 that their piety was only lukewarm, that they were neither 
 cold nor hot. Let us ever bear in mind that the dear 
 Lord wants, will only have and own, real love, real work, 
 real faith, real decision of character, not lukewarmness, 
 but a Christianity that, in the face of discouragements, 
 be they never so great, will cause us to look up and say, 
 "Lord, I love thee!" 
 
 \ ] 
 
WAITING FOR FEELING. 
 
 OME one has remarked that *' He 
 who looks upon Christ through 
 frames and feelings is like one who 
 sees the sun in water, which quivers 
 and moves as the water moves; but 
 he that looks upon him in the glass 
 of his Word, by faith, sees him ever 
 the same." Newton says: "Our 
 union with Christ is the union of the 
 covenant, and therefore not dependent upon 
 frames and feelings." 
 
 Bate writes: "To depend upon feeling 
 in religion is unsafe and dangerous. A 
 man may as well think of holding fast to 
 the clouds, building upon running sand, or 
 relying on the wind. The clouds, the 
 sand, the wind, are no more changeable and 
 uncertain than our feelings. A change in 
 circumstances, or a change in health, or a 
 change in friends, will often produce an 
 equal change in feeling. Our religion 
 should be like the sun, which, cloud or no cloud, goes on in 
 its shining course; like the earth which, winder no wind, 
 rolls on its orbit. We should 'stand by faith,' ' live by 
 faith,' and 'hold fast the profession of our faith.' 
 
 It is a fatal mistake — made by many otherwise beautiful 
 lives — this waiting for feeling; this refusal to anchor 
 themselves on the Rock, Christ Jesus, because they experi- 
 ence no strong emotion. It is resolution such souls need, 
 resolution to pay the debt they owe to Christ, who gave 
 his life for them-. It is sad to believe the terrible fact 
 that men and women whom we respect and love, who are 
 honest and true as far as any and all debts and friendships 
 of this world are concerned, fail in payment of the great 
 debt to the Saviour of the world, fail to acknowledge the 
 Friend above all others. What a blessing would come to 
 such souls ii', instead of waiting for feeling, they would 
 
 341 
 
342 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 turn about and look for Christ for the purpose of discharg- 
 ing the debt they owe. President Tuttle told a good 
 story illustrating this personal obligation to the Lord of 
 all. He said: 
 
 " I asked a young man, 'Do you have any anxiety about 
 yourself as a sinner against God ?' 
 
 " The reply was, 'I know I am a sinner, but I feel very 
 little on the subject.' 
 
 " 'Are you trying to do what God tells you to do as 
 well as you are able and with such light as you have?' I 
 asked. 
 
 " 'Oh, no, sir! for it would seem to be mockery for one 
 who feels so little as I do to attempt to perform any re- 
 ligious duty. ' 
 
 " 'You admit that God does require of you repentance 
 and faith and worship and a holy life, do you not?' 
 
 " 'Yes, sir; I must admit all this, but I do not/<?^/it. ' 
 
 " 'What would you advise a customer to do who had 
 contracted a debt at this store, who admits the debt, and 
 that he ought to pay it, but says he knows all this, but has 
 so little feeling about it?' 
 
 " In an instant he said, 'I w^ould advise him to pay it, 
 feeling or no feeling.' 
 
 " 'That is just what I want you to do,' I said. 
 
 " 'What shall I do?' he asked. 
 
 " 'Come to the inquiry meeting to-night, and meanwhile 
 do you search your Bible and ask God for help. ' 
 
 " 'I will do the best I can,' was his reply. 
 
 " That evening he admitted no progress, only he saw 
 his guilt more clearly; but he would do all God required 
 as well as he could. I never saw him shed a tear, or betray 
 a tithe of the emotion the young man does who has just 
 left my room, but as fast as light came he obeyed it. In 
 a little time he was hoping he had passed from death unto 
 life,and for years he has lived a faithful, beautiful Chris- 
 tian life." 
 
 Tht feeling will come when one has taken up one's duty. 
 No one ought to question that. The Holy Spirit will 
 touch any and every soul that is willing to obey. Spur- 
 geon says, " It is astonishing how whimsical people are 
 about the way they will be saved." There is only one 
 way. Christ says, "Come unto me." Obey him. 
 
be so. 
 
 SADNESS AND SOLACE. 
 
 T cannot be denied that the general ten- 
 dency of the human heart as age advances 
 is toward sadness and depression. It might 
 also be said it is the natural tendency. 
 This is not always the case, as there are 
 many pleasing exceptions, but the general 
 tendency is in a serious, sombre direction. 
 It is not to ])e wondered at that this should 
 The world is a stern disciplinarian; cares press, 
 343 
 
344 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 trials wear, and sorrows give anxiety; and it is a constant 
 struggle to overcome and rise superior to first oiie, then 
 another, besetting ill. True, natures differ widely, and 
 where one will brood and mourn, another may, through 
 buoyancy of disposition, successfully cry, " Away with mel- 
 ancholy!" There can be no real pleasure, it would seem, 
 in that which is mournful and sad, and yet there is that 
 in the soul of man which makes many a pathetic story far 
 more fascinating and attractive than the loveliest, wittiest 
 matter could possibly prove. There is a mournful sweet- 
 ness to some of the saddest of poetry which rivets the eye 
 and chains the attention until the weirdly attractive lines 
 have lodged in the memory, ready to be recalled in seri- 
 ous moods with dreamy satisfaction. And it is often from 
 the most gifted, able, and best-trained minds the sad- 
 dest sentiments find expression. It seems as though the 
 very extreme of sadness were reached in a definition of 
 the word " pleasure" which appeared some years ago. 
 Here it is: "Pleasure, the comma with which we divide 
 our griefs." Was it not going too far? We have always 
 thought so, and yet a companion definition of "sleep, " 
 from the pen of Matthew Henry, is hardly less impressively 
 sad: "Sleep gives some intermission to the cares and pains 
 and griefs that afflict us; it is the parenthesis of our sor- 
 rows." Conclusions like these are not often reached by 
 the young. It is well they are not; and yet the young, as 
 well as the middle-aged and the old, need to be fortified 
 against the depressing influences sure to overtake them in 
 the strange, mixed journey of life. Gay surroundings 
 never relieve, but only pall on a stricken heart. The 
 old adage, that "misery likes company," is true to a cer- 
 tain extent, and yet misery likes to choose its company 
 quite as decidedly as does happiness. But all the accu- 
 mulating events of life, especially its sorrows, its disap- 
 pointments, its depressing losses, force the inquiry which 
 frequently finds forcible utterance — how can people live in 
 the world and endure to live without the religion of Jesus 
 Christ and belief in the promises of the Bible? How, 
 indeed! Of all the pitiable objects on earth, the most 
 pitiable to our mind is an old sceptic. While some of the 
 glamour of youth remains — ^while life still holds forth 
 promises of bright days and joyous scenes, of merry re- 
 
346 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 unions and glad holidays, full of mirth and pleasure — it 
 is piteous, even then, to see the affections entirely set on 
 things of the earth. But after the moth of care and the 
 corroding rust of sorrow have torn all the glamour of youth- 
 ful promise and allurement away, when the great thief — 
 time — has broken into the life and stolen most of its 
 treasure away, if the support of religious faith be wanting, 
 what but a lamentable wreck and ruin would remain ! But, 
 turning from so melancholy a picture, it is delightful to 
 consider how many bright, happy, hopeful Christians feel 
 themselves comforted and their lives enriched, from year 
 to year and from youth to age, by the sweet solace of re- 
 ligious belief and a childlike trust in the unfailing promises 
 of the Bible. And there is not a sad phase in life, not a 
 depressing picture of memory, not a disappointment or 
 sorrow, for which solace cannot be found, if the heart will 
 only receive it. The world has been called a disciplina- 
 rian; it is such, but discipline either hardens or softens 
 the nature. When the divine voice told Saul of Tarsus it 
 was hard to kick against the pricks, a very stern, abiding 
 lesson was given to man for all time. And when Jesus 
 Christ said, "Come unto me, all ye that are weary and 
 heavy-laden, and I will give you rest, "both invitation and 
 promise were for all time also. If only men would " taste 
 and see that the Lord is good" there would be small need 
 to urge that the sweet solace of religion be tried as an 
 antidote for all the sadness of mortal experiences. Yet it 
 is true, sublimely true, that 
 
 " Earth has no sorrow that Heaven cannot heal." 
 
MISSIONARY 
 
 WORK. 
 
 E willing to work for others, and be 
 zealous in every good work. In 
 this our day of missionary endeavor, 
 when the subject is so constantly 
 brought before us, one need not 
 wait, nor be idle for want of work. Be active and busy. 
 You know the need of missionary zeal, of missionary 
 money, and the need of willing, working hands and ready 
 hearts. You and I each bear our own responsibility in 
 this matter. Can not each one of us do much more, if we 
 have already done a little in our own way, to help this 
 cause ? The steady progress of the work abroad and the 
 added interest awakened each year at home, go far to make 
 up much that is hopeful and encouraging for our own 
 individual effort. What others have done, you can do. 
 It is your own part that is needed in the great whole. 
 If you do it not, some one part is left out, or filled by 
 another whose zeal exceeds your own. 
 
 Do you doubt your ability to do a great thing? Then 
 just do a little thing in your own way for the Master. He 
 will look not at the greatness of the gift given, or the 
 deed done, but at the spirit back of it. The widow's mite, 
 
 347 
 
348 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 in the estimation of our Lord, outweighed all the more 
 costly gifts of the rich. " She hath done more than they 
 all" was the comment of the Master. 
 
 You are just where you should be; the soil of endeavor 
 is about you, and the seed lies within your hand. None 
 is denied this. It is not the quantity you hold, but the 
 way in which you sow it, that will tell. Prayer' breaks 
 up the soil of doubt and fear, patience sows it, perseverance 
 tends it, and, at last, will not faith reap it? 
 
 The implement of labor a woman wields is commonly 
 her needle. That is rather an insignificant instrument in 
 one's hand, is it not ? But that needle of hers has wrought 
 wonders in the sight of God. He knows how many poor 
 and needy have been clothed and fed — unmarked save by 
 him — with its cunning craft. It has often cost personal 
 toil and sacrifice to do missionary work for the Master. 
 It costs self, and its mean satisfaction. But in the end it 
 pays. It has been truly said that, even in the heart of 
 the most disinterested person, there is a secret sense of 
 satisfaction, because of some good done to others. A good 
 deed brings its own reward. How much more when done 
 for his glory. That we are not always willing grows 
 out of the fact that we are still unused to self-denial. 
 We have not tasted the full measure of delight in loving 
 service for him and his. 
 
 We can all do something to bring others to Christ. 
 We can at least bear testimony. John stood and looked- 
 at Jesus, then pointed out the way to others. "We are his 
 witnesses," now and here. Do you mean to do something 
 for him sometime? Do it now! Don't put it off! You 
 cannot serve him by the things you mean to do. Doubt- 
 ing work or dreaming work is no work. It is the hidden 
 force within you that is waiting your pleasure. There 
 lies your chance. If you have not money, give your work. 
 Only give something. The right means will make itself 
 felt. Half-willing disciples are not those who follow 
 closest. Give willingly if you give at all. The rest 
 will follow. 
 
 There is your personal influence. Somebody looks to 
 you for example, and will do very much as you do. Then, 
 a quiet word, a seed sown where none fell before, a good 
 deed done where none else have wrought, will bear fruit; 
 
MISSIONARY WORK. 
 
 349 
 
 or, if nothing else follow, you have for the time done your 
 duty best where duty led. Take, then, that which you 
 have, and use it for the Master's sake, never doubting but 
 that he will be mindful of it. Will you do less than the 
 flowers, whose fragrance is all for others, and none for 
 self? A beautiful ministry theirs. Ours should be like it. 
 
 '* Who gives to whom hath naught been given, 
 His gift in need, though small indeed, 
 As is the grass blade's wind-blown seed, 
 Is large as earth and rich as heaven." 
 
IN EVERYTHING GIVE THANKS. 
 
 N everything!" O no, dear Lord, 
 Thou canst not mean that we, 
 \Vho have been tried and chastened sore, 
 Should render thanks to Thee 
 For all the sad afflictions. Lord, 
 Which from Thy hand were sent ? 
 O surely, words like these are ne'er 
 For such poor suff'rers meant. 
 
 In everything!" The good, the ill, 
 
 The poverty, the pain. 
 
 The deep distress which sin hath wrought 
 
 And hope and trust has slain ? 
 
 O no! 'twere mockery, indeed. 
 
 To offer thanks for these, 
 
 More meet and fit it were to bow 
 
 In tears, on bended knees. 
 
 In everything!" O Father, yes. 
 
 How easy it were then 
 
 To render thanks, if only joy 
 
 And happiness had been 
 
 Our portion, and our guests alone 
 
 Throughout the year just gone, 
 
 O surely, then, our lips and hearts 
 
 Would overflow with song. 
 
 In everything!" O must we kiss 
 The rod Thy hand extends, 
 Until in deep humility 
 Our stricken spirit bends ? 
 Oh! then, dear Lord, we ask of Thee, 
 Give patience, faith, and grace, 
 And help us see behind the clouds 
 The shining of Thy face. 
 
 In everything!" Ah, yes! for then 
 Our hearts can give Thee praise. 
 Our lips give thanks, that Thou in love 
 Hath ordered all our ways. 
 Whatever is, is right and best, 
 Forgive if we rebel. 
 For whether joy or grief, we know 
 Thou doest all things well. 
 
 350 
 
GIVING THANKS. 
 
 NY one accustomed to 
 reading the Scriptures 
 cannot fail to have no- 
 ticed how continually 
 all through the books of 
 the Old and New Testa- 
 ment the giving of thanks is en- 
 joined upon all tribes and people. 
 It is easy to count in a very short 
 time more than a score of instances 
 in which the Psalmist speaks of giving 
 thanks, and the expression is generally 
 added, "To the Lord." Among the 
 strongest of these expressions are: "It is a good 
 thing to give thanks unto the Lord:" "O Lord, 
 my God, I will give thanks unto thee forever:" "At 
 midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee;" also 
 in repeated instances he exhorts the people to come 
 before the Lord " with thanksgiving." Paul, in writing 
 his various epistles, repeatedly reminds the people to 
 be thankful; to the Colossians he says, "And be ye 
 thankful;" to the Phillippians, "With thanksgiving let 
 your requests be made known unto God;" to the Ephe- 
 sians, " Giving thanks unto God and the Father in the 
 name of our Lord Jesus Christ;" to the Hebrews, "By 
 
 351 
 
THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 353 
 
 him, therefore, let us offer the sacrifices of praise to 
 God continually . . . giving thanks to his name. " And 
 in the solemn Revelation we find, "Blessing and glory, 
 and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honor, and power, 
 and might, be unto our God forever and ever." These 
 are a few of the passages where the giving of thanks is 
 enjoined in the Bible. In the same chapter of Colossians 
 in which Paul writes, " And be ye thankful," a little farther 
 on he says, " And whatever ye do, do it heartily, as to 
 the Lord, and not unto men." The chapter concludes 
 with the words, "And there is no respect of persons." 
 So here we have three distinct and important reminders. 
 And first, it is seen to be a simple and sacred duty to be 
 thankful; then thankfulness should be rendered in a 
 hearty, sincere manner, very different from the la.\, in- 
 different way in which we often acknowledge obligation 
 to our earthly friends; and again, none are exempt from 
 this required duty of expressing gratitude to God for 
 mercies received. The king on his throne, the rich man 
 in his stately mansion, the cottager, the inmate of the 
 almshouse, all alike are commanded to be thankful, and 
 each and all have much to be thankful for. Every year 
 we live increases our cause for gratitude that we live at 
 the present time, and in our day and generation. The 
 dreadful day of martyrdom, of the inquisition, the dungeon, 
 of persecution, banishment, and other terrors from which 
 Christians have suffered, and over which they have tri- 
 umphed, has long since passed away. Never was liberty 
 to serve God and to obey the dictates of conscience more 
 entirely to be enjoyed than in this blessed country and at 
 the present day. The accumulated knowledge and ex- 
 perience of all the known past are largely within our 
 reach, with the immense profit and instruction to be 
 derived from their useful teachings. But causes for thanks- 
 giving to Almighty God are too abounding to be enumer- 
 ated. The question arises, How best can return be made 
 for some of these, the great blessings of a wise Creator? 
 Adequate return we can scarcely approach, because finite 
 gratitude cannot adequately compare with infinite bounte- 
 ousness. True, we can say, in prayer, our hearts are thank- 
 ful for all the goodness and mercies which crown our 
 lives, but altliougli this is requisite, it still is .not nearly 
 ^3 
 
354 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 etiou.uh. (iratitude, like faith, sliould show itself in works, 
 and in generous, gracious works. It is not enough, as the 
 Bible warns us, that we say to our destitute brother or 
 sister — and especially at this season of lavish provision 
 and feasting in our homes: "Depart in peace; be ye 
 warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not 
 those things needful to the body." One word in the verse 
 embodies the best manifestation which can be used to ex- 
 press gratitude to God — " Give !" and none so poor but they 
 have something of value to give to others. The very poor, 
 those who are objects of charity themselves, can give 
 their prayers, and of them only such things as they have 
 to give will be required. Nor need it be said that prayers 
 and good wishes cost nothing. We take it, it often costs 
 considerable in a certain way for the poor to pray for the 
 rich. Said a very poor woman a little while ago, " I used 
 often to watch with the sick before I was sick myself." 
 Did it cost her nothing to watch all night beside the couch 
 of pain? In a thousand ways we can minister to each 
 other's needs and necessities. And let each professing 
 Christian especially remember another Bible assertion, 
 " For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall much 
 be required." Conscience will easily decide what should 
 be the proportion given back to the Lord as a thank- 
 offering at this time of thanksgiving and prayer. Above 
 all, let life be consecrated to his service, and then from it 
 will naturally flow the good deeds acceptable in his sight. 
 
 " lie ours the bliss of holy living 
 
 With love divine enthroned within, 
 Our life a psalm of glad thanksgiving 
 Till heavenly songs our lips begin." 
 
NEW YEAR THOUGHTS. 
 
 KF(^RE us lies the new year, 
 pure and unsullied yet as the 
 untrodden snow. If we could 
 lift the veil which hangs over 
 the future, what would we 
 meet of joy or sorrow, of great- 
 ness or distinction in this 
 coming cycle of months? 
 
 The probabilities are that 
 this year will be an ordinary, 
 commonplace year,- for most 
 of us must expect to live ordi- 
 nary lives and attract no at- 
 tention or admiration from the 
 great world. The duties 
 which will press upon us will 
 for the most part be those which spring out of our natural 
 relations, family, social, business, and religious. Life's 
 necessities will keen us from turning aside from its usual 
 path. Whatever our life has been, directs to a greater 
 or less extent what it will be; we take up the burden of 
 living with the new year if it has bt ,n a burden, and we 
 take up the joy of living if it has been a joy. Whatever 
 service we do for God or man will probably be done along 
 the line of daily avocations, and the routine of life will 
 go on as usual, daily worries and cares, daily joys and 
 happiness, daily work and prayer for daily bread. 
 
 Shall we turn away from this life, and call it monoto- 
 nous and uneventful ? It takes years and years of such 
 things to make up an ordinary life, and those who despise 
 or complain about the prosinessand humdrum or the quiet 
 routine are sadly out of tune with life. 
 
 Some people are always pining for something higher 
 than this daily life affords, and have such a high ideal 
 that the real seems of no earthly value. They think they 
 could shine in some lofty place, and because they are not 
 there, they do not try to shine in their own place. 
 
 There never were truer words spoken than our Lord 
 
 355 
 
356 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 uttered, "He that is faithful in that which is least, is 
 faithful in that which is great." If you hide your candle 
 under a bushel in an humble position you' will do the same 
 when you are put in a high position. One's place in life 
 is never at a distance from where he is, one's vocation is 
 always the simple round of duties that the passing hour 
 brings. With these probabilities before us, what attitude 
 shall we assume toward the new year? Shall we make 
 the vital mistake of thinking that there is no opportunity 
 for ordinary lives to be beautiful and useful? 
 
 One who has endeared himself to many by his writings, 
 says: "In the common relations of life there is room not 
 only for duty, but for heroism. No ministry is more 
 pleasing to the Master than that of cheerful and hearty 
 faithfulness to lowly duty, where there is no pen to write 
 its history, and no voice to proclaim its praise. To live 
 well in one's place in the world, doing one's most prosaic 
 work diligently and honestly, is to live grandly. One 
 who fights well the battle with his own lusts and tempers, in 
 the midst of the countless temptations and provocations 
 of every-day life, is a Christian hero." But there are 
 possibilities also awaiting us in this new, untried year. 
 How do we know but that the years that are past are all 
 the years God means to give us on this earth, that we have 
 not now seen the light of our last New Year's day? 
 
 This year may find us companions of the dead. There 
 is that in the air, in the sky, in the earth, in ourselves 
 which may bring the end at any moment. Are we prepared 
 for that great change, and if not, is it not the part of wis- 
 dom to prepare at once ? 
 
 Perhaps some people find tliemselves to-day face to face 
 with new and difficult duties. In view of the compara- 
 tive uselessness of their past lives, they may feel called 
 upon to engage in more active work for the Master, to 
 speak to this friend or that about his soul's salvation. 
 Peculiar difficulties and trials' may lie in the path of others, 
 and the future may seem to hold responsibilities that they 
 dare not assume alone, lest they make a mistake. There 
 is but one thing to do. Ask the Lord's guidance first of 
 all, then go steadily forward, leaving him to deter you 
 if you are not in the right road, and he will do it. He 
 will direct the pathsof all who commit their ways unto him. 
 
THE HOPES OF EASTER-TIDE. 
 
 HE "sweetly solemn" season 
 of Easter comes to the Chris- 
 tian Church when everything 
 in nature seems in sympathy 
 with the sacred observance. 
 Nature is waking from her long 
 sleep of the winter, and is 
 slowly, yet surely, gathering up 
 all her regenerative forces, pre- 
 paring to clothe the patient 
 earth with new life and verdure 
 everywhere. The brave crocus 
 and hardy snow-drop are peep- 
 ing up from the yielding soil, 
 giving unfailing promise of 
 other blooms soon to come forth and gladden the spirits 
 with bright colors and fragrant scents. The lengthening 
 days and longer twilights succeed the brief, dark days of 
 the rigorous season just passed. Each spring-time pre- 
 sents a strong suggestion of the resurrection of the body. 
 That which so lately seemed so cold and dead is instinct 
 with new life and beauty. And no matter how long the 
 winter may have been, how cold its nights, how fleeting 
 its days, or how severe its storms, there is a set time, and 
 that not so very far away, when the warmth and bright- 
 ness of spring will chase away the clouds, the coldness, 
 and the darkness of the season of frost and snow. And 
 this because the Bible has said that while the world endures, 
 seed-time and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter 
 shall return each in due season. And even as life succeeds 
 death in the world of nature, so in like manner the Script- 
 ures teach that after death of the body comes a new and 
 spiritual life; and as Christ rose from death and from the 
 
 357 
 
358 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 grave, so the dead in Christ shall rise. Alas I for the 
 modern school of unbelievers, scientists, so-called, who 
 dare to raise their voices in opposition to sacred revela- 
 tion, and attempt to teach that science only deals with 
 true revelation, that many assurances of the Bible deaLr^ 
 with the supernatural and unfounded theories which i/ 
 the light of science shrink away, becoming null and void. 
 Yet the true believer sings on, "Begone, unbelief, my 
 Saviour is near," and his reply to the seemingly learned, 
 yet shallow arguments of the scientist is simply, " I know 
 in whom I have believed." It was refreshing and inspirit- 
 ing to recently have come across these words in reading: 
 "The Christian verb is 'we kiio7v,' not 'we hope, we calcu- 
 late, we infer, we think,' but 'we know.' And it becomes 
 us to apprehend for ourselves the full blessedness and 
 power of the certitude which Christ has given to us by 
 the certainties which he has brought us." The ring of 
 conviction is in the sturdy assertions, and yet it is but 
 the echo of the language of Scripture, which gives out no 
 uncertain sound in declaring its truths. Spurgeon says: 
 " By passing through the death our Lord has made a 
 thoroughfare for us. We take death and the grave in 
 transit now; they do not hinder our advance to glory and 
 immortality and eternal life." No Christian need fear to 
 follow where his Lord has led. The lessons of Easter are 
 plain and full of encouragement. What is most needed 
 in this age of doubt and scepticism is a firm adherence to 
 the literal teachings of Holy Writ. It is a thousand 
 pities that Christians will concern themselves about the 
 questions continually rising and being thrust upon the 
 world by those who, having made shipwreck of their own 
 faith, would seek to weaken and, if possible, to overthrow 
 the faith of others. Clingfast to the promises of Almighty 
 God, to the assurances of the Saviour. Where shall the 
 mourner go for comfort if ever the story of the resurrec- 
 tion loses its power? On what scientific revelation in all 
 the broad world shall the dying man base his hopes of a 
 bright resurrection morn if once he lets go of a staunch 
 belief in, and reliance on, the fact of the resurrection of 
 Jesus Christ as taught in the Bible ? As age increases and 
 faith strengthens or weakens according as the Christian 
 trusts^ the promises of the Saviour, let every Christian 
 
THE HOPES OF EASTER-TIDE. 
 
 359 
 
 recognize the importance of holding fast to the Word of 
 God, trusting its every lesson and clinging to its teach- 
 ings, which will surely prove in return as an anchor to 
 the soul both sure and steadfast. And of Easter, who 
 can think but with gratitude and rejoicing! — the most 
 hopeful,* blessed anniversary in all the Christian's calen- 
 dar of days. 
 
 " Hail ! day of light and life and love. 
 
 Of Heaven's triumph o'er the grave, 
 When Christ, who left his throne above 
 
 Man's soul from sin and death to save, 
 Arose again ' Hail I glorious morn. 
 
 That breakest on the sinner's night, 
 When we again, through Christ, are born, 
 
 And with him rise into the light I" 
 
SWEETNESS OF SPIRIT. 
 
 r 
 
 OME Christian men carry the 
 charm of an attractive atmosphere 
 with them. It is a pleasure just 
 to look at them. Even when one 
 differs in judgment from them as 
 far as the poles are asunder, one 
 is none the less drawn toward and 
 fascinated by them. There is such 
 sweetness in their spirit, such 
 gracious gentleness in their man- 
 ner, such kind catholicity, such 
 manly frankness, such thorough 
 self-respect on the one hand, and 
 on the other hand such perfect regard for the judgment 
 of others, that one cannot help loving them, however con- 
 science may compel conclusions, on matters of mutual 
 consequence, unlike those which they have reached. 
 
 These are not weak men, either. What people like in 
 them is not that, with the everlasting unvaryingness of a 
 mirror, they reflect back the thought which is presented to 
 them, and so are always at an agreement with others; 
 soriietimes one is even more drawn to them when they are 
 rn opposition, because they are so true and just that their 
 aspect carries with it all the refreshment of variety with 
 none of the friction of hostility. 
 
 Natural temper has something to do with this. God 
 gives a great gift to a man when he gives him a sunnv 
 disposition, a candid spirit, and the instinct of fairness in 
 a controversy. It is exceedingly hard for some men to be 
 just. They are jealous, "suspicious, and morose in their 
 natural bent. It is hard for them to believe good of others. 
 It is easy for them always to put the worst construction 
 upon their conduct. It sometimes seems as if it were almost 
 more than grace itself can do to transform their tempers 
 so that they will be just toward any man against whom 
 they have been led to have a prejudice. 
 
 30U 
 
IF THEY COULD COiME 
 BACK. 
 
 UPPOSE God should hear the 
 prayer which we may all have 
 uttered in our first dumb despair, 
 and uttered again as the weary days 
 go on, to send back to us those 
 whose going has taken away from 
 us the joy of living. Suppose, for 
 the sake of our High Priest, who 
 can be touched with the feeling of 
 our infirmities, and through whom 
 we can come boldly to the Throne 
 iC^^^miM' *^^ Grace, he should forgive the 
 
 ^^■'-^w' prayer and grant our request: would we our- 
 selves be willing for them to come back ? Oh, 
 we are so selfish that few of us could have the 
 strength to say no; we are so unwilling to let 
 our beloved sleep while we are ourselves waking 
 and in the battle. We cannot even realize 
 what their coming back would be. We cannot 
 understand from what they are freed. We are 
 so used to being bowed down by burdens that 
 we don't know what it is for them to be un- 
 burdened, with a heart filled with happiness 
 unalloyed. We are so used to sickness, pain, 
 and guarding against hurt that never to say 
 " I am sick " is incomprehensible. We have 
 groped so long darkly, the unknown future 
 often a dread, we forget that in that land they 
 see no longer " through a glass darkly," but 
 face to face, all that seemed strange to them here un- 
 derstood and known. 
 
 Yes, we forget just the little we know about the other 
 
 361 
 
THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 world and the joy they have entered into, when we ci'^^or 
 them to come again to us. We forget everything some- 
 times, except how hard it is to live without them. 
 
 But think what it would be to them^to come back; to 
 take up the burdens they dropped, and bear them again when 
 they know what it is to be unburdened; the fret and anx- 
 ious care for the morrow, when they have been where no 
 morrow ever comes; to mingle again with the envious, 
 hateful, and malicious, when they have mingled with 
 those who know nothing of slander, malice, or lies, but 
 only love; to come from where love reigns supreme back 
 to where envy and hatred are known; to live with the 
 sinful when they have dwelt among the sinless; to bear 
 pain when they have tested what it is never to say " I am 
 sick;" to face the piercing storms of the earth when their 
 abode has been where skies are always serene and storms 
 cannot beat upon them, where cold and heat are unknown; 
 to battle once more with temptations, when they, have once 
 overcome and have been " clad in white raiment ;" to fight 
 again with sin and death when they, through him who 
 died for us, have conquered even the last enemy; to suffer 
 disappointment when they have been dwelling where 
 every wish is gratified, their will subjected perfectly to 
 the Father's; to strive with the multitude, unsatisfied and 
 longing, when they have known what it is never to hunger 
 or thirst for anything; to struggle in life, growing dis- 
 couraged again, longing for rest as we do — not the "gain" 
 which it is to be with Christ, but for rest, almost the 
 rest of forgetfulness — when they have once " obtained joy 
 and gladness" and "for them sorrow and sighing have 
 flown away ;" to be weary, to suffer the grievousness of 
 sinning, the conflict with temptation, the bitter yielding 
 to it, when they had before "come out of great tribula- 
 tions, and had washed their robes and made them white 
 in the blood of the Lamb;" to weep when all tears had 
 once been "wiped from their eyes;" to come back to 
 turmoil and wrangling when they have known peace — the 
 peace which floweth as a river, abiding in " Jerusalem, a 
 quiet habitation;" to know here no resting-place when 
 they have dwelt in a mansion prepared for them from 
 eternity for eternity, "a tabernacle which shall never be 
 taken dovv'n, not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be 
 
IF TIIEV COULD COME BACK. 
 
 \6 
 
 moved;" to gaze only upon the poor beauties of earth 
 when they have seen " the King in his beauty and beheld 
 the land which is very far off;" to have only our faces in 
 which to joy when they have looked upon the face of the 
 Lamb; to walk and talk with us when they have walked 
 and talked with the redeemed and the Redeemer; to knit 
 the brow with anxious care when his name has been upon 
 their foreheads; to leave Heaven for earth; the Lord 
 himself for us! 
 
 And what have we to offer them if they could come 
 bad:? A share in our sorrows, apart of our cares, and 
 our love — a love poor, weak, and selfish beside the perfect 
 love they have known. That is all. 
 
 Better, then, that for them " there shall be no more death, 
 neither sorrow nor crying, neither shall there beany more 
 pain; for the former things are passed away." 
 
 _J 
 
 
 -^1 
 
 r ""^^ 
 
OLD-FASHIONED 
 CHRISTIANS. 
 
 T is matter for which to thank 
 God that there is a consider- 
 able number of them yet living 
 on the earth. And if the 
 question should arise : In what 
 do they differ from Christians 
 of more modern times? the 
 answer would come promptly 
 something in this wise: They 
 are Bible Christians; Chris- 
 tians who have obeyed the 
 Scripture requirement, and 
 have come out from the world, and are sepa- 
 rate, and try to touch not the forbidden things 
 of the world. They do not take the Sunday 
 newspaper nor allow the dust to collect on 
 the family Bible while they toil through 
 the almost exhaustless columns of the unhal- 
 lowed sheet. They do not claim a right to 
 exercise all freedom, not to say license of 
 action, as to how and where they shall spend 
 their time, even as professed worldlings would 
 do. They attempt no defiance of the Divine 
 affirmation, " Ye cannot serve God and mam- 
 mon. " The theatre is not a favorite resort, 
 the progressive-euchre party and "german," 
 with their late hours, do not form a part of 
 their regular engagements. The house of 
 God is a place of great attraction for them; 
 they stand by the minister, and are his un- 
 failing friends as long as he needs their stanch support. 
 The meeting of prayer witnesses to the duty and privilege 
 they esteem it to stand up and proclaim themselves on 
 the Lord's side, and even when it involves cross-bearing 
 or sacrifice, they will try boldly to speak words of good 
 
 364 
 
OLD-FASHIONED CHRISTIANS. 365' 
 
 cheer and encouragement to others who like themselves 
 are striving to walk in the narrow way. 
 
 When the ruler of the nation or governor of the State 
 appoints a thanksgiving or fast day, and recommends that 
 in the morning the people should assemble in their cus- 
 tomary places of worship to thank God for his manifold 
 blessings, or to humbly sue for forgiveness of sin and 
 grace to walk more worthily of their profession, they make 
 an effort to show respect for the just and reasonable require- 
 ment, and duly present themselves on such occasions 
 before the Lord in his house. On the Sabbath they observe 
 the rules of the service, joining in song, responsive read- 
 ing and prayer, and with proper reverence refrain from 
 conversation or other behavior inappropriate to the sacred 
 hour of worship. 
 
 Ofttimes, to the disgust and disapproval of younger and 
 more " liberal" Christians, they stoutly and conscientiously 
 oppose certain entertainments, including humorous recita- 
 tions and exhibitions of buffoonery, being given from the 
 pulpit platform. Remembering that the place has been 
 solemnly dedicated to the worship of Almighty God, they 
 cannot so far ignore all that that implies, as to consent to 
 such glaring infringement of the sanctity of the sacred 
 spot as would be involved in converting it into a secular 
 rostrum, permitting of light, frivolous, and fantastic shows. 
 They neither attend themselves nor allow their children to 
 attend the popular Sunday-evening concert, nor do they 
 visit, ride, or receive visitors on the day of rest. They 
 accept the truths and doctrines of the Bible, just as they 
 stand. Recognizing no safe reason why they should for- 
 sake the old-time beliefs of sincere and scholarly Chris- 
 tians who have gone before them, they believe that when 
 the Bible says: "It is appointed unto men once to die, 
 but after that the judgment," the law was made once 
 for all, and that no convincing proof can all at once be 
 discovered for supposing that, after all, judgment will 
 be deferred until there has been further opportunity for 
 repentance beyond the grave. 
 
 In the world they have tribulation. Many who would 
 naturally be supposed to support their views and uphold 
 their doctrines are the ones to call them old-fashioned, 
 and behind the times. What times, pray? The times 
 
366 
 
 THE CHRISTI.iy^FE. 
 
 when the vScriptures were supposed to mean what they say ? 
 Not that exactly, but these times, these days of "broad 
 views" and " advanced thought." But when they die — 
 ay, when they die! It must be acknowledged then, if 
 never before, that it is beautiful to have been an old- 
 fashioned Christian! There are no doubts concerning the 
 future, no dread shrinking from " a leap in the dark," but 
 only untroubled confidence in him in whom they have 
 believed, and of his abundant ability to keep that which 
 they have committed unto him against that day. They 
 know that their Redeemer liveth, and that a crown of 
 righteousness is laid up for them, which the Lord, the 
 righteous Judge, will give them at that day. Yes, it is 
 glorious at the last to have been an old-fashioned Christian ! 
 They have fought a good fight, they have kept the faith, 
 and as they approach the river of death they are soothed 
 and sustained by the old-time promise : " When thou passeth 
 through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the 
 rivers, they shall not overflow thee." And they are not 
 afraid, because of another old-time song of victory: " Yea, 
 though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, 
 I will fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy rod and 
 thy staff they comfort me." 
 
ON CHRISTMAS DAY 
 
 T would sometimes 
 S(f, seem matter for 
 ''^ wonder that the 
 birthday of the 
 Saviour should be 
 ;lebidted at this season of the 
 year. But after much discussion 
 and study it has, we believe, 
 been generally agreed that Christ 
 came to earth about this time. 
 We associate all that is pleas- 
 antest m nature with summer skies, fresh 
 foliage and springing flowers, and had the 
 coming of this life been heralded by 
 singing of birds and bursting of buds and 
 blossoms, by warm breezes and sunny 
 skies, it would to many minds have 
 seemed in keeping with the glad event 
 of the Saviour's birth. But others among 
 our best thinkers go far beyond the first 
 superficial "seeming" as to the fitness of 
 times and events. Washington Irving, 
 in his delightful " Sketqh-Book," says: 
 "There is something in the very season 
 of the year that gives a charm to the 
 • festivity of Christmas. At other times 
 we derive a great portion of our pleasures from the mere 
 beauties of nature. ... As the hollow blast of wintry 
 wind rushes through the hall, claps distant doors, whistles 
 about the casement, and rumbles down the chimney, what 
 can be more grateful than that feeling of sober and sheltered 
 security with which we look round upon the comfortable 
 chamber and the scene of domestic hilarity? ... It 
 seemed to throw open every door and unlock every heart, 
 and . . . even the poorest cottage welcomed the festive 
 season with green decorations of bay and holly, the cheer- 
 ful fire gleamed its rays through the lattice, inviting the 
 passengers to raise the latch and join the gossip-knot hud- 
 
 367 
 
368 THE CHlp'^TfAX LIFE. 
 
 died round the hearth, beguiljng the long evening with 
 legendary jokes and oft-told Christmas tales." What 
 more cheerful picture could be drawn of the merry-making 
 in Old England in by-gone years? But the writer goes on 
 to deplore that " modern refinement" has given society 
 a more smooth and polished, but less characteristic, surface 
 than when these simple joys were pictured. The disap- 
 pearance of the games and ceremonies formerly common 
 to the day is subject for regret. In this connection he 
 adds: "The world has become more worldly. There is 
 more of dissipation and less of enjoyment." In these two 
 sentences lurks much of truth which Christians would do 
 well to ponder. With all the smoothness and gloss of 
 " modern refinement," is there not too much that is merely 
 fanciful and shallow creeping into our religious lives and 
 beliefs? Even as the simple games and ceremonies of by- 
 gone Christmas-tides are fading from the recollection of 
 the present age, are not many of the old and once-cherished 
 forms of belief and trust fading out of the hearts of Chris- 
 tian people? Verily, the world is continually growing 
 more worldly. Yet there is no faith like the old faith. 
 Jesus Christ was born a simple, humble child. No dross 
 of worldly sentiment or insincerity ever crept into his 
 plain teachings or unsullied life. AMiat he taught his 
 disciples nearly nineteen hundred years ago remains un- 
 changed in spirit and doctrine to-day. The strait gate 
 and narrow way by which his followers were told they 
 must go to find eternal life, are the same which must be 
 taken to-day in order to reach the eternal city of God. 
 The life of the Saviour while on earth was made up of 
 hard, sterile experiences from the very beginning. Like 
 the season in which he was born, there was coldness rather 
 than warmth, darkness rather than sunlight, while fierce 
 storms of temptations and peril beset his lonely way. No 
 " cheerful fire glanced its rays through the lattice " of his 
 earthly home, for he had not where to lay his head. 
 Although the wise men of the East brought gifts and laid 
 them at the Divine infant's feet, yet he through whom we 
 enjoy light, gladness, freedom from sin and condenmation 
 through belief in his teachings, was a man of sorrows and 
 acquainted with grief. 
 
 Oh, let us who profess a belief in his dear name really be- 
 
(^.V CHRISTMAS DAY. 
 
 369 
 
 lieve in him! Let us bring the offering of true, sincere hearts 
 on this his natal day. With the simple, earnest faith of 
 olden times, let us cling to the old Ijeliefs, cling to the 
 precepts and promises of Christ just as they are written, 
 and bring to his feet this day as a love-token the offering, 
 always acceptable in his sight, our sincere, grateful love; 
 a willingness to sacrifice for others, and a determination to 
 follow in the footsteps of our Lord, the blessed Christ. 
 
 24- 
 
f 
 
 FIDELITY. 
 
 HOUGH many of the 
 followers of Ulysses 
 were dragged to tor- 
 ture b y Polyphemus, 
 and had their heads 
 dashed against the 
 ground, they would not 
 confess a word con- 
 cerning their lord and 
 master, Ulysses, nor 
 discover the long piece 
 of wood that was put 
 _ in the fire, prepared to 
 put out the Cyclop's eye; but rather suffered themselves to 
 be devoured raw than to di^sclose any one of their master's 
 secrets. This was an example of fidelity and reservedness 
 not to be paralleled. An instance of military fidelity 
 occurred in the town of Bardosek. It shows the discipline 
 of the Russian army. A sentinel on duty, having been 
 forgotten, remained at his post during a conflagration. 
 His sentry-box was consumed, and his clothes were on fire, 
 when a corporal arrived to relieve him. The emperor, 
 hearing of the circumstances, sent the man fifty roubles, 
 decorated him with the order of St. Anne, and gave instruc- 
 tions for him to be made a non-commissioned officer. 
 
 Anastasius, a zealous Christian, greatly coveted and often 
 prayed for the martyr's crown. In Cesarea he openly 
 rebuked a company of magicians. He confessed that he 
 had once been one himself, but renounced the practice, and 
 became a follower of Christ. Upon this he was thrown into 
 a dungeon. After three days he was brought out, chained 
 by the foot to another prisoner. His neck and one foot 
 were drawn and fastened near together by a chain, and in 
 this way he was compelled to carry stones. He was 
 
 370 
 
FIDELITY. 371 
 
 upbraided, his beard was plucked out, he was kicked and 
 beaten. Called again before the governor and urged to 
 pronounce the magian incantation, he would only reply: 
 " I am a Christian." He was then disrobed, and beaten 
 with knotty clubs, without being bound, which he endured 
 without moving or flinching. After this he was oft'ered 
 a choice of office in the king's service if he would only 
 privately renounce Christ in words; if he would only do 
 this little thing he might adhere to him in his heart. 
 Anastasius replied that he would never even seem to dis- 
 semble. He was then sent to King Chosroes, of Persia, 
 by whom liberal offers were repeated, and when rejected 
 were followed by threats and reproaches. The martyr 
 said to the king's messenger, " Do not give yourself so 
 much trouble about me; by the grace of Christ I am not 
 to be moved." He was inhumanly beaten day after day, 
 and loaded with bitter reproaches for having rejected the 
 honors and bounties of the king. Heavy weights were 
 laid upon his limbs, cutting to the bone. His endurance, 
 patience, and tranquillity were so great that they were 
 reported to the king. One more attempt was made to over- 
 come him. He was hung up by one hand for two hours, 
 with heavy weights attached to his feet. Seeing that his 
 will could not be overcome, preparations were made to 
 strangle hini. He rejoiced, and thanked God for so happy 
 a conclusion to his life. He was strangled a.d. 628. 
 
 Henry IV., on the evening of Agincourt, found the 
 chivalric David Gam, though lying mortally wounded, still 
 'grasping the banner which, through the fight, his strength 
 had borne and his right arm defended. Often had the 
 monarch noticed that pennon waving in the foremost van 
 of the men of England, who that day pierced, broke, and 
 routed the proud ranks of France. The king knighted 
 him as he lay. The hero died, but dying was ennobled. 
 
 The noble General Rice, expiring on the field of Spott- 
 sylvania Court-house, desired to be turned over. "Which 
 way?" asked a lieutenant. "Toward the enemy," was 
 his indistinct reply. He. was turned so as to face in 
 death the foe he fought in life. 'He was asked, " How 
 does Christ seem to you now?" "Near by," was his an- 
 swer. The hero died as he had lived, true to his country 
 and to his God. 
 
/^ 
 
 372 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 A story of remarkable fidelity is told by Percy. When 
 Loril Rawdon was in South Carolina, during the American 
 war, he had to send an express of great importance 
 through a country filled with the enemy, which a corporal 
 of the Seventeenth Dragoons, of known courage and 
 intelligence, was selected to escort. They had not pro- 
 ceeded far when they were fired upon, the expressman 
 killed, and the corporal wounded in the side. Careless of 
 his wounds he thought but of his duty. He snatched the 
 despatch froni the dying man and rode on till, from the 
 loss of blood, he fell, when, fearing that the despatch 
 would be taken by the enemy, he thrust it into the wound 
 until it closed uix)n it. He was found ne.xt day by a 
 British patrol, with a smile of conscious virtue on his 
 countenance, with only life sufficient remaining to point 
 to the fatal depository of his secret. In searching the 
 wouqd they found the cause of his death; for the surgeon 
 declared that it was not itself mortal, but rendered so by 
 the insertion of the paper. 
 
 Dr. Robinson writes thus of Christian fidelity: "There 
 have been men on this earth of God's, of whom it was 
 simply true that it was easier to turn the sun from its 
 course than these from the paths of honor. There have 
 been men, like John the Baptist, who could speak the truth 
 which had made their own spirits free, with the axe above 
 their neck. There have been men redeemed in their inmost 
 being by Christ, on whom tyrants and mobs have done 
 their worst, and when, like Stephen, the stones crashed in 
 upon their brain, or when their flesh hissed or crackled in' 
 the flames, were ca'lmly superior to it all." 
 
THE PRECIOUSNESS OF CHRIST. 
 
 RECIOUSNESS is relative; 
 the value of stones, gold, 
 or merchandise of any vari- 
 ety is changeable. Politi- 
 cal economists distinguish 
 value as intrinsic and ex- 
 changeable, and by intrin- 
 sic value they mean utility, 
 adaptation to the wants and 
 desires of men. But wants 
 and desires vary; even in 
 the means of subsistence 
 there is varying demand 
 for varying kinds of food, 
 so that while the whole 
 amount needed may be the same, different kinds vary in 
 their utility, and consequently in their value. 
 
 Nothing earthly is absolute in value; a greater supply 
 than demand renders things comparatively valueless. 
 Rarity increases value. If diamonds should become as 
 plentiful as pebbles, their preciousness would be lost. 
 
 Location, too, has much to do with relative value. 
 Even the most valuable things are valuable only in the 
 place where they are wanted. A castaway upon a desert 
 island would care more for a crust of bread than the most 
 precious gem in a king's diadem. It is impossible to name 
 anything that is absolutely valuable in itself; everything 
 must bear some relation to another, and meet some desire 
 or want to acquire value. Earth contains no absolutely 
 precious thing. 
 
 But not so in the other world; there we may find pos- 
 sessions that are intrinsically precious, and above all else 
 is Christ precious to believers. He meets all the wants 
 of man, and to each one's experience and capacity he ap- 
 pears in a different way, speaking words suited to each 
 need, and each soul alone can tell how precious Jesus is 
 to it. 
 
 373 
 
Hjfc. 
 
 374 THlTCHRISTIAX LIFE. 
 
 In the hour of conviction of sin there can be none so 
 precious as he who says, " Thy sins, which are many, are 
 forgiven thee." In the hour of sickness none so precious 
 as he who says, "I will make all thy bed in thy sickness." 
 Who can be more precious in the day of trial than he who 
 says, " All things work together for good to them that 
 love God;" and in the hushed chamber of death, "I will 
 be with thee, my rod and my staff shall comfort thee"? 
 When at last we shall see him as he is, who shall estimate 
 the preciousness of his approbation, "Well done, good 
 and faithful servant, enter thou into the joy of thy Lord " ? 
 
 Most believers have come to the rock on which we stand 
 through great trouble and darkness. It is not natural for 
 us to trust another for our greatest blessing, and it seems 
 incredible that we need do nothing for the priceless boon 
 of salvation. Almost all of us can look backward to the 
 time when, thinking that we knew better than God, we 
 would try every other saviour except Jesus Christ. We tried 
 by our good works to become worthy of eternal life, and 
 what a hard road we travelled; uphill work, and rough 
 and thorny to our feet. Duty was our only inspiration. 
 We do far better now with less difficulty, when love is our 
 inspiration and duty is pleasure, because God's will is 
 ours. We can afford to forego the pleasures of the world, 
 because we have found something far more precious. 
 There is but one name given under heaven whereby we 
 must be saved, and having discovered the wretchedness of 
 every other refuge we have learned to prize the one only 
 Saviour because he is the only one. Besides him there is 
 no other, and because we were sinners and needed pardon, 
 because we were pilgrims and needed guidance, because 
 we were lost and needed redemption, because we are 
 mortal and long for eternal life, and believe that Christ 
 can and will confer it, therefore he is precious as the only 
 Saviour of mankind. 
 
 The smallest amount of Christian experience brings to 
 the heart the consciousness of Christ's preciousness, and 
 what is true at first is true in an increasing degree after- 
 ward. The glow and thrill of the first love may not al- 
 ways remain, but there never comes a time when the 
 believer will not be able to say that Christ is precious. 
 
 And this becomes a practical matter, when preciousness 
 
THE PRECIOUSNESS OF CHRIST. 
 
 375 
 
 produces love and love seeks an outlet. We can find this 
 outlet in benevolence, self-sacrifice, forbearance. Having 
 obtained such a precious treasure, count no possession too 
 precious to be given up for him. 
 
 Out of an abounding love, let our gifts to Christ and for 
 Christ abound in word and deed and possessions. Let us 
 acknowledge our indebtedness to him by generosity and 
 fervent zeal for his cause. There are still many who know 
 nothing of this precious Saviour by experience, and our 
 hearts should yearn after those who are without this pre- 
 cious boon, and we ought to entreat them to share our joy. 
 
 Is it not strange, in view of its value, that any one 
 needs to be urged to accept the salvation purchased with 
 Christ's precious blood? Surely there can be nothing of 
 equal loveliness and preciousness in this sinful world. 
 The united testimony of the millions in heaven and earth 
 who have believed on the Lord Jesus Christ is that he is 
 precious, the only infinitely precious one in the universe. 
 To all who believe, he is precious. Do you believe? 
 
 
YOUR SUNDAY READING. 
 
 E so often hear it said that 
 " what is good enough to read 
 on a week-day is good enough 
 to read on Sunday." As a gen- 
 eral rule, those who make this 
 remark do^ not read anything 
 particularly good on a week- 
 day. So the reading which 
 they continue on a day which 
 C'lod has set apart as a day of 
 holiness is often very light and 
 all of this world, if not directly 
 irreligious, certainly . nothing 
 which will help the reader on in the narrow path. "But 
 Sabbath was made for man," you quote, " not man for the 
 Sabbath." Yes, but it was made to give you refreshment 
 for soul as well as body, and for you to rest from worldly 
 books and thoughts as well as occupations. It was made, 
 too, for a day when you should draw nearer to God, and 
 everything you do on that day should be done to draw you 
 nearer to him. All should be done with that purpose. It 
 is his time and should be spent with him. Have you 
 never, after being all day with a friend, carried home with 
 you the sound of his voice, his tricks of speech, even, his 
 gestures, his words and opinions, until you feel that he 
 will be so real to you that you cannot realize that he is far 
 away ? Well, such a day with the Lord Sunday should be. 
 This one day in seven was made for you to dwell spiritually 
 with him, and your reading should be for that purpose. 
 You should draw so near to him that liis presence is felt. 
 He should become a living presence beside you. On 
 Sunday, he should be the guest in your heart and thoughts. 
 Study his life upon earth, not only m his Word, but in the 
 writings of others, and in books of devotional reading. 
 
 376 
 
YOUR SUNDAY READING. 
 
 177 
 
 so that when eventide comes you can indeed say, " I have 
 walked with God to-day." You will be stronger for what 
 the week will bring you. You will arise on the morrow 
 with a feeling of nearness to him you never had when you 
 spent the day in light reading. The memories of this kind 
 of reading will stay by you all the week, calling you to it 
 again, and so calling you to him. 
 
 ■ If this sacred day is devoted to his worship, and when 
 away from his house, to the study of the example we are 
 bidden to follow, your growth in grace will be certain. 
 Your aim is to grow more like the Master and to be nearer 
 to him; then why neglect this great aid? Why, because 
 some think it no actual sin, indulge in light reading on 
 Sunday and continue it, when it certainly makes you no 
 better ? 
 
 There is nothing negative in religion or growth in grace. 
 Whatever you do you know helps or hinders. Sundays 
 even are helps or hindrances according as they are em- 
 ployed. What is read on that day is a help or hindrance. 
 Can you say that your indifferent reading will help you to 
 grow to his full stature, knowing you feel no nearer to him 
 when the book is finished and laid aside, and your thoughts, 
 which should have been his, were very far oft'? Then you 
 have been hindered; the day has brought your soul no re- 
 freshment even if you have rested your mind and body. 
 You are farther away from him, and the day which was made 
 for you has been lost. Lost! one day! when your days 
 ©n earth are so " few and evil." You have become weaker 
 in grace instead of growing in it, and the time which should 
 have been redeemed is thrown away. 
 
WHAT WILL YE GIVE iME ? 
 
 HIS is the question which Judas 
 Iscariot put to the high priests 
 when he was about to prove 
 himself the traitor that he was, 
 and to give over into their 
 power the Master whom he had 
 pretended to serve. "What will 
 ye give me and I will deliver 
 him unto you?" asking that 
 a price might be put on the 
 head of the Saviour and Re- 
 deemer of mankind. Men natu- 
 rally start back appalled at the enormity of the treachery 
 involved in such an underhanded transaction. And the 
 question has dome down through all the ages, with its 
 stigma of shame and infamy attached: "Who betrayed 
 his Lord and Master?" It was so base, so paltry, a thing, 
 actually trading away the precious life of Jesus for the mere 
 pittance of a few pieces of silver. It is, however, one 
 of the sad, deplorable phases of human 'nature, that what 
 shocks and repels us in others is often repeated in our 
 own lives and almost without our consciousnessof the fact. 
 Were many professors of religion told that they practically 
 repeated the question put to the high priests in their own 
 experience, the accusation would be met with scornful 
 and indignant denial. And yet the query is doubtless 
 repeated in various forms aiid with unsuspected frequency 
 by professed followers of Jesus Christ and believers in 
 the doctrines whtch he taught. It may be that for a cer- 
 tain length of time and up to a certain point, a man will 
 conscientiously serve the Master, then perhaps it is the 
 pleasures of the world which come in and tempt him to try 
 a little unlawful license, and mix more freely with those 
 
 378 
 
WHAT WILL YE GIVE ME^ 379 
 
 who find delight and satisfaction in a gay and thoughtless 
 life. And the man looks the tempter in the face and asks: 
 "What will ye give me?" Then it may follow that hours 
 bright with laughter and dissipation hold out inducements 
 he does not care to withstand, and the old faith is sold 
 out that he may enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season. 
 Another is tempted by greed. Eager assurances that a life 
 of prosperity and self-indulgence is the only one worth 
 living, are sounded in his ears. So the whirlpool of 
 speculation is faced with the desire for sudden riches, and 
 the question leaps forth: "What will ye give me?" For 
 others, ambition and worldly honors hold out a tempting 
 bait for the soul, and of them it is asked, "What will ye 
 give me and I will deliver him unto you?" Alas, the 
 piteous weakness^of it all! Yielding up the Christ within 
 the heart for something quite as shallow and profitless as 
 the betrayer's thirty pieces of silver. Wrecking all true 
 happiness, defrauding the life of all true gain and advance- 
 ment, and surrendering the highest and most worthy honors 
 while betraying the best of friends. As often as a profess- 
 ing Christian dallies with temptation, or bargains with 
 sin in any form, just so often he says to the tempter: 
 "What will ye give me and I will deliver him unto you ?" 
 There is no greater meanness in the eyes of a noble, chival- 
 rous man, than the treachery which will admit of betraying 
 a friend. Alas! that the language of the hymn we sing 
 concerning Christ is so true: 
 
 ■' You treat no other friend so ill." 
 
 The Bible teaches wisely and counsels with divine 
 sagacity when it e.xhorts believers to watch and pray lest 
 they enter into temptation. Watchfulness and prayer are 
 the two unconquerable forces which will effectually prevent 
 disloyalty to the Saviour, and render the Christian panoply 
 of faith impervious to all the wiles and debasing sugges- 
 tions of the archtraitor of the soul. 
 
 " O Lord, the pilot's part perform 
 
 And guard and guide me through the storm, 
 Defend me from each threatening ill, 
 Control the waves, say ' Peace, be still. ' 
 
THE WORLD. 
 
 |HAT an almost inexhaust- 
 ible subject is the world. 
 To attempt a description 
 of it at large would fill a 
 sufficient number of 
 books to form quite a 
 library of itself. Yet it 
 may briefly be described 
 as the dwelling-place of 
 mankind. As long as 
 man lives he is in the 
 world; when he dies, all 
 that really constituted 
 the life takes flight to another sphere. The Scriptures in 
 one place warn man against loving the world or the 
 things that are in the world, thereby indicating that it 
 contains much to captivate and enchain the affections. 
 Again, we read that Jesus Christ assures men that in the 
 world^ they shall have tribulation, but goes on to add com- 
 fort by saying he has overcome the world, showing that 
 they, too, cixii be overcome by his strength. In another 
 place men are exhorted to keep themselves unspotted from 
 the world, and still again the Scriptures affirm that the 
 world passeth away. Now here is a strange place ! Plainly 
 a place which is beautiful, attractive, doubtless full of 
 joys and lively things to please the eye and gratify the 
 senses. True enough, the world possesses beauty, is 
 attractive and lovely. And yet, it contains also the oppo- 
 site of all these charms, for tribulation is a long, hard 
 word, very full of trouble, and the victorious assertion of 
 the Saviour that he has overcome the world implies a need 
 of strength, as there must be. conflict, struggle, and en- 
 durance brought to bear, in order to overcome so strong 
 a force as the world. And the caution to keep unspotted 
 from the world, must mean that there is much of taint and 
 
 380 
 
THE WORLD. 381 
 
 contagion to be dreaded and avoided in this seemingly 
 fair world. And then " the world passeth away. " It must 
 be a perishable place, destined at last to be destroyed, so 
 nothing in it can be abiding. It is just as described: 
 beautiful, alluring, full of tribulation, something to be 
 overcome and to avoid pernicious contact with, and some- 
 thing perishable itself at last. Yet there is need to exer- 
 cise care that the teachings and injunctions of the Bible 
 be not misunderstood. 
 
 The command not to love the world nor the things that 
 are in it by no means teaches that the beautiful works of 
 God as seen in the world are to be despised or unappre- 
 ciated. Who that looks abroad and sees the budding 
 spring ripen into summer's bloom could help experiencing 
 a happy glow, responsive to nature's renewing. And not 
 only the beautiful world of nature, but all the wonderful 
 achievements of art are things to admire and enjoy. One 
 of our commentators says: "To love the world and the 
 things that are in the world, is to make them our treasure, 
 and put our trust in them, instead of in God." And in 
 Matthew the counsel is given to lay up treasure in heaven 
 because where the treasure is, there will the heart be also. 
 Nor does the injunction not to love the world include 
 advice to keep away from other men and make a recluse 
 of one's self in hope to keep pure and unspotted. No or- 
 dinarily intelligent person need fail to understand the 
 plain, direct meaning of Scripture with reference to the 
 love of the world and the things that are in it; the world 
 is not our rest, and nothing in it will endure permanently. 
 Not even the love of friends is strong enough to resist the 
 inexorable law of the universe, which demands that every- 
 thing earthly must be fleeting and transitory. 
 
 It makes no difference how much wealth may have been 
 amassed, how many friends there may be to love, once 
 the fiat goes forth that man shall return to the dust as he 
 was, and the spirit to God who gave it, everything must 
 be left at the solemn bidding, and the soul, stripped of 
 every earthly belonging, must go forth to meet its God. 
 The love of men and women is very sweet, but all must 
 pass away; and what will you do if you have no wealth 
 but the wealth that fadeth, no love but the love which 
 dies, when death shall come? \\'hat will you do, indeed! 
 
382 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 To such as have made no preparation for this inevitable 
 "passing away" from time into eternity, how like a hope- 
 less echo the query repeats itself, for if no love for God 
 and the things of his kingdom dwell in the soul, how shorn 
 and helpless must it stand before its Maker at last! But 
 there is a wealth that never fades, and a love that never 
 dies. Death admits the soul of the believer in Christ and 
 his most precious promises, to a kingdom whose beauty 
 and riches far transcend all the poor wealth of the world. 
 The love of heaven never passes away, but endures forever 
 and forever. What provident, worldly-wise man would 
 build a house on a foundation so insecure, that he knows 
 the first rough Storm would overthrow the entire structure ? 
 How far more foolish and short-sighted the man who 
 loves the world better than he loves the things of the king- 
 dom of God, whose love and whose hopes are centred only 
 on things which are sure to pass away. 
 
BEGINNING AT JERUSALEM. 
 
 HRIST'S directions to the 
 apostles as to their work 
 seemed at first like a com- 
 mission so insuperably great 
 that it could never be exe- 
 cuted. He bade them " go 
 into all the world and preach 
 the Gospel to every creat- 
 ure." The world was not 
 as large then as it is now, as 
 far as population and extent 
 of inhabited country were 
 concerned, but its conver- 
 sion was a great undertaking for eleven men to set about. 
 We have heard of people having so much to do that they 
 hardly knew where to commence; no doubt most of us 
 have often experienced the feeling ourselves, and so we 
 can appreciate the value of method. If tlie apostles had 
 received nothing more specific than this general direction, 
 they would probably have given up in despair at the vast 
 proportions of their task, and done nothing because they 
 had so much to do. But they were not left in doubt as to 
 their starting-point; they were to begin at Jerusalem, and 
 make that a radiating centre of usefulness. 
 
 There were two great facts concerning Jerusalem, its 
 ancient sacredness and its later sinfulness, either of which 
 would have been sufficient reason for the Saviour's com- 
 mand to begin evangelization there. But there was a 
 deeper, wider reason than either of these for beginning at 
 Jerusalem; perhaps some of these fishermen among the 
 apostles understood. Perhaps Peter, for instance, at some 
 time when he lay becalmed on the motionless bosom of 
 the Lake of Galilee, had, in the hour of idleness, tossed 
 a pebble or a float on the still waters, and watched the 
 wavelets start and move in ever-increasing circles from 
 the centre until lost to sight. He may then have thought, 
 when €hrist bade them begin at Jerusalem, that that citv 
 was the centre where they were to drop the Gospel, and 
 
 3S3 
 
;84 THE CHRISTIAX LIFE. 
 
 the waves of influence should spread around and widen and 
 extend farther than they could see. That would have 
 been a very perfect illustration of Christ's design. It 
 was not for Jerusalem's sake alone, that they were to 
 begin preaching there ; but that was the centre of influence, 
 a national centre around which the events of Christ's life 
 clustered, where the crucifixion and resurrection, which 
 were to be the great themes of their preaching, took 
 place; and from that centre in every direction were to 
 ripple out the waves of life. 
 
 They commenced, therefore, at Jerusalem ; there they 
 prdyed, there they labored, and there they preached. 
 There they formed the nucleus of the Christian Church, 
 and thus the radiating centre of influence was formed. 
 The streams that should go forth from this centre were 
 providentially right there — men who had come up to wor- 
 ship at the feast, or to buy and sell in the prosecution of 
 their business. All were alike attracted by the great 
 miracle of Pentecost. There were Parthians, Medes, 
 Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia and Cappa- 
 docia, in Pontus and Asia, in Egypt and parts of Africa, 
 and strangers from Rome. 
 
 These were converted, and by-and-by they went home — 
 not leaving the Gospel behind them, but carrying it 
 with them. They departed by every gate of the city; 
 they went north and south, east and west; their roads 
 diverged, and as they left Jerusalem further behind, their 
 distance from each other increased. Thus the Gospel 
 was spread abroad, and these converts were the waves 
 which extended from the central Jerusalem and bore on 
 their crest the knowledge of salvation. 
 
 But the apostles had only half learned the lesson of the 
 pebble thrown upon the lake, and only half understood the 
 command to begin at Jerusalem. That was to be nothing 
 but a beginning; the Master never said that they must 
 stay there. Yet the apostles acted as if they had thus 
 understood the message. They showed no disposition to 
 leave the city, and, having sent out their waves of influ- 
 ence, they ceased to watch them and follow them up. 
 Like the ripples in the lake, those travellers would lose 
 their power in proportion as they separated mftrc and 
 more, and met with increased opposition, until, when 
 
386 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 they reached their destination, their distant homes, they 
 had not the power to make themselves felt. What was 
 needed was, that each point where a convert had carried 
 the Gospel should itself be made a new centre of influ- 
 ence to send reflex waves back to Jerusalem and onward 
 to the regions beyond. 
 
 This the apostles failed to see, and they had to be taught 
 by a sharp lesson. Since they would not willingly leave 
 Jerusalem, 'they were made to leave it. Persecution came 
 three times, and they were all scattered abroad — forced 
 by providence into the world for the spread of the Gospel. 
 
 The divine method for the accomplishment of this pur- 
 .pose was the gradual establishment of radiating centres, 
 or sources of influence, at important points, beginning at 
 Jerusalem and ending at Rome. Those radiating centres 
 were the secret of the vast progress in apostolic times, 
 and it is the divine method for all success and progress. 
 
 We are to begin at Jerusalem, which means at home; 
 there are plenty of heathen here. Let us look after them! 
 Assuredly, we should by all means begin in our own fam- 
 ily, our own community; but we must also remember the 
 early church was persecuted because it stayed at Jerusa- 
 lem, which is only one centre, the first of many. Train- 
 ing for missions begins in the family, but it does not stop 
 there. We should establish centres of power in our 
 churches; there are families and individuals who, some 
 in one way and some in another, can e.\ert great power 
 for good; make them radiating centres. 
 
 Above all, let us see to it that our own lives shall send 
 out ever-widening circles of influence. Old Augustine 
 lives to-day in the rich discourses inspired by his teach- 
 ings; Calvin sleeps at Geneva, and no man knows his 
 sepulchre, but his vindication of God's sovereignty will 
 live forever; Bunyan lies in Bunhill Fields, but his bright 
 spirit walks the earth in "Pilgrim's Progress." Isaac 
 Watts is dead, but, in the chariot of his hymns, thousands 
 of spirits ascend to-day in devotion. For a hundred 
 years, Robert Raikes has gathered his Sunday schools all 
 over Christendom. So we all live in the lives of others, 
 perhaps even more than we do in our own ; and we may 
 set in motion waves that will widen until they reach the 
 shores of eternity. 
 
PRAYERS SUITABLE FOR CHILDREN. 
 
 ONE. (child's evening PRAYER.) 
 
 NOW I lay me down to sleep, 
 I pray the Lord my soul to keep; 
 If I should die before I wake, 
 I pray the Lord my soul to take. 
 
 TWO. — (child's evening prayer.) 
 
 JESUS, tender Shepherd, hear me, 
 Bless thy little lamb to-night; 
 Through the darkness .be thou near me, 
 Keep me safe till morning light. 
 
 All this day thy hand has led me. 
 And I thank thee for thy care; 
 
 Thou hast clothed me, warmed and fed me, 
 Listen to my evening prayer. 
 
 Let my sins be all forgiven. 
 
 Bless the Triends I love so well. 
 
 Take me, when I die, to heaven, 
 Happy there with thee to dwell. 
 
 three. — (child's evening prayer.) 
 
 OLORD, help me to thank thee for all the love thou hast 
 this day shown me. Thou hast kept me from harm, 
 and hast given me all that I have. Make me to love 
 thee more and more, and to serve thee with all my heart. 
 Forgive my sins. Watch over me and all whom I love 
 this night, and keep us in safety till a new day, for 
 Christ's sake. Amen. 
 
 FOUR. — (child's IMORNING PRAYER.) 
 
 OLORD, I thank thee that thou dost let a little child 
 like me kneel at thy throne. Look on me in Christ, 
 and for his sake love me and forgive all my sins. I 
 thank thee for the rest of the past night, that I have seen 
 the light of this day. Lord, keep me all through this 
 day. May thine arm lead me, and guard me from all 
 harm. May I walk and act as a child of Christ; may I 
 love all that is good, and live according to thy word. 
 Let my friends be thy friends, and may we be thine in 
 this world, and thine in the world to come, for Christ's 
 sake. Amen. 
 
 388 
 
PRAYERS FOR FAMILY DEVOTION. 
 
 ONE. — (EVENING PRAYER). 
 
 The following prayer was found in manuscript (German script) on a 
 half-sheet of very old paper, in a German Bible, Luther's version, 
 printed in 1545. The Bible has been in private or public libraries for 
 probably between two and three hundred years, and the manuscript 
 is presumably two centuries old, at least, if not older, though there is 
 no way of determining the date exactly. The translation was made by 
 the late Rev. Thomas J- Conant, D.D., the well-known Biblical 
 scholar, and now appears for the first time in book form. 
 
 EVENING PR.AVER TO OUR FATHER THROUGH JESUS 
 CHRIST. 
 
 AH, my dear Father, I thank thee that thou so graciously 
 hast guarded me this day. Ah, my Father, I beseech 
 thee that thou wouldst forgive me all my sins which I have 
 to-day committed against thee. Ah, dearest Father, I 
 beseech thee, for the sake of Jesus Christ, my Redeemer 
 and Saviour, hear my prayer I I am a poor sinner; but 
 Christ has paid for me the penalty of my sins, out of his 
 great love to me. Christ I set before thee as the surety 
 for my sins. I beseech thee that thou wouldst guard me 
 this night also, from the workings of the Devil and his 
 train, so that they may not harm me. Let thy holy angels 
 pitch their camp around me. Be thou my strong defence, 
 O Lord ; for evening is coming on, and the day has declined. 
 Guard all my dear ones and friends; also my enemies. 
 Ah, Lord, forgive my enemies, for they know not what 
 they do. And should this night be the last of my life, ah, 
 then I beseech thee that thou wouldst be gracious to me 
 in my last dying hour. Ah, grant me a calm, blissful 
 end, for the sake of Jesus Christ. Amen. 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 389 
 
TWO.— (MORNING OR EVENING.) 
 
 HEAVENLY FATHER, we thy children come to offer 
 up our prayer and praise to thee. May they be offer- 
 ings well pleasing. Thy mercies are new every morning 
 and fresh every evening. Great is thy faithfulness. 
 
 For health and strength we thank thee, for the light of 
 this day, for all its blessings; but above all for the gift 
 of thy dear Son, to redeem us from sin and to open unto 
 us the gates of everlasting life. For his present grace, 
 his interceding love and his Spirit's power, we give thee 
 thanks. For thy Church, its ministry and sacraments, 
 thy holy Word, and for the examples of those who have 
 departed in the true faith of thy holy Name, for the hope 
 of a life to come, and the promise of thy coming again, 
 we gratefully adore. 
 
 Make us ever mindful of thy love. May we never fall 
 from thee, nor be led by sorrow or adversity to either 
 question thy wisdom or deny thy goodness. May we be 
 willing to receive at the Lord's hands evil as well as good. 
 Pity our weakness and give us strength against the hour 
 of trial sure to come. \\'hile on the earth, may we be 
 trained for Heaven, and come off conquerors and more 
 than conquerors; through him who hath loved us, thy Son 
 Jesus Christ our Lord. 
 
 O merciful God, who hast written thy holy Word for 
 our learning, that we, through patience and comfort of 
 thy holy Scriptures, might have hope; give us a right 
 understanding of ourselves, and of thy threats and promises; 
 that we may neither cast away our confidence in thee, nor 
 place it anywhere but in thee. Break not the bruised 
 reed, nor quench the smoking flax. Shut not up thy ten- 
 der mercies in displeasure; but make us to hear of joy 
 and gladness through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 390 
 
THREE. — (MORNING PRAYER.) 
 
 "\"\ TE desire this morning, O our God, to approach thee 
 VV through the only way whereby sinners may come 
 to thee, thine own dearly-beloved and only-begotten Son. 
 Thou hast given us quiet rest, and when we awoke thy 
 hand sustained us. At the beginning of another day we 
 seek together, as a family, thy blessing and grace. Keep 
 us, O our Father, through this day, from all evil, and, 
 above all, from the contamination of sin. As the children 
 of a holy God, and the sincere disciples of the holy Jesus, 
 may we spend this day in accordance with our solemn 
 profession. If thou art pleased this day to give us the 
 exercise of authority, enable us to act with tenderness and 
 Christian discretion. If we are subject to reproach or 
 oppression, give us, O Lord, the spirit of meekness and 
 submission, that we may thus adorn the doctrine of our 
 Lord. Enable us to rejoice in our neighbor's prosperity, 
 instead of envying him, as we will do if left to our own 
 natural tendencies. Make us not slothful in business, 
 but fervent in spirit, serving the Lord. Preserve us from 
 making the world our god. Let us not trust in uncertain 
 riches, but in the living God, who is the soul's only sure, 
 and abiding, and everlasting portion. 
 
 Accept of our united thanks in that thou has set us 
 together as a family, making us, in this manner, mutual 
 helps, and comforts, and defences to each other. May 
 each of us discharge the duty which is assigned us by 
 thee, as in thy sight. 'May we exercise a spirit of con- 
 tentment and submission to thee, in respect to the station 
 thou hast assigned us in life. May the Spirit himself 
 dwell in us, and keep us from evil. And unto thee, the 
 Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be praise everlast- 
 ing. A /lien. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 391 
 
FOUR.— (MORNING OR EVENING.) 
 
 OLORD, we desire to draw near into thy lioly presence, 
 in the name of him whom thou hearest always, thy 
 blessed Son. We have sinned against light, and privilege, 
 and warning, and mercy. We mourn our deep-rooted de- 
 pravity, our constant proneness to alienation and departure 
 from thee; the feebleness of our faith, the fitfulness of 
 our love and the imperfection of our best services, the 
 mingled motives in our holiest duties. We come anew, 
 casting ourselves on the infinite fulness of our Saviour. 
 Give us out of his inexhaustible treasury, even grace for 
 grace. Let us walk as thy children, advancing in con- 
 formity to thy blessed mind and will. May we earnestly 
 strive after greater spiritual attainments — laying aside 
 every weight, and running with patience the race that is 
 set before us. 
 
 Give us grace to bear about with us, in our daily 
 duties and engagements, the solemn thought — we are 
 soon to be with God. Let us not postpone the all-momen- 
 tous question of our salvation. May we feel that now is 
 the accepted time, and that it may be the only time! 
 Let it be our constant aim and endeavor to know what 
 the will of the Lord is; and knowing that will, may we 
 have strength given us to obey it. May we murmur at 
 nothing that brings us nearer thee. 
 
 O God, our Saviour, dwell in this household, make 
 every member of it thine. May those who are absent feel 
 that thou art near them. May those that are in distress 
 be comforted by thee. Do thou increase the devotedness 
 of thy children; give them more of the character of 
 (Christ and prepare them for the Christian's rest. 
 
 Prosper thy cause and kingdom everywhere. Let 
 Satan's kingdom be destroyed — the kingdom of grace 
 advanced — the kingdom of glory hastened. Save thy peo- 
 ple — bless thine inheritance; feed them also, and lift them 
 up forever! Give to each of us this day thy gracious bene- 
 diction; and when the days of earth shall merge into the 
 ages of eternity, may it be ours to spend them in the full 
 fruition of thee, our God, through Jesus Christ. Amen. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 3Q2 
 
FIVE.— (MORNING OR EVENING.) 
 
 M^; 
 
 'eil their faces, fill us with awe and reverence as we 
 draw nigh to thee. As unworthy as we are, thou hast 
 invited us to come. In thy dear Son's name, and not for 
 anything that we are, or for anything that we have done, 
 do we make now our petitions unto thee. Give to each 
 of us, dear Lord, a clear knowledge of our duties and 
 responsibilities, and besides this, wisdom and strength, 
 that these may be discharged by us with diligence and 
 fidelity. 
 
 Whatsoever good thing our hand may find to do in this 
 life, may we do it with our might, remembering that the 
 night of death cometh when no man can work, and that 
 after death there is the judgment. May no evil thoughts 
 or angry tempers, may no doubts or fears disturb us, but 
 may we ever put our trust in thee and find guidance, hope 
 and consolation in the blessed gospel of thy Son. 
 
 May our hearts be so rooted and grounded in love for 
 thee that no difticulties, however great they may be, may 
 discourage us in the way of well-doing. Increase in us 
 that which is lacking; raise up that which is fallen; re- 
 store to us that which has been lost; quicken within us 
 that which may be ready to die; so that we may serve and 
 obey thee in all things, through Jesus Christ our Lord. 
 
 We pray as well for thy blessing for all those who are 
 dear to us, wherever they are, that they may be filled with 
 the knowledge of thy will in wisdom and understanding, 
 and in one heart and mind may ever seek thy glory and 
 the salvation of souls; through Jesus Christ our Lord. 
 
 O Lord, we beseech thee, mercifully hear our prayers, 
 and spare all those who confess their sins unto thee; that 
 they, whose consciences by sin are accused, by thy merci- 
 ful pardon may be absolved; through Christ our Lord. 
 Amen. 
 
 Our Fathei, etc. 
 
 393 
 
SIX. — (MORNING PRAYER.) 
 
 OLORD, we thank thee for the tender care with which 
 thou hast watched over us during the hours of sleep, 
 and for the comfort and health in which we arise this 
 morning. Help us to carry into the busy hours of the 
 day all the holy impressions and resolutions of thy day. 
 Grant us grace to pursue our secular calling in a Christian 
 spirit. May our most trivial occupations be ennobled 
 by the principles of the gospel of Christ; may all our 
 work be sanctified by the Word of God and prayer. 
 
 May we honor thee by the uprightness and integrity of 
 our conduct, by the unselfishness and generosity of our 
 spirit, and by our endeavor in all things to obey the law 
 of Christ. Whilst not slothful in business, may we be 
 fervent in spirit, serving the Lord. And Father, we pray 
 that in our home life we may act worthily of thee. May 
 we be ever conscious of the presence of our Lord, and seek 
 to manifest his spirit. May we be gentle and forbearing 
 toward each other, and faithful in rendering to all in the 
 household their respective dues. May we minister to one 
 another's welfare, and guard against selfishness in thought 
 and word and deed. 
 
 Save us from the snares of ambition and the desire of 
 human applause,and help us to walk humbly with our God. 
 May those who are young, especially, learn to value 
 everything according to its tendency to make them just 
 and pure and good. May they become truly wise through 
 the teaching of thine Holy Spirit. 
 
 Let us not be off our guard this day. Suffer us to run 
 into no sin, but keep us in all our ways. May we be in 
 the fear of the Lord all the day long, and may the remem- 
 brance of thy presence be our strength. Graciously for- 
 give all our sins, and preserve us by thy mighty power 
 through faith unto salvation, through Jesus Christ our 
 Lord. Amen. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 394 
 
SEVEN. — (MORNING PRAYER.) 
 
 OLORD our God, we desire, on this morning of a new 
 day, to present ourselves before thee, and to bless thee 
 for thy continued goodness. We are again reminded of 
 our manifold obligations unto thee, and of the strong 
 claims which thou hast upon our gratitude, our love and 
 our obedience. We adore thee as the maker of all things, 
 as the righteous governor of the universe, as the God of 
 grace and of salvation. And we pray that we may each of 
 us have a personal interest in the blessings of this salva- 
 tion, and find it to be light and life to our souls. May 
 each of us be enabled this day, and through the whole 
 world of our life, to live as it becomes those whom God 
 hath delivered from the power of darkness, and hath trans- 
 lated into the kingdom of his dear Son. 
 
 O Lord, let thy kingdom come, and let thy will be 
 done in earth as it is in heaven. Hasten the glory of the 
 latter day, even the day when the earth shall be full of 
 the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. 
 And as thou hast promised that Christ shall have the 
 heathen for his inheritance, and the uttermost parts of 
 the earth for his possessions, O let this promise be speedily 
 accomplished, and let Christ be acknowledged in all lands, 
 when all nations, drawing water with joy out of the wells 
 of salvation, shall say, "Praise the Lord, call upon his 
 name, declare his doings among the people." We ask all 
 in the name and for the sake of Christ. And unto the 
 Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, one God, we as- 
 cribe all praise and glory. Amen. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 395 
 
EIGHT.— (MORNING PRAYER.) 
 
 OLORD, our heavenly Father, accept our morning sacri- 
 fice of praise and thanksgiving for the protection of 
 the night, and for the early blessings of this day. To 
 thee we owe all that we have and are. May the apprecia- 
 tion of thy goodness so grow upon us that we may love 
 thee more and serve thee better. 
 
 As day shall be added to day, may we become more 
 obedient to thy will and more earnest and self-forgetful 
 in thy work. Let nothing separate us from the love of 
 God that is in Christ Jesus, and finding our happiness in 
 doing his will, may we secure his favor. May we lay 
 aside every weight and the sin which doth so easily beset, 
 to run with patience the race that is set before us, looking 
 unto Jesus, the author and'finisher of our faith, who for the 
 joy that was set before him, endured the cross, despising 
 the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne 
 of God. 
 
 And as thou hast promised to give the Holy Spirit to 
 them that ask, we humbly pray for this gift, that we may 
 be kept from carelessness and hardness of heart, from 
 fretfulness and impatience, from vanity and pride, from 
 self-seeking and covetousness, from the unhappy desire of 
 becoming great, from repining at thy dispensation, and 
 from neglecting thy warning. 
 
 And as thou dost take from us these, will thou grant 
 unto us such love and joy, and peace and long-suftering, 
 such gentleness and goodness, faith, meekness and tem- 
 perance, that we may daily crucify the flesh with its affec- 
 tions and lusts. And this we ask not for our own merits, 
 but for the sake of him who hath loved us and died for 
 us, thy Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ. 
 
 Be thou, O God, our protection, and watch over our 
 paths with guiding love, that among the snares which lie 
 hidden in our paths, we may so pass onward with hearts 
 fixed on thee, that we may come to thee and be forever 
 with thee. We ask it for Jesus Christ's sake. Amen. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 396 
 
NINE. — (MORNING PRAYER.) 
 
 ALMIGHTY GOD, the Creator and Preserver of man- 
 kind, unto whom we come as our Father in Jesus Christ 
 our Lord, we do most humbly and heartily thank thee for 
 the mercies of the night, and for the blessing of this morn- 
 ing. We bless thee for the sleep which has refreshed us, 
 and for the bread which thou hast given us. As thou 
 didst watch over us in the darkness, watch over us through 
 the day. Teach us by thy good word, and by thy Holy Spir- 
 it. Keep our feet in the way of salvation. Protect us from 
 temptation, and strengthen us by thy grace. Take away 
 from us all bitterness of temper, and preserve us from sin. 
 
 Grant each of us courage, faith, patience in trial, and 
 loving submission to thy most holy will. Help us to 
 be faithful in all our work, and to look to thee for our 
 reward. Abide with us in joy and in sorrow, in prosper- 
 ity and in adversity. Grant us quiet hearts amid the uncer- 
 tainties of the day, and breathe upon us thy peace. Abide 
 in our home, and make us all the children of thy house- 
 hold. The sick we commend unto thee, praying for their 
 recovery, if it please thee; and beseeching thee that thou 
 wilt give unto them and unto us all, the good and glad 
 hope of everlasting life through our Lord Jesus Christ. 
 
 Hear thou, O God, the cry of the poor and the needy, 
 and suffer us not to harden our hearts against them. 
 Come near to all whose hearts are heavy and sore, and 
 give them thy help in all their trials. Reveal thyself to 
 all men, and hasten the days of universal righteausness 
 and peace. Grant us thy forgiveness, for our sins are 
 many ; grant us thy strength, for we are very weak ; increase 
 our faith in thee, for our fears oppress us; and fill us with 
 the joy of thy salvation; all of which we humbly ask in 
 the name and through the merits of Jesus Christ our Lord, 
 who hath taught us to pray, saying: 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 397 
 
TEN.— (MORNING PRAYER.) 
 
 OLORD, our heavenly Father, we thank thee for the 
 light of another morning. This day thou hast spared 
 us, and we would give this day to thee. In all our em- 
 ployments may we seek thy favor. May we be watchful 
 for opportunities to serve thee, especially in those things 
 which belong to thy kingdom and the salvation of souls. 
 May we be true laborers in thy harvest, and each in his 
 place make full proof of our ministry and the power of 
 grace in our own souls. 
 
 Make us ever truly humble before thee. May we never 
 be high-minded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in thee 
 the living God, who givest us richly all things to enjoy. 
 May we remember that thou, the Father of mercies, art 
 the sole author of all our privileges and blessings, and that 
 to thee we must render a strict account of the use we 
 make of them. 
 
 And to thy hands do we now commit ourselves, and all 
 of our affairs, beseeching thee so to bless, direct and guide 
 us, that we may pass this and each succeeding day of our 
 lives, confident of thine approval and of thy acceptance 
 at the last day; through the merits and mediation of our 
 Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. 
 
 Almighty God, whose kingdom is everlasting and power 
 infinite, have mercy upon this whole land ; and so rule 
 the hearts of thy servants, the President of the United 
 States, the Governor of this State, and all others in au- 
 thority, that they, knowing whose ministers they are, may 
 above all things seek thine honor and glory; and that we 
 and all the people, duly considering whose authority they 
 bear, may faithfully and obediently honor them: in thee, 
 and for thee, according to thy blessed Word and ordinance ; 
 through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with thee and the 
 Holy Ghost liveth and reigneth, ever one God, world 
 without end. Amen. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 398 
 
ELEVEN. — (MORNING OR EVENING.) 
 
 LORD, teach us to pray. We know not how to pray as 
 we ought; but it is written, "The Spirit helpeth our 
 infirmities." O send forth thy light and thy truth; let 
 them lead and guide us. Lord, we confess our sinfulness, 
 that our hearts are depraved, and our lives unholy ; and 
 especially do we humble ourselves for the sins of thy peo- 
 ple. O may the record of their history, mercifully pre- 
 served in the Scriptures, be profitable to us. Help us to 
 discover the beginnings of sin in them, and to avoid the 
 same. May we be alarmed by the awful consequences to 
 which their sins exposed themselves and others, and not 
 therein follow their example. 
 
 While we behold thy readiness to forgive, may we be 
 induced to come to thee with our confessions and prayers. 
 While we see that thy good Spirit was not withheld, not- 
 withstanding their rebellions, may we be encouraged to 
 seek this precious gift. And O suffer us not to rest short 
 of the sure and certain consciousness that he abideth in us. 
 May we not grieve him by our sins, nor quench him by 
 our neglect. May we enjoy the communion of the Spirit. 
 May our souls be filled with his light, quickened by his 
 power, and comforted by his grace. By his agency may 
 we be qualified for our duty, and made faithful and success- 
 ful in it. 
 
 Do thou control every thought, and direct every action. 
 In the family, may we cultivate the graces that adorn it 
 in all kindness, and condescension, and love. And in 
 our intercourse with the world, forbid, Lord, that we should 
 ever give occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully. 
 May the fruit of the Spirit abound in us and others, even 
 love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, 
 faith, meekness, temperance. ^Ve are thine, O Lord. 
 We acknowledge thy claim upon us. In Jesus we devote 
 ourselves to thee. And do thou accent of us for the Re- 
 deemer's sake. Amen. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 399 
 
TWELVE. — (MORNING PRAYER.) 
 
 FATHER in heaven, hear us through Jesus Christ, thy 
 well-beloved Son, our Lord ; and accept our thanks for 
 thy protection of us during the night and for thy favor 
 this morning. We thank thee for refreshing sleep; for 
 the new day ; for the comforts of our home ; for food and 
 raiment; for all our kindred whom w.e love; for the help 
 and sympathy of our friends; and for all which thou dost 
 make us able to do in aiding the needy. 
 
 We pray thee to fit us to use our time, our possessions 
 and all our powers and opportunities for the good of others, 
 and for our own improvement, that we may serve thee well 
 in our several places and employments. Guard us from 
 danger. Make us prosperous and fruitful in the work of 
 our hands and the care of our hearts. 
 
 We have hitherto experienced thy divine goodness; may 
 it continue to bless us. Thy forbearance with us has been 
 wonderful ; oh, may it never fail us. Let thy loving kind- 
 ness crown our days. For the sake of our Redeemer, 
 forgive our sins, which we confess before thee ; and may 
 his blood cleanse us from all sin. May the Holy Spirit so 
 renew and sanctify us that we may walk in the way of thy 
 commandments with joy. Let the words of Christ dwell 
 in us richly, and the perfection of his life and character 
 become more and more our own through the supply of his 
 grace. Oh that obedience, prayerfulness, compassion and 
 kindness like his may ever appear in our spirit and con- 
 duct. 
 
 Show thy mercy, O God, to all penitent souls. Make 
 transgressors obedient to thy law. Bless our rulers. 
 Relieve all who are in distress; heal the sick; comfort 
 the sorrowful; cheer the faint; save the lost. Give light 
 and life to thy church. Spread the gospel far and wide. 
 Hasten the coming of that kingdom which is righteousness 
 and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost. And thine be the 
 glory for ever. Amen. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 400 
 
THIRTEEN.— (MORNING OR EVENING.) 
 
 ALMIGHTY GOD, our heavenly Father, we render thee 
 most hearty thanks for the spiritual and heavenly 
 nourishment of thy blessed word, wherewith our souls are 
 constantly refreshed, our faith strengthened, our love 
 kindled, our hope renewed. We humbly beseech thee to 
 give us grace, not only to be hearers of thy word, but 
 doers of the same; not only to love, but also to live thy 
 gospel; not only to favor, but also to follow thy godly 
 doctrine; not only to profess, but also to practise thy 
 blessed commandments; that whatever of thy truth we 
 outwardly hear and inwardly believe, we may show 
 forth the same in our conversation and Hviqg, unto the 
 honor of thy holy name, the comfort and help of our 
 Christian brethren, the health and welfare of our souls. 
 We ask it in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 FOURTEEN. — (MORNING OR EVENING.) 
 
 ALMIGHTY GOD, who art the fountain of holiness 
 and felicity, who by thy word and Spirit dost conduct 
 thy servants in the ways of sanctity and of peace, instruct- 
 ing them by thy truth, inviting them by promises, and 
 winning them by love, grant unto us so truly to repent 
 of our sins, so carefully to avoid our errors, so diligently 
 to watch over all our own actions, so industriously to do 
 our duty, that we may never willingly transgress thy laws; 
 but that it may be the work of our life to obey thee, the 
 joy of our souls to please thee, the satisfaction of all our 
 hopes, and the perfection of our desires, to live with thee 
 in the holiness of thy kingdom of grace and glory; through 
 Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 26 401 
 
FIFTEEN. — (MORNING OR EVENING.) 
 
 MOST merciful God, who art of purer eyes than to 
 behold iniquity, and hast promised forgiveness to all 
 those who confess and forsake their sins; we come before 
 thee in an humble sense of our own unworthiness, ac- 
 knowledging our manifold transgressions of thy righteous 
 laws. O gracious Father, who desirest not the death of 
 a sinner, look upon us, we beseeph thee, in mercy, and 
 forgive us all our transgressions. Make us deeply sensi- 
 ble of the great evil of them ; and work in us a hearty con- 
 trition; that we may obtain forgiveness at thy hands, who 
 art ever ready to receive humble and penitent sinners; for 
 the sake of thy Son our Saviour. 
 
 And lest, through our own frailty, or the temptations 
 which encompass us, we be drawn again into sin, vouch- 
 safe us, we beseech thee, the direction and assistance of 
 thy Holy Spirit. Reform whatever is amiss in the temper 
 and disposition of our souls; that no unclean thoughts, 
 unlawful designs, or inordinate desires may rest there. 
 May we seek those things which are above, where Christ 
 sitteth on the right hand of God. And may our life be 
 so hid with Christ in God now, that when he, who is our 
 life, shall appear, we may also appear with him in glory. 
 
 Extend, we beseech thee, the arms of thy compassion 
 beyond the bounds of our own habitations. Send down thy 
 blessings, temporal and spiritual, upon our relations, 
 friends, and neighbors. Reward all who have done us 
 good, and pardon all those who have done or wish us evil, 
 and give them repentance and better minds. Be merciful 
 to all who are in any trouble; and do thou, the God of 
 pity, administer to them according to their several necessi- 
 ties; for his sake who went about doing good, thy Son our 
 Saviour Jesus Christ. 
 
 O most loving Jesus, pattern of charity, grant that the 
 grace of charity and brotherly love may dwell in us, and 
 that all envy, harshness, and ill-will may die in us; fill 
 our hearts with such kindness that by constantly rejoicing 
 in the happiness and good success of others, and by putting 
 away all envious thoughts we may follow thee, who art 
 thyself the true and perfect Love. Amen. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 402 
 
SIXTEEN. — (MORNING PRAYER.) 
 
 MOST blessed heavenly Father, we thy dependent creat- 
 ures desire this morning to draw near the footstool of 
 thy throne. Vouchsafe us, we entreat thee, thy presence. 
 We would enter on all our duties supplicating thy favor, 
 feeling that all the happiness the world can give cannot 
 compensate for the want of thy blessing. 
 
 We would look away from ourselves unto him who is 
 our only Redeemer. We cast ourselves at his feet, feeling 
 that if we are saved it must be b)' him alone. O may we 
 feel it our greatest honor to live for Jesus. Let us seek, 
 as thy stewards, to fill our place, whatever it may be; to 
 " adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour" just in the sta- 
 tion in which his providence has placed us — feeling the 
 happiness of an active and devoted obedience. Take away 
 from us whatever is unholy. Let us walk as the expec- 
 tants of a glorious immortality. May we feel that we 
 are pilgrims, soon to be done with the world, and at home 
 with God. O be thou our constant guide in all our jour- 
 neyings. Let us never hesitate when and where thou 
 callest us. Make us to feel that all the circumstances of 
 life — its joys and its sorrows — its comforts and crosses — 
 are arranged by thee and ordained for us in adorable 
 mercy and ineffable wisdom. Bless all near and dear to 
 us. Defend our friends by thy mighty power. Surround 
 them with thy favor and bring them at last to the enjoy- 
 ment of thyself. Bless especially those now before thee. 
 We commend each and all of us this day to thy keeping. 
 Let us enter upon its duties with our souls stayed on thee, 
 and seek to show the world that we have been with thee, and 
 that thou art a present help in every time of need. We ask 
 these blessings in the name and for the sake of the Lord 
 Jesus. Amen. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 403 
 
SEVENTEEN.— (MORNING PRAYER.) 
 
 OUR FATHER who art in heaven, for thy mercy in 
 guarding us during the past night, and in granting us 
 the light of a new day we thank thee. Thou didst not 
 allow fire to consume our dwelling, nor disease to attack 
 suddenly any of its inmates, nor death to snatch us un- 
 prepared from time to eternity. And now, thou art con- 
 tinuing to us not only life, and health, but those reasoning 
 and moral faculties by which we may apprehend thee as 
 the Creator of our souls and the providential ruler over 
 all the events of our earthly existence. Help us by the 
 instruction of thy word and Spirit thus to recognize thee 
 more and more as the source of all our daily joys as well 
 as the fountain of unceasing and everlasting spiritual 
 blessings. We are unworthy of all these high favors. 
 
 Grant us grace, we do beseech thee, in the name of thine 
 only begotten and well-beloved Son, for whose sake thou 
 art always willing to hear our prayers, to realize more 
 deeply our unworthiness in contrast with thine own loving 
 kindness and tender compassion ; and therefore to approach 
 thee with an ever increasing sense of gratitude and love. 
 
 Unto whom can we come, O Lord, for guidance as 
 well as thanksgiving, save unto thee who hast been our 
 shield against the dangers, and our strength against the 
 temptations of the past? May we accept the benefits of 
 the past as pledges of what thou art willing to do for us 
 to-day and in the future. 
 
 For Jesus' sake inspire us with a child-like trust. 
 Teach us by thy gracious spirit to be docile, humble, con- 
 tented, confident in thy truth and unfalteringly restful in 
 thy promises. 
 
 Forgive us our sins; implant within our souls such right 
 principles and pure motives that we shall be led to refrain 
 day by day from trnasgression and its consequent miseries. 
 
 Prepare us to discharge the duties and to enjoy the 
 privileges of this day. Direct us to find our highest hap- 
 piness in thoughts of thee, and of what thou hast done for 
 us by sending Christ as a prophet to instruct us in our 
 ignorance, as a priest to atone on the cross for us in our 
 sinfulness and as a king to reign over us, defending us 
 
 404 
 
MORNING PRAYER. 405 
 
 from evil impulses that rise within, and from the assaults 
 and deceitful solicitations that spring from Satan without. 
 
 Let our hopes and our yearnings reach out toward Christ 
 as our ever perfect and ever blessed model. May the 
 same mind that was in Jesus be in us. Let Christ be 
 formed within us, the hope of glory. Remind us often, 
 O Lord, of the words uttered by Jesus, and of the graces 
 exemplified in his conduct and character. Help us to 
 imitate him and to grow ever more like him in all heavenly 
 qualities. Thus shall we be fitted to bear all afflictions', 
 and to resist all temptations. And thine, O God, shall be 
 all the glory through Jesus thy Son, our elder Brother 
 and Redeemer. Amen. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 EIGHTEEN. — (MORNING PRAYER.) 
 
 OUR HEAVENLY FATHER, in thine infinite goodness 
 we are permitted to come to thee again this morning. 
 
 We give thee hearty thanks for the mercies of the past 
 night. Thine angels have camped about our dwelling, 
 though we have not seen them. We have dwelt in safety, 
 because thou, Lord, hast kept us. Receive our thanks- 
 giving for thy providence that has watched while we have 
 slept. And now, let thy loving kindness be our portion 
 this day. We come to thee that we may be fitted for our 
 duties. We have no wisdom or strength of our own. We 
 easily go astray. Do thou graciously shepherd us this 
 day. Open for us the green pastures of thy grace. If any 
 perils await us grant us thy deliverance. ' Shield us from 
 sin. Give us victory over temptation. Make us faithful 
 in our work. May we serve and endure as seeing him who 
 is invisible. 
 
 Bless every member of this family. Bind us close in 
 thy love. Make us helpful to one another and to all who 
 are around us. In thy mercy remember all who may need 
 thy special grace this day. Comfort the afflicted and sus- 
 tain the burdened and rescue the fallen. May thy king- 
 dom come and thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven; 
 and thine shall be the praise through Jesus Christ, our 
 Redeemer. Amen. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
NINETEEN.— (MORNINCi PRAYER.) 
 
 WE thank thee, our Father in heaven, for the light of 
 this new day. The night is thy gift, and so is 
 the day. We have had rest and food for our bodies, and 
 now we humbly pray for spiritual renewal and strength. 
 O how rich is the privilege of meeting thee at the 
 family altar! Here give us, we beseech thee, O Lord, 
 the kindling fire which comes from on high, so that when 
 we enter into the employments of the day, we may be 
 conscious that the Holy Spirit is with us and that he is 
 able and willing to help us. Give us courage and wisdom 
 to honor thee in all things, so that " whether we eat or 
 drink, or whatsoever we do, we may do all to the glory 
 of (jod." 
 
 Bestow upon us, we pray, an increasing sense of our 
 need of thee and an increasing sense of our ability, 
 if we have thy grace, to reveal thy spirit and honor 
 thee in all the duties to which thou dost call us. We 
 render thee thanks for all thy temporal gifts. So many 
 are the mercy drops, that, blended together, we are carried 
 forward on their strong current. May we not simply 
 rejoice and be glad for them, but may we be thankful in 
 heart and have grace to live our thankfulness day by day! 
 
 Above all, we thank thee for Jesus Christ our Saviour. 
 Help us to trust in him. May we open the door that he 
 may come in and abide with us! . . . . Help us, O 
 Lord, our Redeemer, to meet the temptations and trials 
 and sorrows of this day and of every day with calm and 
 cheerful fortitude, and may we always " endure as seeing 
 him who is invisible!" Send forth thy light, Sun of 
 Righteousness, into all the earth! May the day soon 
 dawn when the whole earth shall rejoice in thy salvation! 
 Forgive our sins; bless our loved ones; renew thy Church, 
 and bestow upon thy chosen a precious baptism of the 
 Holy Spirit.. We ask in Christ's name and for Christ's 
 sake. Amen. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 406 
 
TWENTY.— (MORNING PRAYER. ) 
 
 MOST gracious Lord and Father, we come before thee 
 this morning to thank thee for thy tender care 
 throughout the night. Thou hast given us quiet sleep 
 and refreshing slumber. Thou hast let no danger come 
 nigh us, and hast brought us, with renewed strength and 
 vigor, to see the light of another morning. We ask thy 
 guidance for this day; keep our steps from stumbling and 
 our feet from falling. Go with us to our business, and 
 let thy presence abide with us and thy wisdom guide us 
 in all our transactions. 
 
 Stay in our home, and let thy loving kindness be round 
 about us, helping us perform our duties faithfully. Keep 
 our thoughts pure, our tempers serene, our hearts holy. 
 Keep us from disaster, and at last bring us, an undivided 
 family, to our eternal and heavenly home, where we may 
 worship and glorify thee forever. Amen. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 TWENTY-ONE. — (EVENING PRAYER.) 
 
 OLORD, our heavenly Father, look down in mercy upon 
 this family, and bless us and keep us from harm. 
 May we remember thee as we lay ourselves down to sleep, 
 and think of thee in the night watches. When it is dark 
 about us, thine eye seest us, for the light and the darkness 
 are both alike to thee, and there is nothing hid from thy 
 all-searching eyes. May we remember this, O Lord, and 
 thus be prevented from sin. 
 
 And when the night of death has come, and our eyes 
 closed forever to the light of the sun, may we be gathered 
 to the rest and the rewards of the many mansions in the 
 skies, and worship thee in the temple where there is no 
 need of the light of the sun, and where our Lord and 
 Saviour is the light thereof; for his Name's sake. Amen. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 407 
 
TWENTY-TWO.— (MORNING PRAYER.) 
 
 ALMIGHTY GOD, we enter on the duties of this day 
 imploring thy favor and blessing. We leave all our 
 affairs in thy fatherly hand. Thou sendest both prosperity 
 and adversity; thou makest poor and makest rich. Let 
 thy will rule all things for us, and give us what thou seest 
 best for our welfare. We seek not great things for our- 
 selves in this world, but rather choose that good part w4iich 
 shall never be taken from us. 
 
 Give us, O Lord, this day not to please ourselves, but 
 thee, the living God, who givest us richly all things to 
 enjoy. May no discontent or pride or envy lurk in our 
 hearts. May no disparagement or ill-will pass our lips. 
 May no unseemly lightness, fear or idleness mark our con- 
 duct. But in all things may we live as becomes our pro- 
 fession, and as those purchased by the precious blood Qf 
 Jesus Christ. 
 
 May it please thee to give us the constant assistance of 
 thy Holy Spirit to guide us in our ways; and by his blessed 
 influence may we be enabled to love thee above all things, 
 and to love our neighbors as ourselves. 
 
 Finally, grant to every member of this family, and to 
 all our friends wherever they may be, thy peace and 
 heavenly consolations. Make us to be of one heart and 
 mind, loving and serving thee on earth, and becoming day 
 by day better prepared for that eternal kingdom which 
 thou hast promised to thy faithful servants by and through 
 thy Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ. 
 
 Almighty and everlasting God, who, of thy tender love 
 towards mankind, hast sent thy Son, our Saviour Jesus 
 Christ, to take upon him our flesh, and to suffer death 
 upon the Cross, that all mankind should follow the exam- 
 ple of his great humility; mercifully grant that we may 
 both follow the example of his patience, and also be made 
 partakers of his resurrection; through the same Jesus 
 Christ our Lord. Amen. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 408 
 
TWENTY-THREE.— (SUNDAY MORNING.) 
 
 OUR HEAVENLY FATHER,this is the day which thou 
 hast made holy ; we will rejoice and be glad in it. 
 Draw thou near to us and help us to draw near to thee. 
 May we walk all the day under the sunshine of thy 
 gracious countenance. Whom have we in the heavens, 
 O God, but thee; and there is none in all the earth that 
 our souls would desire besides thee. . We draw near to 
 thy footstool, under a deep sense of our unworthiness. We 
 acknowledge the depravity and corruption of our nature; 
 the sins and shortcomings of our practice. We bring 
 our guilt to the great propitiation, even Jesus Christ. 
 
 Blessed Saviour! give to us a sense of pardon. May 
 we see this day thy glory, as we have seen thee heretofore 
 within thy holy temple. May every temporal mercy 
 which gladdens our lot be sweetened and hallowed, and 
 endeared by the thought that it comes to us through 
 Christ. May blessings and trials, comforts and crosses, 
 health and sickness, joy and sorrow, bring us only nearer 
 to thee, and redound to the glory of thy great name. 
 
 Subdue whatever is inconsistent with thy mind and 
 will. May our hearts become holy temples, and our lives 
 living sacrifices. Fit us for thy glory. Let our eye be 
 ever heavenward. Let religion become more "the one 
 thing needful." May we grow more meek and child-like 
 in submission to our heavenly Father's will. Breathing 
 a perpetual Sabbath-spirit on earth, may we be fitted for 
 that rest which shall never be broken, which awaits us in 
 the kingdom of the redeemed. 
 
 We pray for all who are to minister to us this day, and 
 may every good impression on the minds of those who 
 hear the gospel to-day, be rendered permanent and saving. 
 Bless us, even us, O God, who are now surrounding thy 
 footstool. As thou hast knitted us together in the same 
 earthly ties, do thou unite us in the better bonds of the 
 everlasting covenant. Make us all partakers of the re- 
 surrection-life of thy people ; that though death may sooner 
 or later separate us here, we may meet at last where 
 separation is unknown. Through Jesus Christ. Amen. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 409 
 
TWENTY-FOUR. — (SUNDAY EVENING.) 
 
 MOST blessed Lord, we praise thee for all the manifes- 
 tations of thy character in thy works and thy ways; 
 but especially at the close of this day of rest, sacred to 
 the remembrance of a once crucified, but now risen 
 Saviour, we would extol thee. \\'e bless thee for the full 
 and free overtures of mercy which are addressed to us 
 through the divine Redeemer, and for all the benefits that 
 are treasured in him. Grant that we may never be moved 
 aside from the hope that is in Christ; that through the 
 blood of the covenant alone we may ever look for pardon, 
 and all needed spiritual blessings; that by faith in him 
 we may learn from this day to avoid those ways that are 
 evil, and to obey thy law: thus may we become compan- 
 ions of all them that fear thee. 
 
 And may the holy Book, that records the things that 
 belong to our peace, ever be prized by us as the charter 
 of our privileges, the storehouse of our treasures. May 
 we learn to make it the man of our counsel, the frequent 
 companion of our solitude, our guide in seasons of diffi- 
 culty, our refuge in danger, our comfort in affliction. 
 Lord God of the Sabbath, vouchsafe to us thy presence 
 and countenance on this evening of thy holy day. Let 
 this prove truly a season of rest and refreshment to each 
 one of us. Remember thy word of promise unto thy ser- 
 vants, that where two or three are met together in thy 
 name, there thou wilt be in the midst of them. 
 
 Give testimony to the word of thy grace wheresoever and 
 by whomsoever it may have been proclaimed this day, so 
 that many who have hitherto been living far from thee may 
 choose thee as their portion, and, with deep repentance, 
 entreat thy favor. May the sick and sorrowful know that 
 thou art with them, and in the issue learn thy loving 
 kindness from their affliction. Thou knowest what is 
 best for thy children far better than we know. May sick- 
 ness as well as health, adversity as well as prosperity, be 
 accepted by us as coming from thy loving hand. And 
 when the night of death closes round us, may we be ready 
 and waiting for thy summons to that better land above 
 where we shall meet our loved ones and our blessed Saviour. 
 All these things we ask, for Christ's sake. Ai?te?i. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
 410 
 
REV. THEODORE L. CUYLER, D.D. 
 
 TWENTY-FIVE. 
 
 SPECIAL PRAYER FOR SUNDAY MORNING. 
 
 INFINITE and loving Father, we lift our eyes unto the 
 hills from whence cometh all our help. For our only 
 help is in the name of the Lord who made the heavens and 
 the earth. We thank thee for thy guardian care over us 
 during the night. We thank thee that we have lain down 
 and slept in peace and safety, for the eye that never slum- 
 bers kept watch over us. We rejoice in the gift of another 
 Sabbath, and we pray, that we may all be " in the spirit on 
 the Lord's day." Enable us to lay aside all the thoughts 
 and the things of the world, and the toils and the cares 
 
 4" 
 
412 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 of the week that is past. Forgive us all the sins we have 
 committed; and grant thy blessing on all that we have 
 attempted to do for thy glory during the six days that have 
 gone with their account to heaven. This is thy day; 
 may we remember to keep it holy as the Sabbath of the 
 Lord our God. We rear our family-altar at the very 
 threshold of the day, and invoke thy gracious presence 
 with us through all its hours. We know not what the day 
 may bring forth ; we know not what temptations may assail 
 us, or what perils may be before us, or what trials may be 
 in store for us; but if thou, O loving Father, art close 
 beside us every moment, no temptation will overcome us, 
 and we shall be prepared to meet whatever thou in thy 
 wisdom shall send upon us. W^e need thee every hour; 
 for we are very weak and very wayward. O, pity our 
 weakness and send us strength. Pity our ignorance, and 
 send us light! Pity our guiltiness and pardon us for the 
 sake of him whose atoning blood cleanseth from all sin. 
 Search us, O God, and try us, and see what evil may be 
 in us, and now create a clean heart in every one of us. 
 
 As thou hast given us another Sabbath we pray thee to 
 bestow upon us a precious Sabbath blessing. Both in our 
 homes and in thy sanctuary, may it be a golden day of 
 prayer and of praise ; and while we rest from worldly toils, 
 may our souls be on fire with all holy activities in thy ser- 
 vice. Let us be like the children of Israel at Elim when 
 they gathered under the palm-trees and beside the over- 
 flowing wells of water. Send down upon us the heavenly 
 manna of thy word, and may it satisfy all the hunger of 
 our souls. May we feed upon this bread of life; may we 
 come as the hart that thirsteth after the water-brooks, 
 and draw with joy out of the wells of thy salvation. 
 
 If we go up to thy courts, wilt thou graciously go with 
 us; and help us to worship thee in sincerity and truth. 
 Let us enter thy gates with thanksgiving and thy courts 
 with joyful praise. We long to meet our beloved Mas- 
 ter there, and like the disciples on the mount may we 
 "see none but Jesus onlyV O, thou kind and tender 
 Shepherd who knowest all thy sheep by name, gather 
 thy flock to-day in the green pastures, and may each 
 one listen to the loving Shepherd's voice. O, thou 
 Divine Physician, there wiH be many before thee whose 
 
PR A YER FOR SUN DA Y MORNING 413 
 
 hearts are sick with sin, and wounded by many falls. Take 
 pity on them. Lift them up and set the fallen on their 
 feet again. Open blinded eyes and unstop deaf ears, and 
 wake those who are dead in trespasses and sin! Bless to- 
 day our own beloved pastor, and all thy ministering ser- 
 vants and thy missionaries in every clime. Baptize them 
 with the Holy Ghost and with fire! May they be fearless 
 for the truth, and may they all rejoice to hide self behind 
 the cross of Christ and direct all eyes to Hitn who taketh 
 away the sins of the world. Make this a day of glorious 
 power when every stroke that is struck for God shall echo 
 in heaven; and may there be great joy there over many 
 sinners who have repented. 
 
 We invoke thy blessing upon all Sabbath schools. In- 
 struct the teachers and make them wise to lead their 
 scholars unto Christ. Let every teacher be an armor- 
 bearer for the little ones who are to be equipped for the 
 coming battles of life. May this be a happy Sabbath in 
 every mission school and chapel and house of charity — 
 where Jesus shall lay his hand on the heads of poor children 
 to bless them — and in hospitals may he shed upon every 
 sufferer's couch the sunlight of his countenance. Re- 
 member tenderly all those who are to-day detained from 
 thy house by the privations of thy providence. As they 
 cannot come to the house of the Lord, may the Lord of 
 the house visit them, and put his everlasting arm under- 
 neath the sick and the sorrowing. Graciously bind up all 
 broken hearts, and pour the oil of thy love into wounded 
 spirits. Help them and help all of us to feel that this 
 world is not our rest; and may it be a training-school in 
 which we shall learn even hard lessons cheerfully, and 
 always see God's loving hand through eyes that are washed 
 with tears. Enable us to rejoice in the Lord always, and 
 in everything give thanks! 
 
 Come, Lord Jesus, and be our elder brother, and abide 
 here under our roof as thou didst with thy beloved friends 
 at Bethany. Give thyself to every one of us, so that we 
 all, parents and children, may be a part of thy glorified 
 household when thou shalt make up thy jewels. Listen 
 now, gracious Lord and Intercessor, as in thy name we 
 humbly pray. 
 
 Our Father, etc. 
 
COMMON FORMS FOR ORACE AT MEALS. 
 
 Our heavenly Father, sanctif}- to our use, we beseech 
 thee, these provisions of thy love, and us to thyself and 
 thy service. Amen. 
 
 Accept, O Lord, our grateful acknowledgments for the 
 mercies we are now about to receive. Teach us thy stat- 
 utes; and enable us, as we live by thy bounty, to acknowl- 
 edge thee in all things, and spend our lives in thanks- 
 giving and praise to thee. We ask for our Redeemer's 
 sake. Amen. 
 
 In thee, O Lord, we live, and move, and have our being. 
 Keep us ever mindful of our dependence upon, and our 
 obligations to thee. Do thou graciously forgive our sins, 
 and sanctify us by thy Spirit. Grant us also, now, a 
 Father's blessing with the bounty of thy providence; for 
 Christ's sake. Amen. 
 
 O LORD, our heavenly Father, we thank thee for these 
 renewed manifestations of thy love and bounty. Thou 
 art ever graciously supplying our daily needs. Do 
 thou also feed our souls with the bread of life; and 
 strengthen us that we may do thy holy will, through 
 Jesus Christ. A?nen. 
 
 O LORD, bless unto us these bounties which thou hast 
 graciously bestowed upon us, and sanctify ourselves to thy 
 service, that we may live for thee alone, through Jesus 
 Christ our Lord. Amen. 
 
 O LORD, the earth is full of thy riches, and of these 
 thou art constantly bestowing abundance upon us. Let 
 not thy bounteous fulness steal our hearts away from thee, 
 but sanctify unto us these and all other blessings, and let 
 us find acceptance in thy sight; for our Redeemer's sake. 
 Amen. 
 
 414 
 
COMMON FORMS FOR GRACE A T MEALS. 415 
 
 We accept, O Lord, these gifts as from thee who art 
 the giver of every good and perfect gift that descendeth 
 from above. Teach us, in receiving them, as we live upon 
 thy bounty so to live to thy glory. For Christ's sake. 
 A)ncii. 
 
 O LORD, our heavenly Father, thy mercies are new every 
 morning and fresh every evening. Give us hearts of 
 gratitude and praise for all thy blessings. Make us thy 
 children, devoted to thy praise; and letusfind acceptance 
 in thy sight, for our Redeemer's sake. Amen. 
 
 Bless, heavenly Father, this food to our use, and our- 
 selves to thy service; through Jesus Christ our Lord. 
 Amen. 
 
 Accept, Lord, our thanks for thy mercies. Kless this 
 provision of thy bounty. Feed our souls with the bread 
 of life; and grant that we may sit with thee at thy table 
 in thy kingdom ; for thine own Name's sake. Amen. 
 
 We give thee thanks, O God our Father, for all these 
 material bounties. Let our souls not want for the bread 
 of life, and teach us, in receiving both temporal and 
 spiritual mercies, to be ever mindful of thee, the giver of 
 all good; for our Redeemer's sake. Amen. 
 
 Lord, we bless thee for these provisions of thy grace. 
 May our hearts go out in thanksgiving and praise for all 
 thy mercies. May we hunger and thirst after righteous- 
 ness, that our souls may be filled, and we be enabled to 
 glorify thee in our lives here and hereafter ; and thou shalt 
 have all the praise, now and forever. Amen. 
 
THE LORDS PRAYER. 
 
 (all may unite in this prayer, as an 
 occasional fitting close at family worship.) 
 
 U R Father, who art in 
 heaven, hallowed be thy 
 name. Thy kingdom 
 come. Thy will be 
 done in earth, as it is 
 in heaven. Give us 
 is day our daily bread. 
 And forgive us our tres- 
 passes, as we forgive them that 
 trespass against us. And lead us 
 not into temptation, but deliver us 
 from evil : For thine is the king- 
 dom, and the power, and the glory, 
 for ever and ever. Amen. 
 
 416 
 

 Date Due 
 
 
 iv ,, 
 
 
 
 , 
 
 fii %a '44 
 
 
 
 
 vi 
 
 
 
 
 
 ;- 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 1 •" 
 
 
 
 
 Ap 9 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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