,,all ,,saints' ,,day ,,and ,,other     
,,sermons           ,inheriting the zeal
 ,and from the sanctity of elder times  
,not deviating2--a priest1 the like of  
whom ,if multiplied1 and in their       
stations set1 ,would o'er the bosom of a
 joyful land ,spread true religion1 and 
her genuine fruits4 ,the                
excursion--,book vi4    ,,prefatory     
,,note #a    ,the following ,sermons    
could not be arranged according to any  
proper sequence4  ,those1 however1 which
 refer to doctrine and the ,church      
,seasons will mostly be found at the    
beginning of the volume1 whilst those   
which deal with practical subjects are  
placed at the close4  ,a few of the     
,sermons have already appeared in ,good 
,words2 but by far the greater number   
were never prepared by their author for 
the press4 ,they were written out very  
roughly--sometimes at an hour's notice1 
as occasion demanded--and were only     
intended for delivery from the pulpit4  
,the original ,,mss4 have been adhered  

to as closely as possible4  ,it is      
thought that many to whom the late      
,rector of ,eversley was dear will      
welcome the publication of these earnest
 words1 and find them helpful in the    
,christian life4  ,blessed are the dead 
which die in the ,lord from henceforth3 
,yea1 saith the ,spirit1 that they may  
rest from their labours2 and their works
 do follow them4    ,,sermon ,i4  ,,all 
,,saints' ,,day    ,westminster ,abbey4 
,november #a1 #ahgd4  ,revelation vii4  
#i-ab4  ,after this ,i beheld1 and1 lo1 
a great multitude1 which no man could   
number1 of all nations1 and kindreds1   
and people1 and tongues1 stood before   
the throne1 and before the ,lamb1       
clothed with white robes1 and palms in  
their hands2 and cried with a loud      
voice1 saying1 ,salvation to our ,god   
which sitteth upon the throne1 and unto 
the ,lamb4 ,and all the angels stood    
round about the throne1 and about the   
elders and the four beasts1 and fell    
before the throne on their faces1 and   

worshipped ,god1 saying1 ,amen3         
,blessing1 and glory1 and wisdom1 and   
thanksgiving1 and honour1 and power1 and
 might1 be unto our ,god for ever and   
ever4  ,amen4  ,to-day is ,all ,saints' 
,day4  ,on this day we commemorate--and1
 as far as our dull minds will let us1  
contemplate--the saints2 the holy ones  
of ,god2 the pure and the triumphant--be
 they who they may1 or whence they may1 
or where they may4  ,we are not bidden  
to define and limit their number4  ,we  
are expressly told that they are a great
 multitude1 which no man could number1  
of all nations1 and kindreds1 and       
peoples1 and tongues2 and most blessed  
news that is for all who love ,god and  
man4  ,we are not told1 again--and ,i   
beg you all to mark this well--that this
 great multitude consists merely of     
those who1 according to the popular     
notion1 have gone to heaven1 as it is   
called1 simply because they have not    
gone to hell4  ,not so1 not so6  ,the   
great multitude whom we commemorate on  

,all ,saints' ,day1 are ,,saints4  ,they
 are the holy ones1 the heroes and      
heroines of mankind1 the elect1 the     
aristocracy of grace4  ,these are they  
who have kept themselves unspotted from 
the world4  ,they are the pure who have 
washed their robes1 and made them white 
in the blood of the ,lamb1 which is the 
spirit of self-sacrifice4  ,they are    
those who carry the palm- branch of     
triumph1 who have come out of great     
tribulation1 who have dared1 and fought1
 and suffered for ,god1 and truth1 and  
right4  ,nay1 there are those among     
them1 and many1 thank ,god--weak women1 
too1 among them--who have resisted unto 
blood1 striving against sin4  ,and who  
are easy-going folk like you and me1    
that we should arrogate to ourselves a  
place in that grand company8  ,not so6  
,what we should do on ,all ,saints' ,day
 is to place ourselves1 with all        
humility1 if but for an hour1 where we  
can look afar off upon our betters1 and 
see what they are like1 and what they   

do4  ,and what are they like1 those     
blessed beings of whom the text speaks8 
,the ,gospel for this day describes them
 to us2 and we may look on that         
description as complete1 for ,he who    
gives it is none other than our ,lord   
,himself4  ,blessed are the poor in     
spirit2 for their's is the kingdom of   
heaven4  ,blessed are they that mourn3  
for they shall be comforted4 ,blessed   
are the meek3  for they shall inherit   
the earth4  ,blessed are they who hunger
 and thirst after righteousness3  for   
they shall be filled4  ,blessed are the 
merciful3  for they shall obtain mercy4 
,blessed are the pure in heart3  for    
they shall see ,god4  ,blessed are the  
peace- makers3  for they shall be called
 the children of ,god4  ,blessed are    
they which are persecuted for           
righteousness' sake3  for their's is the
 kingdom of heaven4  ,blessed are ye1   
when men shall revile you1 and persecute
 you1 and shall say all manner of evil  
against you falsely1 for my sake4       

,rejoice1 and be exceeding glad3  for   
great is your reward in heaven4  ,this  
is what they are like2 and what we1 ,i  
fear1 too many of us1 are not like4     
,but in proportion as we grow like them1
 by the grace of ,god1 just so far shall
 we enter into the communion of saints1 
and understand the bliss of that        
everlasting ,all ,saints' ,day which ,st
 ,john saw in heaven4  ,and what do they
 do1 those blessed beings8  ,whatever   
else they do1 or do not do1 this we are 
told they do--they worship4  ,they      
satisfy1 it would seem1 in perfection1  
that mysterious instinct of             
devotion--that inborn craving to look   
upward and adore1 which1 let false      
philosophy say what it will1 proves the 
most benighted idolater to be a man1 and
 not a brute--a spirit1 and not a merely
 natural thing4  ,they have worshipped1 
and so are blest4  ,they have hungered  
and thirsted after righteousness1 and   
now they are filled4  ,they have longed 
for1 toiled for1 it may be died for1 the

 true1 the beautiful1 and the good2 and 
now they can gaze upward at the perfect 
reality of that which they saw on earth1
 only as in a glass darkly1 dimly1 and  
afar2 and can contemplate the utterly   
free1 the utterly beautiful1 and the    
utterly good in the character of ,god   
and the face of ,jesus ,christ4  ,they  
entered while on earth into the mystery 
and the glory of self-sacrifice2 and now
 they find their bliss in gazing on the 
one perfect and eternal sacrifice1 and  
rejoicing in the thought that it is the 
cause and ground of the whole universe1 
even the ,lamb slain before the         
foundation of the world4  ,i say not    
that all things are clear to them4  ,how
 can they be to any finite and created  
being8  ,they1 and indeed angels and    
archangels1 must walk for ever by faith1
 and not by sight4  ,but if there be    
mysteries in the universe still hidden  
from them1 they know who has opened the 
sealed book of ,god's secret counsels1  
even the ,lamb who is the ,lion1 and the

 ,lion who is the ,lamb2 and therefore1 
if all things are not clear to them1 all
 things at least are bright1 for they   
can trust that ,lamb and ,his           
self-sacrifice4  ,in ,him1 and through  
,him1 light will conquer darkness1      
justice injustice1 truth ignorance1     
order disorder1 love hate1 till ,god be 
all in all1 and pain and sorrow and evil
 shall have been exterminated out of a  
world for which ,christ stooped to die4 
,therefore they worship2 and the very   
act of worship--understand it well--is  
that great reward in heaven which our   
,lord promised them4  ,adoration is     
their very bliss and life4  ,it must be 
so4  ,for what keener1 what nobler      
enjoyment for rational and moral beings1
 than satisfaction with1 and admiration 
of1 a ,being better than themselves8    
,therefore they worship2 and their      
worship finds a natural vent in words   
most fit though few1 but all expressing 
utter trust and utter satisfaction in   
the worthiness of ,god4  ,therefore they

 worship2 and by worship enter into     
communion and harmony not only with each
 other1 not only with angels and        
archangels1 but with all the powers of  
nature1 the four beings which are around
 the throne1 and with every creature    
which is in heaven and in earth1 and    
under the earth1 and in the sea4  ,for  
them1 likewise1 ,st ,john heard saying1 
,blessing and glory1 and honour1 and    
power1 be unto ,him that sitteth on the 
throne1 and to the ,lamb for ever and   
ever4  ,and why8  ,i think1 with all    
humility1 that the key to all these     
hymns-- whether of angels or of men1 or 
of mere natural things--is the first    
hymn of all2 the hymn which shows that1 
however grateful to ,god for what ,he   
has done for them those are whom the    
,lamb has redeemed by ,his blood to     
,god1 out of every kindred1 and nation1 
and tongue2 yet1 nevertheless1 the hymn 
of hymns is that which speaks not of    
gratitude1 but of absolute moral        
admiration--the hymn which glorifies    

,god1 not for that which ,he is to man1 
not for that which ,he is to the        
universe1 but for that which ,he is     
absolutely and in ,himself--that which  
,he was before all worlds1 and would be 
still1 though the whole universe1 all   
created things1 and time1 and space1 and
 matter1 and every created spirit       
likewise1 should be annihilated for     
ever4  ,and what is that8  ,holy1 holy1 
holy1 ,lord ,god ,almighty1 which was1  
and is1 and is to come4  ,ah6 what a    
,gospel lies within those words6  ,a    
,gospel8  ,ay1 if you will receive it1  
the root of all other possible ,gospels1
 and good news for all created beings4  
,what a ,gospel6 and what an everlasting
 fount of comfort6 ,surely of those     
words it is true1 blessed are they who1 
going through the vale of misery1 find  
therein a well1 and the pools are filled
 with water4  ,know you not what ,i     
mean8  ,happier1 perhaps1 are you--the  
young at least among you--if you do not 
know4  ,but some of you must know too   

well4  ,it is to them ,i speak4  ,were  
you never not merely puzzled--all       
thinking men are that--but crushed and  
sickened at moments by the mystery of   
evil8  ,sickened by the follies1 the    
failures1 the ferocities1 the foulnesses
 of mankind1 for ages upon ages past8   
,sickened by the sins of the unholy     
many--sickened1 alas6 by the            
imperfections even of the holiest few8  
,and have you never cried in your hearts
 with longing1 almost with impatience1  
,surely1 surely1 there is an ideal ,holy
 ,one somewhere1 or else how could have 
arisen in my mind the conception1       
however faint1 of an ideal holiness8    
,but where1 oh where8  ,not in the world
 around1 strewed with unholiness4  ,not 
in myself--unholy too1 without and      
within--seeming to myself sometimes the 
very worst company of all the bad       
company ,i meet1 because it is the only 
bad company from which ,i cannot escape4
  ,oh1 is there a ,holy ,one1 whom ,i   
may contemplate with utter delight8 and 

if so1 where is ,he8  ,oh1 that ,i might
 behold1 if but for a moment1 ,his      
perfect beauty1 even though1 as in the  
fable of ,semele of old1 the lightning  
of ,his glance were death4  ,nay1 more1 
has it not happened to some here--to    
clergyman1 lawyer1 physician1 perhaps1  
alas6 to some pure-minded1 noble-       
hearted woman--to be brought in contact 
perforce with that which truly sickens  
them--with some case of human folly1    
baseness1 foulness--which1 however much 
their soul revolts from it1 they must   
handle1 they must toil over many weeks  
and months1 in hope that that which is  
crooked may be made somewhat straight1  
till their whole soul was distempered1  
all but degraded1 by the continual sight
 of sin1 till their eyes seemed full of 
nothing but the dance of death1 and     
their ears of the gibbering of madmen1  
and their nostrils with the odours of   
the charnel house1 and they longed for  
one breath of pure air1 one gleam of    
pure light1 one strain of pure music1 to

 wash their spirits clean from those    
foul elements into which their duty had 
thrust them down perforce8  ,and then1  
oh then1 has there not come to such an  
one--,i know that it has come--that for 
which his spirit was athirst1 the very  
breath of pure air1 the very gleam of   
pure light1 the very strain of pure     
music1 for it is the very music of the  
spheres1 in those same words1 ,holy1    
holy1 holy1 ,lord ,god ,almighty1 which 
was1 and is1 and is to come2 and he has 
answered1 with a flush of keenest joy1  
,yes4  ,whatever else is unholy1 there  
is an ,holy ,one1 spotless and          
undefiled1 serene and self-contained4   
,whatever else ,i cannot trust1 there is
 ,one whom ,i can trust utterly4        
,whatever else ,i am dissatisfied with1 
there is ,one whom ,i can contemplate   
with utter satisfaction1 and bathe my   
stained soul in that eternal fount of   
purity4  ,and who is ,he8  ,who save the
 ,cause and ,maker1 and ,ruler of all   
things1 past1 present1 and to come8     

,ah1 ,gospel of all gospels1 that ,god  
,himself1 the ,almighty ,god1 is the    
eternal and unchangeable realisation of 
all that ,i and all mankind1 in our     
purest and our noblest moments1 have    
ever dreamed concerning the true1 the   
beautiful1 and the good4  ,even though  
,he slay me1 the unholy1 yet will ,i    
trust in ,him4  ,for ,he is ,holy1      
,holy1 ,holy1 and can do nothing to me1 
or any creature1 save what ,he ,,ought4 
,for ,he has created all things1 and for
 ,his pleasure they are and were        
created4  ,whosoever has entered1 though
 but for a moment1 however faintly1     
partially1 stupidly1 into that thought  
of thoughts1 has entered in so far into 
the communion of the elect2 and has had 
his share in the everlasting ,all       
,saints' ,day which is in heaven4  ,he  
has been1 though but for a moment1 in   
harmony with the polity of the ,living  
,god1 the heavenly ,jerusalem2 and with 
an innumerable company of angels1 and   
the church of the first-born who are    

written in heaven2 and with the spirits 
of just men made perfect1 and with all  
past1 present1 and to come1 in this and 
in all other worlds1 of whom it is      
written1 ,blessed are the poor in       
spirit3 for theirs is the kingdom of    
heaven4  ,blessed are they who hunger   
and thirst after righteousness3  for    
they shall be filled4  ,blessed are the 
pure in heart3  for they shall see ,god4
  ,blessed are they who are persecuted  
for righteousness' sake3  for their's is
 the kingdom of heaven4  ,great indeed  
is their reward1 for it is no less than 
the very beatific vision to contemplate 
and adore4  ,that supreme moral beauty1 
of which all earthly beauty1 all nature1
 all art1 all poetry1 all music1 are but
 phantoms and parables1 hints and hopes1
 dim reflected rays of the clear light  
of that everlasting day1 of which it is 
written--that the city had no need of   
the sun1 neither of the moon1 to shine  
in it3  for the glory of ,god did       
lighten it1 and the ,lamb is the light  

thereof4    ,,sermon ,,ii4              
,,preparation ,,for ,,advent            
,westminster ,abbey4  ,november #ae1    
#ahgd4  ,amos iv4 #ab4  ,prepare to meet
 thy ,god1 ,o ,israel4  ,we read to-day1
 for the first lesson1 parts of the     
prophecy of ,amos4 ,they are somewhat   
difficult1 here and there1 to           
understand2 but nevertheless ,amos is   
perhaps the grandest of the ,hebrew     
prophets1 next to ,isaiah4  ,rough and  
homely as his words are1 there is a     
strength1 a majesty1 and a terrible     
earnestness in them1 which it is good to
 listen to2 and specially good now that 
,advent draws near1 and we have to think
 of the coming of our ,lord ,jesus      
,christ1 and what ,his coming means4    
,prepare to meet thy ,god1 says ,amos in
 the text4  ,perhaps he will tell us how
 to meet our ,god4  ,amos is specially  
the poor man's prophet1 for he was a    
poor man himself2 not a courtier like   
,isaiah1 or a priest like ,jeremiah1 or 
a sage like ,daniel2 but a herdsman and 

a gatherer of sycamore fruit in ,tekoa1 
near ,bethlehem1 where ,amos was born4  
,yet to this poor man1 looking after    
sheep and cattle on the downs1 and      
pondering on the wrongs and misery      
around1 the word of the ,lord came1 and 
he knew that ,god had spoken to him1 and
 that he must go and speak to men1 at   
the risk of his life1 what ,god had     
bidden1 against all the nations round   
and their kings1 and against the king   
and nobles and priests of ,israel1 and  
the king and nobles and priests of      
,judah1 and tell them that the day of   
the ,lord is at hand1 and that they must
 prepare to meet their ,god4  ,and he   
said what he felt he must say with a    
noble freedom1 with a true independence 
such as the grace of ,god alone can     
give4  ,amaziah1 the priest of ,bethel1 
who was worshipping 7absurd as it may   
seem to us7 ,god and the golden calf at 
the same time in ,king ,jeroboam's      
court1 complained loudly1 it would seem1
 of ,amos's plain speaking4  ,how       

uncourteous to prophesy that ,jeroboam  
should die by the sword1 and ,israel be 
carried captive out of their own land6  
,let him go home into his own land of   
,judah1 and prophesy there2 but not     
prophesy at ,bethel1 for it was the     
king's chapel and the king's court4     
,amos went1 ,i presume1 in fear of his  
life4  ,but he left noble words behind  
him4  ,i was no prophet1 he said to     
,amaziah1 nor a prophet's son1 but a    
herdsman1 and a gatherer of wild figs4  
,and the ,lord took me as ,i followed   
the flock1 and said1 ,go1 prophesy unto 
my people ,israel4 ,and then he turned  
on that smooth court-priest ,amaziah1   
and pronounced against him1 in the name 
of the ,lord1 a curse too terrible to be
 repeated here4  ,now what was the      
secret of this inspired herdsman's      
strength8  ,what helped him to face     
priests1 nobles1 and kings8  ,what did  
he believe8 ,what did he preach8  ,he   
believed and preached the kingdom of    
,god and ,his righteousness2 the simple 

but infinite difference between right   
and wrong2 and the certain doom of      
wrong1 if wrong was persisted in4  ,he  
believed in the kingdom of ,god4  ,he   
told the kings and the people of all the
 nations round1 that they had committed 
cruel and outrageous sins1 not against  
the ,jews merely1 but against each      
other4  ,in the case of ,moab1 the      
culminating crime was an insult to the  
dead4  ,he had burned the bones of the  
king of ,edom into lime4  ,in the case  
of ,ammon1 it was brutal cruelty to     
captive women2 but in the cases of      
,gaza1 of ,tyre1 and of ,edom1 it was   
slave-making and slave-trading invasions
 of ,palestine4  ,thus saith the ,lord3 
,for three transgressions of ,gaza1 and 
for four1 ,i will not turn away the     
punishment thereof2 because they carried
 away captive the whole captivity1 to   
deliver them up to ,edom4  ,but ,i will 
send a fire upon the wall of ,gaza1     
which shall devour the palaces thereof4 
,yes4  ,slave-hunting and slave-trading 

wars--that was and is an iniquity which 
the just and merciful ,ruler of the     
earth would not1 and will not1 pardon4  
,and honour to those who1 as in ,africa 
of late1 put down those foul deeds1     
wheresoever they are done2 who1 at the  
risk of their own lives1 dare free the  
captives from their chains2 and who1 if 
interfered with in their pious work1    
dare execute on armed murderers and     
manstealers the vengeance of a righteous
 ,god4  ,for the ,lord ,god was their   
,king1 and their ,judge1 whether they   
knew it or not4  ,and for three         
transgressions of theirs1 and for four1 
the ,lord would not turn away their     
punishment1 but would send fire and     
sword among them1 and they should be    
carried away captive1 as they had       
carried others away4  ,but to go back4  
,amos next turns to his own             
countrymen--to ,judah and ,israel1 who  
were then two separate nations4  ,for   
three transgressions of ,judah1 and for 
four1 the ,lord would not turn away     

their punishment1 because they had      
despised the law of the ,lord1 and had  
not walked in ,his commandments4        
,therefore ,he would send a fire on     
,judah1 and it should devour the palaces
 of ,jerusalem4  ,but ,amos is most     
bitter against ,israel1 against the     
court of ,king ,jeroboam at ,samaria1   
and against the rich men of ,israel1 the
 bulls of ,bashan1 as he calls them4    
,for three transgressions1 and for four1
 the ,lord would not turn away their    
punishment4  ,and why8  ,now see what ,i
 meant when ,i said that ,amos believed 
not only in the kingdom of ,god1 but in 
the righteousness of ,god4  ,it was not 
merely that they were worshipping       
idols--golden calves at ,dan1 and       
,bethel1 and ,samaria1 at the same time 
that they worshipped the true ,god4     
,that was bad1 but there was more       
behind4  ,these men were bad1 proud1    
luxurious1 cruel2 they were selling     
their countrymen for slaves--selling1 he
 says so twice1 as if it was some       

notorious and special case1 an honest   
man for silver1 and the poor for a pair 
of shoes4  ,they were lying down on     
clothes taken on pledge by every altar4 
,they were breaking the seventh         
commandment in an abominable way4  ,they
 were falsifying weights and measures1  
and selling the refuse of the wheat4    
,they stored up the fruits of violence  
and robbery in their palaces4  ,they    
hated him who rebuked them1 and abhorred
 him that spoke uprightly4  ,they trod  
upon the poor and crushed the needy1 and
 then said to their stewards1 ,bring    
wine1 and let us drink4  ,therefore     
though they had built houses of hewn    
stone1 they should not live in them4    
,they had planted pleasant vineyards1   
but should not drink of them4  ,and all 
the while these superstitious and wicked
 rich men were talking of the day of the
 ,lord1 and hoping that the day of the  
,lord would appear4  ,you1 if you have  
read your ,bibles carefully and         
reverently1 must surely be aware that   

the day of the ,lord1 either in the ,old
 ,testament or in the ,new1 does not    
mean merely the final day of judgment1  
but any striking event1 any great crisis
 in the world's history1 which throws a 
divine light upon that history1 and     
shows to men--at least to those who have
 eyes wherewith to see--that verily     
there is a ,god who judges the earth in 
righteousness1 and ministers true       
judgment among the people2--a ,god whom 
men1 and all their institutions1 should 
always be prepared to meet1 lest coming 
suddenly1 ,he find them sleeping4  ,if  
you are not aware of this1 the real     
meaning of a day of the ,lord1 a day of 
the ,son of ,man1 let me entreat you to 
go and search the ,scriptures for       
yourselves2 for in them ye think ye have
 eternal life1 and they are they which  
testify of the ,lord1 of that ,eternal  
,son of whom the second ,psalm speaks1  
in words which mobs and tyrants1 the    
atheist and the superstitious1 are alike
 willing to forget4  ,in the time of    

,amos1 the rich tyrants of ,israel seem 
to have meant by the day of the ,lord   
some vague hope that1 in those dark and 
threatening times1 ,god would interfere 
to save them1 if they were attacked by  
foreign armies4  ,but woe to you that   
desire the day of the ,lord1 says ,amos 
the herdsman4  ,what do you want with   
it8  ,you will find it very different   
from what you expect4  ,there is a day  
of the ,lord coming1 he says1 therefore 
prepare to meet your ,god4  ,but you are
 unprepared1 and you will find the day  
of the ,lord very different from what   
you expect4  ,it will be a day in which 
you will learn the righteousness of     
,god4  ,because ,he is righteous ,he    
will not suffer your unrighteousness4   
,because ,he is good1 ,he will not      
permit you to be bad4  ,the day of the  
,lord to you will be darkness and not   
light1 not as you dream deliverance from
 the invaders1 but ruin by the invaders1
 from which will be no escape4  ,as if a
 man did flee from a lion1 and a bear   

met him2 or went into the house and     
leaned his hand on the wall1 and a      
serpent bit him4  ,there will be no     
escape for those wicked men4  ,though   
they dug into hell1 ,god's hand would   
take them2 though they climbed up into  
heaven1 ,god would fetch them down2     
though they hid in the bottom of the    
sea1 ,god would command the serpent1 and
 it should bite them4  ,he would sift   
the house of ,israel among all nations  
like corn in a sieve1 and not a grain   
should fall to the earth4 ,and all the  
sinners among ,god's people should die  
by the sword1 who say1 ,the evil shall  
not overtake us4  ,this was ,amos's     
notion of the kingdom of ,god and ,his  
righteousness4 ,these ,israelites would 
not obey the laws of ,god's kingdom1 and
 be righteous and good4  ,but ,amos told
 them1 they could not get rid of ,god's 
kingdom4  ,the ,lord was ,king1 in spite
 of them1 and they would find it out to 
their sorrow4  ,if they would not seek  
,his kingdom and ,his government1 ,his  

government would seek them and find     
them1 and find their evil-doings out4   
,if they would not seek ,god's          
righteousness1 ,his righteousness would 
seek them1 and execute righteous        
judgment on them4  ,no wonder that the  
,israelites thought ,amos a most        
troublesome and insolent person4  ,no   
wonder that the smooth priest ,amaziah  
begged him to begone and talk in that   
way somewhere else4  ,he saw plainly    
enough that either ,amos must leave     
,samaria1 or he must leave it4  ,the two
 could no more work together than fire  
and water4  ,amos wanted to make men    
repent of their sins1 while ,amaziah    
wanted only to make them easy in their  
minds2 and no man can do both at once4  
,so it was then1 my friends1 and so it  
will be till the end of this wicked     
world4  ,the way to please men1 and be  
popular1 always was1 and always will be1
 ,amaziah's way2 to tell men that they  
may worship ,god and the golden calf at 
the same time1 that they may worship    

,god and money1 worship ,god and follow 
the ways of this wicked world which suit
 their fancy and their interest2 to tell
 them the kingdom of ,god is not over   
you now1 ,christ is not ruling the world
 now2 that the kingdom of ,god will only
 come1 when ,christ comes at the last   
day1 and meanwhile1 if people will only 
believe what they are told1 and live    
tolerably respectable lives1 they may   
behave in all things else as if there   
was no ,god1 and no judgments of ,god4  
,seeking the righteousness of ,god1 say 
these preachers of ,amaziah's school1   
only means1 that if ,christ's           
righteousness is imputed to you need not
 be righteous yourselves1 but will go to
 heaven without having been good men    
here on earth4  ,that is the comfortable
 message which the world delights to    
hear1 and for which the world will pay a
 high price to its flatterers4  ,but if 
any man dares to tell his fellow-men    
what ,amos told them1 and say1 ,the     
kingdom of ,god is among you1 and within

 you1 and over you1 whether you like or 
not1 and you are in it2 the ,lord is    
,king1 be the people never so unquiet2  
and all power is given to ,him in heaven
 and earth already2 and at the last     
great day1 when ,he comes in glory1 ,he 
will show that ,he has been governing   
the world and the inhabitants thereof   
all along1 whether they cared to obey   
,him or not3--if he tell men1 that the  
righteousness of ,god means this--to    
pray for the ,spirit of ,god and of     
,christ1 that they may be perfect as    
their ,father in heaven is perfect1 and 
holy as ,christ is holy1 for without    
holiness no man shall see the ,lord3  if
 he tell men1 that the wrath of ,god was
 revealed from heaven at the fall of    
man1 and has been revealed continuously 
ever since1 against all ungodliness and 
unrighteousness of men1 that indignation
 and wrath1 tribulation and anguish will
 fall upon every soul of man that doeth 
evil2 and glory1 honour1 and peace to   
every man that worketh good3--when a man

 dares to preach that1 he is no more    
likely to be popular with the wicked    
world 7for it is a wicked world7 than   
,amos was popular1 or ,st ,paul was     
popular1 or our ,lord ,jesus ,christ1   
who gave both to ,amos and to ,st ,paul 
their messages1 was popular4  ,false    
preachers will dislike that man1 because
 he wishes to make sinners uneasy1 while
 they wish to make them easy4           
,philosophers1 falsely so-called1 will  
dislike that man1 because he talks of   
the kingdom of ,god1 the providence of  
,god1 and they are busy--at least1 just 
now--in telling men that there is no    
providence and no ,god-- at least1 no   
living ,god4  ,the covetous and worldly 
will dislike that man1 for they believe 
that the world is governed1 not by ,god1
 but by money4 ,politicians will dislike
 that man1 because they think that not  
,god1 but they1 govern the world1 by    
those very politics and knavish tricks1 
which we pray ,god to confound1 whenever
 we sing ,god save the ,queen4  ,and the

 common people--the masses--who ought to
 hear such a man gladly1 for his words  
are to them1 if they would understand   
them1 a gospel1 and good news of divine 
hope and deliverance from sin and       
ignorance1 oppression and misery--the   
masses1 ,i say1 will dislike that man1  
because he tells them that ,god's will  
is law1 and must be obeyed at all risks3
  and the poor fools have got into their
 heads just now that not ,god's will1   
but the will of the people1 is law1 and 
that not the eternal likeness of ,god1  
but whatever they happen to decide by   
the majority of the moment1 is right4   
,and so such a preacher will not be     
popular with the many4  ,they will      
dismiss him1 at best1 as they might a   
public singer or lecturer1 with         
compliments and thanks1 and so excuse   
themselves from doing what he tells     
them4  ,and he must look for his sincere
 hearers in the hearts of those-- and   
there are such1 ,i verily believe1 in   
this congregation--who have a true love 

and a true fear of ,christ1 their       
incarnate ,god--who believe1 indeed1    
that ,christ is their ,king1 and the    
,king of all the earth2 who think that  
to please ,him is the most blessed1 as  
well as the most profitable1 thing which
 man can do2 to displease ,him the most 
horrible1 as well as the most dangerous1
 thing which man can do2 and who1       
therefore1 try to please ,him by        
becoming like ,him1 by really renouncing
 the world and all its mean and false   
and selfish ways1 and putting on ,his   
new pattern of man1 which is created    
after ,god's likeness in righteousness  
and true holiness4  ,blessed are they1  
for of them it is written1 ,blessed are 
they which do hunger and thirst after   
righteousness1 for they shall be filled4
  ,even ,christ ,himself shall fill     
them4  ,blessed are they1 and all that  
they take in hand1 for of them it is    
written1 ,blessed are all they that fear
 the ,lord1 and walk in ,his ways4  ,for
 thou shalt eat the labours of thine    

hands4  ,the ,lord is righteous in all  
,his ways1 and holy in all ,his works4  
,the ,lord is nigh unto all them that   
call upon ,him1 yea1 all such as call   
upon ,him faithfully4  ,he will fulfil  
the desire of them that fear ,him4  ,he 
also will hear their cry--ay1 and will  
help them4  ,happy1 ay1 blest will such 
souls be1 let the day of the ,lord      
appear when it will1 or how it will4    
,it may appear--the day of the ,lord1 as
 it has appeared again and again in     
history--in the thunder of some mighty  
war4 ,it may appear after some          
irresistible1 though often silent       
revolution1 whether religious or        
intellectual1 social or political4  ,it 
will appear at last1 as that great day  
of days1 which will conclude1 so we     
believe1 the drama of human history1 and
 all men shall give account for their   
own works4  ,but1 however and whenever  
it shall appear1 they at least will     
watch its dawning1 neither with the     
selfish assurance of modern ,pharisaism1

 nor with the abject terror of mediaeval
 superstition2 but with that manful     
faith with which he who sang the #ihth  
,psalm saw the day of the ,lord dawn    
once in the far east1 more than two     
thousand years ago1 and cried with      
solemn joy1 in the glorious words which 
you have just heard sung--words which   
the ,church of ,england has embodied in 
her daily evening service1 in order1 ,i 
presume1 to show her true children how  
they ought to look at days of judgment2 
and so prepare to meet their ,god3--    
,show yourselves joyful unto the ,lord1 
all ye lands3  sing1 rejoice1 and give  
thanks4  ,let the sea make a noise1 and 
all that therein is3  the round world1  
and they that dwell therein4  ,let the  
floods clap their hands1 and let the    
hills be joyful together before the     
,lord3  for ,he cometh to judge the     
earth4  ,with righteousness shall ,he   
judge the world3  and the people with   
equity4  ,glory be to the ,father1 and  
to the ,son1 and to the ,holy ,ghost2   

,as it was in the beginning1 is now and 
ever shall be1 world without end4 ,amen4
    ,,sermon ,,iii4  ,,the ,,purifying  
,,hope    ,eversley1 #ahfi4  ,windsor   
,castle1 #ahfi4  #a ,john iii4 #b4      
,beloved1 now are we the sons of ,god1  
and it doth not yet appear what we shall
 be3  but we know that1 when he shall   
appear1 we shall be like him2 for we    
shall see him as he is4  ,and every man 
that hath this hope in him purifieth    
himself1 even as he is pure4  ,let us   
consider this noble text1 and see       
something1 at least1 of what it has to  
tell us4  ,it is1 like all ,god's       
messages1 all ,god's laws1 ay1 like     
,god's world in which we live and       
breathe1 at once beautiful and awful2   
full of life-giving hope2 but full1 too1
 of chastening fear4  ,hope for the     
glorious future which it opens to poor  
human beings like us2 fear1 lest so     
great a promise being left us1 we should
 fall short of it by our own fault4     
,behold what manner of love the ,father 

hath bestowed on us1 that we should be  
called the sons of ,god4  ,there is the 
root and beginning of all               
,christianity1--of all true religion4   
,we are the sons of ,god1 and the       
infinite1 absolute1 eternal ,being who  
made this world1 and all worlds1 is our 
,father4  ,we are the children of ,god4 
,it is not for us to say who are not    
,god's children4 ,that is ,god's        
concern1 not ours4  ,all that we have to
 do with1 is the awful and blessed fact 
that we are4  ,we were baptised into    
,god's kingdom1 in the name of the      
,father1 and of the ,son1 and of the    
,holy ,ghost4  ,let us believe the      
,gospel and good news which baptism     
brings us1 and say each of us2--,not for
 our own goodness and deserving2 not for
 our own faith or assurance2 not for    
anything which we have thought1 felt1 or
 done1 but simply out of the free grace 
and love of ,god1 seeking out us        
unconscious infants1 we are children of 
,god4  ,beloved now are we the sons of  

,god1 and it doth not yet appear what we
 shall be4  ,it doth not yet appear what
 the next life will be like1 or what we 
shall be like in it4  ,that there will  
be a next life1--that death does not end
 all for us1 the ,new ,testament tells  
us4  ,yea1 our own hearts and reasons   
tell us4  ,that sentiment of            
immortality1 that instinct that the     
death of our body will not1 cannot      
destroy our souls1 or ourselves--all men
 have had that1 except a few2 and it is 
a question whether they had it not once1
 and have only lost it by giving way to 
their brute animal nature4  ,but be that
 as it may1 it concerns us1 ,i think1   
very little4  ,for we at least believe  
that we shall live again4  ,that we     
shall live again in some state or other1
 is as certain to our minds as it was to
 the minds of our forefathers1 even     
while they were heathens2 as certain to 
us as it is that we are alive now4  ,but
 in that future state1 what we shall be 
like1 we know not4  ,st4 ,john says that

 he did not know2 and we certainly have 
no more means of knowing than ,st4      
,john4  ,therefore let us not feed our  
fancies with pictures of what the next  
world will be like1--pictures1 ,i say1  
which are but waking dreams of men1     
intruding into those things which they  
have not seen1 vainly puffed up in their
 fleshly minds--that is in their animal 
and mortal brain4  ,let us be content   
with what ,st4 ,john tells us1 which is 
a matter not for our brains1 but for our
 hearts2 not for our imaginations1 but  
for our conscience1 which is indeed our 
highest reason4  ,whatever we do not    
know about the next world1 this1 he     
says1 we do know1--that when ,god in    
,christ shall appear1 we shall be like  
,him4  ,like ,god4  ,no more3  ,no3  but
 no less4  ,to be like ,god1 it appears1
 is the very end and aim of our being4  
,that we might be like ,god1 ,god our   
,father sent us forth from ,his eternal 
bosom1 which is the ground of all life1 
in heaven and in earth4  ,that we might 

be like ,god1 ,he clothed us in mortal  
flesh1 and sent us into this world of   
sense4  ,that we might be like ,god1 ,he
 called us1 from our infancy1 into ,his 
,church4  ,that we might be like ,god1  
,he gave us the divine sense of right   
and wrong2 and more1 by the inspiration 
of ,his holy spirit1 that inward        
witness1 that ,light of ,god1 which     
lightens every man that cometh into the 
world1 ,he taught us to love the right  
and hate the wrong4  ,that we might be  
like ,god1 ,god is educating us from our
 cradle to our grave1 by every event1   
even the smallest1 which happens to us4 
,that we might be like ,god1 it is in   
,god that we live1 and move1 and have   
our being2 that as the raindrop which   
falls from heaven1 rises again surely1  
soon or late1 to heaven again2 so each  
soul of man1 coming forth from ,god at  
first1 should return again to ,god1 as  
many of them as have eternal life1      
having become like to ,god from whom it 
came at first4  ,and how shall we become

 like ,god8 or rather like ,christ who  
is both ,god and man8 ,to become like   
,god the ,father1--that is impossible   
for finite and created beings as we are4
  ,but to become somewhat1 at least1    
like ,god the ,son1 like ,jesus ,christ 
our ,lord1 who is the brightness of ,his
 ,father's glory1 and the express image 
of ,his person1 that is not impossible4 
,for ,he has revealed ,himself as a man1
 in the soul and body of a man1 that our
 sinful souls might be made like ,his   
pure soul2 our sinful bodies like ,his  
glorious body2 and that so ,he might be 
the first born among many brethren4     
,and how8  ,we know that when ,he       
appears1 we shall be like ,him1 for we  
shall see ,him as ,he is4  ,for we shall
 see ,him as ,he is4  ,herein is a great
 mystery1 and one which ,i do not       
pretend to fathom4  ,only this ,i can   
try to do--to shew how it may seem      
possible and reasonable1 from what is   
called analogy1 that is by judging of an
 unknown thing from a known thing1 which

 is1 at least1 something like it4  ,now 
do we not all know how apt we are to    
become like those whom we see1 with whom
 we spend our hours--and1 above all1    
like those whom we admire and honour8   
,for good and for evil1 alas6  ,for     
evil- -for those who associate with evil
 or frivolous persons are too apt to    
catch not only their low tone1 but their
 very manner1 their very expression of  
face1 speaking1 and thinking1 and       
acting4  ,not only do they become       
scornful1 if they live with scorners2   
false1 if they live with liars2 mean1 if
 they live with covetous men2 but they  
will actually catch the very look of    
their faces4  ,the companions of        
affected1 frivolous people1 men or      
women1 grow to look affected frivolous4 
,indulging in the same passions1 they   
mould their own countenances and their  
very walk1 also the very tones of their 
voice1 as well as their dress1 into the 
likeness of those with whom they        
associate1 nay1 of those whose fashions 

7as they are called7 they know merely by
 books and pictures4  ,but thank ,god1  
who has put into the hearts of          
,christian people the tendency towards  
,god--just in the same way does good    
company tend to make men good2 high-    
minded company to make them high-minded2
 kindly company to make them kindly2    
modest company to make them modest2     
honourable company to make them         
honourable2 and pure company to make    
them pure4  ,if the young man or woman  
live with such1 look up to such as their
 ideal1 that is1 the pattern which they 
ought to emulate--then1 as a fact1 the  
,spirit of ,god working in them does    
mould them into something of the        
likeness of those whom they admire and  
love4  ,i have lived long enough to see 
more than one man of real genius stamp  
his own character1 thought1 even his    
very manner of speaking1 for good or for
 evil1 on a whole school or party of his
 disciples4  ,it has been said1 and     
truly1 ,i believe1 that children cannot 

be brought up among beautiful           
pictures1--,i believe1 even among any   
beautiful sights and sounds1--without   
the very expression of their faces      
becoming more beautiful1 purer1 gentler1
 nobler2 so that in them are fulfilled  
the words of the great and holy ,poet   
concerning the maiden brought up        
according to ,god1 and the laws of      
,god--      ,and she shall bend her ear 
,in many a secret place1 ,where rivulets
 dance their wayward round1 ,and beauty1
 born of murmuring sound1    ,shall pass
 into her face4   ,but if mere human    
beings can have this personal influence1
 as it is called1 over each others'     
characters1 if even inanimate things1 if
 they be beautiful1 can have it--what   
must be the personal influence of our   
,lord ,jesus ,christ8  ,of ,him1 who is 
the ,man of all men1 the ,son of ,man1  
the perfect and ideal ,man--and more1   
who is very ,god of very ,god2 the      
,author of all life1 power1 wisdom1     
genius1 in every human being1 whether   

they use to good1 or abuse to ill1 ,his 
divine gifts2 the ,author1 too1 of all  
natural beauty1 from the sun over our   
heads to the flower beneath our feet8   
,think of that steadily1 accurately1    
rationally4  ,think of who ,christ is1  
and what ,christ is--and then think what
 ,his personal influence must be--quite 
infinite1 boundless1 miraculous4  ,so   
that the very blessedness of heaven will
 not be merely the sight of our ,lord2  
it will be the being made holy1 and kept
 holy1 by that sight4  ,if only we be   
fit for it4  ,for let us ask ourselves  
the question1--,if ,st ,john's words    
come true of us1 if we should see ,him  
as ,he is1 would the sight of ,his all- 
glorious countenance warm us into such  
life1 love1 longing for virtue and      
usefulness1 as we never felt before8    
,or would it crush us into the very     
earth with utter shame and humiliation1 
full and awful knowledge of how weak and
 foolish1 sinful and unworthy we        
were8--as it does to ,gerontius in the  

poem1 when he dreams that1 after death1 
he demanded1 rashly and ambitiously1 to 
see our ,lord1 and had his wish4  ,that 
is the question which every one must try
 to answer for himself in fear and      
trembling1 for1 he that hath this hope  
in ,him purifieth himself1 even as ,he  
is pure4  ,the common sense of          
men--which is often their conscience and
 highest reason--has taught them this1  
more or less clearly1 in all countries  
and all ages4  ,there are very few      
religions which have not made purifying 
of some kind a part of their duty4  ,the
 very savage1 when he enters 7as he     
fancies7 the presence of his god1 will  
wash and adorn himself that he may be   
fit1 poor creature1 for meeting the     
paltry god which he has invented out of 
his own brain2 and he is right as far as
 he goes4  ,the ,englishman1 when he    
dresses himself in his best to go to    
church1 obeys the same reasonable       
instinct4  ,and1 indeed1 is not holy    
baptism a sign that this instinct is a  

true one8--that if ,god be pure1 he who 
enters the presence of ,god must purify 
himself1 even as ,god is pure8  ,else   
why1 when each person1 whether infant or
 adult1 is received into ,christ's      
,church1 is washing with water1 whether 
by sprinkling1 as now1 or1 as of old1 by
 immersion1 the very sign and sacrament 
of his being received into ,god's       
kingdom8  ,the instinct1 ,i say1 is     
reasonable1 and has its root in the very
 heart of man4  ,whatsoever we respect  
and admire we shall also try to copy1 if
 it be only for a time4 ,if we are going
 into the presence of a wiser man than  
ourselves1 we shall surely recollect and
 summon up what little wisdom or        
knowledge we may have2 if into the      
presence of a holier person1 we shall   
try to call up in ourselves those better
 and more serious thoughts which we so  
often forget1 that we may be1 even for a
 few minutes1 fit for that good company4
  ,and if we go into the presence of a  
purer person than ourselves1 we shall   

surely 7unless we be base and brutal7   
call up our purest and noblest thoughts1
 and try to purify ourselves1 even as   
they are pure4  ,it is true what poets  
have said again and again1 that there   
are women whose mere presence1 whose    
mere look1 drives all bad thoughts      
away--women before whom men dare no more
 speak1 or act1 nay1 even think1 basely1
 than they would dare before the angels 
of ,god4  ,but if it be so--and so it   
is--what must we be1 to be fit to appear
 before ,him who is ,purity             
itself8--before that spotless ,christ in
 whom is no sin and who knows what is in
 man2 who is quick and piercing as a    
two- edged sword1 even to the dividing  
asunder of the joints and marrow1 so    
that all things are naked and open in   
the sight of ,him with whom we have to  
do8  ,what purity can we bring into ,his
 presence which will not seem impure to 
,him8  ,what wisdom which will not seem 
folly8  ,what humility which will not   
seem self-conceit8  ,what justice which 

will not seem unjust8  ,what love which 
will not seem hardness of heart1 in the 
sight of ,him who charges ,his angels   
with folly1 and the very heavens are not
 clean in ,his sight8  ,who loved ,him  
better1 and whom did ,he love better1   
than ,st ,john8  ,yet1 what befel ,st   
,john when1 in the spirit1 he saw ,him  
even somewhat as ,he is8--,and ,i fell  
at ,his feet as dead4  ,if ,st ,john    
himself was struck down with awe1 what  
shall we feel1 even the best and purest 
among us8  ,all we can do is to cast    
ourselves1 now and for ever1 in life1 in
 death1 and in the day of judgment1 on  
,his boundless mercy and love-- who     
stooped from heaven to die for us and   
cry1 ,god be merciful to me a sinner4   
,therefore1 ,i have many fears for some 
who are ready enough to talk of their   
fulness of hope and their assurance of  
salvation1 and to join in hymns which   
express weariness of this life and      
longings for the joys of heaven1 and    
prayers that they may depart and be with

 ,christ4  ,if they are not in earnest  
in such words they mock ,god2 but if    
they are in earnest1 some of them1 ,i   
fear much1 tempt ,god4  ,what if ,he    
took them at their word8  ,what if ,he  
gave them their wish8  ,what if they    
departed and entered the presence of    
,christ1 only to meet with a worse fate 
than that of ,gerontius8  ,only to be   
overwhelmed with shame and terror1      
because1 though they have been talking  
of being with ,christ1 they have not    
been trying to be like ,christ2 because 
they have not sought after holiness1    
without which no man shall see the      
,lord2 because they have not tried to   
purify themselves1 even as ,he is pure2 
and have1 poor1 heedless souls1 gone out
 of the world1 with all their sins upon 
their head1 to enter a place for which  
they will find themselves utterly unfit1
 because it is a place into which       
nothing can enter which defileth1 or    
committeth abomination1 or maketh a lie1
 and from which the covetous are        

specially excluded2 and in which will be
 fulfilled the parable of the man who   
came to the feast1 not having on a      
wedding garment1--,take him1 bind him   
hand and foot1 and cast him into the    
outer darkness4  ,there shall be wailing
 and gnashing of teeth4  ,assurance1 my 
friends1 may be reasonable enough when  
it is founded on repentance and hatred  
of evil1 and love and practice of what  
is good4 ,but1 again1 assurance may be  
as unreasonable as it is offensive4  ,we
 blame a man who has too much assurance 
about earthly things4  ,let us beware   
that we have not too much assurance     
about heavenly things4  ,for our        
assurance will surely be too great1     
unreasonable1 built upon the sand1 if it
 be built on mere self-conceit of our   
own orthodoxy1 and our own privileges1  
or our own special connection with ,god4
  ,meanwhile it has been my comfort to  
meet with some--would ,god they were    
more numerous--who1 instead of talking  
of their assurance of salvation1 lived  

in a state of noble self-discontent and 
holy humility2 who could see nothing but
 their own faults and failings2 who1    
though they were holier than others1    
considered themselves as unholy2 though 
they were doing more good than others1  
thought themselves useless2 whose       
standard of duty was so lofty1 that they
 could think of nothing1 but how far    
they had failed in reaching it2 who     
measured themselves1 not by other men1  
but by ,christ ,himself2 and1 doing     
that1 had nought to say1 save1 ,god be  
merciful to me a sinner4  ,and for such 
people ,i have had full assurance1 just 
because they had no assurance           
themselves4  ,and ,i have said in my    
heart1 ,these are worthy1 just because  
they think themselves unworthy4 ,these  
are fit to appear in the presence of    
,god1 just because they believe         
themselves unfit4  ,these are they who  
will cry at the day of judgment1 in     
wondering humility1--,lord1 when saw we 
,thee hungry1 or thirsty1 or naked1 or  

in prison1 and visited ,thee8  ,and will
 receive for answer1--,inasmuch as ye   
have done it unto one of the least of   
these my brethren1 ye have done it unto 
,me4  ,thou hast been faithful over a   
few things1 ,i will make thee ruler over
 many things4  ,enter into the joy of   
thy ,lord4  ,to which end may ,god of   
,his mercy bring us1 and all we love4   
,amen4    ,,sermon ,,iv4  ,,the ,,lord  
,,coming ,,to ,,his ,,temple            
,westminster ,abbey4  ,november1 #ahgd4 
,malachi iii4 #a1 #b4  ,the ,lord1 whom 
ye seek1 shall suddenly come to ,his    
temple4 4 4 4  ,but who may abide the   
day of ,his coming8 and who shall stand 
when ,he appeareth8 for ,he is like a   
refiner's fire1 and like fuller's sope4 
,we believe that this prophecy was      
fulfilled at the first coming of our    
,lord ,jesus ,christ4  ,we believe that 
it will be fulfilled again1 in that     
great day when ,he shall judge the quick
 and the dead4  ,but it is of neither of
 these events ,i wish to speak to you   

just now4  ,i wish to speak of an event 
which has not 7as far as we know7       
happened2 which will probably never     
happen2 but which is still perfectly    
possible2 and one1 too1 which it is good
 for us to face now and then1 and ask   
ourselves1 ,if this thing came to pass1 
what should ,i think1 and what should ,i
 do8  ,i shall touch the question with  
all reverence and caution4  ,i shall try
 to tread lightly1 as one who is indeed 
on hallowed ground4  ,for the question  
which ,i have dared to ask you and      
myself is none other than this--,if the 
,lord suddenly came to this temple1 or  
any other in this land2 if ,he appeared 
among us1 as ,he did in ,judea eighteen 
hundred years ago1 what should we think 
of ,him8  ,should we recognise1 or      
should we reject1 our ,saviour and our  
,lord8  ,it is an awful thought1 the    
more we look at it4  ,but for that very 
reason it may be the more fit to be     
asked1 once and for all4  ,now1 to put  
this question safely and honestly1 we   

must keep within those words which ,i   
just said--as ,he appeared in ,judea    
eighteen hundred years ago4  ,we must   
limit our fancy to the historic ,christ1
 to the sayings1 doings1 character which
 are handed down to us in the four      
,gospels2 and ask ourselves nothing     
but--,what should ,i think if such a    
personage were to meet me now8  ,to     
imagine ,him--as has been too often     
done--as doing deeds1 speaking words1   
and even worse1 entertaining motives1   
which are not written in the four       
,gospels1 is as unfair morally1 as it is
 illogical critically4  ,it creates a   
phantom1 a fictitious character1 and    
calls that ,christ4  ,it makes each     
writer1 each thinker--or rather         
dreamer--however shallow his heart and  
stupid his brain--and all our hearts are
 but too shallow1 and all our brains too
 stupid--the measure of a personage so  
vast and so unique1 that all            
,christendom for eighteen hundred years 
has seen in ,him1 and we of course hold 

seen truly1 the ,incarnate ,god4  ,no2  
we must think of nothing save what is   
set down in ,holy ,writ4  ,and yet1     
alas6 we cannot use in our days1 that   
which eighteen hundred years ago was the
 most simple and obvious test of our    
,lord's truthfulness1 namely ,his       
miraculous powers4  ,the folly and sin  
of man have robbed us of what is1 as it 
were1 one of the natural rights of      
reasoning1 man4  ,lying prodigies and   
juggleries1 forged and pretended        
miracles1 even--oh1 shame6--imitations  
of ,his most sacred wounds1 have1 up to 
our own time1 made all rational men more
 and more afraid of aught which seems to
 savour of the miraculous2 till most of 
us1 ,i think1 would have to ask         
forgiveness--as ,i myself should have to
 ask1--if1 tantalized and insulted again
 and again by counterfeit miracles1 we  
failed to recognise real miracles1 and  
,him who performed them4  ,therefore1   
for good or evil1 we should be driven   
back upon that test alone1 which1 after 

all1 perhaps1 is the most sure as well  
as the most convincing--the moral test- 
-the test of character4  ,what manner of
 personage would ,he be did ,he         
condescend to appear among us8  ,of     
that1 thank ,god1 the ,gospels ought to 
leave us in no doubt4  ,what acts ,he   
might condescend to perform1 what words 
,he might condescend to speak1 it is not
 for such beings as we to guess4  ,but  
how ,he would demean ,himself we know2  
for ,holy ,writ has told us how ,he     
demeaned ,himself in ,judea eighteen    
hundred years ago2 and ,he is the same  
yesterday1 to-day1 and for ever1 and can
 be only like ,himself4 ,but should we  
know ,him merely by ,his bearing and    
character8  ,should we see in ,him an   
utterly ideal personage--,the ,son of   
,man1 and therefore1 ere we lost sight  
of ,him once more1 the ,son of ,god8    
,let us think4  ,first1 therefore1 we   
must believe that--as in ,judea of      
old--,christ would meet men with all    
consideration and courtesy4  ,he would  

not break the bruised reed1 nor quench  
the smoking flax4  ,he would not strive1
 nor cry1 nor let ,his voice be heard in
 the streets4  ,he would not cause any  
of ,god's little ones to offend1 to     
stumble4  ,in plain words1 ,he would not
 shock and repel them by any conduct of 
,his4  ,therefore1 as in ,judea of old1 
,he would be careful of1 even indulgent 
to1 the usages of society1 as long as   
they were innocent4  ,he would never    
outrage the code of manners1 however    
imperfect1 however conventional1 which  
this or any other civilised nation may  
have agreed on1 to express and keep up  
respect1 self-restraint1 delicacy1 of   
man toward man1 of man toward woman1 of 
the young ward the old1 of the living   
toward the dead4  ,no4  ,as ,i said just
 now1 ,he would never cause1 by any act 
or word of ,his1 one of ,god's little   
ones to stumble and fall away4  ,i used 
just now that word ,,manners4  ,let me  
beg your very serious attention to it4  
,i use it1 remember1 in its true1 its   

ancient--that is1 in its moral and      
spiritual sense4  ,i use it as the old  
,greeks1 the old ,romans1 used their    
corresponding words2 as our wise        
forefathers used it1 when they said     
well1 that ,manners maketh man2 that    
manners are at once the efficient cause 
of a man's success1 and the proof of his
 deserving to succeed3  the outward and 
visible sign of whatsoever inward and   
spiritual grace1 or disgrace1 there may 
be in him4  ,i mean by the word what our
 ,lord meant when ,he reproved the      
pushing and vulgar arrogance of the     
,scribes and ,pharisees1 and laid down  
the golden rule of all good manners1    
,whosoever will be great among you1 let 
him be your minister2 and whosoever will
 be chief among you1 let him be your    
servant4  ,next1 ,i beg you to remember 
that all1 or almost all1 good manners   
which we have among us--courtesies1     
refinements1 self-restraint1 and mutual 
respect--all which raises us1 socially  
and morally1 above our forefathers of   

fifteen hundred years ago--deep-hearted 
men1 valiant and noble1 but coarse1 and 
arrogant1 and quarrelsome--all that1 or 
almost all1 we owe to ,christ1 to the   
influence of ,his example1 and to that  
,bible which testifies of ,him4  ,yes1  
the ,bible has been for ,christendom1 in
 the cottage as much as in the palace1  
the school of manners2 and the saying   
that he who becomes a true ,christian   
becomes a true gentleman1 is no         
rhetorical boast1 but a solid historic  
fact4  ,now imagine ,christ to reappear 
on earth1 with that perfect outward     
beauty of character--with what ,greeks  
and ,romans1 and our own ancestors1     
would have called those perfect         
manners--which1 if we are to believe the
 ,gospels1 ,he shewed in ,judea of old1 
which won then so many hearts1          
especially of the common people1 sounder
 judges often of true nobility than many
 who fancy themselves their betters4    
,conceive--but which of us can          
conceive8--,his perfect tenderness1     

patience1 sympathy1 graciousness1 and   
grace1 combined with perfect strength1  
stateliness1 even awfulness1 when awe   
was needed4  ,remember that1 if1 again1 
the ,gospels are to be believed4  ,he   
alone1 of all personages of whom history
 tells us1 solved in ,his own words and 
deeds the most difficult paradox of     
human character- -to be at once utterly 
conscious1 and yet utterly unconscious1 
of self2 to combine with perfect        
self-sacrifice a perfect self-assertion4
  ,whether or not ,his being able to do 
that proved ,him to have been that which
 ,he was1 the ,son of ,god1 it proves   
,him at least to have been the ,son of  
,man-- the unique and unapproachable    
ideal of humanity1 utterly inspired by  
the ,holy ,spirit of ,god4  ,but again3 
,he condescended1 in ,his teaching of   
old1 to the level of ,jewish1 knowledge 
at that time4  ,we may1 therefore1      
believe that ,he would condescend to the
 level of our modern knowledge2 and what
 would that involve8  ,it would leave   

,him1 however less than ,himself1 at    
least master of all that the human race 
has thought or discovered in the last   
eighteen hundred years4  ,think of that4
  ,and think again1 that if ,he         
condescended1 as in ,judea of old1 to   
employ that knowledge in teaching       
men--,he who knew what was in man1 and  
needed not that any should bear witness 
to ,him of man--,he would manifest a    
knowledge of human nature to which that 
of a ,shakspeare would be purblind and  
dull2 a knowledge of which the          
,scripture nobly says that ,the ,word of
 ,god is quick and powerful1 and sharper
 than any two-edged sword1 even to the  
dividing asunder of soul and spirit1 and
 of the joints and marrow1 and is a     
discerner of the thoughts and intents of
 the heart2 so that all things are naked
 and opened unto the eyes of ,him with  
whom we have to do4  ,and consider that1
 in the light of that knowledge1 ,he    
might adapt himself as perfectly to us  
of this great city1 as ,he did to the   

villagers of ,galilee1 or to the        
townsmen of ,jerusalem4  ,consider1     
again1 that ,he who spoke as never man  
yet spake in ,jerusalem1 might speak as 
man never yet spoke on ,english soil2   
that ,he who was listened to gladly     
once1 because ,he spake with authority1 
and not as the scribes1 at second hand1 
and by rule and precedent1 might be     
listened to gladly here once more4  ,for
 ,he might speak here1 not as we poor   
scribes can speak at best1 but with an  
authority1 originality1 earnestness1 as 
well as an eloquence1 which might       
exercise a fascination1 which would be1 
to all with whom ,he came in contact1   
what ,malachi calls it1 a refiner's     
fire--most purifying1 though often most 
painful to the very best2 a fascination 
which might be to every one who came    
under its spell a veritable ,judgment   
and ,day of the ,lord1 shewing each man 
with fearful clearness to which side he 
really inclined at heart in the struggle
 between truth and falsehood1 good and  

evil2 a fascination1 therefore1 equally 
attractive to those who wished to do    
right1 and intolerable to those who     
wished to do wrong4  ,consider that last
 thought4  ,and consider1 too1 that     
those to whom the fascination of such a 
personage might be so intolerable1 that 
it might turn to utter hate1 would      
probably be those whose moral sense was 
so perverted1 that they thought they    
were doing right when they were doing   
wrong1 and speaking truth when they were
 telling lies4  ,it is an awful thought4
  ,but we know that there were such men1
 and too many1 among the scribes and    
,pharisees of ,jerusalem4  ,and human   
nature is the same in every age4  ,be   
that as it may--however retired ,his    
life1 ,he could not long be hid4  ,he   
would shortly exercise1 almost without  
attempting it1 an enormous public       
influence4  ,but yet1 as in ,judea of   
old1 would ,he not be only too          
successful8  ,would ,he not be at once  
too liberal for some1 and too exacting  

for others8 ,would ,he not1 as in ,judea
 of old1 encounter not merely the active
 envy of the vain and the ambitious1    
which would follow one who spoke as     
never man spoke2 not merely the active  
malignity of those who wish their       
fellow- creatures to be bad and not     
good2 not merely the bigotry of every   
sect and party2 but that mere restless  
love of new excitements1 and that dull  
fear and suspicion of new truths1 and   
even of old truths in new words1 which  
beset the uneducated of every rank and  
class1 and in no age more than in our   
own8  ,and therefore ,i must ask1 in    
sober sadness1 how long would ,his      
influence last8  ,it lasted1 we know1 in
 ,judea of old1 for some three years4   
,and then--4  ,but ,i am not going to   
say that any such tragedy is possible   
now4  ,it would be an insult to ,him2 an
 insult to the gracious influences of   
,his ,spirit1 the gracious teaching of  
,his ,church1 to say that of our        
generation1 however unworthy we may be  

of our high calling in ,christ4  ,and   
yet1 if ,he had appeared in any country 
of ,christendom only four hundred years 
ago1 might ,he not have endured an even 
more dreadful death than that of the    
cross8  ,but doubtless1 no personal harm
 would happen to ,him here4  ,only there
 might come a day1 in which1 as in      
,judea of old1 after ,he had said these 
things1 many were offended1 and walked  
no more with ,him3 when his hearers and 
admirers would grow fewer and more few1 
some through bigotry1 some through envy1
 some through fickleness1 some through  
cowardice1 till ,he was left alone with 
a little knot of earnest disciples2 who 
might diminish1 alas1 but too rapidly1  
when they found at ,he1 as in ,judea of 
old1 did not intend to become the head  
of a new sect1 and to gratify their     
ambition and vanity by making them ,his 
delegates4  ,and so the world1 the      
religious world as well as the rest1    
might let ,him go ,his way1 and vanish  
from the eyes and minds of men1 leaving 

behind little more than a regret that   
one so gifted and so fascinating should 
have proved--,i hardly like to say the  
words1 and yet they must be said--so    
unsafe and so unsound a teacher4  ,i    
shall not give now the reasons which    
have led me1 and not in haste1 to this  
melancholy conclusion4  ,i shall only   
say that ,i have come to it1 with pain1 
and shame1 and fear4  ,with shame and   
fear4  ,for when ,i ask you the solemn  
question1 ,would you know ,christ if ,he
 came among you8 do ,i not ask myself a 
question which ,i dare not answer8  ,how
 can ,i tell whether ,i should          
recognise1 after all1 my ,saviour and my
 ,lord8  ,how do ,i know that if ,he    
said 7as ,he but too certainly might71  
something which clashed seriously with  
my preconceived notions of what ,he     
ought to say1 ,i should not be offended1
 and walk no more with ,him8  ,how do ,i
 know that if ,he said1 as in ,judea of 
old1 ,will ye too go away8 ,i should    
answer with ,st ,peter1 ,lord1 to whom  

shall we go8  ,thou hast the words of   
eternal life1 and we believe and are    
sure that thou art the ,christ1 the ,son
 of the living ,god8  ,i dare not ask   
that question of myself4  ,how then dare
 ,i ask it of you8  ,i know not4  ,i can
 only say1 ,lord1 ,i believe3  help thou
 mine unbelief4  ,i know not4  ,but this
 ,i know--that in this or any other     
world1 if you or ,i did recognise ,him1 
it would be with utter shame and terror1
 unless we had studied and had striven  
to copy either ,himself1 or whatsoever  
seems to us most like ,him4  ,yes2 to   
study the good1 the beautiful1 and the  
true in ,him1 and wheresoever else we   
find it--for all that is good1          
beautiful1 and true throughout the      
universe are nought but rays from ,him1 
the central sun--to obey ,st4 ,paul of  
old1 and whatsoever things are true1    
venerable1 just1 pure1 lovely1 and of   
good report--if there be any virtue and 
if there be any praise1 to think on     
these things1--on these scattered       

fragmentary sacraments of ,him whose    
number is not two1 nor seven1 but       
seventy-times seven2 that is the way--,i
 think1 the only way--to be ready to    
recognise our ,saviour1 and to prepare  
to meet our ,god2 that ,he may be to us1
 too1 as a refiner's fire1 and refine   
us--our thoughts1 our deeds1 our        
characters throughout4  ,and ,i think1  
too1 that this is the way1 perhaps the  
only way1 to rid ourselves of the fancy 
that we can be accounted righteous      
before ,god for any works or deservings 
of our own4  ,those in whom that fancy  
lingers must have but a paltry standard 
of what righteousness is1 a mean        
conception of moral--that is1           
spiritual--perfection4  ,but those who  
look not inwards1 but upwards2 not at   
themselves1 but at ,christ and all      
spiritual perfection--they become more  
and more painfully aware of their own   
imperfections4  ,the beauty of ,christ's
 character shows them the ugliness of   
their own4  ,his purity shows them their

 own foulness4  ,his love their own     
hardness4  ,his wisdom their own folly4 
,his strength their own weakness4  ,the 
higher their standard rises1 the lower  
falls their estimate of themselves2     
till1 in utter humiliation and          
self-distrust1 they seek comfort ere    
alone it can be found--in ,,faith--in   
utter faith and trust in that very moral
 perfection of ,christ which shames and 
dazzles them1 and yet is their only     
hope4  ,to trust in ,him for themselves 
and all they love4  ,to trust that1 just
 because ,christ is so magnificent1 ,he 
will pity1 and not despise1 our         
meanness4  ,just because ,he is so pure1
 and righteous1 and true1 and lovely1   
,he will appreciate1 and not abhor1 our 
struggles after purity1 righteousness1  
truth1 love1 however imperfect1 however 
soiled with failure--and with worse4    
,just because ,he is so unlike us1 ,he  
will smile graciously upon out feeblest 
attempts to be like ,him4  ,just because
 ,he has borne the sins and carried the 

sorrows of mankind1 therefore those who 
come to ,him ,he will in no wise cast   
out4 ,amen4    ,,sermon ,v4  ,,advent   
,,lessons    ,westminster ,abbey1 ,first
 ,sunday in ,advent1 #ahgc4  ,romans    
vii4 #bb-be4  ,i delight in the law of  
,god after the inward man3 but ,i see   
another law in my members1 warring      
against the law of my mind1 and bringing
 me into captivity to the law of sin    
which is in my members4 ,o wretched man 
that ,i am6 who shall deliver me from   
the body of this death8  ,i thank ,god  
through ,jesus ,christ our ,lord4  ,this
 is the first ,sunday in ,advent4       
,to-day we have prayed that ,god would  
give us grace to put away the works of  
darkness1 and put on us the armour of   
light4  ,next ,sunday we shall pray     
that1 by true understanding of the      
,scriptures1 we may embrace and hold    
fast the blessed hope of everlasting    
life4  ,the ,sunday after that the      
ministers and stewards of ,god's        
mysteries may prepare ,his way by       

turning the hearts of the disobedient to
 the wisdom of the just--the next1 that 
,his grace and mercy may speedily help  
and deliver us from the sins which      
hinder us in running the race set before
 us4  ,but ,i do not think that we shall
 understand those collects1 or indeed   
the meaning of ,advent itself1 or the   
reason why we keep the season of ,advent
 year by year1 unless we first          
understand the prayer which we offered  
up last ,sunday1 ,stir up1 ,o ,lord1 the
 wills of ,thy faithful people1--and we 
shall understand that prayer just in    
proportion as we have in us the ,spirit 
of ,god1 or the spirit of the world1    
which is the spirit of unbelief4        
,worldly people say--and say openly1    
just now--that this prayer is all a     
dream4  ,they say ,god will not stir up 
men's wills to do good any more than to 
do harm4  ,he leaves men to themselves  
to get through life as they can4  ,this 
,heavenly ,father of whom you speak will
 not give ,his holy spirit to those who 

ask ,him4  ,he does not1 as one of your 
,collects says1 put into men's minds    
good desires--they come to a man        
entirely from outside a man1 from his   
early teaching1 his youthful            
impressions1 as they are called         
now-a-days4  ,he does not either give   
men grace and power to put these desires
 into practice4  ,that depends entirely 
on the natural strength of a man's      
character2 and that1 again1 depends     
principally on the state of his brain4  
,so1 says the world1 if you wish your   
own character to improve1 you must      
improve it yourself1 for ,god will not  
improve it for you4  ,but1 after all1   
why should you try to improve8 why not  
be content to be just what you are8 you 
did not make yourself1 and you are not  
responsible for being merely what ,god  
has chosen to make you4  ,this is what  
worldly men say1 or at least what they  
believe and act on2 and this is the     
reason why there is so little           
improvement in the world1 because men do

 not ask ,god to improve their hearts   
and stir up their wills4  ,i say1 very  
little improvement4  ,men talk loudly of
 the enlightenment of the age1 and the  
progress of the species1 and the spread 
of civilisation1 and so forth3  but when
 ,i read old books1 and compare old     
times with these1 ,i confess ,i do not  
see so much of it as all this hopeful   
talk would lead me to expect4  ,men in  
general have grown more prudent1 more   
cunning1 from long experience4  ,they   
have found out that certain sins do not 
pay--that is1 they interfere with       
people's comfort and their power of     
making money1 and therefore they        
prudently avoid them themselves1 and put
 them down by law in other men's cases4 
,men have certainly grown more          
good-natured1 in some countries1 in that
 they dislike more than their ancestors 
did1 to inflict bodily torture on human 
beings2 but they are just as ready1 or  
even more ready1 to inflict on those    
whom they dislike that moral and mental 

torture which to noble souls is worse   
than any bodily pain4  ,as for any real 
improvement in human nature--where is   
it8  ,there is just as much falsehood1  
cheating1 and covetousness1 ,i believe1 
in the world as ever there was2 just as 
much cant and hypocrisy1 and perhaps    
more2 just as much envy1 hatred1 malice 
and all uncharitableness4  ,is not the  
condition of the masses in many great   
cities as degraded and as sad as ever   
was that of the serfs in the middle     
ages8  ,do not the poor still die by    
tens of thousands of fevers1 choleras1  
and other diseases1 which we know       
perfectly how to prevent1 and yet have  
not the will to prevent8  ,is not the   
adulteration of food just now as        
scandalous as it is unchecked8  ,the    
sins and follies of human nature have   
been repressed in one direction only to 
break out another4 ,and as for open and 
coarse sin1 people complain even now1   
and ,i fear with justice1 that there is 
more drunkenness in ,england at this    

moment than there ever was4  ,so much   
for our boasted improvement4  ,look     
again at the wars of the world4         
,five-and-twenty years ago1 one used to 
be told that the human race was grown   
too wise to go to war any more1 and that
 we were to have an advent of universal 
peace and plenty1 and since then we have
 seen some seven great wars1 the last   
the most terrible of all1--and ever     
since1 all the nations of ,europe have  
been watching each other in distrust and
 dread1 increasing their armaments1     
working often night and day at forging  
improved engines of destruction1        
wherewith to kill their fellow-men4     
,not that ,i blame that4  ,it is        
necessary4  ,yes6 but the hideous thing 
is1 that it should be necessary4  ,does 
that state of things look much like     
progress of the human race8  ,can we say
 that mankind is much improved1 either  
in wisdom or in love1 while all the     
nations of ,europe are spending millions
 merely to be ready to fight they know  

not whom1 they know not why8  ,no1 my   
good friends1 obey the wise man1 and    
clear your minds of cant-- man's        
pretensions1 man's boastfulness1 man's  
power of blinding his own eyes to plain 
facts--above all1 to the plain fact that
 he does not succeed1 even in this world
 of which he fancies himself the master1
 because he lives without ,god in the   
world4  ,all this saddens1 ,i had almost
 said1 sickens1 a thoughtful man1 till  
he turns away from this noisy sham      
improvement of mankind--the wages of    
sin1 which are death1 to ,st ,john's    
account of the true improvement of      
mankind1 the true progress of the       
species1--the gift of ,god which is     
eternal life4  ,and ,i saw a new heaven 
and a new earth3  for the first heaven  
and the first earth were passed away4   
,and ,i saw the ,holy ,city--,new       
,jerusalem1 coming down from ,god out of
 heaven1 prepared as a bride adorned for
 her husband4  ,and ,i heard a great    
voice out of heaven1 saying1 ,behold the

 tabernacle of ,god is with men1 and ,he
 will dwell with them1 and they shall be
 ,his people1 and ,god ,himself shall be
 with them1 and be their ,god4  ,and    
,god shall wipe away all tears from     
their eyes2 and there shall be no more  
death1 neither sorrow nor crying1       
neither shall there be any more pain3   
for the former things are passed away4  
,does that sound much like a general    
increase of armaments8 or like bills for
 the prevention of pestilence1 or of    
drunkenness1--which1 even if they pass1 
will both probably fail to do the good  
which they propose8  ,no4 ,and if this  
wicked world is to be mended1 then ,god 
must stir up the wills of ,his faithful 
people1 and we must pray without ceasing
 for ourselves1 and for all for whom we 
are bound to pray1 that ,he would stir  
them up4 ,for what we want is not       
knowledge2 we have enough of that1 and  
too much4 ,too much2 for knowing so much
 and doing so little1 what an account   
will be required of us at the last day6 

,no4  ,it is the will which we want1 in 
a hundred cases4  ,take that of         
pestilential dwelling-houses in our     
great towns4  ,every one knows that they
 ought to be made healthy2 every one    
knows that they can be made healthy4    
,but the will to make them healthy is   
not here1 and they are left to breed    
disease and death4  ,and so1 as in a    
hundred instances1 shallow philosophers 
are proved1 by facts1 to be mistaken1   
when they tell us that man will act up  
to the best of his knowledge without    
,god's help4 ,for that is exactly what  
man does not4  ,what is wrong with the  
world in general1 is wrong likewise more
 or less with you and me1 and with all  
human beings2 for after all1 the world  
is made up of human beings2 and the sin 
of the world is nothing save the sins of
 each and all human beings put together2
 and the world will be renewed and come 
right again1 just as far and no farther1
 as each human being is renewed and     
comes right4  ,the only sure method1    

therefore1 of setting the world right1  
is to begin by setting our own little   
part of the world right--in a word1     
setting ourselves right4  ,but if we    
begin to try1 that1 we find1 is just    
what we cannot do4  ,when a man begins  
to hunger and thirst after              
righteousness1 and1 discontented with   
himself1 attempts to improve himself1 he
 soon begins to find a painful truth in 
many a word of the ,bible and the       
,prayer ,book to which he gave little   
heed1 as long as he was contented with  
himself1 and with doing just what       
pleased him1 right or wrong4  ,he soon  
finds out that he has no power of       
himself to help himself1 that he is tied
 and bound with the burden of his sins1 
and that he cannot1 by reason of his    
frailty1 stand upright--that he actually
 is sore let and hindered by his own    
sins1 from running the race set before  
him1 and doing his duty where ,god has  
put him4  ,all these sayings come home  
to him as actual facts1 most painful    

facts1 but facts which he cannot deny4  
,he soon finds out the meaning and the  
truth of that terrible struggle between 
the good in him and the evil in him1 of 
which ,st ,paul speaks so bitterly in   
the text4 ,how1 when he tries to do     
good1 evil is present with him4  ,how he
 delights in the law of ,god with his   
inward mind1 and yet finds another law  
in his body1 warring against the law of 
,god1 and bringing him into captivity to
 the law of sin4  ,how he is crippled by
 old bad habits1 weakened by cowardice1 
by laziness1 by vanity1 by general      
inability of will1 till he is           
ready1--disgusted at himself and his own
 weakness1--to cry1 ,who shall deliver  
me from the body of this death8  ,let   
him but utter that cry honestly4  ,let  
him once find out that he wants         
something outside himself to help him1  
to deliver him1 to strengthen him1 to   
stir up his weak will1 to give him grace
 and power to do what he knows instead  
of merely admiring it1 and leaving it   

undone4  ,let a man only find out that4 
,let him see that he needs a helper1 a  
deliverer1 a strengthener--in one word1 
a ,saviour--and he will find one4  ,i   
verily believe that1 sooner or later1   
the ,lord ,jesus ,christ will reveal to 
that man what ,he revealed to ,st ,paul2
 that ,he ,himself will deliver him2 and
 that1 like ,st ,paul1 after crying ,o  
wretched man that ,i am1 who shall      
deliver me from the body of this death8 
he will be able to answer himself1 ,i   
thank ,god--,god will1 through ,jesus   
,christ our ,lord4  ,christ will deliver
 me from the bonds of my sins1 ,christ  
will stir up this weak will of mine1    
,christ will give me strength and power1
 faithfully to fulfil all my good       
desires1 because ,he ,himself has put   
them into my heart not to mock me1 not  
to disappoint me--not to make me        
wretched with the sight of noble graces 
and virtues to which ,i cannot attain1  
but to fulfil ,his work in me4  ,what   
,he has begun in me ,he will carry on in

 me4  ,he has sown the seed in me1 and  
,he will make it bear fruit1 if only ,i 
pray to ,him1 day by day1 for strength  
to do what ,i know ,i ought to do1 and  
cry morning and night to ,him1 the fount
 of life1 ,stir up my will1 ,o ,lord1   
that ,i may bring forth the fruit of    
good works1 for then by ,thee ,i shall  
be plentifully rewarded4  ,so the man   
gains hope and heart for himself1 and   
so1 if he will but think rationally and 
humbly1 he may gain hope and heart for  
this poor sinful world4  ,for what has  
come true for him may come true for any 
man4  ,who is he that ,god should care  
more for him than for others8  ,who is  
he that ,god should help him when he    
prays1 more than ,he will help ,his     
whole church if it will but pray8  ,he  
says to himself1 all this knowledge of  
what is right2 all these good desires1  
all these longings after a juster1      
purer1 nobler1 happier state of things2 
there they are up and down the world    
already1 though1 alas6 they have borne  

little enough fruit as yet4  ,be it so4 
,but ,god put them into my heart4  ,and 
who save ,god has put them into the     
world's heart8  ,it was ,god who sowed  
the seed in me2 surely it is ,god who   
has sowed it in other men8  ,and if ,god
 has made it bear even the poorest fruit
 in me1 why should ,he not make it bear 
fruit in other men and in all the world8
  ,all they need is that ,god should    
stir up their wills1 that they may do   
the good they know1 and attain the      
blessedness after which they long4  ,and
 then1 if the man have a truly human1   
truly reasonable heart in him-- he feels
 that he can pray for others as well as 
for himself4  ,he feels that he must    
pray for them1 and cry1--,thou alone    
canst make men strong to do the right   
thing1 and ,thou wilt make them4  ,stir 
up their wills1 ,o ,lord6  ,thou canst  
not mean that all the good seed which is
 sown about the world should die and    
wither1 and bring no fruit to           
perfection4  ,surely ,thy word will not 

return to ,thee void1 but be like the   
rain which comes down from heaven1 and  
gives seed to the sower and bread to the
 eater4 ,oh1 strengthen such as stand1  
and comfort and help the weak-hearted1  
and raise up them that fall1 and1       
finally1 beat down ,satan and all the   
powers of evil under our feet1 and pour 
out thy spirit on all flesh1 that so    
their ,father's name may be hallowed1   
,his kingdom come1 ,his will be done on 
earth as it is in heaven4  ,and so will 
come the one and only true progress of  
the human race--which is1 that all men  
should become faithful and obedient     
citizens of the holy city1 the kingdom  
of ,god1 which is the ,church of        
,christ4  ,to which may ,god in ,his    
mercy bring us all1 and our children    
after us4  ,amen4  ,this1 then1 is the  
lesson why we are met together this     
,advent day4  ,we are met to pray that  
,god would so help us by ,his grace and 
mercy that we may bring forth the fruit 
of good works1 and that when our ,lord  

,jesus ,christ shall come in ,his       
glorious majesty to judge the quick and 
the dead1 we1 and our descendants after 
us1 may be found an acceptable people in
 ,his sight4  ,we are met to pray1 in a 
,national ,church1 for the whole nation 
of ,england1 that all orders and degrees
 therein may1 each in his place and     
station1 help forward the hallowing of  
,god's name1 the coming of ,his kingdom1
 the doing of ,his will on earth4  ,we  
are met to pray for the ,queen and all  
that are in authority1 that these       
,advent collects may be fulfilled in    
them1 and by them1 for the good of the  
whole people2 for the ministers and     
stewards of ,christ's mysteries1 that   
the same collects may be fulfilled by   
them and in them1 till they turn the    
hearts of the disobedient to the wisdom 
of the just2 for the ,commons of this   
nation1 that each man may he delivered1 
by ,god's grace and mercy1 from the     
special sin which besets him in this    
faithless and worldly generation and    

hinders him from running the race of    
duty which is set before him1 and get   
strength from ,god so to live that in   
that dread day he may meet his ,judge   
and ,king1 not in tenor and in shame1   
but in loyalty and in humble hope4  ,but
 more--we are here to worship ,god in   
,christ1 both ,god and man4  ,to confess
 that without ,him we can do nothing1   
that unless ,he enlighten our           
understandings we are dark1 unless ,he  
stir up our wills we are powerless for  
good4  ,to confess that though we have  
forgotten ,him1 yet ,he has not         
forgotten us4   ,that ,he is the same   
gracious and generous ,giver and        
,saviour4  ,that though we deny ,him ,he
 cannot deny ,himself4  ,that ,he is the
 same yesterday1 to-day1 and for ever as
 when ,he came to visit this earth in   
great humility4  ,that the ,lord is     
,king1 though the earth be moved4  ,he  
sitteth upon ,his throne1 be the nations
 never so unquiet4  ,we are here to     
declare to ourselves and all men1 and   

the whole universe1 that we at least    
believe that the heavens and earth are  
full of ,his glory4  ,we are here to    
declare that1 whether or not the kings  
of the earth are wise enough1 or the    
judges of it learned enough1 to         
acknowledge ,christ for their king1 we  
at least will worship the ,son lest ,he 
be angry1 and so we perish from the     
right way2 for if ,his wrath be kindled1
 yea but a little1 then blessed are     
they1 and they only1 who put their trust
 in ,him4  ,we are here to join our     
songs with angels round the throne1 and 
with those pure and mighty beings who1  
in some central sanctuary of the        
universe1 cry for ever1 ,thou art       
worthy1 ,o ,lord1 to receive glory and  
honour and power3 for ,thou hast created
 all things1 and for ,thy pleasure they 
are and were created4  ,we do so in     
ancient words1 ancient music1 ancient   
ceremonies1 for a token that ,christ's  
rule and glory is an ancient rule and an
 eternal glory2 that it is no new       

discovery of our own1 and depends not on
 our own passing notions and feelings   
about it1 but is like ,christ1 the same 
now as in the days of our forefathers1  
the same as it was fifteen hundred years
 ago1 the same as it has been since the 
day that ,he stooped to be born of the  
,virgin ,mary1 the same that it will be 
till ,he shall come in ,his glory to    
judge the quick and the dead4           
,therefore we delight in the ancient    
ceremonial1 as like as we can make it1  
to that of the earlier and purer ages of
 the ,church1 when ,christianity was    
still1 as it were1 fresh from the hand  
of its ,creator1 ere yet it had been    
debased and defiled by the idolatrous   
innovations of the ,church of ,rome4    
,for so we confess ourselves bound by   
links of gratitude to the ,apostles1 and
 the successors of the ,apostles1 and to
 all which has been best1 purest1 and   
truest in the ages since4  ,so we       
confess that we worship the same        
,god-man of whom ,apostles preached1 of 

whom fathers philosophised1 and for whom
 martyrs died4  ,that we believe1 like  
them1 that ,he alone is ,king of kings  
and ,lord of lords2 that there is no    
progress1 civilization1 or salvation in 
this life or the life to come1 but      
through ,his undeserved mercy and ,his  
strengthening grace2 that ,he has       
reigned from the creation of the world1 
reigns now1 and will reign unto that    
last dread day1 when ,he shall have put 
all enemies under ,his feet1 and        
delivered up the kingdom to ,god1 even  
the ,father1 that ,god may be all in    
all4  ,unto which day may ,he in ,his   
mercy bring us all through faith and    
good works3  ,amen4    ,,sermon ,,vi4   
,,capital ,,punishment    ,eversley4    
,quinquagesima ,sunday1 #ahgb4  ,genesis
 ix4 #a1 #c1 #d1 #e1 #f4  ,and ,god     
blessed ,noah and his sons1 and said    
unto them1 ,be fruitful1 and multiply1  
and replenish the earth4 4 4 4 ,every   
moving thing that liveth shall be meat  
for you 4 4 4  ,but flesh with the life 

thereof1 which is the blood thereof1    
shall ye not eat4  ,and surely your     
blood of your lives will ,i require3  at
 the hand of every beast will ,i require
 it1 and at the hand of man2 at the hand
 of every man's brother will ,i require 
the life of man4  ,whoso sheddeth man's 
blood1 by man shall his blood be shed3  
for in the image of ,god made he man4   
,this is ,god's blessing on mankind4    
,this is our charter from ,god1 who made
 and rules this earth4  ,this is the end
 and duty of our mortal life3- -to be   
fruitful and multiply and replenish the 
earth1 and subdue it4  ,but is that all8
  ,is there no hint in this blessing of 
,god of something more than our mortal  
life--something beyond our mortal life8 
,surely there is4 ,those words--in the  
image of ,god made ,he man1 must mean1  
if they mean anything1 that man can1 if 
he will but be a true man1 share the    
eternal life of ,god4  ,but ,i will not 
speak of that to-day1 but rather of a   
question about his mortal life in this  

world1 which is this3--,what is the     
reason why man has a right over the     
lives of animals8 why he may use them   
for his food8 and at the same time1 what
 is the reason why he has not the same  
right over the lives of his fellow-men8 
why he may not use them for food8  ,it  
is this--that in the image of ,god made 
,he man4  ,man is made in the image and 
likeness of ,god1 therefore he is a     
sacred creature2 a creature1 not merely 
an animal1 and the highest of all       
animals1 only cunninger than all        
animals1 more highly organised1 more    
delicately formed than all animals2 but 
something beyond an animal4  ,he is in  
the likeness of ,god1 therefore he is   
consecrated to ,god4  ,he is the one    
creature on earth whom ,god1 so far as  
we know1 is trying to make like         
,himself4  ,therefore1 whosoever kills a
 man1 sins not only against that man1   
nor against society3  he sins against   
,god4  ,and ,god will require that man's
 blood at the hand of him who slays him4

  ,but how8  ,at the hand of every beast
 will ,he require it1 and at the hand of
 every man4  ,what that first part of   
the law means ,i cannot tell4  ,how ,god
 will require from the lion1 or the     
crocodile1 or the shark1 who eats a     
human being1 the blood of their victims1
 is more than ,i can say4  ,but this ,i 
can say--that the feeling1 not only of  
horror and pity1 but of real rage and   
indignation1 with which men see 7what   
,god grant you never may see7 a wild    
beast kill a man1 is a witness in man's 
conscience that the text is true        
somehow1 though how we know not4  ,i    
received a letter a few weeks since from
 an officer1 a very remarkable person1  
in which he described his horror and    
indignation at seeing a friend of his   
struck down and eaten by a tiger1 and   
how1 when next day he stood over what   
had been but the day before a human     
being1 he looked up to heaven1 and kept 
repeating the words of the text1 in the 
image of ,god made ,he man1 in rage and 

shame1 and almost accusing ,god for     
allowing ,his image to be eaten by a    
brute beast4  ,it shook1 for the moment1
 his faith in ,god's justice and        
goodness4  ,that man was young then1 and
 has grown calmer and wiser now1 and has
 regained a deeper and sounder faith in 
,god4  ,but the shock1 he said1 was     
dreadful to him4  ,he felt that the     
matter was not merely painful and       
pitiable1 but that it was a wrong and a 
crime2 and on the faith of this very    
text1 a wrong and a crime ,i believe it 
to be1 and one which ,god knows how to  
avenge and to correct when man cannot4  
,somehow-- for ,he has ways of which we 
poor mortals do not dream--at the hand  
of every beast will ,he require the     
blood of man4  ,but more2 at the hand of
 every man will ,he require it4  ,and   
how8  ,the text tells us1 ,whoso        
sheddeth man's blood1 by man shall his  
blood be shed3  for in the image of ,god
 made ,he man4  ,now1 ,i do not doubt   
but that the all-seeing ,god1 looking   

back on what had most probably happened 
on this earth already1 and looking      
forward to what would happen1 and       
happens1 alas6 too often now1 meant to  
warn men against the awful crime of     
cannibalism1 of eating their fellow-men 
as they would eat an animal4 ,by so     
doing1 they not only treated their      
fellow-men as beasts1 but they behaved  
like beasts themselves4  ,they denied   
that their victim was made in the       
likeness of ,god2 they denied that they 
were made in the likeness of ,god2 they 
willingly and deliberately put on the   
likeness of beasts1 and as beasts they  
were to perish4  ,now1 this is certain1 
that savages who eat men--and alas6     
there are thousands even now who do     
so--usually know in their hearts that   
they are doing wrong4  ,as soon as their
 consciences are the least awakened1    
they are ashamed of their cannibalism2  
they lie about it1 try to conceal it2   
and as soon as ,god's grace begins to   
work on them1 it is the very first sin  

that they give up4 ,and next1 this is   
certain1 that there is a curse upon it4 
,no cannibal people1 so far as ,i can   
find1 have ever risen or prospered in   
the world2 and the cannibal peoples     
now-a-days1 and for the last three      
hundred years1 have been dying out4  ,by
 their own vices1 diseases1 and wars1   
they perish off the face of the earth1  
in the midst of comfort and plenty2 and1
 in spite of all the efforts of         
missionaries1 even their children and   
grand-children1 after giving up the     
horrid crime1 and becoming ,christians1 
seem to have no power of living and     
increasing1 but dwindle away1 and perish
 off the earth4  ,yes1 ,god's laws work 
in strange and subtle ways2 so darkly1  
so slowly1 that the ungodly and sinners 
often believe that there are no laws of 
,god1 and say--,tush1 how should ,god   
perceive it8  ,is there knowledge in the
 ,most ,high8  ,but the laws work1      
nevertheless1 whether men are aware of  
them or not4  ,the mills of ,god grind  

slowly1 but sooner or later they grind  
the sinner to powder4  ,and now ,i will 
leave this hateful subject and go on to 
another1 on which ,i am moved to speak  
once and for all1 because it is much in 
men's minds just now--,i mean what is   
vulgarly called capital punishment1 the 
punishing of murder by death4  ,now the 
text1 which is the ancient covenant of  
,god with man1 speaks very clearly on   
this point4  ,whosoever sheddeth man's  
blood1 by man shall his blood be shed4  
,man is made in the likeness of ,god4   
,that is the ground of our law about    
murder1 as it is the ground of all just 
and merciful law2 that gives man his    
right to slay the murderer2 that makes  
it his duty to slay the murderer4  ,he  
has to be jealous of ,god's likeness1   
and to slay1 in the name of ,god1 the   
man who1 by murder1 outrages the        
likeness of ,god in himself and in his  
victim4  ,you all know that there is    
now-a-days a strong feeling among some  
persons about capital punishment2 that  

there are those who will move heaven and
 earth to interfere with the course of  
justice1 and beg off the worst of       
murderers1 on any grounds1 however      
unreasonable1 fanciful1 even unfair2    
simply because they have a dislike to   
human beings being hanged4  ,i believe1 
from long consideration1 that these     
persons' strange dislike proceeds from  
their not believing sufficiently that   
man is made in the image of ,god4  ,and1
 alas6 it proceeds1 ,i fear1 in some of 
them1 from not believing in a ,god at   
all--believing1 perhaps1 in some mere   
maker of the world1 but not in the      
living ,god which ,scripture sets forth4
  ,for how else can they say1 as ,i have
 known some say1 that capital punishment
 is wrong1 because we have no right to  
usher a man into the presence of his    
,maker4  ,into the presence of his      
,maker6  ,why1 where else is every man1 
you and ,i1 heathen and ,christian1 bad 
and good1 save in the presence of his   
,maker already8  ,do we not live and    

move and have our being in ,god8        
,whither can we go from ,his spirit1 or 
whither can we flee from ,his presence8 
,if we ascend into heaven1 ,he is there4
  ,if we go down to hell ,he is there   
also4 ,and if the law puts a man to     
death1 it does not usher him into the   
presence of his ,maker1 for he is there 
already4  ,it simply says to him1 ,god  
has judged you on earth1 not we4  ,god  
will judge you in the next world1 not   
we4  ,all we know is1 that you are not  
fit to live in this world4  ,all our    
duty is to send you out of it4  ,where  
you will go in the other world is ,god's
 matter1 not ours1 and the ,lord have   
mercy on your soul4  ,and this want of  
faith in a living ,god lies at the      
bottom of another objection4  ,we are to
 keep murderers alive in order to       
convert and instruct and amend them4    
,the answer is1 ,we shall be most happy 
to amend anybody of any fault1 however  
great3  but the experience of ages is   
that murderers are past mending2 that   

the fact of a man's murdering another is
 a plain proof that he has no moral     
sense1 and has become simply a brute    
animal ,our duty is to punish not to    
amend1 and to say to the murderer1 ,if  
you can be amended2 ,god will amend you1
 and so have mercy on your soul4  ,god  
must amend you1 if you are to be        
amended4  ,if ,god cannot amend you1 we 
cannot4  ,if ,god will not amend you1   
certainly we cannot force ,him to do so1
 if we kept you alive for a thousand    
years4  ,that would seem reasonable1 as 
well as reverent and faithful to ,god4  
,but men now-a-days fancy that they love
 their fellow creatures far better than 
,god loves them1 and can deal far more  
wisely and lovingly with them than ,god 
is willing to deal4  ,of these          
objections ,i take little heed4  ,i look
 on them as merely loose cant1 which    
does not quite understand the meaning of
 its own words1 and ,i trust to sound1  
hard1 ,english common sense to put them 
aside4  ,but there is another objection 

to capital punishment1 which we must    
deal with much more respectfully and    
tenderly2 for it is made by certain good
 people1 people whom we must honour1    
though we differ from them1 for no set  
of people have done more 7according to  
their numbers7 for education1 for active
 charity1 and for benevolence1 and for  
peace and good will among the nations of
 the earth4  ,and they say1 you must not
 take the life of a murderer1 just      
because he is made in ,god's image4     
,well1 ,i should have thought that ,god 
,himself was the best judge of that4    
,that1 if ,god truly said that man was  
made in ,his image1 and said1 moreover1 
as it were at the same moment1 that1    
therefore1 whoso sheds man's blood1 by  
man shall his blood be shed--our duty   
was to trust ,god1 to obey ,god1 and to 
do our duty against the murderer1       
however painful to our feelings it might
 be4  ,but ,i believe these good people 
make their mistake from forgetting this2
 that if the murderer be made in ,god's 

image and likeness1 so is the man whom  
he murders2 and so also is the jury who 
convict him1 the judge who condemns him1
 and the nation 7the society of men7 for
 whom they act4  ,and this1 my dear     
friends1 brings us to the very root of  
the meaning of law4  ,man has sense to  
make laws 7which animals cannot do71    
just because he is made in the likeness 
of ,god1 and has the sense of right and 
wrong4 ,man has the right to enforce    
laws1 to see right done and wrong       
punished1 just because he is made in the
 likeness of ,god4  ,the laws of a      
country1 as far as they are just and    
righteous1 are the copy of what the men 
of that country have found out about    
right and wrong1 and about how much     
right they can get done1 and how much   
wrong punished4  ,so1 just as the men of
 a country are 7in spite of all their   
sins7 made in the likeness of ,god1 so  
the laws of a country 7in spite of all  
their defects7 are a copy of ,god's     
will1 as to what men should or should   

not do4  ,and that1 and no other1 is the
 true reason why the judge or magistrate
 has authority over either property1    
liberty1 or life4  ,he is ,god's        
servant1 the servant of ,christ1 who is 
,king of this land and of all lands1 and
 of all governments1 and all kings and  
rulers of the earth4  ,he sits there in 
,god's name1 to see ,god's will done1 as
 far as poor fallible human beings can  
get it done4  ,and1 because he is1 not  
merely as a man1 but1 by his special    
authority1 in the likeness of ,god1 who 
has power over life and death1 therefore
 he also1 as far as his authority goes1 
has power over life and death4  ,that is
 my opinion1 and that was the opinion of
 ,st4 ,paul4  ,for what does he say--and
 say not 7remember always7 of ,christian
 magistrates in a ,christian country1   
but actually of heathen ,roman          
magistrates8  ,let every soul be subject
 unto the higher powers4  ,for there is 
no power but of ,god3  the powers that  
be are ordained of ,god4 ,whosoever     

therefore resisteth the power1 resisteth
 the ordinance of ,god3 and they that   
resist shall receive to themselves      
damnation4  ,thus spoke out the         
tenderest-hearted1 most ,christ-like    
human being1 perhaps1 who ever trod this
 earth1 who1 in his intense longing to  
save sinners1 endured a life of misery  
and danger1 and finished it by          
martyrdom4  ,but there was no           
sentimentality1 no soft indulgence in   
him4  ,he knew right from wrong2 common 
sense from cant2 duty from public       
opinion2 and divine charity from the    
mere cowardly dislike of witnessing     
pain1 not so much because it pains the  
person punished1 as because it pains the
 spectator4 ,he knew that ,christ was   
,king of kings1 and what ,christ's      
kingdom was like4  ,he had discovered   
the divine and wonderful order of men   
and angels4  ,he saw that one part of   
that order was--the soul that sinneth1  
it shall die4  ,but some say that       
capital punishment is inconsistent with 

the mild religion of ,christ--the       
religion of mercy and love4  ,the mild  
religion of ,christ6  ,do these men know
 of ,whom they talk8  ,do they know     
that1 if the ,bible be true1 the ,god   
who said1 ,whoso sheddeth man's blood1  
by man shall his blood be shed1 is the  
very same ,being1 the very same ,god1   
who was born of the ,virgin ,mary1      
crucified under ,pontius ,pilate--the   
very same ,christ who took little       
children up in ,his arms and blessed    
them1 the very same ,word of ,god1 too1 
of whom it is written1 that out of ,his 
mouth goeth a two-edged sword1 that ,he 
may smite the nations1 and ,he shall    
rule them with a rod of iron1 and ,he   
treadeth the wine press of the          
fierceness and wrath of ,almighty ,god8 
,these are awful words1 but1 my dear    
friends1 ,i can only ask you if you     
think them too awful to be true8  ,do   
you believe the ,christian religion8    
,do you believe the ,creeds8  ,do you   
believe the ,bible8  ,for if you do1    

then you believe that the ,lord ,christ1
 who was born of the ,virgin ,mary1 and 
crucified under ,pontius ,pilate1 is the
 ,maker1 the ,master1 the ,ruler of this
 world1 and of all worlds4  ,by what    
laws ,he rules other worlds we know not1
 save that they are1 because they must  
be--just and merciful laws4  ,but of the
 laws by which ,he rules this world we  
do know1 by experience1 that ,his laws  
are of most terrible and unbending      
severity1 as ,i have warned you again   
and again1 and shall warn you1 as long  
as there is a liar or an idler1 a       
drunkard or an adulteress in this       
parish4  ,and if this be so--if ,christ 
be a ,god of severity as well as a ,god 
of love1 a ,god who punishes sinners as 
well as a ,god who forgives penitents-  
-what then8  ,we are1 ,he tells us1 made
 in ,his likeness4  ,then1 according to 
,his likeness we must behave4  ,we must 
copy ,his love1 by helping the poor and 
afflicted1 the weak and the oppressed4  
,but we must copy ,his severity1 by     

punishing whenever we have the power1   
without cowardice or indulgence1 all    
wilful offenders2 and1 above all1 the   
man who destroys ,god's image in        
himself1 by murdering and destroying the
 mortal life of a man made in the image 
of ,god4  ,and more2 if we be made in   
the likeness of ,god and of ,christ1 we 
must remember1 morning and night1 and   
all day long1 that most awful and most  
blessed fact4  ,we must say to          
ourselves1 again and again1 ,i am not a 
mere animal1 and like a mere animal ,i  
must not behave2 ,i dare not behave like
 a mere animal1 for ,i was made in the  
likeness of ,god2 and when ,i was       
baptised the ,spirit of ,god took       
possession of me to restore me to ,god's
 likeness1 and to call out and perfect  
,god's likeness in me all my life long4 
,therefore1 ,i am no mere animal2 and   
never was intended to be4  ,i am the    
temple of ,god2 my body and soul belong 
to ,god1 and not to my own fancies and  
passions and lusts1 and whosoever       

defiles the temple of ,god1 him will    
,god destroy4  ,therefore1 this is our  
duty1 this is our only hope or          
safety--to do our best to keep alive and
 strong the likeness of ,god in         
ourselves2 to try to grow1 not more and 
more mean1 and brutal1 and carnal1 but  
more and more noble1 and human1 and     
spiritual2 to crush down our base       
passions1 our selfish inclinations1 by  
the help of the ,spirit of ,god1 and to 
think of and to pray for1 whatsoever is 
like ,christ and like ,god2 to pray for 
a noble love of what is good and noble1 
for a noble hate of what is bad2 and    
whatsoever things are pure and lovely   
and of good report to think of these    
things4  ,and to pray1 too1 for         
forgiveness from ,christ1 and for the   
sake of ,christ1 whenever we have       
yielded to our low passions1 and defiled
 the likeness of ,god in us1 and grieved
 ,his ,spirit1 lest at the last day it  
be said to us1 if not in words yet in   
acts1 which there will be no mistaking1 

no escaping1--,i made thee in ,my       
likeness in the beginning of the        
creation1 ,i redeemed thee into ,my     
likeness on the cross1 ,i baptised thee 
into ,my likeness by my ,holy ,spirit2  
and what hast thou hast done with ,my   
likeness8  ,thou hast cast it away1 thou
 hast let it die out in thee1 thou hast 
lived after the flesh and not after the 
spirit1 and hast put on the likeness of 
the carnal man1 the likeness of the     
brute4  ,thou hast copied the vanity of 
the peacock1 the silliness of the ape1  
the cunning of the fox1 the rapacity of 
the tiger1 the sensuality of the swine2 
but thou hast not copied ,god1 thy ,god1
 who died that thou mightest live1 and  
be a man4  ,then1 thou hast destroyed   
,god's likeness1 for thou hast destroyed
 it in thyself4  ,thou hast slain a man1
 for thou hast slain thy own manhood1   
and art thine own murderer1 and thine   
own blood shall be required at thy hand4
  ,that which thou hast done to ,god's  
likeness in thee1 shall be done to that 

which remains of thee in a second death4
  ,and from that may ,christ in ,his    
mercy deliver us all4  ,amen4           
,,sermon ,,vii4  ,,temptation           
,eversley1 #ahgb4  ,chester ,cathedral1 
#ahgb4  ,st ,matt4 iv4 #c4  ,and when   
the tempter came to ,him1 he said1 ,if  
,thou be the ,son of ,god1 command that 
these stones be made bread4  ,let me say
 a few words to-day about a solemn      
subject1 namely1 ,temptation4 ,i do not 
mean the temptations of the flesh--the  
temptations which all men have to yield 
to the low animal nature in them1 and   
behave like brutes4 ,i mean those deeper
 and more terrible temptations1 which   
our ,lord conquered in that great       
struggle with evil which is commonly    
called ,his temptation in the           
wilderness4  ,these were temptations of 
an evil spirit-- the temptations which  
entice some men1 at least1 to behave    
like devils4  ,now these temptations    
specially beset religious men--men who  
are1 or fancy themselves1 superior to   

their fellow-men1 more favoured by ,god1
 and with nobler powers1 and grander    
work to do1 than the common average of  
mankind4  ,but specially1 ,i say1 they  
beset those who are1 or fancy           
themselves1 the children of ,god4  ,and1
 therefore1 ,i humbly suppose our ,lord 
had to endure and to conquer these very 
temptations because ,he was not merely a
 child of ,god1 but the ,son of         
,god--the perfect ,man1 made in the     
perfect likeness of ,his ,father4  ,he  
had to endure these temptations1 and to 
conquer them1 that ,he might be able to 
succour us when we are tempted1 seeing  
that ,he was tempted in like manner as  
we are1 yet without sin4  ,now it has   
been said1 and1 ,i think1 well said1    
that what proves our ,lord's three      
temptations to have been very subtle and
 dangerous and terrible1 is this--that  
we cannot see at first sight that they  
were temptations at all4  ,the first two
 do not look to us to be wrong4  ,if our
 ,lord could make stones into bread to  

satisfy ,his hunger1 why should ,he not 
do so8  ,if ,he could prove to the ,jews
 that ,he was the ,son of ,god1 their   
divine ,king and ,saviour1 by casting   
,himself down from the pinnacle of the  
temple1 and being miraculously supported
 in the air by angels--if ,he could do  
that1 why should ,he not do it8  ,and   
lastly1 the third temptation looks at   
first sight so preposterous that it     
seems silly of the evil spirit to have  
hinted at it4  ,to ask any man of piety1
 much less the ,son of ,god ,himself1 to
 fall down and worship the devil1 seems 
perfectly absurd--a request not to be   
listened to for a moment1 but put aside 
with contempt4  ,well1 my friends1 and  
the very danger of these spiritual      
temptations is-- that they do not look  
like temptations4  ,they do not look    
ugly1 absurd1 wrong1 they look pleasant1
 reasonable1 right4  ,the devil1 says   
the apostle1 transforms himself at times
 into an angel of light4  ,if so1 then  
he is certainly far more dangerous than 

if he came as an angel of darkness and  
horror4  ,if you met some venomous      
snake1 with loathsome spots upon his    
scales1 his eyes full of rage and       
cunning1 his head raised to strike at   
you1 hissing and showing his fangs1     
there would be no temptation to have to 
do with him4  ,you would know that you  
had to deal with an evil beast1 and must
 either kill him or escape from him at  
once4  ,but if1 again1 you met1 as you  
may meet in the tropics1 a lovely little
 coral snake1 braided with red and      
white1 its mouth so small that it seems 
impossible that it can bite1 and so     
gentle that children may take it up and 
play with it1 then you might be tempted1
 as many a poor child has been ere now1 
to admire it1 fondle it1 wreathe it     
round the neck for a necklace1 or round 
the arm for a bracelet1 till the play   
goes one step too far1 the snake loses  
its temper1 gives one tiny scratch upon 
the lip or finger1 and that scratch is  
certain death4  ,that would be a        

temptation indeed2 one all the more     
dangerous because there is1 ,i am told1 
another sort of coral snake perfectly   
harmless1 which is so exactly like the  
deadly one1 that no child1 and few grown
 people1 can know them apart4  ,even so 
it is with our worst temptations4  ,they
 look sometimes so exactly like what is 
good and noble and useful and religious1
 that we mistake the evil for the good1 
and play with it till it stings us1 and 
we find out too late that the wages of  
sin are death4  ,thus religious people1 
just because they are religious1 are apt
 to be specially tempted to mistake evil
 for good1 to do something specially    
wrong1 when they think they are doing   
something specially right1 and so give  
occasion to the enemies of the ,lord to 
blaspheme2 till1 as a hard and          
experienced man of the world once said3 
,whenever ,i hear a man talking of his  
conscience1 ,i know that he is going to 
do something particularly foolish2      
whenever ,i hear of a man talking of his

 duty1 ,i know that he is going to do   
something particularly cruel4  ,do ,i   
say this to frighten you away from being
 religious8  ,god forbid4 ,better to be 
religious and to fear and love ,god1    
though you were tempted by all the      
devils out of the pit1 than to be       
irreligious and a mere animal1 and be   
tempted only by your own carnal nature1 
as the animals are4  ,better to be      
tempted1 like the hermits of old1 and   
even to fall and rise again1 singing1   
,rejoice not against me1 ,o mine enemy1 
when ,i fall ,i shall arise2 than to    
live the life of the flesh1 like a beast
 with lower pleasures1 like a beast with
 lower pains4  ,it is the price a man   
must pay for hungering and thirsting    
after righteousness1 for longing to be a
 child of ,god in spirit and in truth4  
,the devil1 says a wise man of old1 does
 not tempt bad men1 because he has got  
them already2 he tempts good men1       
because he has ,,not got them1 and wants
 to get them4  ,but how shall we know   

these temptations8  ,god knows1 my      
friends1 better than ,i2 and ,i trust   
that ,he will teach you to know1        
according to what each of you needs to  
know4  ,but as far as my small          
experience goes1 the root of them all is
 pride and self-conceit4  ,whatsoever   
thoughts or feelings tempt us to pride  
and self-conceit are of the devil1 not  
of ,god4 ,the devil is specially the    
spirit of pride2 and1 therefore1        
whatever tempts you to fancy yourself   
something different from your           
fellow-men1 superior to your fellow men1
 safer than them1 more favoured by ,god 
than them1 that is a temptation of the  
spirit of pride4  ,whatever tempts you  
to think that you can do without ,god's 
help and ,god's providence2 whatever    
tempts you to do anything extraordinary1
 and show yourself off1 that you may    
make a figure in the world2 and above   
all1 whatever tempts you to             
antinomianism1 that is1 to fancy that   
,god will overlook sins in you which ,he

 will not overlook in other men--all    
these are temptations from the spirit of
 pride4  ,they are temptations like our 
,lord's temptations4  ,these temptations
 came on our ,lord more terribly than   
they ever can on you and me1 just       
because ,he was the ,son of ,man1 the   
perfect ,man1 and1 therefore1 had more  
real reason for being proud 7if such a  
thing could be7 than any man1 or than   
all men put together4  ,but ,he         
conquered the temptations because ,he   
was perfect ,man1 led by the ,spirit of 
,god2 and1 therefore1 ,he knew that the 
only way to be a perfect man was not to 
be proud1 however powerful1 wise1 and   
glorious ,he might be2 but to submit    
,himself humbly and utterly1 as every   
man should do1 to the will of ,his      
,father in ,heaven1 from whom alone ,his
 greatness came4  ,now the spirit of    
pride cannot understand the beauty of   
humility1 and the spirit of self-will   
cannot understand the beauty of         
obedience2 and1 therefore1 it is        

reasonable to suppose the devil could   
not understand our ,lord4  ,if ,he be   
the ,son of ,god1 so might ,satan argue1
 ,he has all the more reason to be      
proud2 and1 therefore1 it is all the    
more easy to tempt ,him into shewing    
,his pride1 into proving ,himself a     
conceited1 self-willed1 rebellious      
being--in one word1 an evil spirit4     
,and therefore 7as you will see at first
 sight7 the first two temptations were  
clearly meant to tempt our ,lord to     
pride2 for would they not tempt you and 
me to pride8  ,if we could feed         
ourselves by making bread of stones1    
would not that make us proud enough8    
,so proud1 ,i fear1 that we should soon 
fancy that we could do without ,god and 
,his providence1 and were masters of    
nature and all her secrets4  ,if you and
 ,i could make the whole city worship   
and obey us1 by casting ourselves off   
this cathedral unhurt1 would not that   
make us proud enough8  ,so proud1 ,i    
fear1 that we should end in committing  

some great folly1 or great crime in our 
conceit and vainglory4  ,now1 whether   
our ,lord could or could not have done  
these wonderful deeds1 one thing is     
plain--that ,he would not do them2 and1 
therefore1 we may presume that ,he ought
 not to have done them4  ,it seems as if
 ,he did not wish to be a wonderful man3
  but only a perfectly good man1 and ,he
 would do nothing to help ,himself but  
what any other man could do4  ,he       
answered the evil spirit simply out of  
,scripture1 as any other pious man might
 have done4  ,when ,he was bidden to    
make the stones into bread1 ,he answers 
not as the ,eternal ,son of ,god1 but   
simply as a man4  ,it is written3--it is
 the belief of ,moses and the old       
prophets of my people that man doth not 
live by bread alone1 but by every word  
that proceedeth out of the mouth of     
,god3--as much as to say1 ,if ,i am to  
be delivered out of this need1 ,god will
 deliver me by some means or other1 just
 as ,he delivers other men out of their 

needs4  ,when ,he was bidden cast       
,himself from the temple1 and so save   
,himself1 probably from sorrow1 poverty1
 persecution1 and the death on the      
cross1 ,he answers out of ,scripture as 
any other ,jew would have done4  ,it is 
written again1 ,thou shalt not tempt the
 ,lord thy ,god4  ,he says nothing--this
 is most important--of ,his being the   
eternal ,son of ,god4  ,he keeps that in
 the background4  ,there the fact was2  
but ,he veiled the glory of ,his        
godhead1 that ,he might assert the      
rights of ,his manhood1 and shew that   
mere man1 by the help of the ,spirit of 
,god1 could obey ,god1 and keep ,his    
commandments4  ,i say these last words  
with all diffidence and humility1 and   
trusting that the ,lord will pardon any 
mistake which ,i may make about ,his    
,divine ,words4  ,i only say them       
because wiser men than ,i have often    
taken the same view already4  ,of course
 there is more1 far more1 in this       
wonderful saying than we can understand1

 or ever will understand4  ,but this ,i 
think is plain--that our ,lord          
determined to behave as any and every   
other man ought to have done in ,his    
place2 in order to shew all ,god's      
children the example of perfect humility
 and perfect obedience to ,god4  ,but   
again1 the devil asked our ,lord to fall
 down and worship him4  ,now how could  
that be a temptation to pride8  ,surely 
that was asking our ,lord to do anything
 but a proud action1 rather the most    
humiliating and most base of all        
actions4  ,my friends1 it seems to me   
that if our ,lord had fallen down and   
worshipped the evil spirit1 ,he would   
have given way to the spirit of pride   
utterly and boundlessly2 and ,i will    
tell you why4  ,the devil wanted our    
,lord to do evil that good might come4  
,it would have been a blessing1 that all
 the kingdoms of the world and the glory
 of man should be our ,lord's1--the very
 blessing for this poor earth which ,he 
came to buy1 and which ,he bought with  

,his own precious blood4  ,and here the 
devil offered ,him the very prize for   
which ,he came down on earth1 without   
struggle or difficulty1 if ,he would but
 do1 for one moment1 one wrong thing4   
,what temptation that would be to our   
,lord as ,god1 ,i dare not say4  ,but   
that to our ,lord as ,man1 it must have 
been the most terrible of all           
temptations1 ,i can well believe3       
because history shews us1 and1 alas6 our
 own experience in modern times shews   
us1 persons yielding to that temptation 
perpetually2 pious people1 benevolent   
people1 people who long to spread the   
,bible1 to convert sinners1 to found    
charities1 to amend laws1 to set the    
world right in some way or other1 and   
who fancy that therefore1 in carrying   
out their fine projects1 they have a    
right to do evil that good may come4    
,this is a very painful subject2 all the
 more painful just now1 because ,i      
sometimes think it is the special sin of
 this country and this generation1 and  

that ,god will bring on us some heavy   
punishment for it4 ,but all who know the
 world in its various phases1 and       
especially what are called the religious
 world1 and the philanthropic world1 and
 the political world1 know too well that
 men1 not otherwise bad men1 will do    
things and say things1 to carry out some
 favourite project or movement1 or to   
support some party1 religious or other1 
which they would 7,i hope7 be ashamed to
 say and do for their own private gain4 
,now what is this1 but worshipping the  
evil spirit1 in order to get power over 
this world1 that they may 7as they      
fancy7 amend it8  ,and what is this but 
self- conceit--ruinous1 ,i had almost   
said1 blasphemous8  ,these people think 
themselves so certainly in the right1   
and their plans so absolutely necessary 
to the good of the world1 that ,god has 
given them a special licence to do what 
they like in carrying them out2 that ,he
 will excuse in them falsehoods and     
meannesses1 even tyranny and violences  

which ,he will excuse in no one else4   
,now1 is not this self-conceit8  ,what  
would you think of a servant who        
disobeyed you1 cheated you1 and yet said
 to himself--,no matter1 my master dare 
not turn me off3  ,i am so useful that  
he cannot do without me4  ,even so in   
all ages1 and now as much as1 or more   
than ever1 have men said1 ,we are so    
necessary to ,god and ,god's cause1 that
 ,he cannot do without us2 and therefore
 though ,he hates sin in everyone else1 
,he will excuse sin in us1 as long as we
 are about ,his business4  ,therefore1  
my dear friends1 whenever we are tempted
 to do or say anything rash1 or vain1 or
 mean1 because we are the children of   
,god2 whenever we are inclined to be    
puffed up with spiritual pride1 and to  
fancy that we may take liberties which  
other men must not take1 because we are 
the children of ,god2 let us remember   
the words of the text1 and answer the   
tempter1 when he says1 ,if thou be the  
,son of ,god1 do this and that1 as our  

,lord answered him--,if ,i be the ,child
 of ,god1 what then8  ,this--that ,i    
must behave as if ,god were my ,father4 
,i must trust my ,god utterly1 and ,i   
must obey ,him utterly4  ,i must do no  
rash or vain thing to tempt ,god1 even  
though it looks as if ,i should have a  
great success1 and do much good thereby4
  ,i must do no mean or base thing1 nor 
give way for a moment to the wicked ways
 of this wicked world1 even though again
 it looks as if ,i should have a great  
success1 and do much good thereby4  ,in 
one word1 ,i must worship my ,father in 
heaven1 and ,him only must ,i serve4    
,if ,he wants me1 ,he will use me4  ,if 
,he does not want me1 ,he will use some 
one else4 ,who am ,i1 that ,god cannot  
govern the world without my help8  ,my  
business is to refrain my soul1 and keep
 it low1 even as a weaned child1 and not
 to meddle with matters too high for me4
  ,my business is to do the little1     
simple1 everyday duties which lie       
nearest me1 and be faithful in a few    

things2 and then1 if ,christ will1 ,he  
may make me some day ruler over many    
things1 and ,i shall enter into the joy 
of my ,lord1 which is the joy of doing  
good to my fellow men4  ,but ,i shall   
never enter into that by thrusting      
myself into ,christ's way1 with grand   
schemes and hasty projects1 as if ,i    
knew better than ,he how to make ,his   
kingdom come4  ,if ,i do1 my pride will 
have a fall4  ,because ,i would not be  
faithful over a few things1 ,i shall be 
tempted to be unfaithful over many      
things2 and instead of entering into the
 joy of my ,lord1 ,i shall be in danger 
of the awful judgment pronounced on     
those who do evil that good may come1   
who shall say in that day1 ,lord1 ,lord1
 have we not prophesied in thy name8 and
 in thy name cast out devils8 and in thy
 name done many wonderful works8  ,and  
then will ,he protest unto them--,i     
never knew you4  ,depart from me1 ye    
that work iniquity4  ,oh1 my friends1 in
 all your projects for good1 as in all  

other matters which come before you in  
your mortal life1 keep innocence and    
take heed to the thing that is right4   
,for that1 and that alone1 shall bring a
 man peace at the last4  ,to which1 may 
,god in ,his mercy bring us all4  ,amen4
    ,,sermon ,,viii4  ,,mother',s ,,love
    ,eversley1 ,second ,sunday in ,lent1
 #ahgb4  ,st ,matthew xv4 #bb-bh4  ,and1
 behold1 a woman of ,canaan came out of 
the same coasts1 and cried unto him1    
saying1 ,have mercy on me1 ,o ,lord1    
thou son of ,david2 my daughter is      
grievously vexed with a devil4  ,but he 
answered her not a word4  ,and his      
disciples came and besought him1 saying1
 ,send her away2 for she crieth after   
us4  ,but he answered and said1 ,i am   
not sent but unto the lost sheep of the 
house of ,israel4  ,then came she and   
worshipped him1 saying1 ,lord1 help me4 
,but he answered and said1 ,it is not   
meet to take the children's bread1 and  
to cast it to dogs4  ,and she said1     
,truth1 ,lord3  yet the dogs eat of the 

crumbs which fall from their master's   
table4  ,then ,jesus answered and said  
unto her1 ,o woman1 great is thy faith3 
be it unto thee even as thou wilt4  ,and
 her daughter was made whole from that  
very hour4  ,if you want a proof from   
,scripture that there are two sides to  
our blessed ,lord's character--that ,he 
is a ,judge and an ,avenger as well as a
 ,saviour and a ,pardoner--that ,he is  
infinitely severe as well as infinitely 
merciful--that1 while we may come boldly
 to ,his throne of grace to find help   
and mercy in time of need1 we must1 at  
the same time1 tremble before ,his      
throne of justice--if you want a proof  
of all this1 ,i say1 then look at the   
,epistle and the ,gospel for this day4  
,put them side by side1 and compare     
them1 and you will see how perfectly    
they shew1 one after the other1 the two 
sides4  ,the ,epistle for the day tells 
men and women that they must lead moral1
 pure1 and modest lives4  ,it does not  
advise them to do so4  ,it does not say1

 ,it will be better to do so1 more      
proper and conducive to the good of     
society1 more likely to bring you to    
heaven at last4  ,it says1 ,you must1   
for it is the commandment of the ,lord  
,jesus1 and the will of ,god4  ,let no  
man encroach on or defraud his brother  
in the matter1 says ,st ,paul2 by which 
he means1 ,thou shalt not covet thy     
neighbour's wife4  ,and why8 ,because   
that the ,lord is the avenger of all    
such1 as we also have forewarned you and
 testified4  ,my friends1 people talk   
loosely of the ,thunder of ,sinai and   
the rigour of ,moses' law1 and set them 
against what they call the gentle voice 
of the ,gospel1 and the mild religion of
 ,christ4  ,why1 here are the ,thunders 
of ,sinai uttered as loud as ever1 from 
the very foot of the ,cross of ,christ2 
and the terrible1 ,thou shalt not1 of   
,moses' law1 with the curse of ,god for 
a penalty on the sinner1 uttered by the 
,apostle of ,faith1 and ,freedom1 in the
 name of ,christ and of ,god4  ,st ,paul

 is not afraid to call ,christ an       
,avenger4  ,how could he be8  ,he       
believed that it was ,christ who spoke  
to ,moses on ,sinai--the very same      
,christ who prayed for ,his murderers1  
,father1 forgive them1 for they know not
 what they do4  ,and he knew that       
,christ was the eternal ,son of ,god1   
the same yesterday1 to- day1 and for    
ever2 that ,he had not changed since    
,moses' time1 and could never change2   
that what ,he forbade in ,moses' time1  
hated in ,moses' time1 and avenged in   
,moses' time1 ,he would forbid1 and     
hate1 and avenge for ever4  ,and that1  
therefore1 he who despises the warnings 
of the ,law despises not man merely1 but
 ,god1 who has also given to us ,his    
,holy ,spirit to know what is           
unchangeable1 the everlastingly right1  
from what is everlastingly wrong4  ,so  
much for that side of our ,lord's       
character2 so much for sinners who1     
after their hardness and impenitent     
hearts1 treasure up for themselves wrath

 against the day of wrath and revelation
 of the righteous judgment of ,god1 in  
the day when ,god shall judge the       
secrets of men by ,jesus ,christ1       
according to ,st ,paul's ,gospel4  ,but1
 when we turn to the ,gospel for the    
day1 we see the other side of our       
,lord's character1 boundless            
condescension and boundless charity4    
,we see ,him there still a ,judge1 as   
,he always is and always will be1       
judging the secrets of a poor woman's   
heart1 and that woman a heathen4  ,he   
judges her openly1 in public1 before    
,his disciples4  ,but ,he is a ,judge   
who judges righteous judgment1 and not  
according to appearances2 who is no     
respecter of persons2 who is perfectly  
fair1 even though the woman be a        
heathen3 and1 instead of condemning her 
and driving her away1 ,he acquits her1  
,he grants her prayer1 ,he heals her    
daughter1 even though that daughter was 
also a heathen1 and one who knew ,him   
not4  ,i say our ,lord judged the woman 

after ,he had tried her1 as gold is     
tried in the fire4  ,why ,he did so1 we 
cannot tell4  ,perhaps ,he wanted1 by   
the trial1 to make her a better woman1  
to bring out something noble which lay  
in her heart unknown to her1 though not 
to ,him who knew what was in man4       
,perhaps ,he wished to shew his         
disciples1 who looked down on her as a  
heathen dog1 that a heathen1 too1 could 
have faith1 humility1 nobleness1 and    
grace of heart4 ,be that as it may1 when
 the poor woman came crying to ,him1 ,he
 answered her not a word4  ,his         
disciples besought ,him to send her     
away--and ,i am inclined to think that  
they wished ,him to grant her what she  
asked1 simply to be rid of her4  ,send  
her away1 they said1 for she crieth     
after us4  ,our ,lord1 we learn from ,st
 ,mark1 did not wish to be known in that
 place just then4  ,the poor woman1 with
 her crying1 was drawing attention to   
them1 and1 perhaps1 gathering a crowd4  
,somewhat noisy and troublesome1 perhaps

 she was1 in her motherly eagerness4    
,but our ,lord was still seemingly      
stern4  ,he would not listen1 it seemed1
 to ,his disciples any more than to the 
heathen woman4  ,i am not sent but unto 
the lost sheep of the house of ,israel4 
,so our ,lord said1 and 7what is worth  
remembering7 if ,he said so1 what ,he   
said was true4  ,he was the ,king of the
 people of ,israel1 the ,royal ,prince  
of ,david's line2 and1 as a man1 ,his   
duty was only to ,his own people4  ,and 
this woman was a ,greek1 a ,syro-       
phenician by nation--of a mixed race of 
people1 notoriously low and profligate1 
and old enemies of the ,jews4  ,then1 it
 seems1 ,he went into a house1 and would
 have no man know it4 ,but1 says ,st    
,mark1 ,he could not be hid4  ,the      
mother's wit found our ,lord out1 and   
the mother's heart urged her on1 and1 in
 spite of all ,his rebuffs1 she seems to
 have got into the house and worshipped 
,him4  ,she fell at ,his feet1 says ,st 
,mark--doubtless bowing her forehead to 

the ground1 in the fashion of those     
lands--an honour which was paid1 ,i     
believe1 only to persons who were royal 
or divine4  ,so she confessed that ,he  
was a king--perhaps a ,god come down on 
earth--and again she cried to ,him4     
,lord1 help me4  ,and what was our      
,lord's answer--seemingly more stern    
than ever8  ,let the children first be  
filled3  for it is not meet to take the 
children's bread and cast it unto the   
dogs4  ,hard words4 ,yes3  but all      
depends on how they were spoken4  ,all  
depends on our ,lord's look as ,he spoke
 them1 and1 even more1 on the tone of   
,his voice4  ,we all know that two men  
may use the very same words to us2--and 
the one shall speak sneeringly1         
brutally1 and raise in us indignation or
 despair2 another shall use the same    
words1 but solemnly1 tenderly1 and raise
 in us confidence and hope4  ,and so it 
may have been--so1 ,i fancy1 it must    
have been--with the tone of our ,lord's 
voice1 with the expression of ,his face4

 ,did ,he speak with a frown1 or with   
something like a smile8  ,there must    
have been some tenderness1 meaningness1 
pity in ,his voice which the quick      
woman's wit caught instantly1 and the   
quick mother's heart interpreted as a   
sign of hope4  ,let ,him call her a dog 
if ,he would4  ,what matter to a mother 
to be called a dog1 if she could thereby
 save her child from a devil8  ,perhaps 
she was little better than a dog4  ,they
 were a bad people these ,syrians1      
quick- witted1 highly civilised1 but    
vicious1 and teaching vice to other     
nations1 till some of the wisest ,romans
 cursed the day when the ,syrians first 
spread into ,rome1 and debauched the    
sturdy ,romans with their new- fangled1 
foreign sins4  ,they were a bad people1 
and1 perhaps1 she had been as bad as the
 rest4  ,but if she were a dog1 at least
 she felt that the dog had found its    
,master1 and must fawn on ,him1 if it   
were but for the hope of getting        
something from ,him4  ,and so1 in the   

poor heathen mother's heart1 there rose 
up a whole heaven of perfect humility1  
faith1 adoration4  ,if she were base and
 mean1 yet our ,lord was great1 and     
wise1 and good2 and that was all the    
more reason why ,he should be           
magnanimous1 generous1 condescending1   
like a true ,king1 to the basest and    
meanest of ,his subjects4  ,she asked   
not for money1 or honour1 or this       
world's fine things3  but simply for her
 child's health1 her child's deliverance
 from some mysterious and degrading     
illness4 ,surely there was no harm in   
asking for that4  ,it was simply a      
mother's prayer1 a simply human prayer1 
which our ,lord must grant1 if ,he were 
indeed a man of woman born1 if ,he had a
 mother1 and could feel for a mother1 if
 ,he had human tenderness1 human pity in
 ,him4  ,and so1 with her quick ,syrian 
wit1 she answers our ,lord with those   
wonderful words-- perhaps the most      
pathetic words in the whole ,bible--so  
full of humility1 of reverence1 and yet 

with a certain archness1 almost         
playfulness1 in them1 as it were1       
turning our ,lord's words against ,him2 
and1 by that very thing1 shewing how    
utterly she trusted ,him1--,truth1      
,lord3  yet the dogs eat of the crumbs  
which fall from their masters' table4   
,those were the beautiful words--more   
beautiful to me than whole volumes of   
poetry--which our ,lord had as it were  
crushed out of the woman's heart4       
,doubtless1 ,he knew all the while that 
they were in her heart1 though not as   
yet shaped into words4  ,doubtless1 ,he 
was trying her1 to shew ,his            
disciples--and all ,christians who      
should ever read the ,bible-- what was  
in her heart1 what she was capable of   
saying when it came to the point4  ,so  
,he tried her1 and judged her1 and      
acquitted her4  ,out of the abundance of
 her heart her mouth had spoken4  ,by   
her words she was justified4  ,by those 
few words she proved her utter faith in 
our ,lord's power and goodness--perhaps 

her faith in ,his godhead4  ,by those   
words she proved the gentleness and     
humility1 the graciousness and          
gracefulness of her own character4  ,by 
those words she proved1 too1--and oh1   
you that are mothers1 is that           
nothing8--the perfect disinterestedness 
of her mother's love4  ,and so she      
conquered--as the blessed ,lord loves to
 be conquered-- as all noble souls who  
are like their blessed ,lord1 love to be
 conquered- -by the prayer of faith1 of 
humility1 of confidence1 of earnestness1
 and she had her reward4  ,o woman1 said
 ,he1 the ,maker of all heaven and      
earth1 great is thy faith4  ,for this   
saying go thy way4  ,be it unto thee    
even as thou wilt4  ,the devil is gone  
out of thy daughter4  ,she went1 full of
 faith2 and when she was come to her    
house1 she found the devil gone out1 and
 her daughter laid upon the bed4  ,one  
word more1 and ,i have done4  ,i do not 
think that any one who really took in   
the full meaning of this beautiful      

story1 would ever care to pray to       
,saints1 or to the ,blessed ,virgin1 for
 help2 fancying that they1 and specially
 the ,blessed ,virgin1 being a woman1   
are more humane than our ,lord1 and can 
feel more quickly1 if not more keenly1  
for poor creatures in distress4  ,we are
 not here to judge these people1 or any 
people4  ,to their own master they stand
 or fall4  ,but for the honour of our   
,lord1 we may say1 ,does not this story 
shew that the ,lord is humane enough1   
tender enough1 to satisfy all mankind8  
,does not this story shew that even if  
,he seem silent at first1 and does not  
grant our prayers1 yet still ,he may be 
keeping us waiting1 as ,he kept this    
heathen woman1 only that ,he may be     
gracious to us at last8  ,does not this 
story shew us especially that our ,lord 
can feel for mothers and with mothers2  
that ,he actually allowed ,himself to be
 won over--if ,i may use such a word in 
all reverence--by the wit and grace of a
 mother pleading for her child8  ,was it

 not so8  ,o woman1 great is thy faith4 
,for this saying go thy way4  ,be it    
unto thee even as thou wilt4  ,ah6 are  
not those gracious words a comfort to   
every mother1 bidding her1 in the       
,lord's own name1 to come boldly where  
mothers--of all human beings--have      
oftenest need to come1 to the throne of 
,christ's grace1 to find mercy1 and     
grace to help in time of need8  ,yes1 my
 friends1 such is our ,lord1 and such is
 our ,god4  ,infinite in severity to the
 scornful1 the proud1 the disobedient3  
infinite in tenderness to the earnest1  
the humble1 the obedient4  ,let us come 
to ,him1 earnest1 humble1 obedient1 and 
we shall find ,him1 indeed1 a refuge of 
the soul and body in spirit and in      
truth4   ,thou1 ,o ,lord1 art all ,i    
want4 ,all and more in thee ,i find4    
,amen4    ,,sermon ,,ix4  ,,good        
,,friday    ,eversley1 #ahef4  ,st4     
,luke xxiv4 #e1 #f4  ,why seek ye the   
living among the dead8  ,he is not here1
 but is risen4  ,this is a very solemn  

day2 for on this day the ,lord ,jesus   
,christ was crucified4  ,the question   
for us is1 how ought we to keep it8 that
 is1 what sort of thoughts ought to be  
in our minds upon this day8  ,now1 many 
most excellent and pious persons1 and   
most pious books1 seem to think that we 
ought to-day to think as much as        
possible of the sufferings of our       
,blessed ,lord2 and because we cannot1  
of course1 understand or imagine the    
sufferings of ,his ,spirit1 to think of 
what we can1 that is1 ,his bodily       
sufferings4  ,they1 therefore1 seem to  
wish to fill our minds with the most    
painful pictures of agony1 and shame1   
and death1 and sorrow2 and not only with
 our ,lord's sorrows1 but with those of 
,his ,blessed ,mother1 and of the       
disciples1 and the holy women who stood 
by ,his cross2 they wish to stir us up  
to pity and horror1 and to bring before 
us the saddest parts of ,holy           
,scripture1 such as the ,lamentations of
 ,jeremiah2 as well as dwell at great   

length upon very painful details1 which 
may be all quite true1 but of which     
,scripture says nothing2 as so to make  
this day a day of darkness1 and sorrow1 
and horror1 just such as it would have  
been to us if we had stood by ,christ's 
cross1 like these holy women1 without   
expecting ,him to rise again1 and       
believing that all was over--that all   
hope of ,israel's being redeemed was    
gone1 and that the wicked ,jews had     
really conquered that perfectly good1   
and admirable ,saviour1 and put ,him out
 of the world for ever4  ,now1 ,i judge 
no man2 to his own master he standeth or
 falleth2 yea1 and he shall stand1 for  
,god is able to make him stand4  ,but it
 does seem to me that these good people 
are seeking the living among the dead1  
and forgetting that ,christ is neither  
on the cross nor in the tomb1 but that  
,he is risen2 and it seems to me better 
to bid you follow to-day the ,bible and 
the ,church ,service1 and to think of   
what they tell you to think of4  ,now   

the ,bible1 it is most remarkable1 never
 enlarges anywhere upon even the bodily 
sufferings of our dear and blessed      
,lord4  ,the evangelists keep a silence 
on that point which is most lofty1      
dignified1 and delicate4 ,what sad and  
dreadful things might not ,st4 ,john1   
the beloved apostle as he was1 have     
said1 if he had chosen1 about what he   
saw and what he felt1 as he stood by    
that cross on ,calvary--words which     
would have stirred to pity the most     
cruel1 and drawn tears from a heart of  
stone8  ,and yet all he says is1 ,they  
crucified ,him1 and two other with him1 
on either side one1 and ,jesus in the   
midst4  ,he passes it over1 as it were1 
as a thing which he ought not to dwell  
on2 and why should we put words into    
,st4 ,john's mouth which he did not     
think fit to put into his own8  ,he     
wrote by the ,spirit of ,god2 and       
therefore he knew best what to say1 and 
what not to say4  ,why should we try and
 say anything more for him8  ,scripture 

is perfect4  ,let us be content with it4
  ,the apostles1 too1 in their          
,epistles1 never dwell on ,christ's     
sufferings4  ,i entreat you to remark   
this4  ,they never mention ,his death   
except in words of cheerfulness and     
triumph4  ,they seem so full of the     
glorious fruits of ,his death1 that they
 have1 as it were1 no time to speak of  
the death itself4  ,who1 for the joy    
which was set before ,him1 endured the  
cross1 despising the shame1 and is set  
down at the right hand of the throne of 
,god4  ,that is the apostles' key-note4 
,for ,god's sake let it be ours too1    
unless we fancy that we can improve on  
,scripture1 or that we can feel more for
 our ,lord than ,st4 ,paul did4  ,in the
 ,lessons1 the ,psalms1 the ,epistle1   
and ,gospel for this day1 you find just 
the same spirit4  ,all except one ,psalm
 are songs of hope1 joy1 deliverance1   
triumph4  ,the ,collects for this day1  
which are particularly remarkable1 being
 three in number1 and evidently meant to

 teach us the key-note of ,good ,friday1
 make no mention of our ,lord's         
sufferings1 save to say that ,he was    
,,contented1 contented to be betrayed1  
and given up into the hands of wicked   
men1 and to suffer death upon the cross1
 but are full of prayers that the       
glorious fruits of ,his death may be    
fulfilled1 not only in us and all       
,christians1 but in the very heathen who
 have not known ,him2 drawing us away1  
as it were1 from looking too closely    
upon the cross itself1 lest we should   
forget what the cross meant1 what the   
cross conquered1 what the cross gained1 
for us and mankind4  ,surely1 this was  
not done without a reason4  ,and ,i     
cannot but think the reason was to keep 
us from seeking the living among the    
dead2 to keep us from knowing ,christ   
any longer after the flesh1 and spending
 tears and emotions over ,his bodily    
sufferings2 to keep us from thinking and
 sorrowing too much over the dead       
,christ1 lest we should forget1 as some 

do1 that ,he is alive for evermore2 and 
while they weep over the dead ,christ or
 the crucifix1 go to the blessed ,virgin
 and the saints to do for them all that 
the living ,christ is longing to do for 
them1 if they would but go straight to  
,him to whom all power is given in      
heaven and earth2 whom ,st ,john saw1 no
 longer hanging on the accursed tree1   
but with ,his hair as white as snow1 and
 ,his eyes like a flame of fire1 and    
,his voice like the sound of many       
waters1 and ,his countenance as the sun 
when he shineth in his strength1 saying 
unto him1 ,fear not1 ,i am the first and
 the last2 ,i am ,he that liveth and was
 dead1 and behold ,i am alive for       
evermore4  ,this is what ,christ is now4
  ,in this shape ,he is looking at us   
now4  ,in this shape ,he is hearing me  
speak4  ,in this shape ,he is watching  
every feeling of your hearts1 discerning
 your most secret intents1 seeing       
through and through the thoughts which  
you would confess to no human being1    

hardly even to yourselves4  ,this is    
,he1 a living ,christ1 an almighty      
,christ1 an all-seeing ,christ1 and yet 
a most patient and loving ,christ4  ,he 
needs not our pity2 but our gratitude1  
our obedience1 our worship4  ,why seek  
,him among the dead8  ,he is not there1 
,he is risen6  ,he is not there1 ,he is 
here6  ,bow yourselves before ,him now2 
for ,he is in the midst of you2 and     
those eyes of ,his1 more piercing than  
the mid-day sunbeams1 are upon you1 and 
your hearts1 and your thoughts1 and upon
 mine also4  ,god have mercy upon me a  
sinner4  ,yes1 my friends1 why seek the 
living among the dead8  ,he is not      
there1 but here4  ,we may try to put    
ourselves in the place of the disciples 
and the ,virgin ,mary1 as they stood by 
,jesus' cross2 but we cannot do it1 for 
they saw ,him on the cross1 and thought 
that ,he was lost to them for ever2 they
 saw ,him die1 and gave up all hope of  
,his rising again4  ,and we know that   
,christ is not lost to us for ever4  ,we

 know ,christ is not on the cross1 but  
at the right hand of ,god in bliss and  
glory unspeakable4  ,we may be told to  
watch with the three ,maries at the tomb
 of ,christ3  but we cannot do as they  
did1 for they thought that all was over1
 and brought sweet spices to embalm ,his
 body1 which they thought was in the    
tomb2 and we know that all was not over1
 that ,his body is not in the tomb1 that
 the grave could not hold ,him1 that    
,his body is ascended into heaven2 that 
instead of ,his body needing spices to  
embalm it1 it is ,his body which embalms
 all heaven and earth1 and is the very  
life of the world1 and food which       
preserves our souls and bodies to       
everlasting life4  ,we are not in the   
place of those blessed women2 ,god has  
not put us in their place1 and we cannot
 put ourselves into their place2 and if 
we could and did1 by any imaginations of
 our own1 we should only tell ourselves 
a lie4  ,good ,friday was to them indeed
 a day of darkness1 horror1             

disappointment1 all but despair2 because
 ,easter ,day had not yet come1 and     
,christ had not yet risen4  ,but ,good  
,friday cannot be a day of darkness to  
us1 because ,christ has risen1 and we   
know it1 and cannot forget it2 we cannot
 forget that ,easter dawn1 when the ,sun
 of ,righteousness arose1 never to set  
again4 ,has not the light of that       
,resurrection morning filled with glory 
the cross and the grave1 yea the very   
agony in the ,garden1 and hell itself1  
which ,christ harrowed for us8  ,has it 
not risen a light to lighten the        
,gentiles1 a joy to angels and          
archangels1 and saints1 and all the     
elect of ,god2 ay1 to the whole universe
 of ,god1 so that the very stars in     
their courses1 the trees as they bud    
each spring1 yea1 the very birds upon   
the bough1 are singing for ever1 in the 
ears of those who have ears to hear1    
,christ is risen8  ,and shall we1 under 
pretence of honouring ,christ and of    
bestowing on ,him a pity which ,he needs

 least of all1 try to spend ,good       
,friday and ,passion ,week in forgetting
 ,easter ,day2 try to think of ,christ's
 death as we should if ,he had not      
risen1 and try to make out ourselves and
 the world infinitely worse off than we 
really know that we are8  ,christ has   
died1 but ,he has risen again2 and we   
must not think of one without the other4
  ,heavenly things are too important1   
too true1 too real--,christ is too near 
us1 and too loving to us1 too earnest   
about our salvation1 for us to spend our
 thoughts on any such attempts 7however 
reverently meant7 at imaginative        
play-acting in our own minds about ,his 
hanging on ,his cross1 while we know    
that ,he is not on ,his cross2 and about
 watching by ,his tomb1 when we know    
that ,he is not in ,his tomb4  ,let us  
thank ,him1 bless ,him1 serve ,him1 die 
for ,him1 if need be1 in return for all 
,he endured for us3  but let us keep our
 sorrow and our pity1 and our tears1 for
 our own daily sins--we have enough of  

them to employ all our sorrow1 and      
more2--and not in voluntary humility and
 will-worship1 against which ,st ,paul  
warns us1 lose sight of our real        
,christ1 of ,him who was dead and is    
alive for evermore1 and dwells in us by 
faith2 now and for ever1 amen2 and hath 
the keys of death and hell1 and has     
opened them for us1 and for our fathers 
before us1 and for our children after   
us1 and for nations yet unborn4  ,true1 
this is a solemn day1 for on it the ,son
 of ,god fought such a fight1 that ,he  
could only win it at the price of ,his  
own life's blood2 and a humiliating day1
 for our sins helped to nail ,him on the
 cross--and therefore a day of          
humiliation and of humility4  ,proud1   
self-willed thoughts are surely out of  
place to-day 7and what day are they in  
place87 ,on this day ,god agonised for  
man3  but it is a day of triumph and    
deliverance2 and we must go home as men 
who have stood by and seen a fearful    
fight--a fight which makes the blood of 

him who watches it run cold2 but we have
 seen1 too1 a glorious victory--such a  
victory as never was won on earth before
 or since2 and we therefore must think  
cheerfully of the battle1 for the sake  
of the victory that was won2 and        
remember that on this day death was     
indeed swallowed up in victory--because 
death was the victory itself4  ,the     
question on which the fate of the whole 
world depended was1 whether ,christ dare
 die2 and ,he dared die4  ,whether      
,christ would endure to the end2 and ,he
 did endure4  ,whether ,he would utterly
 drink the cup which ,his ,father had   
given ,him2 and ,he drank it to the     
dregs2 and so by ,his very agony ,he    
showed ,himself noble1 beautiful1       
glorious1 adorable1 beyond all that     
words can express4  ,and so the cross   
was ,his throne of glory2 the prints of 
the nails in ,his hands and feet were   
the very tokens of ,his triumph2 ,his   
very sorrows were ,his bliss2 and those 
last words1 ,it is finished1 were no cry

 of despair1 but a trumpet-call of      
triumph1 which rang from the highest    
heaven to the lowest hell1 proclaiming  
to all created things1 that the very    
fountain of life1 by dying1 had         
conquered death1 that good had conquered
 evil1 love had conquered selfishness1  
,god had conquered man1 and all the     
enemies of man2 and that ,he who died   
was the first begotten from the dead1   
and the ,king of all the princes of the 
earth1 who was going to fulfil1 more and
 more1 as the years and the ages rolled 
on1 the glorious prayer which we have   
prayed this day1 graciously to behold   
that family for whom ,he had been       
contented to die2 and wisely and orderly
 to call each man to a vocation and a   
ministry1 in which he might duly serve  
,god and be a blessing to all around    
him1 by the inspiration of ,christ's    
,holy ,spirit2 and to have mercy1 in    
,his own good time1 upon all ,jews1     
,turks1 heathens1 and infidels1 and     
bring them home to ,his flock1 that they

 may be saved1 and made one fold under  
one ,shepherd--,him who was dead and is 
alive for evermore4  ,therefore1 my dear
 friends1 if we wish to keep ,good      
,friday in spirit and in truth1 we      
cannot do so better than by trying to   
carry out the very end for which ,christ
 died on this day2 and doing our part1  
small though it be1 toward bringing     
those poor heathens home into ,christ's 
fold1 and teaching them the gospel and  
good news that for them1 too1 ,christ   
died1 and over them1 too1 ,christ reigns
 alive for evermore2 and bringing them  
home into ,his flock1 that they1 too1   
may find a place in ,his great family1  
and have their calling and ministry     
appointed to them among the nations of  
those who are saved and walk in the     
light of ,god and of the ,lamb4  ,i have
 refrained till now from speaking to you
 much about missionaries1 and the duty  
which lies on us all of helping         
missions4  ,it seemed to me that ,i must
 first teach you to understand these    

first and second collects before ,i went
 on4 to the third2 that ,i must first   
teach you that you belonged to ,christ's
 family1 and that ,he had called each of
 you1 and appointed each of you to some 
order and degree in ,his ,holy ,church4 
,but now1 if indeed you have learnt     
that--if my preaching here for fourteen 
years has had any effect to teach you   
who and what you are1 and what your duty
 is1 let me entreat you to go on1 and   
take the lesson of that third collect1  
and think of those poor ,jews1 ,turks1  
infidels1 and heretics1 who still--many 
a million of them--sit1 or rather       
wander1 and fall1 and lie1 miserably    
wallowing in darkness and the shadow of 
death1 and think whether you cannot do  
something toward helping them4  ,what   
you can do1 and how it is to be done1 ,i
 will tell you hereafter2 and1 by ,god's
 grace1 ,i hope to see men of ,god in   
this pulpit1 who having been            
missionaries themselves1 can tell you   
better than ,i1 what remains to be done1

 and how you can help to do it4  ,but   
take home this one thought with you1    
this ,good ,friday1--,christ1 who liveth
 and was dead1 and behold ,he is alive  
for evermore1 if ,he be indeed precious 
to you1 if you indeed feel for ,his     
sufferings1 if you indeed believe that  
what ,he bought by those sufferings was 
a right to all the souls on earth1 then 
do what you can toward repaying ,him for
 ,his sufferings1 by seeing of the      
travail of ,his soul1 and being         
satisfied4  ,all the reward ,he asks1 or
 ever asked1 is the hearts of sinners1  
that ,he may convert them2 the souls of 
sinners1 that ,he may save them2 and    
they belong to ,him already1 for ,he    
bought them this day with ,his own most 
precious blood4  ,do something1 then1   
toward helping ,christ to ,his own4     
,,sermon ,x4  ,,the ,,image ,,of ,,the  
,,earthly ,,and ,,the ,,heavenly        
,eversley1 ,easter ,day1 #ahga4  #a     
,cor4 xv4 #di4  ,as we have borne the   
image of the earthy1 we shall also bear 

the image of the heavenly4  ,this season
 of ,easter is the most joyful of all   
the year4  ,it is the most comfortable  
time1 in the true old sense of that     
word2 for it is the season which ought  
to comfort us most--that is1 it gives us
 strength2 strength to live like men1   
and strength to die like men1 when our  
time comes4  ,strength to live like men4
  ,strength to fight against the        
temptation which ,solomon felt when he  
said3  ,i have seen all the works which 
are done under the sun1 and behold all  
is vanity and vexation of spirit4  ,for 
what has a man of all his labour1 and of
 the vexation of his heart1 wherein he  
has laboured under the sun8  ,for all   
his days are sorrow1 and his travail    
grief4  ,yea1 his heart taketh not rest 
in the night4  ,this also is vanity4    
,for that which befalleth the sons of   
men befalleth beasts3  as the one dieth1
 so dieth the other3  yea1 they have all
 one breath3  so that a man has no      
pre-eminence over a beast2 for all is   

vanity4  ,all go to one place3  all are 
of the dust1 and all turn to dust again4
  ,who knoweth the spirit of man that it
 goeth upward1 and the spirit of the    
beast that it goeth downward to the     
earth8  ,so thought ,solomon in his     
temptation1 and made up his mind that   
there was nothing better for a man than 
that he should eat and drink1 and make  
his soul enjoy good in his labour4  ,so 
thought ,solomon1 in spite of all his   
wisdom1 because he had not heard the    
good news of ,easter day4  ,and so think
 many now1 who are called wise men and  
philosophers2 because they1 alas6 for   
them1 will not believe the good news of 
,easter day4  ,but what says ,easter    
day8  ,easter day says1 ,man has        
pre-eminence over a beast4  ,the man is 
redeemed from the death of the beasts by
 ,christ1 who rose on ,easter day4      
,easter day says1 ,wherever the spirit  
of the beast goes1 wherever the spirit  
of the brutal and the wicked man goes1  
the spirit of the true ,christian goes  

upward1 to ,christ1 who bought it with  
,his precious blood4  ,easter day says1 
,the body may turn to the dust from     
which it was taken1 but the spirit lives
 for ever before ,god1 who shall give it
 another body1 as it shall please ,him1 
as ,he gives to every seed its own body4
  ,and1 therefore1 ,easter day says1    
,there is something better for a man    
than to eat and drink and enjoy himself1
 for to-morrow he may die1 and all be   
over2 and that something is1 to labour  
not merely for the meat which perishes  
with the perishing body1 but to labour  
after the fruits of the spirit--love1   
joy1 peace1 long-suffering1 gentleness1 
goodness1 faith1 meekness1 temperance4  
,these the life of the body does not    
give us2 and these the death of the body
 not take away from us2 for they are    
spiritual and heavenly1 eternal and     
divine2 and he who has them cannot die  
for ever4  ,and therefore1 we may       
comfort ourselves in all our labour1 if 
only we labour at the one useful work on

 earth1 to be good1 and to do good1 and 
to make others good likewise4  ,true it 
is1 as ,st4 ,paul says1 that if in this 
life only we have hope in ,christ we are
 of all men most miserable4  ,for we do 
not care to be of the earth1 earthy3  we
 long to be of the heaven1 heavenly4    
,we do not care to spend our time in    
eating and drinking1 mean covetousness1 
ambition1 and the base pleasures of the 
flesh3  we long after high and noble    
things1 which we cannot get on earth1 or
 at best only in fragments1 and at rare 
moments2 after the holiness and the     
blessedness of ourselves and our        
fellow-creatures4  ,but we have hope in 
,christ for the next life as well as for
 this4  ,hope that in the next life ,he 
will give us power to succeed1 where we 
failed here2 that ,he will enable us to 
be good and to do good1 and1 if not to  
make others good 7for there1 we trust1  
all will be good together71 to enjoy the
 fulness of that pleasure for which we  
have been longing on earth--the pleasure

 of seeing others good1 as ,christ is   
good and perfect1 as their ,father in   
heaven is perfect4  ,to be good         
ourselves1 and to live for ever in good 
company--ah my friends1 that is true    
bliss4  ,if we cannot reach that after  
death1 it were better for us that death 
should make an end of us1 and that when 
our body decays in the grave we should  
be annihilated1 and become nothing for  
ever4  ,but ,easter day says to us1 ,if 
you labour to create good company in    
this life1 by trying to make other      
people round you good1 you shall enjoy  
for ever in the next world the good     
company which you have helped to make4  
,if you labour to make yourself good in 
this life1 you shall enjoy the fruit of 
your labour in the next life by being   
good1 and1 therefore1 blessed for ever4 
,easter day says1 ,your labour is not   
vanity and vexation of spirit4  ,it is  
solid work1 which shall receive solid   
pay from ,god hereafter4  ,easter day is
 a pledge--,i may say a sacrament--from 

,god to us1 that ,he will righteously   
reward all righteous work2 and that1    
therefore1 it is worth any man's while  
to labour1 to suffer1 if need be even to
 die1 in trying to be good1 noble1      
useful1 self-sacrificing1 as ,christ    
toiled and suffered and died and        
sacrificed ,himself to do good4 ,for    
then he will share ,christ's reward1 as 
he has shared ,christ's labour1 and be  
rewarded1 as ,christ was1 by            
resurrection to eternal life4  ,and so  
,easter day should give us strength to  
live like men--the only truly manly1    
truly human life2 the life of being good
 and doing good4  ,and strength to die4 
,men are afraid of dying1 principally1  
,i believe1 because they fear the       
unknown4  ,it is not that they are      
afraid of the pain of dying4  ,it is not
 that they are afraid of going to hell2 
for in all my experience1 at least1 ,i  
have met with but one person who thought
 that he was going to hell4  ,neither is
 it that they are afraid of not going to

 heaven4  ,their expectation almost     
always is1 that they are going thither4 
,but they do not care much to go to     
heaven4  ,they are willing enough to go 
there1 because they know that they must 
go somewhere4  ,but their notions of    
what heaven will be like are by no means
 clear4  ,they have sung rapturous hymns
 in church or chapel about the heavenly 
,jerusalem1 and passing ,jordan safe to 
,canaan's shore1 with no very clear     
notion of what the words meant--and     
small blame to them4  ,but when they    
think of actually dying1 they feel as if
 to go into the next world was to be    
turned out into the dark night1 into an 
unknown land1 away from house and home1 
and all they have known1 and all they   
have loved2 and they are ready to say   
with the good old heathen emperor1 when 
he lay a-dying--   ,little soul of mine1
 wandering1 kindly1 ,companion and guest
 of my body2 ,into what place art thou  
now departing1 ,shivering1 naked1 and   
pale8   ,and so they shrink from death4 

,they must shrink from death1 unless    
they will believe with their whole      
hearts the good news of ,easter day4    
,the more thoughtful and clever they    
are1 the more they will shrink from     
death1 and dread the thought of losing  
their bodies4  ,they have always had    
bodies here on earth4  ,they only know  
themselves as souls embodied1 living in 
bodies2 and they cannot think of        
themselves in the next world with any   
comfort1 if they may not think of       
themselves as having bodies4  ,and the  
more loving and affectionate they are1  
the more they will shrink from death1   
unless they believe with their whole    
hearts the good news of ,easter day4    
,for those whom they have loved on earth
 have bodies4 ,through their            
bodies--through their voices1 their     
looks1 their actions1 they have known   
them1 and thus they have loved them2 and
 if their beloved ones are to have no   
bodies in the world to come1 how shall  
they see them8 how shall they know them8

 how shall they converse with them8  ,it
 seems to them in that case neither     
they1 nor those they love1 would be the 
same persons in the world to come they  
are here2 and that thought is lonely and
 dreadful1 till they accept the good    
news of ,easter day1 the thrice blessed 
words of ,st4 ,paul1 in his ,epistle to 
the ,corinthians1 which they hear at the
 burial of those whom they love and     
lose4  ,oh1 blessed news for us1 and for
 those we love2 those without whose     
company the world to come would be      
lonely and cheerless to us4  ,for now we
 can say1 ,tell me not that as the beast
 dies1 so dies the man4  ,tell me not   
that as ,adam died because of sin1 so   
must ,i die1 and all ,i love4  ,tell me 
not that it is the universal law of     
nature that all things born in time must
 die in time2 and that every human      
being1 animal1 and plant carries in     
itself from its beginning to its end a  
law of death1 the seed of its own       
destruction4  ,i know all that2 but ,i  

care little for it1 because ,i know more
 than that4  ,i know that the man's body
 dies as the beast's body dies2 but ,i  
know that the body is not the man1 but  
only the husk1 the shell of the man2    
that the true man1 the true woman1 lives
 on after the loss of his mortal body2  
and that there is an eternal law of     
life1 which conquers the law of death2  
and by that law a fresh body will grow  
up round the true man1 the immortal     
spirit1 and will be as fit--ay1 far     
fitter--to do his work1 than this poor  
mortal body which has turned to death on
 earth4  ,tell me not that because ,i am
 descended from a mortal and sinful old 
,adam1 of whom it is written that he was
 of the earth1 earthly1 therefore my    
soul is a part of my body1 and dies when
 my body dies4  ,i belong not to the old
 ,adam1 but to the new ,adam--the new   
,head of men1 who is the ,lord from     
heaven1 the author of eternal life to   
all who obey ,him4  ,do not tell me that
 ,i have nothing in me but the likeness 

of the old ,adam1 for that seems to me  
and to ,st4 ,paul nothing but the       
likeness of the fallen savage and the   
brute in human form4  ,i know ,i have   
more in me--infinitely more--than that4 
,what may be in store for the savage1   
the brutal1 the wicked1 is ,god's       
concern1 not mine4  ,but what is in     
store for me ,i know--that as ,i have   
borne the image of the earthly1 so shall
 ,i bear the image of the heavenly1 if  
only the ,spirit of ,christ1 the new    
,adam1 be in me4  ,for if ,christ be in 
us1 the body is dead because of sin2 but
 the ,spirit is life because of         
righteousness4  ,and if the ,spirit of  
,him which raised up ,jesus from the    
dead dwell in us1 ,he that raised up    
,christ from the dead shall also quicken
 our mortal bodies by ,his ,spirit that 
dwelleth in us4  ,how ,he will do it ,i 
know not2 neither do ,i care to know4   
,when ,he will do it ,i know not2 but it
 will be when it ought to be2 and that  
is enough for me4  ,that ,he can do it  

,i know1 for ,he is the ,maker of the   
universe1 and to ,him all power is given
 in heaven and earth2 and as for its    
being strange1 wonderful1 past          
understanding1 that matters little to   
me4  ,that will be but one wonder more  
in a world where all is wonderful--one  
more mystery in an utterly mysterious   
universe4  ,and so1 as ,easter day has  
given us strength to live1 let ,easter  
day1 too1 give us strength to die4      
,,sermon ,,xi4  ,,easter ,,day          
,chester ,cathedral4 #ahgj4  ,st ,john  
xii4 #bd1 #be4  ,verily1 verily1 ,i say 
unto you1 except a corn of wheat fall   
into the ground and die1 it abideth     
alone3  but if it die1 it bringeth forth
 much fruit4  ,he that loveth his life  
shall lose it2 and he that hateth his   
life in this world shall keep it unto   
life eternal4  ,this is our ,lord's own 
parable4  ,in it ,he tells us that ,his 
death1 ,his resurrection1 ,his          
ascension1 is a mystery which we may    
believe1 not only because the ,bible    

tells us of it1 but because it is       
reasonable1 and according to the laws of
 ,his universe2 a fulfilment1 rather say
 the highest fulfilment1 of one of those
 laws which runs through the world of   
nature1 and through the spiritual and   
heavenly world likewise4  ,except a corn
 of wheat fall into the ground and die1 
it abideth alone2--barren1 useless1 and 
truly dead to the rest of the world     
around it1 because it is shut up in     
itself1 and its hidden life1 with all   
its wondrous powers of growth and       
fertility1 remains undeveloped1 and will
 remain so1 till it decays away1 a      
worthless thing1 into worthless dust4   
,but if it be buried in the earth a     
while1 then the rich life which lay hid 
in it is called out by that seeming     
death1 and it sprouts1 tillers1 and     
flowers1 and ripens its                 
grain--forty-fold1 sixty-fold1 an       
hundred-fold2 and so it shows ,god's    
mind and will concerning it4  ,it shows 
what is really in it1 and develops the  

full capabilities of its being4  ,even  
so1 says our ,lord1 would ,his death1   
,his resurrection1 ,his ascension be4   
,he speaks of ,his own resurrection and 
ascension2 yes1 but ,he speaks first of 
,his own death4  ,before the corn can   
bring forth fruit1 and show what is in  
it1 fulfilling the law of its being1 it 
must fall into the ground and die4      
,before our ,lord could fulfil the      
prophecy1 ,thou wilt not leave my soul  
in hell1 neither wilt ,thou suffer ,thy 
,holy ,one to see corruption1 ,he must  
fulfil the darker prophecy of that awful
 #hhth ,psalm1 the only one of all the  
psalms which ends in sorrow1 in all but 
despair1 ,my soul is full of trouble1   
and my life draweth nigh unto hell4  ,i 
am counted as one of them that go down  
into the pit3  and ,i have been even as 
a man that hath no strength4  ,free     
among the dead1 like unto them that are 
wounded and lie in the grave1 who are   
out of remembrance1 and are cut away    
from thy hand4  ,so it was to be4  ,so1 

we may believe1 it needed to be4        
,christ must suffer before ,he entered  
into ,his glory4  ,he must die1 before  
,he could rise4  ,he must descend into  
hell1 before ,he ascended into heaven4  
,for this is the law of ,god's kingdom4 
,without a ,good ,friday1 there can be  
no ,easter ,day4  ,without              
self-sacrifice1 there can be no         
blessedness1 neither in earth nor in    
heaven4  ,he that loveth his life will  
lose it4  ,he that hateth his life in   
this paltry1 selfish1 luxurious1        
hypocritical world1 shall keep it to    
life eternal4  ,our ,lord ,jesus ,christ
 fulfilled that law2 because it is the  
law1 the law not of ,moses1 but of the  
kingdom of heaven1 and must be fulfilled
 by him who would fulfil all            
righteousness1 and be perfect1 even as  
his ,father in heaven is perfect4  ,bear
 this in mind1 ,i pray you1 and whenever
 you think of our ,lord's resurrection  
and ascension1 remember always that the 
background to ,his triumph is--a tomb4  

,remember that it is the triumph over   
suffering2 a triumph of ,one who still  
bears the prints of the nails in ,his   
hands and in ,his feet1 and the wound of
 the spear in ,his side2 like many a    
poor soul who has followed ,him         
triumphant at last1 and yet scarred1 and
 only not maimed in the hard battle of  
life4  ,remember for ever the adorable  
wounds of ,christ4  ,remember for ever  
that ,st ,john saw in the midst of the  
throne of ,god the likeness of a lamb1  
as it had been slain4  ,for so alone you
 will learn what our ,lord's            
resurrection and ascension are to all   
who have to suffer and to toil on earth4
  ,for if our ,lord's triumph had had no
 suffering before it1--if ,he had       
conquered as the ,hindoos represent     
their gods as conquering their enemies1 
without effort1 without pain1 destroying
 them1 with careless ease1 by           
lightnings1 hurled by a hundred hands   
and aided by innumerable armies of      
spirits1--what would such a triumph have

 been to us8  ,what comfort1 what       
example to us here struggling1 often    
sinning1 in this piecemeal world8  ,we  
want--and blessed be ,god1 we have--a   
,captain of our salvation1 who has been 
made perfect by sufferings4  ,we        
want--and blessed be ,god1 we have--an  
,high ,priest who can be touched with   
the feeling of our infirmities1 because 
,he has been tempted in all things like 
as we are1 yet without sin4  ,we        
want--and blessed be ,god1 we have--a   
,king who was glorified by suffering1   
that1 if we are ever called on to       
sacrifice ourselves1 we may hope1 by    
suffering1 to share ,his glory4  ,and   
when we have remembered this1 and fixed 
it in our minds1 we may go on safely to 
think of ,his glory1 and see that 7as ,i
 said at first7 ,his resurrection and   
ascension satisfy our consciences1--    
satisfy that highest reason and moral   
sense within us1 which is none other    
than the voice of the ,holy ,spirit of  
,god4  ,for see4  ,our ,lord proved     

,himself to be the perfectly righteous  
,being1 by ,his very passion4  ,he      
proved it by being righteous utterly    
against ,his own interest2 by enduring  
shame1 torment1 death1 for              
righteousness' sake4 ,but we feel that  
our ,lord's history could not1 must not1
 end there4  ,our conscience1 which is  
our highest reason1 shrinks from that   
thought4  ,if our ,lord had died and    
never risen1 then would ,his history be 
full of nothing but despair to all who  
long to copy ,him and do right at all   
costs4  ,our consciences demand that    
,god should be just4  ,we say with      
,abraham1 ,shall not the ,judge of all  
the earth do right8  ,shall not ,he1 who
 suffered without hope of reward1 have  
,his reward nevertheless8  ,shall not   
,he who cried1 ,my ,god6 my ,god6 why   
hast ,thou forsaken ,me8 be justified by
 having it proved to all the world that 
,god had not forsaken ,him8  ,but we    
surely cannot be more just than ,god4   
,if we expect ,god to do right1 we shall

 surely find that ,he has done right1   
and more right than we could expect or  
dream4  ,therefore we may believe--,i   
say that we must believe1 if we be truly
 reasonable beings--what the ,bible     
tells us2 that ,christ1 who suffered    
more than all1 was rewarded more than   
all2 that ,christ1 who humbled ,himself 
more than all1 was exalted more than    
all2 and that ,his resurrection and     
ascension1 as ,st ,paul tells us again  
and again1 was meant to show men        
this1--to show them that ,god the       
,father has been infinitely just to the 
infinite merits of ,god the ,son1 ,jesus
 ,christ our ,lord1--to justify our     
,lord to all mankind by ,his triumph    
over death and hell1 and in justifying  
,him to justify ,his ,father and our    
,father1 his ,god and our ,god4  ,and   
what is true of ,christ must be true of 
us1 the members of ,christ4  ,he is     
entered into ,his rest1 and you desire  
to enter into it likewise4  ,you have a 
right to desire it1 for it is written1  

,there remaineth a rest for the people  
of ,god4  ,remember1 then1 that true    
rest can only be attained as ,he        
attained it1 through labour4  ,you      
desire to be glorified with ,christ4    
,remember that true glory can only be   
attained in earth or heaven through     
self-sacrifice4  ,whosoever will save   
his life shall lose it2 whosoever will  
lose his life shall save it4  ,if that  
eternal moral law held good enough for  
the sinless ,christ1 who1 though ,he    
were a son1 yet learned obedience by the
 things which ,he suffered1 how much    
more must it hold good of you and me and
 all moral and rational beings1--yea1   
for the very angels in heaven4  ,they   
have not sinned4  ,that we know2 and we 
do not know2 and ,i presume cannot know1
 that they have ever suffered4  ,but    
this at least we know1 that they have   
submitted4  ,they have obeyed and have  
given up their own wills to be the      
ministers of ,god's will4  ,in them is  
neither self-will nor selfishness2 and  

therefore by faith1 that is1 by trust   
and loyalty1 they stand4  ,and so1 by   
consenting to lose their individual life
 of selfishness1 they have saved their  
eternal life in ,god1 the life of       
blessedness and holiness2 just as all   
evil spirits have lost their eternal    
life by trying to save their selfish    
life1 and be something in themselves and
 of themselves without respect to ,god4 
,this is a great mystery2 indeed1 it is 
the mystery of the eternal1 divine1 and 
blessed life1 to which ,god of ,his     
mercy bring us all4  ,and therefore     
,good ,friday1 ,easter ,day1 ,ascension 
,day1 are set as great lights in the    
firmament of the spiritual year1--to    
remind us that we are not animals1 born 
to do what we like1 and fulfil the      
sinful lusts of the flesh1 the ways     
whereof are death2 but that we are moral
 and rational beings1 members of        
,christ1 children of ,god1 inheritors of
 the kingdom of heaven2 and that1       
therefore1 ,i say it again1 like ,christ

 our ,lord1 we must die in order to     
live1 stoop in order to conquer4  ,they 
remind us that honour must grow out of  
humility2 that freedom must grow out of 
discipline2 that sure conquest must be  
born of heavy struggles2 righteous joy  
out of righteous sorrow2 pure laughter  
out of pure tears2 true strength out of 
the true knowledge of our own weakness2 
sound peace of mind out of sound        
contrition2 and that the heart which has
 a right to cry1 ,the ,lord is on my    
side1 ,i will not fear what man doeth   
unto me1 must be born out of the heart  
which has cried1 ,god be merciful to me 
a sinner6 ,they remind us that in all   
things1 as says our ,lord1 there cannot 
be joy1 because a man is born into the  
world1 unless there first be sorrow1    
because the hour of birth is come2 and  
that he who would be planted into the   
likeness of ,christ's resurrection1     
must1 like the corn of wheat1 be first  
planted into the likeness of ,his death1
 and die to sin and self1 that he may   

live to righteousness and to ,god2 and1 
like the corn of wheat1 become truly    
living1 truly strong1 truly rich1 truly 
useful1 and develop the hidden          
capabilities of his being1 fulfilling   
the mind and will of ,god concerning    
him4  ,again1 ,i say1 this is a great   
mystery4  ,but again1 ,i say1 this is   
the law1 not ,moses' law1 but the       
,gospel law2--the law of liberty1 by    
which a man becomes truly free1 because 
he has trampled under foot the passions 
of his own selfish flesh1 till his      
immortal spirit can ascend free into the
 light of ,god1 and into the love of    
,god1 and into the beneficence of ,god4 
,my dear friends1 remember these words1 
for they are true4  ,remember that ,st  
,paul always couples with the           
resurrection and ascension of our bodies
 in the next life the resurrection and  
ascension of our souls in this life2 for
 without that1 the resurrection of our  
bodies would be but a resurrection to   
fresh sin1 and therefore to fresh misery

 and ruin4  ,remember his great words   
about that moral resurrection and       
ascension of our wills1 our hearts1 our 
characters1 our actions4  ,god1 he says1
 who is rich in mercy1 for ,his great   
love1 wherewith ,he loved us1 even when 
we were dead in sins1 hath quickened us 
together with ,christ1 7by grace are ye 
saved27 and hath raised us up together1 
and made us sit together in heavenly    
places in ,christ ,jesus4  ,and what are
 those heavenly places8  ,and what is   
our duty in them8  ,let ,st ,paul       
himself answer4  ,if ye then be risen   
with ,christ1 seek those things which   
are above1 where ,christ sitteth at the 
right hand of ,god4  ,and what are they8
  ,let ,st ,paul answer once more2 who  
should know better than he1 save ,christ
 alone8  ,whatsoever things are true1   
honest1 just1 pure1 lovely1 of good     
report4  ,if there be any virtue1 and if
 there be any praise1 think on these    
things4  ,yes1 think of these           
things1--and1 thinking of them1 ask the 

,holy ,spirit of ,god to inspire you1   
and make a ,whitsuntide in your hearts1 
even as ,he has made1 ,i trust1 a ,good 
,friday and an ,eastertide and an       
,ascension ,day2 that so1 knowing these 
things1 you may be blessed in doing     
them2 that so- -and so only--may be     
fulfilled in you and me or any rational 
being1 those blessed promises which were
 fulfilled in ,christ our ,lord4  ,they 
that sow in tears shall reap in joy4    
,he that now goeth on his way weeping1  
and beareth forth good seed1 shall      
doubtless come again with joy1 and bring
 his sheaves with him4  ,blessed is the 
man whose strength is in ,thee1 in whose
 heart are ,thy ways2 who going through 
the vale of misery1 use it for a well1  
and the pools are filled with water4    
,they will go from strength to strength3
  and unto the ,god of gods appeareth   
every one of them in ,sion4  ,to which  
may ,god in ,his great mercy bring us   
all4  ,amen4    ,,sermon ,,xii4         
,,presence ,,in ,,absence    ,eversley1 

third ,sunday after ,easter4 #ahfb4  ,st
 ,john xvi4 #af4  ,a little while1 and  
ye shall not see me3  and again1 a      
little while1 and ye shall see me1      
because ,i go to the ,father4  ,divines 
differ1 and1 perhaps1 have always       
differed1 about the meaning of these    
words4  ,some think that our ,lord      
speaks in them of ,his death and        
resurrection4  ,others that ,he speaks  
of ,his ascension and coming again in   
glory4  ,i cannot decide which is right4
  ,i dare not decide4  ,it is a very    
solemn thing--too solemn for me--to say 
of any words of our ,lord's they mean   
exactly this or that1 and no more4  ,for
 if wise men's words have 7as they often
 have7 more meanings than one1 and yet  
all true1 then surely the words of      
,jesus1 the ,son of ,god1 who spake as  
never man spake--,his words1 ,i say1 may
 have many meanings2 yea1 meanings      
without end1 meanings which we shall    
never fully understand1 perhaps even in 
heaven1 and yet all alike true4  ,but ,i

 think it is certain that most of the   
early ,christians understood these words
 of our ,lord's ascension and coming    
again in glory4  ,they believed that ,he
 was coming again in a very little while
 during their own life-time1 in a few   
months or years1 to make an end of the  
world and to judge the quick and the    
dead4  ,and as they waited for ,his     
coming1 one generation after another1   
and yet ,he did not come1 a sadness fell
 upon them4  ,christ seemed to have left
 the world4  ,the little while that ,he 
had promised to be away seemed to have  
become a very long while4 ,hundreds of  
years passed1 and yet ,christ did not   
come in glory4  ,and1 as ,i said1 a     
sadness fell on all the ,church4        
,surely1 they said1 this is the time of 
which ,christ said we were to weep and  
lament till we saw ,him again--this is  
the time of which ,he said that the     
bridegroom should be taken from us1 and 
we should fast in those days4  ,and they
 did fast1 and weep1 and lament2 and    

their religion became a very sad and    
melancholy one--most sad in those who   
were most holy1 and loved their ,lord   
best1 and longed most for ,his coming in
 glory4  ,what happened after that again
 ,i could tell you1 but we have nothing 
to do with it to-day4  ,we will rather  
go back1 and see what the ,lord's       
disciples thought ,he meant when ,he    
said1--,a little while1 and ye shall not
 see me2 and again1 a little while1 and 
ye shall see me1 because ,i go to the   
,father4  ,one would think1 surely1 that
 they must have taken those words to    
mean ,his death and resurrection4  ,they
 heard ,him speak them on the very night
 that ,he was betrayed4  ,they saw ,him 
taken from them that very night4  ,in   
horror and agony they saw ,him mocked   
and scourged1 crucified1 dead1 and      
buried1 as they thought for ever1 and   
the world around rejoicing over ,his    
death4  ,surely they wept and lamented  
then4 ,surely they thought that ,he had 
gone away and left them then4  ,and the 

third day1 beyond all hope or           
expectation1 they beheld ,him alive     
again1 unchanged1 perfect1 and          
glorious--as near them and as faithful  
to them as ever4  ,surely that was      
seeing ,him again after a little while4 
,surely then their sorrow was turned to 
joy4  ,surely then a man1 the man of all
 men1 was born into the world a second  
time1 and in them was fulfilled our     
,lord's most exquisite parable--most    
human and yet most divine--of the mother
 remembering no more her anguish for joy
 that a man is born into the world4  ,i 
think1 too1 that we may see1 by the     
disciples' conduct1 that they took these
 words of the text to speak of ,christ's
 death and resurrection4  ,for when ,he 
ascended to heaven out of their sight1  
did they consider that was seeing ,him  
no more8  ,did they think that ,he had  
gone away and left them8 ,did they1     
therefore1 as would have been natural1  
weep and lament8  ,on the contrary1 we  
are told expressly by ,st ,luke that    

they returned to ,jerusalem with great  
joy2 and were continually in the temple1
 not weeping and lamenting1 but praising
 and blessing ,god4  ,plainly they did  
not consider that ,christ was parted    
from them when ,he ascended into heaven4
  ,he had been training them during the 
forty days between ,easter ,day and     
,ascension ,day to think of ,him as     
continually near them1 whether they saw 
,him or not4  ,suddenly ,he came and    
went again4  ,mysteriously ,he appeared 
and disappeared4  ,he showed them that  
though they saw not ,him1 ,he saw them1 
heard their words1 knew the thoughts and
 intents of their hearts4  ,he was      
always near them they felt2 with them to
 the end of the world1 whether in sight 
or out of sight4  ,and when they saw    
,him ascend into heaven1 it seemed to   
them no separation1 no calamity1 no     
change in ,his relation to them4  ,he   
was gone to heaven4  ,surely ,he had    
been in heaven during those forty days1 
whenever they had not seen ,him4  ,he   

had gone to the ,father4  ,might ,he not
 have been with the ,father during those
 forty days1 whenever they had not seen 
,him8  ,nay2 was ,he not always in      
heaven8  ,was not heaven very near them8
  ,did not ,christ bring heaven with    
,him whithersoever ,he went8  ,was ,he  
not always with the ,father1 the ,father
 who fills all things1 in whom all      
created things live1 and move1 and have 
their being8  ,how could they have      
thought otherwise about our ,lord1 when 
almost ,his last words to them were not1
 ,lo1 ,i leave you alone1 but1 ,lo1 ,i  
am with you alway1 even to the end of   
the world4  ,my friends1 these may seem 
deep words to some--doubtless they are1 
for they are the words of the ,bible--so
 deep that plain1 unlearned people can  
make no use of them1 and draw no lesson 
from them4  ,i do not think so4  ,i     
think it is of endless use and endless  
importance to you how you think about   
,christ2 and1 therefore1 how you think  
about these forty days between our      

,lord's resurrection and ascension4     
,you may think of our ,lord in two ways4
  ,you may think of ,him as having gone 
very far away1 millions of millions of  
miles into the sky1 and not to return   
till the last day1-- and then1 ,i do not
 say that you will weep and lament4     
,there are not many who have that notion
 about our ,lord1 and yet love ,him     
enough to weep and lament at the thought
 of ,his having gone away4  ,but your   
religion1 when it wakes up in you1 will 
be a melancholy and terrifying one4  ,i 
say1 when it wakes up in you--for you   
will be tempted continually to let it go
 to sleep4  ,there will come over you   
the feeling--,god forgive us1 does it   
not come over us all but too            
often8--,christ is far away4  ,does ,he 
see me8 ,does ,he hear me8  ,will ,he   
find me out8  ,does it matter very much 
what ,i say and do now1 provided ,i make
 my peace with ,him before ,i die8  ,and
 so will come over you not merely a     
carelessness about religious duties1    

about prayer1 reading1 church-going1 but
 worse still1 a carelessness about right
 and wrong4  ,you will be in danger of  
caring little about controlling your    
passions1 about speaking the truth1     
about being just and merciful to your   
fellow-men4  ,and then1 when your       
conscience wakes you up at times1 and   
cries1 ,prepare to meet thy ,god6 you   
will be terrified and anxious at the    
thought of judgment1 and shrink from the
 thought of ,christ's seeing you4  ,my  
friends1 that is a fearful state1 though
 a very common one4  ,what is it but a  
foretaste of that dreadful terror in    
which those who would not see in ,christ
 their ,lord and ,saviour will call on  
the mountains to fall on them1 and the  
hills to cover them1 from ,him that     
sitteth on the throne1 and from the     
anger of the ,lamb8  ,but1 again3  you  
may think of ,christ as ,his truest     
servants1 though they might have been   
long in darkness1 in all ages and       
countries have thought of ,him1 sooner  

or later4  ,and they thought of ,him1 as
 the disciples did2 as of ,one who was  
about their path and about their bed1   
and spying out all their ways2 as ,one  
who was in heaven1 but who1 for that    
very reason1 was bringing heaven down to
 earth continually in the gracious      
inspirations of ,his ,holy ,spirit2 as  
,one who brought heaven down to them as 
often as ,he visited their hearts and   
comforted them with sweet assurance of  
,his love1 ,his faithfulness1 ,his      
power--as ,god grant that ,he may       
comfort those of you who need comfort4  
,and that thought1 that ,christ was     
always with them1 even to the end of the
 world1 sobered and steadied them1 and  
yet refreshed and comforted them4  ,it  
sobered them4  ,what else could it do8  
,does it not sober us to see even a     
picture of ,christ crucified8  ,how must
 it have sobered them to carry1 as good 
,st ,ignatius used to say of himself1   
,christ crucified in his heart4  ,a man 
to whom ,christ1 as it were1 showed     

perpetually ,his most blessed wounds1   
and said1 ,behold what ,i have          
endured--how dare he give way to his    
passion8  ,how dare he be covetous1     
ambitious1 revengeful1 false8  ,and yet 
it cheered and comforted them4  ,how    
could it do otherwise1 to know all day  
long that ,he who was wounded for their 
iniquities1 and by whose stripes they   
were healed1 was near them day and      
night1 watching over them as a father   
over his child1 saying to them1--,fear  
not1 ,i am ,he that was dead1 and am    
alive for evermore1 and ,i hold the keys
 of death and hell4  ,though thou       
walkest through the fires1 ,i will be   
with thee4  ,i will never leave thee nor
 forsake thee4  ,yes1 my friends1 if you
 wish your life--and therefore your     
religion1 which ought to be the very    
life of your life--to be at once sober  
and cheerful1 full of earnestness and   
full of hope1 believe our ,lord's words 
which ,he spoke during these very forty 
days1--,lo1 ,i am with you alway1 even  

to the end of the world4  ,believe that 
heaven has not taken ,him away from you1
 but brought ,him nearer to you2 and    
that ,he has ascended up on high1 not   
that ,he1 in whom alone is life1 might  
empty this earth of ,his presence1 but  
that ,he might fill all things1 not this
 earth only1 but all worlds1 past1      
present1 and to come4  ,believe that    
wherever two or three are gathered      
together in ,christ's name1 there ,he is
 in the midst of them2 that the holy    
communion is the sign of ,his perpetual 
presence2 and that when you kneel to    
receive the bread and wine1 ,christ is  
as near you--spiritually1 indeed1 and   
invisibly1 but really and truly--as near
 you as those who are kneeling by your  
side4  ,and if it be so with ,christ1   
then it is so with those who are        
,christ's1 with those whom we love4  ,it
 is the ,christ in them which we love2  
and that ,christ in them is their hope  
of glory2 and that glory is the glory of
 ,christ4  ,they are partakers of ,his  

death1 therefore they are partakers of  
,his resurrection4  ,let us believe that
 blessed news in all its fulness1 and be
 at peace4  ,a little while and we see  
them2 and again a little while and we do
 not see them4  ,but why8  ,because they
 are gone to the ,father1 to the source 
and fount of all life and power1 all    
light and love1 that they may gain life 
from ,his life1 power from ,his power1  
light from ,his light1 love from ,his   
love--and surely not for nought8        
,surely not for nought1 my friends4     
,for if they were like ,christ on earth1
 and did not use their powers for       
themselves alone1 if they are to be like
 ,christ when they shall see ,him as ,he
 is1 then1 more surely1 will they not   
use their powers for themselves1 but1 as
 ,christ uses ,his1 for those they love4
  ,surely1 like ,christ1 they may come  
and go1 even now1 unseen4  ,like        
,christ1 they may breathe upon our      
restless hearts and say1 ,peace be unto 
you--and not in vain4  ,for what they   

did for us when they were on earth they 
can more fully do now that they are in  
heaven4  ,they may seem to have left us1
 and we1 like the disciples1 may weep   
and lament4  ,but the day will come when
 the veil shall be taken from our eyes1 
and we shall see them as they are1 with 
,christ1 and in ,christ for ever2 and   
remember no more our anguish for joy    
that a man is born into the world1 that 
another human being has entered that one
 true1 real1 and eternal world1 wherein 
is neither disease1 disorder1 change1   
decay1 nor death1 for it is none other  
than the ,bosom of the ,father4         
,,sermon ,,xiii4  ,,ascension ,,day     
,eversley4  ,chester ,cathedral4 #ahgb4 
,st ,john viii4 #eh4  ,before ,abraham  
was1 ,i am4  ,let us consider these     
words awhile4  ,they are most fit for   
our thoughts on this glorious day1 on   
which the ,lord ,jesus ascended to ,his 
,father1 and to our ,father1 to ,his    
,god1 and to our ,god1 that ,he might be
 glorified with the glory which ,he had 

with the ,father before the making of   
the world4  ,for it is clear that we    
shall better understand ,ascension ,day1
 just as we shall better understand     
,christmas or ,eastertide1 the better we
 understand ,who it was who was born at 
,christmas1 suffered and rose at        
,eastertide1 and1 as on this day1       
ascended into heaven4  ,who1 then1 was  
,he whose ascent we celebrate8  ,what   
was that glory which1 as far as we can  
judge of divine things1 ,he resumed as  
on this day8  ,let us think a few       
minutes1 with all humility1 not rashly  
intruding ourselves into the things we  
have not seen1 or meddling with divine  
matters which are too hard for us1 but  
taking our ,lord's words simply as they 
stand1 and where we do not understand   
them1 believing them nevertheless4  ,now
 it is clear that the book of ,exodus   
and our ,lord's words speak of the same 
person4  ,the ,old ,testament tells of a
 personage who appeared to ,moses in the
 wilderness1 and who called ,himself the

 ,lord ,god of ,abraham1 ,isaac and     
,jacob4  ,but this personage also calls 
,himself ,i ,,am4  ,i ,,am ,,that ,i    
,,am3 and ,he said1 ,thus shalt thou say
 unto the children of ,israel1 ,i ,,am  
hath sent me unto you4  ,in the ,new    
,testament we read of a personage who   
calls ,himself the ,son of ,god1 is     
continually called the ,lord1 and who   
tells ,his disciples to call ,him by    
that name without reproving them1 though
 they and ,he knew well what it         
meant--that it meant no less than this1 
that ,he1 ,jesus of ,nazareth1 poor     
mortal man as ,he seemed1 was still the 
,lord1 the ,god of ,abraham1 ,isaac1 and
 ,jacob4  ,i do not say that the        
disciples saw that at first1 clearly or 
fully1 till after our ,lord's           
resurrection4  ,but there was one moment
 shortly before ,his death1 when they   
could have had no doubt who ,he assumed 
,himself to be4  ,for the unbelieving   
,jews had no doubt1 and considered ,him 
a blasphemer2 and these were ,his awful 

and wonderful words1--,i do not pretend 
to understand them--,i take them simply 
as ,i find them1 and believe and adore4 
,your father ,abraham rejoiced to see my
 day1 and he saw it1 and was glad4      
,then said the ,jews unto ,him1 ,thou   
art not yet fifty years old1 and hast   
,thou seen ,abraham8  ,one cannot blame 
them for asking that question1 for      
,abraham had been dead then nearly two  
thousand years4  ,but what is our       
,lord's solemn answer8 ,verily1 verily1 
,i say unto you1 before ,abraham was1 ,i
 am4  ,i ,am4  ,the same name by which  
our ,lord ,god had revealed ,himself to 
,moses in the wilderness1 some sixteen  
hundred years before4  ,if these words  
were true1--and the ,lord prefaces them 
with ,verily1 verily1 ,amen1 ,amen1     
which was as solemn an asseveration as  
any oath could be--then the ,lord ,jesus
 ,christ is none other than the ,god of 
,abraham1 the ,god of ,moses1 the ,god  
of the ,jews1 the ,god of the whole     
universe1 past1 present1 and to come4   

,let us think awhile over this wonder of
 all wonders4  ,the more we think over  
it1 we shall find it not only the wonder
 of all wonders1 but the good news of   
all good news4  ,the deepest and        
soundest philosophers will tell us that 
there must be an ,i ,am4  ,that is1 as  
they would say1 a self-existent ,being2 
neither made nor created1 but who has   
made and created all things2 who is     
without parts and passions1 and is      
incomprehensible1 that is cannot be     
comprehended1 limited1 made smaller or  
weaker1 or acted on in any way by any of
 the things that ,he has made4  ,so that
 this self-existing ,being whom we call 
,god1 would be exactly what ,he is now1 
if the whole universe1 sun1 moon1 and   
stars1 were destroyed this moment2 and  
would be exactly what ,he is now1 if    
there had never been any universe at    
all1 or any thing or being except ,his  
own perfect and self-existent ,self4    
,for ,he lives and moves and has ,his   
being in nothing4  ,but all things live 

and move and have their being in ,him4  
,he was before all things1 and by ,him  
all things consist4  ,and this is the   
,catholic ,faith2 and not only that1    
this is according to sound and right    
reason4  ,but more3  the soundest       
philosophers will tell you that ,god    
must be not merely a self-existent      
,being1 but the ,i ,am3 that if ,god is 
a ,spirit1 and not merely a name for    
some powers and laws of brute nature and
 matter1 ,he must be able to say to     
,himself1 ,i ,am3 that ,he must know    
,himself1 that ,he must be conscious of 
,himself1 of who and what ,he is1 as you
 and ,i are conscious of ourselves1 and 
more or less of who and what we are4    
,and this1 also1 ,i believe to be true1 
and rational1 and necessary to the      
,catholic ,faith4  ,but they will tell  
you again--and this1 too1 is surely     
true--that ,i ,am must be the very name 
of ,god1 because ,god alone can say     
perfectly1 ,i ,am1 and no more4  ,you   
and ,i dare not1 if we think accurately1

 say of ourselves1 ,i am4  ,we may say1 
,i am this or that2 ,i am a man2 ,i am  
an ,englishman2 but we must not say1 ,i 
am2 that is1 ,i exist of myself4 ,we    
must say--not ,i am2 but ,i become1 or  
have become2 ,i was made2 ,i was        
created2 ,i am growing1 changing2 ,i    
depend for my very existence on ,god and
 ,god's will1 and if ,he willed1 ,i     
should be nothing and nowhere in a      
moment4  ,god alone can say1 ,i ,am1 and
 there is none beside ,me1 and never    
has1 nor can be4  ,i exist1 absolutely1 
and simply2 because ,i choose to exist1 
and get life from nothing2 for ,i ,am   
the ,life1 and give life to all things4 
,but you may say1 ,what is all this to  
us8  ,it is very difficult to           
understand1 and dreary1 and even awful4 
,why should we care for it1 even if it  
be true8  ,yes1 my friends2 philosophy  
may be true1 and yet be dreary1 and     
awful1 and have no gospel and good news 
in it at all4  ,i believe it never can  
have2 that only in ,revelation1 and in  

the ,revelation of our ,lord ,jesus     
,christ1 can poor human beings find any 
gospel and good news at all4  ,and sure 
,i am1 that that is an awful thought1 a 
dreary thought1 a crushing thought1     
which makes a man feel as small1 and    
worthless1 and helpless1 and hopeless1  
as a grain of dust1 or a mote in the    
sunbeam--that thought of ,god for ever  
contained in ,himself1 and saying for   
ever to ,himself1 ,i ,am1 and there is  
none beside ,me4  ,but the ,gospel1 the 
good news of the ,old ,testament1 the   
,gospel1 the good news of the ,new      
,testament1 is the ,revelation of ,god  
and ,god's ways1 which began on         
,christmas ,day1 and finished on        
,ascension ,day3  and what is that8     
,what but this8  ,that ,god does not    
merely say to ,himself in ,majesty1 ,i  
,am2 but that ,he goes out of ,himself  
in ,love1 and says to men1 ,i ,am4 ,that
 ,he is a ,god who has spoken to poor   
human beings1 and told them who ,he was2
 and that ,he1 the ,i ,am1 the          

self-existent ,one1 the ,cause of life1 
of all things1 even the ,maker and      
,ruler of the ,universe1 can stoop to   
man--and not merely to perfect men1     
righteous men1 holy men1 wise men1 but  
to the enslaved1 the sinful1 the        
brutish--that ,he may deliver them1 and 
teach them1 and raise them from the     
death of sin1 to ,his own life of       
righteousness4  ,do you not see the     
difference1 the infinite difference1 and
 the good news in that8  ,do you not see
 a whole heaven of new hope and new duty
 is opened to mankind in that one       
fact--,god has spoken to man4  ,he1 the 
,i ,am1 the ,self-,existent1 who needs  
no one1 and no thing1 has turned aside1 
as it were1 and stooped from the throne 
of heaven1 again and again1 during      
thousands of years1 to say to you1 and  
me1 and millions of mankind1 ,i ,am your
 ,god4  ,how do you prosper8--what do   
you need8--what are you doing8-- for if 
you are doing justice to yourself and   
your fellow-men1 then fear not that ,i  

shall be just to you4  ,and more4  ,when
 that ,i ,am1 the self-existent ,god1   
could not set sinful men right by saying
 this1 then did ,he stoop once more from
 the throne of the heavens to do that   
infinite deed of love1 of which it is   
written1 that ,he who called ,himself ,i
 ,am1 the ,god of ,abraham1 was         
conceived of the ,holy ,ghost1 born of  
the ,virgin ,mary1 crucified under      
,pontius ,pilate1 rose again the third  
day1 and ascended into heaven1--that ,he
 might send down the ,spirit of the ,i  
,am1 the ,holy ,spirit who proceedeth   
from the ,father and the ,son1 upon all 
who ask ,him2 that they may be holy as  
,god is holy1 and perfect as ,god is    
perfect4  ,yes1 my dear friends1        
remember that1 and live in the light of 
that2 the gospel of good news of the    
,incarnation of ,jesus ,christ1 very    
,god of very ,god begotten4  ,know that 
,god has spoken to you as ,he spoke to  
,abraham1 and said1--,i am the ,almighty
 ,god1 walk before ,me1 and be thou     

perfect4  ,know that ,he has spoken to  
you as ,he spoke to ,moses1 saying1--,i 
am the ,lord thy ,god1 who have brought 
you1 and your fathers before you1 out of
 the spiritual ,egypt of heathendom1 and
 ignorance1 sin1 and wickedness1 into   
the knowledge of the one1 true1 and     
righteous ,god4  ,but know more1 that   
,he has spoken to you by the mouth of   
,jesus ,christ1 saying1--,i am ,he that 
died in the form of mortal man upon the 
cross for you4  ,and1 behold1 ,i am     
alive for evermore2 and to me all power 
is given in heaven and earth4  ,yes1 my 
friends1 let us lay to heart1 even upon 
this joyful day1 the awful warnings of  
the ,epistle to the ,hebrews1--,god1 the
 ,i ,am1 has spoken to us2 ,god1 the ,i 
,am1 is speaking to us now4  ,see that  
you refuse not ,him that speaketh2 for  
if they escaped not who refused ,moses  
that spake on earth1 much more shall not
 we escape if we turn away from ,him    
that speaketh from heaven2 wherefore    
follow peace with all men1 and holiness1

 without which no man shall see the     
,lord1 and have grace1 whereby we may   
serve ,god acceptably1 with reverence   
and godly fear4  ,for our ,god is a     
consuming fire4  ,to those who disobey  
,him1 eternal wrath2 to those who love  
,him1 eternal love4  ,yes1 my friends4  
,let us believe that1 and live in the   
light of that1 with reverence and godly 
fear1 all the year round4  ,but let us  
specially to-day1 as far as our dull    
feelings and poor imaginations will     
allow us2 let us1 ,i say1 adore the     
ascended ,saviour1 who rules for ever1 a
 ,man in the midst of the throne of the 
universe1 and that ,man--oh1 wonder of  
wonders6--slain for us2 and let us say  
with ,st ,paul of old1 with all our     
hearts and minds and souls3--,now to the
 ,king of the ,ages1 immortal1          
invisible1 with the ,father and the     
,holy ,spirit1 be honour and glory1 for 
ever and ever4  ,amen6    ,,sermon      
,,xiv4  ,,the ,,comforter    ,eversley4 
,sunday after ,ascension ,day4 #ahfh4   

,st ,john xv4 #bf4  ,when the ,comforter
 is come1 whom ,i will send unto you    
from the ,father1 even the ,spirit of   
truth1 which proceedeth from the        
,father1 he shall testify of me4  ,some 
writers1 especially when they are       
writing hymns1 have fallen now-a- days  
into a habit of writing of the ,holy    
,spirit of ,god1 in a tone of which ,i  
dare not say that it is wrong or untrue2
 but of which ,i must say1 that it is   
one-sided4  ,and if there are two sides 
to a matter1 it must do us harm to look 
at only one of them4  ,and ,i think that
 it does people harm to hear the ,holy  
,spirit of ,god1 the ,holy ,ghost1 the  
,comforter1 spoken of in terms1 not of  
reverence1 but of endearment4  ,for     
consider3 ,he is the                    
,creator-,spirit1 by whose aid ,the     
world's foundations first were laid1    
the life-giving ,spirit of whom it is   
written1 ,thou sendest forth ,thy       
,spirit1 and things live1 and ,thou     
renewest the face of the earth4  ,but   

,he is the destroying ,spirit too2 who  
can1 when ,he will1 produce not merely  
life1 but death2 who can1 and does send 
earthquakes1 storm1 and pestilence2 of  
whom ,isaiah writes--,all flesh is as   
grass1 and all the goodliness thereof is
 as the flower of the field4  ,the grass
 withereth1 the flower fadeth2 because  
the ,spirit of the ,lord bloweth upon   
it4  ,i think it does people harm to    
hear this awful and almighty being1 ,i  
say1 spoken of merely as the sweet      
,spirit1 and gentle dove--words which   
are true1 but only true1 if we remember 
other truths1 equally true of ,him1     
concerning whom they are spoken4  ,the  
,spirit of ,god1 it seems to me1 is too 
majestic a being to be talked of hastily
 as sweet4  ,words may be true1 and yet 
it may not be always quite reverent to  
use them4  ,an earthly sovereign may be 
full of all human sweetness and         
tenderness1 yet we should not dare to   
address him as sweet4  ,but1 indeed1    
some of this talk about the ,holy       

,spirit is not warranted by ,scripture  
at all4  ,in one of the hymns1 for      
instance1 in our hymn-book-- an         
excellent hymn in other respects1 there 
is a line which speaks of the ,holy     
,spirit as possessing ,the brooding of  
the gentle dove4  ,now1 this line is    
really little but pretty sentiment1 made
 up of false uses of ,scripture4  ,the  
,scripture speaks once of the ,holy     
,spirit of ,god brooding like a bird    
over its nest4  ,but where8  ,in one of 
the most mysterious1 awful1 and         
important of all texts4  ,and the earth 
was without form and void4  ,and the    
,spirit of ,god moved 7brooded7 over the
 face of the deep4  ,what has this--the 
magnificent picture of the ,life- giving
 ,spirit brooding over the dead world1  
to bring it into life again1 and create 
from it sea and land1 heat and fire1 and
 cattle and creeping things after their 
kind1 and at last man himself1 the      
flower and crown of things2--what has   
that to do with the brooding of a gentle

 dove8  ,but the ,holy ,spirit is spoken
 of in ,scripture under the likeness of 
a dove8  ,true1 and here is another     
confusion4  ,the ,dove is not the emblem
 of gentleness in the ,bible3  but the  
,lamb4  ,the dove is the emblem of      
something else1 pure and holy1 but not  
of gentleness2 and therefore the ,holy  
,spirit is not spoken of in ,scripture  
as brooding as a gentle dove2 but very  
differently1 as it seems to me4  ,st    
,matthew and ,st ,john say1 that at our 
,lord's baptism the ,holy ,spirit was   
seen1 not brooding1 but descending from 
heaven as a dove4  ,to any one who knows
 anything of doves1 who will merely go  
out into the field or the farm-yard and 
look at them1 and who will use his own  
eyes1 that figure is striking enough1   
and grand enough4  ,it is the swiftness 
of the dove1 and not its fancied        
gentleness that is spoken of4  ,the dove
 appearing1 as you may see it again and 
again1 like a speck in the far off sky1 
rushing down with a swiftness which     

outstrips the very eagle2 returning     
surely to the very spot from which it   
set forth1 though it may have flown over
 hundreds of miles of land1 and through 
the very clouds of heaven4  ,it is the  
sky- cleaving force and swiftness1 the  
unerring instinct of the dove1 and not a
 sentimental gentleness to which        
,scripture likens that ,holy ,spirit1   
which like the rushing mighty wind      
bloweth whither it listeth1 and thou    
hearest the sound thereof1 but canst not
 tell whence it cometh1 or whither it   
goeth2--that ,holy ,spirit who1 when ,he
 fell on the apostles1 fell in tongues  
of fire1 and shook all the house where  
they were sitting2 that ,holy ,spirit of
 whom one of the wisest ,christians who 
ever lived1 who knew well enough the    
work of the ,spirit1 arguing just as ,i 
am now against the fancy of associating 
the ,holy ,spirit merely with pretty    
thoughts of our own1 and pleasant       
feelings of our own1 and sentimental    
raptures of our own1 said1 ,wouldst thou

 know the manner of spiritual converse8 
,of the way in which the ,spirit of ,god
 works in man8  ,then it is this3  ,he  
hath taken me up and dashed me down4    
,like a lion1 ,i look1 that ,he will    
break all my bones4  ,from morning till 
evening1 ,thou wilt make an end of me4  
,but people are apt to forget this4     
,and therefore they fall into two       
mistakes4  ,they think of the ,holy     
,spirit as only a gentle1 and what they 
call a dove-like being2 and they forget 
what a powerful1 awful1 literally       
formidable being ,he is4  ,they lose    
respect for the ,holy ,spirit4  ,they   
trifle with ,him2 and while they sing   
hymns about ,his gentleness and         
sweetness1 they do things which grieve  
and shock ,him2 forgetting the awful    
warning which ,he1 at the very outset of
 the ,christian ,church1 gave against   
such taking of liberties with ,god the  
,holy ,ghost3--how ,ananias and         
,sapphira thought that the ,holy ,spirit
 was ,one whom they might honour with   

their lips1 and more1 with their outward
 actions1 but who did not require truth 
in the inward parts1 and did not care   
for their telling a slight falsehood    
that they might appear more generous    
than they really were in the eyes of    
men2 and how the answer of the ,holy    
,spirit of ,god was that ,he struck them
 both dead there and then for a warning 
to all such triflers1 till the end of   
time4  ,another mistake which really    
pious and good people commit1 is1 that  
they think the ,holy ,spirit of ,god to 
be merely1 or little beside1 certain    
pleasant frames1 and feelings1 and      
comfortable assurances1 in their own    
minds4  ,they do not know that these    
pleasant frames and feelings really     
depend principally on their own health3 
and1 then1 when they get out of health1 
or when their brain is overworked1 and  
the pleasant feelings go1 they are      
terrified and disheartened1 and complain
 of spiritual dryness1 and cry out that 
,god's ,spirit has deserted them1 and   

are afraid that ,god is angry with them1
 or even that they have committed the   
unpardonable sin3  not knowing that ,god
 is not a man that ,he should lie1 nor a
 son of man that ,he should repent2 that
 ,god is as near them in the darkness as
 in the light2 that whatever their own  
health1 or their own feelings may be1   
yet still in ,god they live1 and move1  
and have their being2 that to ,god's    
,spirit they owe all which raises them  
above the dumb animals2 that nothing can
 separate them from the love of ,him who
 promised that ,he would not leave us   
comfortless1 but send to us ,his ,holy  
,ghost to comfort us1 and exalt us to   
the same place whither ,he has gone     
before4  ,now1 why do ,i say all this8  
,to take away comfort from you8  ,to    
make you fear and dread the ,spirit of  
,god8  ,god forbid6  ,who am ,i1 to take
 away comfort from any human being6  ,i 
say it to give yon true comfort1 to make
 you trust and love the ,holy ,spirit   
utterly1 to know ,him--,his strength and

 ,his wisdom as well as ,his tenderness 
and gentleness4  ,you know that         
afflictions do come--terrible           
bereavements1 sorrows sad and strange4  
,my sermon does not make them come4     
,there they are1 ,god help us all1 and  
too many of them1 in this world4  ,but  
from whom do they come8 ,who is ,lord of
 life and death8  ,who is ,lord of joy  
and sorrow8  ,is not that the question  
of all questions8  ,and is not the      
answer the most essential of all        
answers8  ,it is the ,holy ,spirit of   
,god2 the ,spirit who proceedeth from   
the ,father and the ,son2 the ,spirit of
 the ,father who so loved the world that
 ,he spared not ,his only begotten ,son2
 the ,spirit of the ,son who so loved   
the world1 that ,he stooped to die for  
it upon the ,cross2 the ,spirit who is  
promised to lead you into all truth1    
that you may know ,god1 and in the      
knowledge of ,him find everlasting life2
 the ,spirit who is the ,comforter1 and 
says1 ,i have seen thy ways and will    

heal thee1 ,i will lead thee also1 and  
restore comforts to thee and to thy     
mourners4  ,i speak peace to him that is
 near1 and to him that is far off1 saith
 the ,lord2 and ,i will heal him4  ,is  
it not the most blessed news1 that ,he  
who takes away1 is the very same as ,he 
who gives8  ,that ,he who afflicts is   
the very same as ,he who comforts8      
,that ,he of whom it is written that1 as
 a lion1 so will ,he break all my bones2
 from day even to night wilt ,thou make 
an end of me2 is the same as ,he of whom
 it is written1 ,he shall gather the    
lambs in ,his arms1 and carry them1 and 
shall gently lead those that are with   
young2 and1 again1 as a beast goeth down
 into the valley1 so the ,spirit of the 
,lord caused him to rest8  ,that ,he of 
whom it is written1 ,our ,god is a      
consuming fire1 is the same as ,he who  
has said1 ,when thou walkest through the
 fire1 thou shalt not be burned8  ,that 
,he who brings us into the valley of the
 shadow of death1 is the same as ,he of 

whom it is said1 ,thy rod and ,thy staff
 they comfort me8  ,is not that blessed 
news8  ,is it not the news of the       
,gospel2 and the only good news which   
people will really care for1 when they  
are tormented1 not with superstitious   
fears and doctrines of devils which     
man's diseased conscience has           
originated1 but tormented with the real 
sorrows1 the rational fears of this     
stormy human life4  ,we all like        
comfort4  ,but what kind of comfort do  
we not merely like but need8  ,merely to
 be comfortable8--,to be free from pain1
 anxiety1 sorrow8- -,to have only       
pleasant faces round us1 and pleasant   
things said to us8 ,if we want that     
comfort1 we shall very seldom have it4  
,it will be very seldom good for us to  
have it4  ,the comfort which poor human 
beings want in such a world as this1 is 
not the comfort of ease1 but the comfort
 of strength4  ,the comforter whom we   
need is not one who will merely say kind
 things1 but give help--help to the     

weary and heavy laden heart which has no
 time to rest4  ,we need not the sunny  
and smiling face1 but the strong and    
helping arm4  ,for we may be in that    
state that smiles are shocking to us1   
and mere kindness1--though we may be    
grateful for it--of no more comfort to  
us than sweet music to a drowning man4  
,we may be miserable1 and unable to help
 being miserable1 and unwilling to help 
it too4  ,we do not wish to flee from   
our sorrow1 we do not wish to forget our
 sorrow4 ,we dare not2 it is so awful1  
so heartrending1 so plain spoken1 that  
,god1 the master and tutor of our hearts
 must wish us to face it and endure it4 
,our ,father has given us the cup--shall
 we not drink it8  ,but who will help us
 to drink the bitter cup8  ,who will be 
the comforter1 and give us not mere kind
 words1 but strength8  ,who will give us
 the faith to say with ,job1 ,though ,he
 slay me1 yet will ,i trust in ,him8    
,who will give us the firm reason to    
look steadily at our grief1 and learn   

the lesson it was meant to teach8  ,who 
will give us the temperate will1 to keep
 sober and calm amid the shocks and     
changes of mortal life8  ,above all1 ,i 
may say--,who will lead us into all     
truth8  ,how much is our sorrow         
increased-- how much of it is caused by 
simple ignorance6  ,why has our anxiety 
come8 ,how are we to look at it8  ,what 
are we to do8  ,oh1 that we had a       
comforter who would lead us into all    
truth3--not make us infallible1 or all  
knowing1 but lead us into truth2 at     
least put us in the way of truth1 put   
things in their true light to us1 and   
give us sound and rational views of life
 and duty4  ,oh1 for a comforter who    
would give us the spirit of wisdom and  
understanding1 the spirit of counsel and
 ghostly strength1 the spirit of        
knowledge and true godliness1 and fill  
us with that spirit of ,god's holy fear1
 which would make us not superstitious1 
not slavish1 not anxious1 but simply    
obedient1 loyal and resigned4  ,if we   

had such a ,comforter as that1 could we 
not take evil from his hands1 as well as
 good8  ,we have had fathers of our     
flesh who corrected us1 and we gave them
 reverence4  ,they chastised us1 but we 
loved and trusted them1 because we knew 
that they loved and trusted             
us--chastised us to make us             
better--chastised us because they       
trusted us to become better4  ,but if we
 can find a ,father of our spirits1 of  
our souls1 shall we not rather be in    
subjection to ,him and live8  ,if ,he   
sent us a ,comforter1 to comfort and    
guide1 and inspire1 and strengthen us1  
shall we not say of that                
,comforter--,though ,he slay me1 yet    
will ,i trust in ,him4  ,if we had such 
a ,comforter as that1 we should not     
care1 if ,he seemed at times stern1 as  
well as kind2 we could endure rebuke and
 chastisement from ,him1 if we could    
only get from ,him wisdom to understand 
the rebuke1 and courage to bear the     
chastisement4  ,where is that           

,comforter8  ,god answers3--,that       
,comforter am ,i1 the ,god of heaven and
 earth4  ,there are comforters on earth 
who can help thee with wise words and   
noble counsel1 can be strong as man1 and
 tender as woman4  ,then ,god can be    
more strong than man1 and more tender   
than woman likewise4  ,and when the     
strong arm of man supports thee no      
longer1 yet under thee are the          
everlasting arms of ,god4  ,oh1 blessed 
news1 that ,god ,himself is the         
,comforter4  ,blessed news1 that ,he who
 strikes will also heal3  that ,he who  
gives the cup of sorrow1 will also give 
the strength to drink it4  ,blessed     
news1 that chastisement is not          
punishment1 but the education of a      
,father4  ,blessed news1 that our whole 
duty is the duty of a child--of the ,son
 who said in ,his own agony1 ,father1   
not my will1 but thine be done4         
,blessed news1 that our ,comforter is   
the ,spirit who comforted ,christ the   
,son ,himself2 who proceeds both from   

the ,father and from the ,son2 and who  
will therefore testify to us both of the
 ,father and the ,son1 and tell us that 
in ,christ we are indeed1 really and    
literally1 the children of ,god who may 
cry to ,him1 ,father1 with full         
understanding of all that that royal    
word contains4  ,blessed1 too1 to find  
that in the power of the ,divine        
,majesty1 we can acknowledge the unity1 
and know and feel that the ,father1 ,son
 and ,holy ,ghost are all one in love to
 the creatures whom they have made--    
their glory equal1 for the glory of each
 and all is perfect charity1 and their  
majesty co-eternal1 because it is a     
perfect majesty2 whose justice is mercy1
 whose power is goodness1 its very      
sternness love1 love which gives hope   
and counsel1 and help and strength1 and 
the true life which this world's death  
cannot destroy4    ,,sermon ,,xv4       
,,thou ,,art ,,worthy   ,eversley1      
#ahfi4  ,chester ,cathedral1 #ahgj4     
,trinity ,sunday4  ,revelation iv4 #aa4 

,thou art worthy1 ,o ,lord1 to receive  
glory and honour and power3  for ,thou  
hast created all things1 and for ,thy   
pleasure they are and were created4  ,i 
am going to speak to you on a deep      
matter1 the deepest and most important  
of all matters1 and yet ,i hope to speak
 simply4  ,i shall say nothing which you
 cannot understand1 if you will attend4 
,i shall say nothing1 indeed1 which you 
could not find out for yourselves1 if   
you will think1 and use your own common 
sense4  ,i wish to speak to you of      
,theology--of ,god ,himself4  ,for this 
,trinity ,sunday of all the ,sundays of 
the year1 is set apart for thinking of  
,god ,himself--not merely of our own    
souls1 though we must never forget them1
 nor of what ,god has done for our      
souls1 though we must never forget      
that--but of what ,god is ,himself1 what
 ,he would be if we had no souls--if    
there were1 and had been from the       
beginning1 no human beings at all upon  
the earth4  ,now1 if we look at any     

living thing--an animal1 say1 or a      
flower1 and consider how curiously it is
 contrived1 our common sense will tell  
us at once that some one has made it2   
and if any one answers--,oh6 the flower 
was not made1 it grew--our common sense 
would tell us that that was only a still
 more wonderful contrivance1 and that   
there must be some one who gave it the  
power of growing1 and who makes it grow4
  ,and so our common sense would tell   
us1 as it told the heathens of old1 that
 there must be ,,gods--beings whom we   
cannot see1 who made the world4  ,but if
 we watch things more closely1 we should
 find out that all things are made more 
or less upon the same plan2 that 7and ,i
 tell you that this is true1 strange as 
it may seem7 all animals1 however       
different they may seem to our eyes1 are
 made upon the same plan2 all plants and
 flowers1 however different they may    
seem1 are made upon the same plan2 all  
stones1 and minerals1 and earths1       
however different they may seem1 are    

made upon the same plan4 ,then common   
sense would surely tell us1 one ,god    
made all the animals1 one ,god made all 
the plants1 one ,god made all the earths
 and stones4  ,but if we watch more     
closely still1 we should find that the  
plants could not live without the       
animals1 nor the animals without the    
plants1 nor either of them without the  
soil beneath our feet1 and the air and  
rain above our heads4  ,that everything 
in the world worked together on one     
plan1 and each thing depended on        
everything else4  ,then common sense    
would tell us1 one ,god must have made  
the whole world4  ,but if we watched    
more closely again1 or rather1 if we    
asked the astronomers1 who study the    
stars and heavens1 they would tell us   
that all the worlds over our heads1 all 
the stars that spangle the sky at night1
 were made upon the same plan as our    
earth--that sun and moon1 and all the   
host of heaven1 move according to the   
same laws by which our earth moves1 and 

as far as we can find out1 have been    
made in the same way as our earth has   
been made1 and that these same laws must
 have been going on1 making worlds after
 worlds1 for hundreds of thousands of   
years1 and ages beyond counting1 and    
will1 in all probability1 go on for     
countless ages more4  ,then common sense
 will tell us1 the same ,god has made   
all worlds1 past1 present1 and to come4 
,there is but one ,god1 the same        
yesterday1 to-day1 and for ever4  ,so we
 should learn something of how all      
things were made2 and then would come a 
second question1 why all things were    
made8  ,why did ,god make the worlds8   
,let us begin with a very simple        
example4  ,simple things will often     
teach us most4  ,you see a flower       
growing1 not in a garden1 but wild in a 
field or wood4  ,you admire its         
beautiful colours1 or if it is fragrant1
 its sweet scent4  ,now1 why was that   
flower put there8  ,you may answer1 to  
please me4  ,my dear friends1 ,i should 

be the last person to deny that4 ,i can 
never see a child picking a nosegay1    
much less a little ,london child1 born  
and bred and shut up among bricks and   
mortar1 when it gets for the first time 
into a green field1 and throws itself   
instinctively upon the buttercups and   
daisies1 as if they were precious jewels
 and gold2--,i never can see that sight1
 ,i say1 without feeling that there are 
such things as final causes--,i mean    
that the great ,father in heaven put    
those flowers into that field on purpose
 to give pleasure to ,his human         
children4  ,but then comes the question1
 ,of all the flowers in a single field1 
is one in ten thousand ever looked at by
 child or by men8  ,and yet they are    
just as beautiful as the rest2 and ,god 
has1 so to speak1 taken just as much    
pains with the many beautiful things    
which men will never see1 as with the   
few1 very few1 which men may see4  ,and 
when one thinks further about this--when
 one thinks of the vast forests in other

 lands which the foot of man has seldom 
or never trod1 and which1 when they are 
entered1 are found to be full of trees1 
flowers1 birds1 butterflies1 so         
beautiful and glorious1 that anything   
which we see in these islands is poor   
and plain in comparison with them2 and  
when we remember that these beautiful   
creatures have been going on generation 
after generation1 age after age1 unseen 
and unenjoyed by any human eyes1 one    
must ask1 ,why has ,god been creating   
all that beauty8 simply to let it all1  
as it were1 run to waste1 till after    
thousands of years one traveller comes1 
and has a hasty glimpse of it8          
,impossible4  ,or again--and this is an 
example still more strange1 and yet it  
is true4  ,we used to think till within 
a very few years past1 that at the      
bottom of the deep sea there were no    
living things--that miles below the     
surface of the ocean1 in total darkness1
 and under such a weight of water as    
would crush us to a jelly1 there could  

be nothing1 except stones1 and sand1 and
 mud4  ,but now it is found out that the
 bottom of the deepest seas1 and the    
utter darkness into which no ray of     
light can ever pierce1 are alive and    
swarming with millions of creatures as  
cunningly and exquisitely formed1 and in
 many cases as brilliantly coloured1 as 
those which live in the sunlight along  
the shallow shores4  ,now1 my dear      
friends1--surely beautiful things were  
made to be seen by some one1 else why   
were they made beautiful8  ,common sense
 tells us that4 ,but who has seen those 
countless tribes1 which have been living
 down1 in utter darkness1 since the     
making of the world8  ,common sense1 ,i 
think1 can give but one answer--,,god4  
,he1 and ,he only1 to whom the night is 
as clear as the day1 to whom the        
darkness and the light are both alike4  
,but more--,god has not only made things
 beautiful2 ,he has made things happy2  
whatever misery there may be in the     
world1 there is no denying that4        

,however sorrow may have come into the  
world1 there is a great deal more       
happiness than misery in it4  ,misery is
 the exception2 happiness is the rule4  
,no rational man ever heard a bird sing1
 without feeling that that bird was     
happy2 and1 if so1 his common sense     
ought to tell him that if ,god made that
 bird1 ,he made it to be happy2 ,he     
intended it to be happy1 and ,he takes  
pleasure in its happiness1 though no    
human ear should ever hear its song1 no 
human heart should ever share in its    
joy4  ,yes1 the world was not made for  
man2 but man1 like all the world1 was   
made for ,god4  ,not for man's pleasure 
merely1 not for man's use1 but for      
,god's pleasure all things are1 and for 
,god's pleasure they were created4  ,and
 now1 surely1 common sense will tell us 
why ,god made all things4  ,for ,his own
 pleasure4  ,god is pleased to make     
them1 and pleased with what ,he has     
made1 because what ,he has made is worth
 being pleased with4  ,he has seen all  

things that ,he has made1 and1 behold1  
they are very good1 and right1 and wise1
 and beautiful1 and happy1 each after   
its kind4  ,so that1 as the ,psalmist   
says1 ,the ,lord shall rejoice in ,his  
works4  ,and ,scripture tells that it   
must be so1 if we only recollect and    
believe one word of ,st4 ,john's that   
,god is ,love--for it is the very       
essence of love1 that it cannot be      
content to love itself4  ,it must have  
something which is not itself to love   
that it may go out of itself1 and forget
 itself1 and spend itself in the good   
and in the happiness of what it loves4  
,all true love of husband and wife1     
mother and child1 sister and brother1   
friend and friend1 man to his           
country1--what does it mean but this8   
,forgetting one's selfish happiness in  
doing good to others1 and finding a     
deeper1 higher happiness in that4  ,the 
man who only loves himself knows not    
what ,love means4  ,in truth1 he does   
not even love himself4  ,he is his own  

worst enemy3  his selfishness torments  
him with discontent1 disgust1 pride1    
fear1 and all evil passions and lusts2  
and in him is fulfilled our ,lord's     
saying1 that he that will save his life 
shall lose it4  ,but the man who is full
 of love1 as ,god is full of love1 who  
forgets himself in making others happy1 
who lives the eternal life of ,god1     
which is alone worth living1 he is the  
only truly happy man2 and in him is     
fulfilled that other saying of our      
,lord1 that he who loseth his life shall
 save it4  ,and the loving1 unselfish   
man too is the only sound theologian1   
for he who dwelleth in love dwelleth in 
,god1 and ,god in him4  ,he alone will  
understand the mystery of who ,god is1  
and why ,he made all things4  ,the      
loving man alone1 ,i say1 will          
understand the mystery--how because ,god
 is love ,he could not live alone in the
 abyss1 but must create all things1 all 
worlds and heavens1 yea1 and the heaven 
of heavens1 that ,he might have         

something beside ,himself1 whereon to   
spend ,his boundless love4  ,and why8   
,because love can only love what is     
somewhat like itself1 ,he made all      
things according to the idea of ,his own
 eternal mind4  ,because ,he is         
unchangeable1 and a ,god of order and of
 law1 ,he made all things according to  
one order1 and gave them a law which    
cannot be broken1 that they might       
continue this day as they were at the   
beginning1 serving ,him and fulfilling  
,his word4  ,because ,he is a ,god of   
justice1 ,he made all things just1      
depending on each other1 helping each   
other1 and compelled to sacrifice       
themselves for each other1 and minister 
to each other whether they will or not4 
,because ,he is a ,god of beauty1 ,he   
made all things beautiful1 of a variety 
and a richness unspeakable1 that ,he    
might rejoice in all ,his works1 and    
find a divine delight in every moss     
which grows upon the moor1 and every    
gnat which dances in the sun4  ,because 

,he is a ,god of love1 ,he gave to every
 creature a power of happiness according
 to its kind1 that ,he might rejoice in 
the happiness of ,his creatures4  ,and  
lastly1 because ,god is a spirit--a     
moral and a rational ,being--therefore  
,he created rational beings to be more  
like ,him than any other creatures1 and 
constituted the services of men and     
angels in a most wonderful order1 that  
they might reverence law as ,he does1   
and justice as ,he does--that they might
 love to be loving as ,he loves1 and to 
be useful as ,he is useful--that they   
might rejoice in the beauty of ,his     
works as ,he rejoices in them ,himself2 
and1 catching from time to time fuller  
and fuller glimpses of that ,divine and 
wonderful order according to which ,he  
has made all things and all worlds1 may 
see more and more clearly1 as the years 
roll on1 that all things are just1 and  
beautiful1 and good2 and join more and  
more heartily in the hymn which goes up 
for ever from every sun1 and star1 and  

world1 and from the tiniest creature in 
these worlds3 ,thou art worthy1 ,o      
,lord1 to receive glory and honour and  
power2 for ,thou hast created all       
things1 and for ,thy pleasure they are  
and were created4  ,now1 to ,god the    
,father1 who1 out of ,his boundless     
love1 ordains the making of all things2 
and to ,god the ,son1 who1 out of ,his  
boundless love1 performs the making of  
all things2 and to ,god the ,holy       
,spirit1 who1 out of ,his boundless     
love1 breathes law and kind1 life and   
growth into all things1 three ,persons  
in one1 ever-blessed ,trinity1 be all   
glory1 and honour1 and praise1 for ever 
and ever4  ,amen4    ,,sermon ,,xvi4    
,,the ,,glory ,,of ,,the ,,trinity      
,eversley1 #ahfh4  ,st ,mary's ,chester1
 #ahga4  ,trinity ,sunday4  ,psalm civ4 
#ca1 #cc4  ,the glory of the ,lord shall
 endure for ever3  ,the ,lord shall     
rejoice in his works4  ,i will sing unto
 the ,lord as long as ,i live3  ,i will 
sing praise to my ,god while ,i have my 

being4  ,this is ,trinity ,sunday1 on   
which we think especially of the name of
 ,god4 ,a day which1 to a wise man1 may 
well be one of the most solemn1 and the 
most humiliating days of the whole year4
  ,for is it not humiliating to look    
stedfastly1 even for a moment1 at ,god's
 greatness1 and then at our own         
littleness2 at ,god's strength and at   
our own weakness2 at ,god's wisdom1 and 
at our own ignorance2 and1 most of all1 
at ,god's righteousness1 and at our own 
sins8  ,i do not say that it should not 
be so4  ,rather1 ,i say1 it should be   
so4 ,for what is more wholesome for you 
and me1 and any man1 than to be         
humiliated--humbled--and brought to our 
own level--that all may see who1 what1  
and where we are8  ,what more wholesome 
than to be made holy and humble men of  
heart8  ,what more wholesome for us1 who
 are each of us tempted to behave as if 
we were the centre of the universe1 to  
judge ourselves the most important      
personages in the world1 and to judge of

 everything according as it is pleasant 
or unpleasant to us1 each in our own    
family1 our own sect1 our own           
neighbourhood2 what more wholesome than 
to be brought now and then face to face 
with ,god ,himself1 and see what poor1  
little1 contemptible atoms we are at    
best1 compared with ,him who made heaven
 and earth8--to see how well ,god and   
,god's world have gone on for thousands 
of years without our help2--how well    
they will go on after we are dead and   
gone8  ,face to face with ,god6  ,and   
how far shall we have to go to find     
ourselves face to face with ,god8  ,not 
very far1 according to ,st ,paul4  ,god1
 he says1 is not far from every one of  
us2 for in ,him we live1 and move1 and  
have our being4  ,in ,god1 in the ever  
blessed ,trinity--,father1 ,son1 and    
,holy ,ghost--we1 and not we only1 but  
every living thing--each flower1 each   
insect--lives1 and moves1 and has its   
being4  ,so it is--strange as it may    
seem1 and we cannot make it otherwise4  

,you fancy ,god far off--somewhere in   
the skies1 beyond suns and stars4  ,know
 that the heavens1 and the heaven of    
heavens1 cannot contain ,him4  ,rather1 
in the very deepest sense1 ,he contains 
them4 ,in ,god1 suns and stars1 and all 
the host of heaven1 live1 and move1 and 
have their being2 and if ,god destroyed 
them all at this very moment1 and the   
whole universe became nothing once more1
 as it was nothing at first1 still ,god 
would remain1 neither greater nor less1 
neither stronger nor weaker1 neither    
richer nor poorer1 than ,he was before4 
,for ,he is the self-existent ,i ,am2   
who needs nought save ,himself1 and who 
needs nought save to assert ,himself in 
,his ,word1 ,jesus ,christ our ,lord1   
and say ,i ,am1 in order to create all  
things and beings1 save ,himself4  ,he  
is the infinite2 whom nothing1 however  
huge1 and vast1 or strong1 can          
comprehend--that is1 take in and limit4 
,he takes in and limits all things2     
giving to each thing1 form according to 

its own kind1 and life and growth       
according to its own law2 appointing to 
all 7as says ,st ,paul7 their times1 and
 the bounds of their habitation2 that if
 they be rational creatures1 as we are1 
they may feel after the ,lord and find  
,him2 and if they be irrational         
creatures1 like the animals and the     
plants1 mountains and streams1 clouds   
and tempests1 sun and stars1 they may   
serve ,god's gracious purposes in the   
economy of ,his world4  ,therefore1     
everything which you see1 is1 as it     
were1 a thought of ,god's1 an action of 
,god's2 a message to you from ,god4     
,therefore you can look at nothing in   
the earth without seeing ,god ,himself  
at work thereon4  ,as our ,lord said1   
,my ,father worketh hitherto1 and ,i    
work4  ,you can look neither at the sun 
in the sky1 nor at the grass beneath    
your feet1 without being brought face to
 face with ,god1 the ever blessed       
,trinity4 ,the tiniest gnat which dances
 in the sun1 was conceived by ,god the  

,father1 in whose eternal bosom are the 
ideas and patterns of all things1 past1 
present1 and to come2 it was created by 
,god the ,son1 by whom the ,father made 
all things1 and without whom nothing is 
made3  and it is kept alive by ,god the 
,holy ,spirit1 the ,lord and giver of   
life1 of whom it is written1 ,thou      
sendest forth thy ,spirit1 they are     
created2 and thou renewest the face of  
the earth4  ,oh that we could all       
remember this4  ,that when we walk      
across the field1 or look out into the  
garden1 we could have the wisdom to     
remember1 ,whither1 ,o ,god1 can ,i go  
from ,thy presence8  ,for ,thou art     
looking down on the opening of every bud
 and flower1 and without ,thee not a    
sparrow falls to the ground4  ,whither  
can ,i flee from ,thy ,spirit8  ,for    
,thy ,spirit is giving life perpetually1
 alike to me and to the insect at my    
feet2 without ,thy ,spirit my lungs     
could not breathe one breath1 my heart  
could not beat one pulse4  ,in ,thee1 ,i

 and all things live1 move1 and have our
 being4  ,and shall ,i forget ,thee1    
disobey ,thee1 neglect to praise1 and   
honour1 and worship ,thee1 and thank    
,thee day and night1 for ,thy great     
glory8  ,if we could but remember that1 
there would be no fear of our being     
ungodly1 irreligious1 undevout4  ,we    
look too often1 day after day1 month    
after month1 on the world around us just
 as the dumb beasts do1 as a place out  
of which we can get something to eat1   
and forget that it is also a place out  
of which we can get1 daily and hourly1  
something to admire1 to adore1 to       
worship1 even the thought of ,god's     
wisdom1 ,god's power1 ,god's goodness1  
,god's glory4  ,oh blind and heedless   
that we are4 ,truly said the wise       
man--,an undevout astronomer is mad4    
,and truly said another wise man1 an    
,englishman--the saintly philosopher    
,faraday1 now with ,god1--,how could he 
be otherwise than religious2 when at    
every step he found himself brought more

 closely face to face with the signs of 
a mind constructed like his own1 with an
 aim and a purpose which he could       
understand1 employing ways and means1   
and tending clearly to an end1 and      
methodically following out a system     
which he could both perceive and grasp4 
,such a man's whole life is one act of  
reverence to that ,god in whose inner   
presence he finds himself illuminated   
and strengthened2 and if there be       
revelation of divine things on earth1 it
 is when the hidden secrets of nature   
are disclosed to the sincere and        
self-denying seeker after truth4  ,yes1 
that is true4  ,the more you look into  
the world around you1 and consider every
 flower1 and bird1 and stone1 the more  
you will see that a ,mind planned them1 
even the mind of ,god2 a ,mind like     
yours and mine2 but how infinitely      
different1 how much deeper1 wiser1      
vaster4  ,before that thought we shrink 
into the nothingness from whence ,he    
called us out at first4  ,the difference

 between our minds and the ,mind of ,god
 is--to what shall ,i liken it8  ,say1  
to the difference between a flake of    
soot and a mountain of pure diamond4    
,that soot and that diamond are actually
 the same substance2 of that there is no
 doubt whatsoever2 but as the light1    
dirty1 almost useless soot is to the    
pure1 and clear1 hard diamond1 ay1 to a 
mountain1 a world1 a whole universe made
 of pure diamond--if such a thing were  
possible--so is the mind of man compared
 with that ,mind of the ever blessed    
,trinity1 which made the worlds1 and    
sustains them in life and order to this 
day4  ,my friends1 it is not in great   
things only1 but in the very smallest1  
that the greatest glory of the ever     
blessed ,trinity is seen4  ,ay1 most1   
perhaps1 in the smallest1 when one      
considers the utterly inconceivable     
wisdom1 which can make the smallest     
animal--so made as to be almost         
invisible under the strongest           
microscope--as perfect in all its organs

 as the hugest elephant4  ,ay1 more1    
which can not only make these tiny      
living things1 but1 more wonderful      
still1 make them make themselves8  ,for 
what is growth1 but a thing making      
itself8  ,what is the seed growing into 
a plant1 the plant into a flower1 the   
flower to a seed again1 but that thing  
making itself1 transforming itself1 by  
an inward law of life which ,god's      
,spirit gives it4  ,i tell you the more 
earnestly and carefully you examine into
 the creation1 birth1 growth of any     
living thing1 even of the daisy on the  
grass outside2 the more you inquire what
 it really is1 how it came to be like   
what it is1 how it got where it is1 and 
so forth2 you will be led away into     
questions which may well make you dizzy 
with thinking1 so strange1 so vast1 so  
truly miraculous is the history of every
 organised creature upon earth4  ,and   
when you recollect 7as you are bound to 
do on this day71 that each of these     
things is the work of the ever blessed  

,trinity2 that upon every flower and    
every insect1 generation after          
generation of them1 since the world was 
made1 the ever blessed ,trinity has been
 at work1 ,god the ,father thinking and 
conceiving each thing1 in ,his eternal  
,mind1 ,god the ,son creating it and    
putting it into the world1 each thing   
according to the law of its life1 ,god  
the ,holy ,ghost inspiring it with life 
and law1 that it may grow and thrive    
after its kind--when such thoughts as   
these crowd upon you1 and they ought to 
crowd upon you1 this day of all the     
year1 at sight of the meanest insect    
under your feet2 then what can a        
rational man do1 but bow his head and   
worship in awful silence1 adoring humbly
 ,him who sits upon the throne of the   
universe1 and who says to us in all ,his
 works1 even as ,he said to ,job of old1
 ,where wast thou when ,i laid the      
foundations of the earth8  ,when the    
morning stars sang together1 and all the
 sons of ,god shouted for joy8 ,hast    

thou entered into the springs of the    
sea8 or hast thou seen the doors of the 
shadow of death8  ,knowest thou the     
ordinances of heaven8 ,canst thou lift  
up thy voice to the clouds1 that        
abundance of waters may cover thee8     
,canst thou send lightnings1 that they  
may go1 and say unto thee1 ,here we are8
  ,wilt thou hunt the prey for the lion8
 or fill the appetite of the young      
lions8  ,gavest thou the goodly wings   
unto the peacocks8 or wings and feathers
 unto the ostrich8  ,hast thou given the
 horse strength8 hast thou clothed his  
neck with thunder8  ,doth the hawk fly  
by thy wisdom8 doth the eagle mount up  
at thy command8  ,when ,god speaks thus 
to us--and ,he does thus speak to us1 by
 every cloud and shower1 and by every   
lightning flash and ray of sunshine1 and
 by every living thing which flies in   
air1 or swims in water1 or creeps upon  
the earth--what can we say1 save what   
,job said--,behold1 ,i am vile2 what    
shall ,i answer thee8  ,i will lay mine 

hand upon my mouth4  ,but if ,god be so 
awful in the material world1 of which   
our five senses tell us1 how much more  
awful is ,he in that spiritual and moral
 world1 of which our senses tell us     
nought8  ,that unseen world of justice  
and truthfulness1 of honour and duty1 of
 reverence and loyalty1 of love and     
charity1 of purity and self-sacrifice2  
that spiritual world1 ,i say1 which can 
be only seen by the spiritual eye of the
 soul1 and felt by the spiritual heart  
of the soul8  ,how awful is ,god in that
 eternal world of right and wrong2      
wherein cherubim1 seraphim1 angel and   
archangel cry to ,him for ever1 not     
merely ,mighty1 mighty1 mighty1 but     
,holy1 holy1 holy4 ,how awful to poor   
creatures like us4  ,for then comes in  
the question--not merely is ,god good8  
but1 am not ,i bad8  ,is ,god sinless8  
but1 am not ,i a sinner8  ,is ,god pure8
 but am not ,i impure8  ,is ,god wise8  
then am not ,i a fool8  ,and when once  
that thought has crossed our minds1 must

 we not tremble1 must we not say with   
,isaiah of old1 ,woe is me6 for ,i am   
undone2 because ,i am a man of unclean  
lips1 and ,i dwell in the midst of a    
people of unclean lips3  for mine eyes  
have seen the ,king1 the ,lord of hosts4
  ,yes2 awful as is the thought of      
,god's perfection in the material world 
about us1 more awful still is the       
thought of ,his perfection in the       
spiritual world4  ,so awful1 that we    
might well be overwhelmed with dread and
 horror at the sight of ,god's          
righteousness and our sinfulness2 were  
it not for the gracious message of      
revelation that tells us1 that ,god1 the
 ,father of heaven1 is ,,our ,father    
likewise1 who so loved us that ,he gave 
for us ,his only begotten1 ,god the     
,son2 that for ,his sake our sins might 
be freely forgiven us2 that ,god the    
,son is our ,atonement1 our ,redeemer1  
our ,king1 our ,intercessor1 our        
,example1 our ,saviour in life and      
death2 and ,god the ,holy ,ghost1 our   

,comforter1 our ,guide1 our ,inspirer1  
who will give to our souls the eternal  
life which will never perish1 even as   
,he gives to our bodies the mortal life 
which must perish4  ,on the mercy and   
the love of the ever blessed ,trinity1  
shown forth in ,christ upon ,his cross1 
we can cast ourselves with all our sins2
 we can cry to ,him1 and not in vain1   
for forgiveness and for sanctification2 
for a clean heart and a right spirit2   
and that we may become holy and humble  
men of heart4  ,we can join our feeble  
praises to that hymn of praise which    
goes up for ever to ,god from suns and  
stars1 clouds and showers1 beasts and   
birds1 and every living thing1 giving   
,him thanks for ever for ,his great     
glory4  ,o all ye works of the ,lord1   
bless ye the ,lord2 praise ,him and     
magnify ,him for ever4  ,o ye holy and  
humble ,men of heart1 bless ye the      
,lord2 praise ,him and magnify ,him for 
ever4    ,,sermon ,,xvii4  ,,love ,,of  
,,god ,,and ,,man    ,,first ,,sunday   

,,after ,,trinity4  ,eversley4  ,chester
 ,cathedral1 #ahgb4  #a ,john iv4 #af1  
#ba4  ,god is love2 and he that dwelleth
 in love dwelleth in ,god1 and ,god in  
him4 4 4 4  ,and this commandment have  
we from ,him1 ,that he who loveth ,god  
love his brother also4  ,this is the    
first ,sunday after ,trinity4  ,on it   
the ,church begins to teach us          
morals1--that is1 how to live a good    
life2 and therefore she begins by       
teaching us the foundation of all       
morals1--which is love1--love to ,god   
and love to man4  ,but which is to come 
first1--love to ,god1 or love to man8   
,on this point men in different ages    
have differed1 and will differ to the   
end4  ,one party has said1 ,you must    
love ,god first1 and let love to man    
come after as it can2 and others have   
contradicted that and said1 ,you must   
love all mankind1 and let love to ,god  
take its chance4  ,but ,st ,john says1  
neither of the two is before or after   
the other2 you cannot truly love ,god   

without loving man1 or love man without 
loving ,god4  ,st ,john says so1 being  
full of the ,spirit of ,god3  but alas6 
men1 who are not full of the ,spirit of 
,god1 but only let themselves be taught 
by ,him now and then and here and there1
 have found it very difficult to        
understand ,st ,john1 and still more    
difficult to obey him2 and therefore    
there always have been in ,god's ,church
 these two parties2 one saying1 ,you    
must love ,god first1 and the other1    
,you must love your neighbour           
first1--and each1 of course1 quoting    
,scripture to prove that they are in the
 right4  ,the great leader of the first 
party--perhaps the founder of it1 as far
 as ,i am aware--was the famous ,st     
,augustine4  ,he first taught           
,christians that they ought to love ,god
 with the same passionate affection with
 which they love husband or wife1 mother
 or child2 and to use towards ,god the  
same words of affection which those who 
love really utter one to each other4 ,i 

will not say much of that2 still less   
will ,i mention any of the words which  
good men and women who are of that way  
of thinking use towards ,god4 ,i should 
be sorry to hold up such language to    
blame1 even if ,i do not agree with it2 
and still more sorry to hold it up to   
ridicule from vulgar-minded persons if  
there be any in this ,church4  ,all ,i  
say is1 that all which has been written 
since about this passionate and         
rapturous love toward ,god by the old   
monks and nuns1 and by the ,protestant  
,pietists1 both ,english and foreign1 is
 all in ,st ,augustine better said than 
it ever has been since4  ,some of the   
,pietist hymns1 as we know1 are very    
beautiful2 but there are things in them 
which one wishes left out2 which seem1  
or ought to seem1 irreverent when used  
toward ,god2 which hurt1 or ought to    
hurt1 our plain1 cool1 honest ,english  
common-sense4  ,a true ,englishman does 
not like to say more than he feels2 and 
the more he feels1 the more he likes to 

keep it to himself1 instead of parading 
it and talking of it before men4  ,still
 waters run deep1 he holds2 and he is   
right for himself2 only he must not     
judge others1 or think that because he  
cannot speak to ,god in such passionate 
language as ,st ,augustine1 who was an  
,african1 a southern man1 with much     
stronger feelings than we ,englishmen   
usually have1 that therefore ,st        
,augustine1 or those who copy him now1  
do not really feel what they say4  ,but1
 nevertheless1 plain common-sense       
people1 such as most ,englishmen are1   
are afraid of this enthusiastical       
religion4  ,they say1 ,we do not pretend
 to feel this rapturous love to ,god1   
how much-soever we may reverence ,him1  
and wish to keep ,his commandments2 and 
we do not desire to feel it4  ,for we   
see that people who have talked in this 
way about ,god have been almost always  
monks and nuns2 or brain-sick1          
disappointed persons1 who have no       
natural and wholesome bent for their    

affections4  ,and even though this kind 
of religion may be very well for them1  
it is not the religion for a plain      
honest man who has a wife and family and
 his bread to earn in the world1 and has
 children to provide for1 and his duty  
to do in the ,state as well as in the   
,church4  ,and more1 they say1 these    
enthusiastic1 rapturous feelings do not 
seem to make people better1 and more    
charitable1 and more loving4  ,some     
really good and charitable people say   
that they have these feelings1 but for  
all that we can see they would be just  
as good and charitable without the      
feelings1 while most persons who take up
 with this sort of religion are not the 
better for it4  ,they do not control    
their tempers2 they can be full1--as    
they say1--of love and devotion to ,god 
one minute1 but why are they the next   
minute peevish1 proud1 self-willed1     
harsh and cruel to those who differ from
 them8  ,their religion does not make   
them love their neighbours4  ,in old    

times 7when persecution was allowed71 it
 made them1 or at least allowed them1 to
 persecute1 torment1 and kill their     
neighbours1 and fancy that by such      
conduct they did ,god service2 and now  
it tempts them to despise their         
neighbours--to look on every one who has
 not these strange1 intense feelings    
which they say they have1 as            
unconverted1 and lost1 and doomed to    
everlasting destruction4 ,not1 says the 
plain man1 that we are more satisfied   
with the mere philanthropist of modern  
times1--the man who professes to love   
the whole human race without loving     
,god1 or indeed often believing that    
there is a ,god to love4  ,to us he     
seems as unloving a person as the mere  
fanatic4 ,meanwhile1 plain people say1  
we will have nothing to do with either  
fanaticism or philanthropy1--we will try
 to do our duty where ,god has put us1  
and to behave justly and charitably by  
our neighbours2 but beyond that we      
cannot go4  ,we will not pretend to what

 we do not feel4  ,my friends1 there is1
 as usual1 truth on both sides1--both   
are partly right1 and both are partly   
wrong4  ,and both may go on arguing     
against each other1 and quoting texts of
 ,scripture against each other till the 
last day2 if they will not listen to ,st
 ,john's message in the text4  ,one     
party will say1 ,it is written1 ,thou   
shalt love the ,lord thy ,god with all  
thy heart1 and soul1 and strength1 and  
mind2 and if thou doest that1 and thy   
soul is filled with love for the        
,creator1 thou canst have no love left  
for the creature2 or if thy heart is    
filled with love for the creature1 there
 is no room left for love to ,god4  ,and
 then thou wilt find that ,god is a     
jealous ,god1 and will take from thee   
what thou lovest1 because ,he will not  
have ,his honour given to another4  ,and
 to that the other party will answer1   
,has not ,god said1 ,thou shalt love thy
 neighbour as thyself8  ,has ,he not    
commanded us to love our wives1 our     

children8  ,and even if ,he had not1    
would not common sense tell us that ,he 
intended us to do so8  ,do you think    
that ,god is a tempter and a deceiver8  
,he has given us feelings and powers4   
,has ,he not meant us to use them8  ,he 
has given us wife and child4  ,did ,he  
mean us not to love them1 after ,he has 
made us love them1 we know not how or   
why8  ,you say that ,god is a jealous   
,god4  ,yes1 jealous ,he may be of our  
worshipping false gods1 and idols1      
saints1 or anything or person save      
,himself1-- jealous of our doing wrong1 
and ruining ourselves1 and wandering out
 of the path of ,his commandments1 in   
which alone is life2 but jealous of our 
loving our fellow creature as well as   
,himself1 never4  ,that sort of jealousy
 is a base and wicked passion in man1   
and dare we attribute it to ,god8  ,what
 a thing to say of the loving ,god1 that
 ,he takes away people's children1      
husbands1 and friends1 because they love
 them too much6  ,then the first party  

will say1 ,but is it not written1 ,love 
not the world1 neither the things that  
are in the world4  ,if any man love the 
world1 the love of the ,father is not in
 him8  ,and to that1 the second party   
will answer1 ,and do you say that we are
 not to love this fair and wonderful    
earth which ,god has made for our use1  
and put us into it8  ,why did ,he make  
it lovely8  ,why did ,he put us into it1
 if ,he did not mean us to enjoy it8    
,that is contrary to common sense1 and  
contrary to the whole teaching of the   
,old ,testament4  ,but if by the world  
you mean the world of man1 the society  
in which we live--dare you compare a    
,christian and civilized country like   
,england with that detestable ,roman    
world1 sunk in all abominable vices1    
against which ,st ,john and ,st ,paul   
prophesied8  ,are not such thoughts     
unjust and uncharitable to your         
neighbours1 to your country1 to all     
mankind8  ,then the first party will    
say1 ,but you do away with all          

devoutness2 and the second party will   
answer1 ,and you do away with all       
morality1 for you tell people that the  
only way to please ,god is to feel about
 ,him in a way which not one person in a
 thousand can feel2 and therefore what  
will come1 and does come1 of your       
binding heavy burdens and grievous to be
 borne and laying them on men's         
shoulders is this1--that the generality 
of people will care nothing about being 
good or doing right1 because you teach  
them that it will not please ,god1 and  
will leave all religion to a few who    
have these peculiar fancies and         
feelings4  ,and so they may argue on for
 ever1 unless they will take honestly   
the plain words of ,st ,john1 and see   
that to love their neighbour is to love 
,god1 and to love ,god is to love their 
neighbour4  ,so says ,st ,john clearly  
enough twice over4  ,god is love2 and he
 that dwelleth in love dwelleth in ,god1
 and ,god in him4  ,the two things are  
one1 and the one cannot be without the  

other4  ,does this seem strange to you8 
,oh1 my friends1 it need not seem       
strange1 if you will but consider who   
,god is1 and who man is4  ,thou lovest  
,god8 ,then1 if thou lovest ,him1 thou  
must needs love all that ,he has made4  
,and what has ,he made8  ,all things1   
except sin2 and what sin is ,he has told
 thee4  ,he has given thee ten          
commandments1 and let no man give thee  
an eleventh commandment out of his own  
conceit and will worship2 calling       
unclean what ,god hath made clean1 and  
cursing what ,god hath blessed4 ,thou   
lovest ,god8  ,then thou lovest all that
 is good2 for ,god is good1 and from    
,him all good things come4  ,but what is
 good8  ,all is good except sin2 for it 
is written1 ,god saw every thing that   
,he had made1 and1 behold1 it was very  
good4  ,therefore1 if thou lovest ,god1 
thou must love all things1 for all      
things are of ,him1 and by ,him1 and    
through ,him2 and in ,him all live and  
move and have their being4  ,then thou  

wilt truly love ,god4  ,thou wilt be    
content with ,god2 and so thy love will 
cast out fear4 ,thou wilt trust ,god2   
thou wilt have the mind of ,god2 thou   
wilt be satisfied with ,god's working1  
from the rise and fall of great nations 
to the life and death of the smallest   
gnat which dances in the sun2 thou wilt 
say for ever1 and concerning all things1
 ,i know in whom ,i have believed4  ,it 
is the good ,lord1 let ,him do what     
seemeth ,him good4  ,again4  ,thou      
lovest thy neighbour2 thou lovest wife  
and child2 thou lovest thy friends2 thou
 lovest or wishest to love all men1 and 
to do them good4  ,then thou lovest     
,god4  ,for what is it that thou lovest 
in thy neighbour8  ,not that which is   
bad in him8  ,no1 but that which is     
good4 ,thou lovest him for his          
kindliness1 his honesty1 his            
helpfulness1--for some good quality in  
him4  ,but from whom does that good     
come1 save from ,christ and from the    
,spirit of ,christ1 from whom alone come

 all good gifts8  ,yes1 if you will     
receive it2--when we love our           
neighbours1 it is ,god in them1 ,christ 
in them1 whom we love1--,christ in them1
 the hope of glory4  ,what1 some one    
will ask1 when a man loves a fair face1 
does he love ,christ then8  ,ah6 my     
friends1 that is not true love1 as all  
know well enough if they will let their 
own hearts tell them truth4  ,true love 
is when two people love each other for  
the goodness which is in them4  ,true   
love is the love which endures after    
beauty has faded1 and youth1 and health1
 and all that seems to make life worth  
having is gone4  ,have we not seen ere  
now two old people1 worn1 crippled1     
diseased1 yet living on together1       
helping each other1 nursing each other1 
tottering on hand in hand to the grave1 
dying1 perhaps1 almost                  
together1--because neither cared to live
 when the other is gone before1 and     
loving all the while as truly and       
tenderly as in the days of youth8  ,they

 know not why4  ,no2 but ,god knows why4
  ,it is ,christ in each other whom they
 love2--,christ1 the hope of glory4     
,yes1 we have seen that1 surely2 and    
seen in it one of the most beautiful1   
the most divine sights upon earth1--one 
which should teach us1 if we will look  
at it aright1 that when we love our     
neighbour truly1 it is the divine part  
in him1 the spark of eternal goodness in
 him1--what ,st ,paul says is ,christ in
 him1--which we admire1 and cling to1   
and love4  ,but by that rule we cannot  
love every one1 for every one is not    
good4  ,be not too sure of that4  ,all  
are not good1 alas6 but in all there is 
some good4  ,it may be a very little1--a
 hope of glory in them1 even though that
 hope be very faint4  ,it may be dying  
out2 it may die altogether1 and their   
souls may become utterly base and evil1 
and be lost for ever4 ,still1 while     
there is life there is hope1 even for   
the worst2 and just as far as our hearts
 are full of the ,spirit of ,god1 we    

shall see the ,spirit of ,god striving  
with the souls even of the worst men1   
and love them for that4  ,just as far as
 we have the likeness of ,christ in us1 
we shall be quick to catch the least    
gleam of ,his likeness in our           
neighbours1 and love them for that4     
,just as far as our hearts are full of  
love we shall see something worth loving
 in every human being we meet1 and love 
them for that4  ,i know it is difficult4
  ,it is not gotten in a day1 that wide 
and deep spirit of love to all mankind  
which ,st ,paul had2 which made him weep
 with those who wept and rejoice with   
those who rejoiced1 and become all      
things to all men1 if by any means he   
might save some4  ,before our eyes are  
cleansed and purged to see some trace of
 good in every man1 our hearts must be  
cleansed and purged from all            
selfishness1 and bigotry1 and pride1 and
 fancifulness1 and anger1 so that they  
may be filled with the loving ,spirit of
 ,god4  ,as long as a taint of          

selfishness or pride remains in us1 we  
shall be in continual danger of hating  
those whom ,god does not hate1 despising
 those whom ,god does not despise1 and  
condemning those whom ,god does not     
condemn4  ,but if self is cast out of   
us1 and the ,spirit of ,god and of      
,christ enthroned in our hearts1 then we
 shall love our brother1 and in loving  
him love ,god1 who made him2 and so1    
dwelling in love1 we shall dwell in     
,god1 and ,god in us3--to which true and
 only everlasting life may ,he of ,his  
mercy bring us1 either in this world or 
in the world to come4  ,amen4           
,,sermon ,,xviii4  ,,courage    ,chester
 ,cathedral1 #ahga4  ,acts iv4 #ac1     
#ah-bj4  ,now when they saw the boldness
 of ,peter and ,john1 and perceived that
 they were unlearned and ignorant men1  
they marvelled2 and they took knowledge 
of them1 that they had been with ,jesus4
 4 4 4 ,and they called them1 and       
commanded them not to speak at all nor  
teach in the name of ,jesus4  ,but      

,peter and ,john answered and said unto 
them1 ,whether it be right in the sight 
of ,god to hearken unto you more than   
unto ,god1 judge ye4  ,for we cannot but
 speak the things which we have seen and
 heard4  ,last ,thursday was ,st        
,peter's ,day4  ,the congregation on    
that day was1 as far as ,i could        
perceive1 no larger than usual2 and this
 is not a matter of surprise4  ,since we
 gave up at the ,reformation the        
superstitious practice of praying to the
 saints1 saints' days have sunk--and    
indeed sunk too much--into neglect4     
,for most men's religion has a touch of 
self-interest in it2 and therefore when 
people discovered that they could get   
nothing out of ,st ,peter or ,st ,john  
by praying to them1 they began to forget
 the very memory1 many of them1 of ,st  
,peter1 ,st ,john1 and other saints and 
apostles4  ,they forget1 too often1     
still1 that though praying to any saint1
 or angel1 or other created being1 is   
contrary both to reason and to          

,scripture2 yet it is according to      
reason and to ,scripture to commemorate 
them4  ,that is to remember them1 to    
study their characters1 and to thank    
,god for them--both for the virtues     
which ,he bestowed on them1 and the     
example which ,he has given us in them4 
,for these old saints lived and died for
 our example4  ,they are1 next of course
 to the ,lord ,himself1 the ideals1 the 
patterns1 of ,christian life-- the      
primeval heroes of our holy faith4      
,they shew to us of what stuff the early
 ,christians were made2 what sort of    
stone--to use ,st ,paul's own           
figure1--the ,lord chose wherewith to   
build up ,his ,church4  ,they are our   
spiritual ancestors1 for they spread the
 ,gospel into all lands2 and they spread
 it1 remember always1 not only by       
preaching what they knew1 but by being  
what they were4  ,their characters1     
their personal histories1 are as        
important to us as their writings2 nay1 
in the case of ,st ,peter1 even more    

important4  ,for if these two epistles  
of his had been lost1 and never handed  
down to us1 ,st ,peter himself would    
have remained1 as he is drawn in the    
,gospels and the ,acts1 a grand and     
colossal human figure1 every line and   
feature of which is full of meaning and 
full of teaching to us4  ,now ,i think  
that the quality--the grace of          
,god--which ,st ,peter's character and  
story specially force on our notice1 is1
 the true courage which comes by faith4 
,i say1 the courage which comes by      
faith4  ,there is a courage which does  
not come by faith4  ,there is brute     
courage1 which comes from hardness of   
heart1 from stupidity1 obstinacy1 or    
anger1 which does not see danger1 or    
does not feel pain4  ,that is the       
courage of the brute4  ,one does not    
blame it1 or call it wrong4  ,it is good
 in its place1 as all natural things    
are1 which ,god has made4  ,it is good  
enough for the brutes1 but it is not    
good enough for man4  ,you cannot trust 

it in man4  ,and the more a man is what 
a man should be1 the less he can trust  
it4  ,the more mind and understanding a 
man has1 so as to be able to foresee    
danger1 and measure it1 the more chance 
there is of his brute courage giving    
way4  ,the more feeling a man has1 the  
more keenly he feels pain of body1 or   
pain of mind1 such as shame1 loneliness1
 the dislike1 ridicule1 and contempt of 
his fellow men2 in a word1 the more of a
 man he is1 and the less of a mere      
brute1 the more chance there is of his  
brute courage breaking down1 just when  
he wants it most to keep him up1 by     
leaving him to play the coward and come 
to shame4  ,yes4  ,to go through with a 
difficult and dangerous undertaking1 a  
man wants more than brute courage4  ,he 
wants spiritual courage--the courage    
which comes by faith4 ,he needs to have 
faith in what he is doing2 to be certain
 that he is doing his duty1 to be       
certain that he is in the right4        
,certain that right will conquer1       

certain that ,god will make it conquer1 
by him or by some one else2 certain that
 he will either conquer honourably1 or  
fail honourably1 for ,god is with him4  
,in a word1 to have true courage1 man   
needs faith in ,god4  ,to give one      
example4  ,look at the class of men who1
 in all ,england1 undergo the most      
fearful dangers2 who know not at what   
hour of any night they may not be called
 up to the most serious labour and      
responsibility1 with the chance of a    
horrible and torturing death4  ,i mean  
the firemen of our great cities1 than   
whom there are no steadier1 braver1     
nobler-hearted men4  ,not a week passes 
without one or more of these firemen1 in
 trying to save life and property1 doing
 things which are altogether heroic4    
,what do you fancy keeps them up to     
their work8  ,high pay8  ,the amusement 
and excitement of fires8  ,the vanity of
 being praised for their courage8 ,my   
friends1 those would be but paltry weak 
motives1 which would not keep a man's   

heart calm and his head clear under such
 responsibility and danger as theirs4   
,no4  ,it is the sense of duty1--the    
knowledge that they are doing a good and
 a noble work in saving the lives of    
human beings and the wealth of the      
nation1--the knowledge that they are in 
,god's hands1 and that no real evil can 
happen to him who is doing right1--that 
to him even death at his post is not a  
loss1 but a gain4  ,in short1 faith in  
,god1 more or less clear1 is what gives 
those men their strong and quiet        
courage4  ,god grant that you and ,i1 if
 ever we have dangerous work to do1 may 
get true courage from the same fountain 
of ghostly strength4  ,now1 ,st ,peter's
 history is1 ,i think1 a special example
 of this4  ,he was naturally1 it seems1 
a daring man1--a man of great brute     
courage4  ,so far so good2 but he had to
 be taught1 by severe lessons1 that his 
brute courage was not enough1--that he  
wanted spiritual courage1 the courage   
which came by faith1 and that if that   

failed him1 the brute courage would fail
 too4  ,he throws himself into the lake1
 to walk upon the water to ,christ2 and 
as soon as he is afraid he begins to    
sink4  ,the ,lord saves him1 and tells  
him why he had sank4  ,because he had   
doubted1 his faith had failed him4 ,so  
he found out the weakness of courage    
without faith4  ,then1 again1 he tells  
our ,lord1 ,though all men shall be     
offended of ,thee1 yet will ,i never be 
offended4  ,i am ready to go with ,thee 
both into prison1 and to death4  ,and   
shortly after1 his mere animal courage  
breaks out again1 and does what little  
it can do1 and little enough4  ,he draws
 sword1 single- handed1 on the soldiers 
in the garden1 and cuts down a servant  
of the high priest's1 and perhaps would 
have flung his life away1 desperately   
and uselessly1 had not our ,lord        
restrained him4  ,but when the fit of   
excitement is past1 his animal courage  
deserts him1 and his moral courage too1 
and he denies his ,lord4  ,so he found  

out that he was like too many1- -full of
 bodily courage1 perhaps1 but morally   
weak4  ,he had to undergo a great       
change4  ,he had to be converted by the 
,holy ,spirit of ,god1 and strengthened 
by that ,spirit1 to have a boldness     
which no worldly courage can give4      
,then1 when he was strong himself1 he   
was able to strengthen his brethren4    
,then he was able1 ignorant and         
unlearned man as he was1 to stand up    
before the high priests and rulers of   
his nation1 and to say1 simply and      
firmly1 without boasting1 without       
defiance1 ,whether it be right in the   
sight of ,god to hearken unto you more  
than unto ,god1 judge ye4  ,for we      
cannot but speak the things which we    
have seen and heard4 ,yes1 my friends1  
it is the courage which comes by faith  
which makes truly brave men1--men like  
,st ,peter and ,st ,john4  ,he who can  
say1 ,i am right1 can say likewise1 ,god
 is on my side1 and ,i will not fear    
what man can do to me4  ,we will not    

fear1 said the ,psalmist1 though the    
earth be removed1 and though the hills  
be carried into the midst of the sea4   
,the just man1 who holds firm to his    
purpose1 says a wise old heathen1 he    
will not be shaken from his solid mind  
by the rage of the mob bidding him do   
base things or the frowns of the tyrant 
who persecutes him4  ,though the world  
were to crumble to pieces round him1 its
 ruins would strike him without making  
him tremble4  ,whether it be right1 said
 ,peter and ,john to the great men and  
judges of the ,jews1 to hearken to ,god 
more than to you1 judge ye4  ,we cannot 
but speak the things which we have seen 
and heard4 ,we cannot but speak what we 
know to be true4  ,it was that courage  
which enabled our forefathers1--and not 
the great men among them1 not the rich1 
not even the learned1 save a few valiant
 bishops and clergy1 but for the most   
part poor1 unlearned1 labouring men and 
women1--to throw off the yoke of        
,popery1 and say1 ,reason and ,scripture

 tell us that it is absurd and wrong to 
worship images and pray to saints1--tell
 us that your doctrines are not true4   
,and we will say so in spite of the     
,pope and all his power1--in spite of   
torture and a fiery death4  ,we cannot  
palter2 we cannot dissemble2 we cannot  
shelter ourselves under half-truths1 and
 make a covenant with lies4 ',whether it
 be right in the sight of ,god to       
hearken unto you more than to ,god1     
judge ye4  ,we cannot but speak the     
things which we know to be true4'  ,so  
it has been in all ages1 and so it will 
be for ever4  ,faith1 the certainty that
 a man is right1 will give him a courage
 which will enable him to resist1 if    
need be1 the rich ones1 the strong ones1
 the learned ones of the earth4  ,it has
 made poor unlearned men heroes and     
deliverers of their countrymen from     
slavery and ignorance4  ,it has made    
weak women martyrs and saints4  ,it has 
enabled men who made great discoveries  
to face unbelief1 ridicule1 neglect1    

poverty2 knowing that their worth would 
be acknowledged at last1 their names    
honoured at last as benefactors by the  
very men who laughed at them and reviled
 them4  ,it has made men1 shut up in    
prison for long weary years for doing   
what was right and saying what was true1
 endure manfully for the sake of some   
good cause1 and say1- -      ,stone     
walls do not a prison make1    ,nor iron
 bars a cage2 ,minds innocent and quiet 
take    ,that for an hermitage4 ,if ,i  
have freedom in my thought1    ,and in  
my love am free1 ,angels alone1 that    
soar above1    ,enjoy such liberty4     
,yes2 settle it in your hearts1 all of  
you4  ,there is but one thing which you 
have to fear in earth or heaven1--being 
untrue to your better selves1 and       
therefore untrue to ,god4  ,if you will 
not do the thing you know to be right1  
and say the thing you know to be true1  
then indeed you are weak4 ,you are a    
coward1 and sin against ,god1 and suffer
 the penalty of your cowardice4  ,you   

desert ,god1 and therefore you cannot   
expect ,him to stand by you4  ,but if   
you will do the thing you know to be    
right1 and say the thing you know to be 
true1 then what can harm you8  ,who will
 harm you1 asks ,st ,peter himself1 if  
you be followers of that which is good8 
,for the eyes of the ,lord are over the 
righteous1 and ,his ears are open to    
their prayers4  ,but if ye suffer for   
righteousness' sake1 happy are ye2 and  
be not afraid of those who try to       
terrify you1 neither be troubled1 but   
sanctify the ,lord ,god in your hearts4 
,remember that ,he is just and holy1 and
 a rewarder of all who diligently seek  
,him4  ,worship ,him in your hearts1 and
 all will be well4  ,for says ,david    
again1 ,lord1 who shall dwell in ,thy   
tabernacle1 or who shall rest upon ,thy 
holy hill8  ,even he that leadeth an    
uncorrupt life1 and doeth the thing     
which is right1 and speaketh the truth  
from his heart4  ,whoso doeth these     
things shall never fall4  ,yes1 my      

friends2 there is a tabernacle of ,god  
in which1 even in this life1 ,he will   
hide us from the strife of tongues4     
,there is a hill of ,god on which1 even 
in the midst of labour and anxiety1 we  
may rest both day and night4  ,even     
,jesus ,christ1 the ,rock of ,ages1--,he
 who is the ,righteousness itself1 the  
,truth itself2 and whosoever does       
righteousness and speaks truth dwells in
 ,christ in this life1 as well as in the
 life to come2 and ,christ will         
strengthen him by ,his ,holy ,spirit to 
stand in the evil day1 if it shall come1
 and having done all1 to stand4  ,my    
dear friends1 if any of you are minded  
to be good men and women1 pray for the  
,holy ,spirit of ,god4  ,first for the  
spirit of love to give you good desires2
 then the spirit of faith1 to make you  
believe deeply in the living ,god1 who  
rewards every man according to his work2
 and then for the spirit of strength1 to
 enable you to bring these desires to   
good effect4  ,pray for that spirit1 ,i 

say2 for we all need help4  ,there are  
too many people in the world--too many1 
perhaps1 among us here--who are not what
 they ought to be1 and what they really 
wish to be1 because they are weak4 ,they
 see what is right1 and admire it2 but  
they have not courage or determination  
to do it4  ,most sad and pitiable it is 
to see how much weakness of heart there 
is in the world--how little true moral  
courage4 ,i suppose that the reason is1 
that there is so little faith2 that     
people do not believe heartily and      
deeply enough in the absolute necessity 
of doing right and being honest4  ,they 
do not believe heartily and deeply      
enough in ,god to trust ,him to defend  
and reward them1 if they will but be    
true to ,him1 and to themselves4  ,and  
therefore they have no moral courage4   
,they are weak4  ,they are kind1        
perhaps1 and easy2 easily led right2    
but1 alas6 just as easily led wrong4    
,their good resolutions are not carried 
out2 their right doctrines not acted up 

to2 and they live pitiful1 confused1    
useless1 inconsistent lives2 talking    
about religion1 and yet denying the     
power of religion in their daily lives2 
playing with holy and noble thoughts and
 feelings1 without giving themselves up 
to them in earnest1 to be led by the    
,spirit of ,god1 to do all the good     
works which ,god has prepared for them  
to walk in4  ,pray all of you1 then1 for
 the spirit of faith1 to believe really 
in ,god2 and for the spirit of ghostly  
strength1 to obey ,god honestly4  ,no   
man ever asked earnestly for that spirit
 but what he gained it at last4  ,and no
 man ever gained it but what he found   
the truth of ,st ,peter's own words1    
,who will harm you if ye be followers of
 that which is good8    ,,sermon ,,xix4 
,,good ,,days    ,eversley1 #ahfg4      
,westminster1 ,sept4 #bg1 #ahgb4  #a    
,peter iii4 #h-ab4  ,be ye all of one   
mind1 having compassion one of another1 
love as brethren1 be pitiful1 be        
courteous3  ,not rendering evil for     

evil1 or railing for railing3  but      
contrariwise blessing2 knowing that ye  
are thereunto called1 that ye should    
inherit a blessing4  ,for he that will  
love life and see good days1 let him    
refrain his tongue from evil1 and his   
lips that they speak no guile3  ,let him
 eschew evil1 and do good2 let him seek 
peace1 and ensue it4  ,for the eyes of  
the ,lord are over the righteous1 and   
,his ears are open unto their prayers3  
but the face of the ,lord is against    
them that do evil4  ,this is one of the 
texts which is apt to puzzle people who 
do not read their ,bibles carefully     
enough4  ,they cannot see what the      
latter part of it has to do with the    
former4  ,st4 ,peter says that we       
,christians are called that we should   
inherit a blessing4  ,that means1 of    
course1 they say1 the blessing of       
salvation1 everlasting life in heaven4  
,but then ,st4 ,peter quotes from the   
#cdth ,psalm4  ,for he that will love   
life1 and see good days1 let him refrain

 his tongue from evil1 and his lips that
 they speak no guile4  ,now that ,psalm1
 they say1 speaks of blessing and       
happiness in this life4  ,then why does 
,st4 ,peter give it as a reason for     
expecting blessing and happiness in the 
life to come8  ,and then1 they say1 to  
make it fit in1 it must be understood   
spiritually2 and what they mean by that1
 ,i do not clearly know4  ,their notion 
is1 that the promises of the ,old       
,testament are more or less carnal1     
because they speak of ,god's rewarding  
men in this life2 and that the promises 
of the ,new ,testament are spiritual1   
because they speak of ,god's rewarding  
men in the next life2 and what they mean
 by that1 again1 ,i do not clearly know4
  ,for is not the ,old ,testament       
spiritual as well as the ,new8  ,i trust
 so1 my friends4  ,is not the ,old      
,testament inspired1 and that by the    
,spirit of ,god8 and if it be inspired  
by the ,spirit1 what can it be but      
spiritual8 ,therefore1 if we want to    

find the spiritual meaning of ,old      
,testament promises1 we need not to     
alter them to suit any fancies of our   
own2 like those monks of the fourth and 
succeeding centuries1 who saw no        
sanctity in family or national life2 no 
sanctity in the natural world1 and1     
therefore1 were forced to travesty the  
,hebrew historians1 psalmists1 and      
prophets1 with all their simple1 healthy
 objective humanity1 and politics1 and  
poetry1 into metaphorical and           
subjective1 or1 as they miscalled them1 
spiritual meanings1 to make the ,old    
,testament mean anything at all4  ,no2  
if we have any real reverence for the   
,holy ,scriptures1 we must take them    
word for word in their plain meaning1   
and find the message of ,god's ,spirit  
in that plain meaning1 instead of trying
 to put it in for ourselves4  ,therefore
 it is that the ,,vii4 ,article bids us 
beware of playing with ,scripture in    
this way4  ,it says the ,old ,testament 
is not contrary to the ,new1 for both in

 the ,old and ,new ,testament           
everlasting life is offered to mankind  
by ,christ4  ,wherefore they are not to 
be heard who feign that the old fathers 
did look only for transitory promises1  
that is temporary promises1 promises    
which would be fulfilled only in this   
life1 and end and pass away when they   
died4  ,but some one will say1 how can  
that be1 when so many of the old        
,hebrews seem to have known nothing     
about the next life8  ,moses1 for       
instance1 always promises the ,children 
of ,israel that if they do right1 and   
obey ,god1 they shall be rewarded in    
this life1 with peace and prosperity1   
fruitfulness and wealth2 but of their   
being rewarded in the next life he never
 says one word--which last statement is 
undeniably true4  ,is not then the ,old 
,testament contrary to the ,new1 if the 
,old ,testament teaches men to look for 
their reward in this life1 and the ,new 
,testament in the next8  ,no1 it is not1
 my friends4  ,and ,i think we shall see

 that it is not1 and why it is not1 if  
we will look honestly at this very      
important text4  ,if we do that we shall
 see that what ,st4 ,peter meant-- what 
the ,,vii4  ,article means is the only  
meaning which will make sense of either 
one or the other2 is simply this--that  
what causes a man to enjoy this life1 is
 the same that will cause him to enjoy  
the life to come4 ,that what will bring 
a blessing on him in this life1 will    
bring a blessing on him in the life to  
come4  ,that what blessed the old ,jews1
 will bless us ,christians4  ,that if we
 refrain our tongue from evil1 and our  
lips from speaking deceit2 it we avoid  
evil and do good2 if we seek peace and  
follow earnestly after it2 then shall we
 enjoy life1 and see good days1 and     
inherit a blessing2 whether in this life
 or in the life to come4  ,and why8     
,because then we shall be living the one
 and only everlasting life of goodness1 
which alone brings blessings2 alone     
gives good days2 and is the only life   

worth living1 whether in earth or       
heaven4  ,my dear friends1 lay this     
seriously to heart1 in these days       
especially1 when people and preachers   
alike have taken to part earth and      
heaven1 in a fashion which we never find
 in ,holy ,scripture4  ,lay it to heart1
 ,i say1 and believe that what is right1
 and therefore good1 for the next life1 
is right1 and therefore good1 for this4 
,that the next life is not contrary to  
this life4  ,that the same moral laws   
hold good in heaven1 as on earth4 ,mark 
this well2 for it must be so1 if        
morality1 that is right and goodness1 is
 of the eternal and immutable essence of
 ,god4  ,and therefore1 mark this well  
again1 there is but one true1 real1 and 
right life for rational beings1 one only
 life worth living1 and worth living in 
this world or in any other life1 past1  
present1 or to come4  ,and that is the  
eternal life which was before all       
worlds1 and will be after all are passed
 away--and that is neither more nor less

 than a good life2 a life of good       
feelings1 good thoughts1 good words1    
good deeds1 the life of ,christ and of  
,god4  ,it is needful1 ,i say1 to bear  
this in mind just now4  ,people are1 as 
,i told you1 too apt to say that the    
,old ,testament saints got their rewards
 in this life1 while we shall get them  
in the next4  ,do they find that in     
,scripture8  ,if they will read their   
,bible they will find that the ,old     
,testament saints were men whom ,god was
 training and educating1 as ,he does us1
 by experience and by suffering4  ,that 
,david1 so far from having his reward at
 once in this life1 had his bitter      
sorrows and trials2 that ,moses1        
,isaiah1 ,jeremiah1 ,job1 all1 indeed1  
of the old prophets1 had to be made     
perfect by suffering1 and 7as ,st4 ,paul
 says7 died in faith ,,not having       
received the promises4  ,so that if they
 had their reward in this life1 it must 
have been a spiritual reward1 the reward
 of a good conscience1 and of the favour

 of ,almighty ,god4  ,and that is no    
transitory or passing reward1 but       
enduring as immortality itself4  ,but   
people do not usually care for that     
spiritual reward4  ,their notion of     
reward and happiness is that they are to
 have all sorts of pleasures1 they know 
not what1 and know not really why4  ,and
 because they cannot get pleasant things
 enough to satisfy them in this life1   
they look forward greedily to getting   
them in the next life2 and meanwhile are
 discontented with ,god's ,providence1  
and talk of ,god's good world as if some
 fiend and not the ,lord ,jesus ,christ 
was the maker and ruler thereof4  ,do   
not misunderstand me4  ,i am no         
optimist4  ,i know well that things     
happen in this world which must1 which  
ought to make us sad--so sad that at    
moments we envy the dead1 who are gone  
home to their rest2 real tragedies1 real
 griefs1 divine and ,christlike griefs1 
which only loving hearts know--the      
suffering of those we love1 the loss of 

those we love1 and1 last and worst1 the 
sin of those we love4  ,ah6 if any of   
those swords have pierced the heart of  
any soul here1 shall ,i blame that man1 
that woman1 if they cry at times1       
,father1 take me home1 this earth is no 
place for me4 ,shall ,i bid them do     
aught but cling to the feet of ,christ  
and cry1 ,if it be possible1 let this   
cup pass from me2 nevertheless1 not as  
,i will1 but as ,thou wilt4  ,oh1 not of
 such do ,i speak2 not of such sharers  
of ,christ's unselfish suffering here1  
that they may be sharers of ,his        
unselfish joy hereafter4  ,not of them  
do ,i speak2 but of those who only wish 
to make up for selfish discomforts and  
disappointments in this life by selfish 
comforts and satisfaction in the next2  
and who therefore take up 7let me use   
the honest ,english word7 some          
maundering form of religion1 which1 to  
judge from their own conduct1 they      
usually only half believe2 those who    
seem1 on six days of the week1 as fond  

of finery and frivolity as any other gay
 worldlings1 and on the seventh join    
eagerly in hymns in which 7in one case  
at least7 they inform the ,almighty ,god
 of truth1 who will not be mocked1 that 
they lie awake at night1 weeping because
 they cannot die and see ,jerusalem the 
golden1 and so forth4  ,or those1 again1
 who for six days in the week are       
absorbed in making money-- honestly if  
they can1 no doubt1 but still making    
money1 and living luxuriously on their  
profits--and on the seventh listen with 
satisfaction to preachers and hymns     
which tell them that this world is all a
 howling wilderness1 full of snares and 
pitfalls2 and that in this wretched     
place the ,christian can expect nothing 
but tribulation and persecution till he 
crosses ,jordan1 and is landed safe on  
,canaan's store1 and so forth4  ,my     
friends1 my friends1 as long as a man   
talks so1 blaspheming ,god's            
world--which1 when ,he made it1 behold  
it was all very good--and laying the    

blame of their own ignorance and        
peevishness on ,god who made them1 they 
must expect nothing but tribulation and 
sorrow4  ,but the tribulation and the   
sorrow will be their own fault1 and not 
,god's4  ,if religious professors will  
not take ,st4 ,peter's advice and the   
,psalmist's advice2 if they will go on  
coveting and scheming about money1 and  
how they may get money2 if they will go 
on being neither pitiful1 courteous1 nor
 forgiving1 and hating and maligning    
whether it be those who differ from them
 in doctrine1 or those who they fancy   
have injured them1 or those who merely  
are their rivals in the race of life2   
then they are but too likely to find    
this world a thorny place1 because they 
themselves raise the thorns2 and a      
disorderly place1 because their own     
tempers and desires are disorderly2 and 
a wilderness1 because they themselves   
have run wild1 barbarians at heart1     
however civilised in dress and outward  
manners4  ,st4 ,james tells them that of

 old4  ,from whence1 he says1 come wars 
and quarrels among you8  ,come they not 
hence1 even of the lusts which war in   
your members8  ,you long1 and have not4 
,you fight and war1 yet you have not1   
because you ask not4  ,you ask1 and have
 not4  ,you pray for this and that1 and 
,god does not give it you4  ,because you
 ask amiss1 selfishly to consume it on  
your lusts4  ,and then you say1 ,this   
world is an evil place1 full of         
temptations4  ,what says ,st4 ,james to 
that8  ,let no man say when he is       
tempted1 ,i am tempted of ,god3  for    
,god cannot be tempted with evil1       
neither tempteth ,he any man4  ,but     
every man is tempted1 when he is drawn  
away of his own lust1 and enticed4  ,so 
it was in the ,old ,testament times1 and
 so it is in these ,christian times4    
,god is good1 and ,god's world is good2 
and the evil is not in the world around 
us1 but in our own foolish hearts4  ,if 
we follow our own foolish hearts1 we    
shall find this world a bad place1 as   

the old ,jews found it--whenever they   
went wrong and sinned against           
,god--because we are breaking its laws1 
and they will punish us4  ,if we follow 
the commandments of ,god1 we shall find 
this world a good place1 as the old     
,jews found it--whenever they went      
right1 and obeyed ,god--because we shall
 be obeying its laws1 and they will     
reward us4  ,this is ,god's promise     
alike to the old ,jewish fathers and to 
us ,christian men4  ,and this is no     
transitory or passing promise1 but is   
founded on the eternal and everlasting  
law of right1 by which ,god has made all
 worlds1 and which ,he ,himself cannot  
alter1 for it springs out of ,his own   
essence and ,his own eternal being4     
,hear1 then1 the conclusion of the whole
 matter3  ,god hath called you that you 
might inherit a blessing4  ,he hath made
 you of a blessed race1 created in ,his 
own likeness1 to whom ,he hath put all  
things in subjection1 making man a      
little lower than the angels1 that ,he  

might crown him with glory and worship3 
a race so precious in ,god's eyes--we   
know not why--that when mankind had     
fallen1 and seemed ready to perish from 
their own sin and ignorance1 ,god spared
 not ,his only begotten ,son1 but freely
 gave ,him for us1 that the world by    
,him might be saved4  ,and ,god hath put
 you in a blessed place1 even ,his      
wondrous and fruitful world1 which      
praises ,god day and night1 fulfilling  
,his word2 for it continues this day as 
in the beginning1 and ,he has given it a
 law which cannot be broken4  ,he has   
made you citizens of a blessed kingdom1 
even the kingdom of heaven1 into which  
you were baptised2 and has given you the
 ,holy ,bible1 that you might learn the 
laws of the kingdom1 and live for ever1 
blessing and blest4  ,and the ,head of  
this blessed race1 the ,maker of this   
blessed world1 the ,king of this blessed
 kingdom1 is the most blessed of all    
beings1 ,jesus ,christ1 the             
only-begotten ,son1 both ,god and man4  

,he has washed you freely from your sins
 in ,his own blood2 ,he has poured out  
on you freely ,his renewing ,spirit4    
,and ,he asks you to enter into your    
inheritance2 that you may love your     
life1 and see good days1 by living the  
blessed life1 which is the life of      
self-sacrifice4  ,but not such          
self-sacrifices as too many have fancied
 who did not believe that mankind was a 
blessed race1 and this earth a blessed  
place4  ,he does not ask you to give up 
wife1 child1 property1 or any of the    
good things of this life4  ,he only asks
 you to give up that selfishness which  
will prevent you enjoying wife1 child1  
or property1 or anything else in earth1 
or in heaven either4 ,he asks you not to
 give up anything which is ,,around you1
 for that which cometh from without     
defileth not a man2 but to give up      
something which is within you1 for that 
which cometh from within1 that defileth 
a man4  ,he asks you to give up         
selfishness and all the evil tempers    

which that selfishness breeds4  ,to give
 up the tongue which speaks evil of your
 fellow-men2 and the lips which utter   
deceit2 and the brain which imagines    
cunning2 and the heart which quarrels   
with your neighbour4  ,to give these up 
and to seek peace1 and pursue it by all 
means reasonable or honourable2 peace   
with all around you1 which comes by     
having first peace with ,god2 next1     
peace with your own conscience4  ,this  
is the peace which passeth              
understanding2 for if you have it1 men  
will not be able to understand why you  
have it4  ,they will see you at peace   
when men admire you and praise you1 and 
at peace also when they insult you and  
injure you2 at peace when you are       
prosperous and thriving1 and at peace   
also when you are poor and desolate4    
,and that inward peace of yours will    
pass their understanding as it will pass
 your own understanding also4  ,you will
 know that ,god sends you the peace1 and
 sends it you the more the more you pray

 for it3  but how ,he sends it you will 
not understand2 for it springs out of   
those inner depths of your being which  
are beyond the narrow range of          
consciousness1 and is spiritual and a   
mystery1 and comes by the inspiration of
 the holy ,spirit of ,god4  ,but        
remember that all your prayers will not 
get that peace if your heart be tainted 
with malice and selfishness and         
covetousness1 falsehood and pride and   
vanity4  ,you must ask ,god first to    
root those foul seeds out of your heart1
 or the seed of ,his ,spirit will not   
spring up and bear fruit in you to the  
everlasting life of love and peace and  
joy in the holy ,spirit4  ,but if your  
heart be purged and cleansed of self1   
then indeed will the holy ,spirit enter 
in and dwell there2 and you will abide  
in peace1 through all the chances and   
changes of this mortal life1 for you    
will abide in ,god1 who is for ever at  
peace4  ,and you will inherit a         
blessing2 for you will inherit ,christ1 

your light and your life1 who is blessed
 for ever4  ,and you will love life2 for
 life will be full to you of hope1 of   
work1 of duty1 of interest1 of lessons  
without number4  ,and you will see good 
days2 for all days will seem good to    
you1 even those which seem to the world 
bad days of affliction and distress4    
,and so the peace of ,god will keep you 
in ,jesus ,christ1 in this life1 and in 
the life to come4  ,amen4    ,,sermon   
,,xx4  ,,grace    ,eversley4 #ahef4     
,st4 ,john i4 #af1 #ag4  ,of ,his       
fulness have all we received1 and grace 
for grace4  ,for the law was given by   
,moses1 but grace and truth came by     
,jesus ,christ4  ,i wish you to mind    
particularly this word ,,grace4  ,you   
meet it very often in the ,bible4  ,you 
hear often said1 ,the grace of our ,lord
 ,jesus ,christ be with you all4  ,now1 
what does this word grace mean8  ,it is 
really worth your while to know2 for if 
a man or a woman has not grace1 they    
will be very unhappy people1 and very   

disagreeable people also2 a torment to  
themselves1 and a torment to their      
neighbours also2 and if they live       
without grace1 they will live but a poor
 life2 if they die without grace1 they  
will come to a very bad end indeed4     
,what1 then1 does this word mean8  ,some
 of you will answer that grace means    
,god's ,holy ,spirit1 or that it means  
what ,god gives to our souls by ,his    
,spirit4  ,but what does that mean8     
,what does ,god's ,spirit give us8      
,what is the grace of ,jesus ,christ    
like1 and how is it the same as the     
grace of ,god's ,spirit8  ,now1 to know 
what grace means1 we must know what ,st 
,john and ,st ,paul meant by it1 and    
what the word meant in their time1 and  
what the ,ephesians1 and ,corinthians1  
and ,romans1 to whom they wrote1 would  
have understood by this word grace4     
,now these heathens1 to whom the        
apostles preached1 before they heard the
 gospel1 knew that word grace very well 
indeed1 often used it2 and saw it       

written up in their heathen temples all 
about them4  ,and they meant by it just 
what we mean1 when we talk of a graceful
 person1 or a graceful tree or flower2  
and what we mean1 too1 when we say that 
any one is gracious2 that they do things
 gracefully1 and have a great deal of   
grace in their way of speaking and      
behaving4  ,we mean by that that they   
are handsome1 agreeable1 amiable1       
pleasant to look at1 and talk to1 and   
deal with4  ,and so these heathens      
meant1 before they were ,christians4    
,the ,romans used to talk about some one
 called a ,grace4  ,the ,greeks called  
her ,,charis2 which is exactly the word 
which ,st ,john and ,st ,paul use1 and  
from it come our words charity and      
charitable4  ,but more2 they used to    
talk of three ,graces3  they fancied    
that they were goddesses--spirits of    
some kind in the shape of beautiful1 and
 amiable1 and innocent maidens1 who took
 delight in going about the world and   
making people happy and amiable like    

themselves2 and they used to make images
 of these graces1 and pray to them to   
make them lovely1 and happy1 and        
agreeable4  ,and painters and           
statuaries1 too1 used to pray to these  
graces1 and ask them to put beautiful   
fancies into their minds1 that they     
might be able to paint beautiful        
pictures1 and carve beautiful statues4  
,so when ,st ,paul or ,st ,john talked  
to these heathens about grace1 or       
,charis 7as the ,testament calls it71   
they knew quite well what the apostles  
meant4  ,did the apostles1 then1 believe
 in these three goddesses8  ,heaven     
forbid4 ,they came to teach these       
heathens to turn from those very        
vanities1 and worship the living-,god4  
,and so they told them1--,you are quite 
right in thinking that grace comes from 
heaven1 and is ,god's gift2 that it is  
,god who makes people amiable1 cheerful1
 lovely1 and honourable2 that it is ,god
 who gives happiness and all the joys of
 life3  but which god8  ,not those three

 maidens2 they are but a dream and      
fancy4  ,all that is lovely and pleasant
 in men and women--and our life here1   
and our everlasting life after death1 in
 this world and in all worlds to        
come--all comes from ,jesus ,christ and 
from ,him alone4  ,god has gathered     
together all things in ,him1 whether    
things in heaven or things on earth2 and
 ,he bestows blessings and graces on all
 who will ask ,him1 to each as much as  
is good for him4  ,he is full of        
grace--more full of it than all the     
human beings in the world put together4 
,all the goodness and sweetness1 and all
 the graciousness which you ever saw in 
all the men and women whom you ever met2
 all the goodness and sweetness which   
you ever fancied for yourselves1 all put
 together is not to be compared to ,him4
  ,for ,he is the perfect brightness of 
,god's glory1 and the express image of  
,god's person2 and in ,him is gathered  
together all grace1 all goodness1 all   
which makes men or angels good1 and     

lovely1 and loving4  ,all is in ,him1   
and ,he gives it freely to all1 said the
 apostles2 we know that ,he speaks      
truth1 we have seen ,him2 our eyes saw  
,him1 our hands touched ,him1 and there 
was a glory about ,him such as there    
never could be about any other person4  
,a glory as of the only begotten of the 
,father1 full of grace and truth4  ,a   
person whom we could not help loving2   
could not help admiring2 could not help 
trusting2 could not help giving         
ourselves up to--to live for ,him1 and  
if need be1 die for ,him4  ,and1 said   
the apostles1 there was a grace of truth
 in another of your heathen fancies4    
,you thought that these goddesses1      
because they were amiable and innocent  
themselves1 liked to make every one     
amiable1 innocent1 and happy also4      
,your conscience1 your reason were right
 there4 ,that is the very nature of     
grace1 not to keep itself to itself1 but
 to spend itself on every one round it1 
and try to make every one like itself4  

,if a man be good1 he will long to make 
others good2 if tender1 he will long to 
make others tender2 if gentle1 he will  
long to make others gentle2 if cheerful1
 he will long to make others cheerful2  
if forgiving1 he will long to make      
others forgiving2 if happy1 he will long
 to make others happy4  ,then said the  
apostles1 only believe that the ,lord   
,jesus ,christ1 just because ,he is full
 of grace1 wishes to fill you with      
grace1 ten thousand times better grace  
than you ever fancied those false       
goddesses could give you--of ,his       
fulness you may all receive1 and grace  
for grace4  ,all the grace of this world
 comes from ,him--health1 and youth1 and
 happiness1 and all the innocent        
pleasures of life1 and ,he delights in  
giving you them4  ,but1 over and above  
that1 comes a deeper and nobler         
grace--spiritual grace1 the grace of the
 immortal soul1 which will last on1 and 
make you loving and loveable1 pure and  
true1 gracious and generous1 honourable 

and worthy of respect1 when the grace of
 the body is gone1 and the eye is grown 
dim1 and the hair is grey1 and the      
limbs1 feeble2 a grace which will make  
you gracious in old age1 gracious in    
death1 gracious for ever and ever1 after
 the body has crumbled again to its     
dust4  ,whatsoever things are           
honourable1 lovely1 and of good report2 
whatsoever tempers of mind make you a   
comfort to yourselves and all around    
you2 ,christ has them all1 and ,he can  
give you them all1 one after the other1 
till ,christ be formed in you1 till you 
come to be perfect men and women1 to the
 measure of the stature of the fulness  
of ,christ4  ,come1 then1 boldly to ,his
 throne of grace1 to find mercy1 and    
grace to help you in the time of need4  
,this was what the apostles taught the  
heathen1 and their words were true4 ,you
 may see them come true round you every 
day4  ,for1 my friends1 just as far as  
people pray for ,christ's grace1 and    
give themselves up to be led by ,god's  

,spirit1 they become full of grace      
themselves1 courteous and civil1 loving 
and amiable1 true and honourable--a     
pleasure to themselves and to all round 
them4  ,while1 on the other hand2 all   
rudeness1 all ill- temper1 all          
selfishness1 all greediness are just so 
many sins against the grace of ,christ1 
which grieve the ,spirit of ,god1 at the
 same time that they grieve our         
neighbours for whom ,christ died1 and   
cut us off1 as long as we give way to   
them1 from the communion of saints4     
,well would it be for married people1 if
 they would but remember this4 ,well for
 them1 for their own sake and for their 
children's4  ,heirs together1 ,st ,peter
 says they are1 of the grace of life4   
,think of those words2 for in them lies 
the true secret of happiness4  ,not in  
the mere grace of youth1 which pleases  
the fancy at first2 that must soon fade2
 and then comes1 too often1 coldness    
between man and wife2 neglect1 rudeness1
 ill-temper1 because the grace of life  

is not there--the grace of the inner    
life1 of the immortal soul1 which alone 
makes life pleasant1 even tolerable1 to 
two people who are bound together for   
better or for worse4  ,but yet1 unless  
,st ,peter be mistaken1 the fault in    
such sad case is on the man's side4     
,yes1 we must face that truth1 we men2  
and face it like men4  ,if we are       
unhappy in our marriage it is our own   
fault4  ,it is the woman who is the     
weaker1 says ,st ,peter1 and selfish men
 are apt to say1 ,then it is the woman's
 fault1 if we are not happy4  ,st ,peter
 says exactly the opposite4  ,he        
says1--,because she is the weaker you   
are the stronger2 and therefore it is   
your fault if she is not what she should
 be2 for you are able to help her1 and  
lead her2 you took her to your heart for
 that very purpose1 you swore to cherish
 her4  ,because she is the weaker1 you  
can teach her1 help her1 improve her    
character1 if you will4  ,you have more 
knowledge of life and the world than she

 has4  ,dwell with her according to     
knowledge1 says ,st ,peter2 use your    
experience to set her right if she be   
wrong2 and use your experience and your 
strength1 too1 to keep down your own    
temper and your own selfishness toward  
her1 to bear and forbear1 to give and   
forgive1 live and let live4  ,remember  
that you are heirs ,,together of the    
grace of life2 and if the grace of life 
is not in you1 you cannot expect it to  
be in her4  ,and what is the grace of   
life8  ,it must be the grace of ,christ4
  ,st ,john says that ,christ ,,is the  
,life4  ,and what is the grace of       
,christ8  ,christ's grace1 ,christ's    
gracefulness1 ,christ's beautiful and   
noble and loving character--the grace of
 ,christ is ,christ's likeness4  ,do you
 ask what will ,christ give me8  ,he    
will give you ,himself4  ,he will make  
you like ,himself1 partaker of ,his     
grace2 and what is that8  ,it is        
this--to be loving1 gentle1 temperate1  
courteous1 condescending1               

self-sacrificing4  ,giving honour to    
those who are weaker than yourself1 just
 because they are weaker2 ready and     
willing1 ay1 and counting it an honour  
to take trouble for other people1 to be 
of use to other people1 to give way to  
other people2 and1 above all1 to the    
woman who has given herself to you1 body
 and soul4 ,that is the grace of        
,christ2 that is the grace of life2 that
 is what makes life worth having3  ay1  
makes it a foretaste of heaven upon     
earth2 when man and wife are heirs      
together of the grace of life1 of all   
those tempers which make life graceful  
and pleasant1 giving way to each other  
in everything which is not wrong2       
studying each other's comfort1 taking   
each other's advice1 shutting their eyes
 to each other's little failings1 and   
correcting each other's great failings1 
not by harsh words1 but silently and    
kindly1 by example4  ,and if the man    
will do that1 there is little fear but  
that the woman will do it also4  ,and   

so1 their prayers are not hindered4     
,married people cannot pray1 they have  
no heart to pray1 while they are        
discontented with each other4  ,they    
feel themselves wrong1 and because they 
are parted from each other1 they feel   
parted from ,god too2 and their         
selfishness or anger rises as a black   
wall1 not merely between them1 but      
between each of them and ,god4  ,and so 
the grace of life is indeed gone away   
from them1 and the whole world looks    
dark and ugly to them1 because it is not
 bright and cheerful in the light of    
,christ's grace1 which makes all the    
world full of sunshine and joy4  ,but it
 need not be so1 friends4 ,it would not 
be so1 if married people would take the 
advice which the ,prayer ,book gives    
them1 and come to ,holy communion4      
,would to ,god1 my friends1 that all    
married people would understand what    
that ,holy communion says to them2 and  
come together ,sunday after ,sunday to  
that throne of grace1 there to receive  

of ,christ's fulness1 and grace upon    
grace4  ,for that ,table says to you3   
,you are heirs together of the grace of 
life2 you are not meant merely to feed  
together for a few short years1 at the  
same table1 on the bread which perishes1
 but to feed for ever together on the   
bread which comes down from heaven1 even
 on ,christ ,himself1 the life of the   
world2 to receive life from ,his life1  
that you may live together such a life  
as ,he lived1 and lives still2 to       
receive grace from the fulness of ,his  
grace1 that you may be full of grace as 
,he is4  ,that ,table tells you that    
because you both must live by the same  
life of ,christ1 you must live the same 
life as each other1 and grow more and   
more like each other year by year2 that 
as you both receive the same grace of   
,christ1 you will become more and more  
gracious to each other year by year1 and
 both grow together1 nearer and dearer  
to each other1 more worthy of each      
other's respect1 more worthy of each    

other's trust1 more worthy of each      
other's love4  ,and then till death us  
do part may mean what it will4  ,let    
death part what of them he can part1 the
 perishing mortal body2 he has no power 
over the soul1 or over the body which   
shall rise to life eternal4  ,let death 
do his worst4  ,they belong to ,christ  
who conquered death1 and they live by   
,his everlasting life1 and their life is
 hid with ,christ in ,god1 where death  
cannot reach it or find it2 and         
therefore their life and their love1 and
 the grace of it1 will last as long as  
,christ's life and ,christ's love1 and  
,christ's grace last- -and that will be 
for ever and ever4    ,,sermon ,,xxi4   
,,father ,,and ,,child    ,eversley4    
#ahfa4  #a ,cor4 i4 #d1 #e1 #g4  ,i     
thank my ,god always on your behalf1 for
 the grace of ,god which is given you by
 ,jesus ,christ4  ,that in every thing  
ye are enriched by ,him1 in all         
utterance1 and in all knowledge 4 4 4   
,so that ye come behind in no gift2     

waiting for the coming of our ,lord     
,jesus ,christ4 ,who shall also confirm 
you unto the end1 that ye may be        
blameless in the day of our ,lord ,jesus
 ,christ4  ,this text is a very         
important one4  ,it ought to teach me   
how ,i should treat you4  ,it ought to  
teach you how you should treat your     
children4  ,it ought to teach you how   
,god1 your heavenly ,father1 treats you4
  ,you see at the first glance how      
cheerful and hopeful ,st ,paul is about 
these ,corinthians4  ,he is always      
thanking ,god1 he says1 about them1 for 
the grace of ,god which was given them  
by ,jesus ,christ1 that in everything   
they were enriched by ,him1 in all      
utterance and in all knowledge4  ,and he
 has good hope for them4  ,nay1 he seems
 to be certain about them1 that they    
will persevere1 and conquer1 and be     
saved2 for ,christ ,himself will confirm
 them 7that is strengthen them7 to the  
end1 that they may be blameless in the  
way of our ,lord ,jesus ,christ4  ,if we

 knew no more of these ,corinthians than
 what these words tell us1 we should    
suppose that they were very great       
saints1 leading holy and irreproachable 
lives before ,god and man4  ,but we know
 that it was not so4 ,that they were    
going on very ill4  ,that this is the   
beginning of an epistle in which ,st    
,paul is going to rebuke them very      
severely2 and to tell them1 that unless 
they mend1 they will surely become      
reprobates1 and be lost after all4  ,he 
is going to rebuke them for having      
heresies among them1 that is religious  
parties and religious quarrels--very    
much as we have now2 for being puffed up
 with spiritual self-conceit2 for       
despising and disparaging him2 for loose
 lives1 allowing 7in one case7 such a   
crime among them as even the heathen did
 not allow2 for profaning the ,lord's   
,supper1 to such an extent that some    
seem even to have got drunk at it2 for  
want of charity to each other2 for      
indulging in fanatical excitement2 for  

denying1 some of them1 the resurrection 
of the dead2 on the whole1 for being in 
so unwholesome a state of mind that he  
has to warn them solemnly of the fearful
 example of the old ,israelites1 who    
perished in the wilderness for their    
sins--as they will perish1 he hints1    
unless they mend4  ,and yet he begins by
 thanking ,god for them1 by speaking of 
them1 and to them1 in this cheerful and 
hopeful tone4  ,does that seem strange8 
,why should it seem strange1 my friends1
 to us1 if we are in the habit of       
training our children1 and rebuking our 
children1 as we ought8  ,if we have to  
rebuke our children for doing wrong1 do 
we begin by trying to break their       
hearts8 by raking up old offences1 by   
reproaching them with all the wrong they
 ever did in their lives1 and giving    
them to understand that they are        
thoroughly bad1 and have altogether lost
 our love1 so that we will have nothing 
more to do with them unless they mend8  
,or do we begin by making them feel that

 however grieved we are with them1 we   
love them still2 that however wrong they
 have been1 there is right feeling left 
in them still2 and by giving them credit
 for whatever good there is in them--by 
appealing to that2 calling on them to   
act up to that2 to be true to           
themselves1 and to their better nature2 
saying1 ,you can do right in one        
thing--then do right in another--and do 
right in all8  ,if we do not do this we 
do wrong2 we destroy our children's     
self-respect1 we make them despair of   
improving1 we make them fancy themselves
 bad children3  that is the very surest 
plan we can take to make them bad       
children1 by making them reckless4  ,but
 if we be wise parents--such parents to 
our children as ,st ,paul was to his    
spiritual children1 the ,corinthians--we
 shall do by them just what ,st ,paul   
did by these ,corinthians4  ,before he  
says one harsh word to them1 he will    
awaken in them faith and love4  ,he will
 make them trust him and love him1 all  

the more because he knows that through  
false teaching they do not trust and    
love him as they used to do4  ,but till 
they do1 he knows that there is no use  
in rebuking them4  ,till they trust him 
and love him1 they will not listen to   
him4  ,and how does he try to bring them
 round to him8  ,by praising them3--by  
telling them that he trusts them and    
loves them1 because in spite of all     
their faults there is something in them 
worthy to be loved and trusted4  ,he    
begins by giving them credit for        
whatever good there is in them4  ,they  
are rich in all utterance and all       
knowledge2 that is1 they are very       
brilliant and eloquent talkers about    
spiritual things1 and also very deep and
 subtle thinkers about spiritual things4
  ,so far so good4  ,these are great    
gifts--gifts of ,christ1 too1-- tokens  
that ,god's spirit is with them1 and    
that all they need is to be true to ,his
 gracious inspirations4  ,then1 when he 
has told them that1 or rather made them 

understand that he knows that1 and is   
delighted at it1 then he can go on      
safely and boldly to tell them of their 
sins also in the plainest and sternest  
and yet the most tender and fatherly    
language4  ,this is very important1 my  
friends4  ,i cannot tell you fully how  
important ,i think it1 in more ways than
 one4  ,i am sure that if we took ,st   
,paul's method with our children we     
should succeed with them far better than
 we do4  ,and ,i think1 ,i have thought 
long1 that if we could see that ,st     
,paul's method with those ,corinthians  
was actually the same as ,god's method  
with us1 we should have far truer       
notions of ,god1 and ,god's dealings    
with us2 and should reverence and value 
far more that ,holy ,catholic ,church   
into which we have been1 by ,god's      
infinite mercy1 baptized1 and wherein we
 have been educated4  ,for1 and now ,i  
entreat you to listen to me carefully1  
you who have sound heads and earnest    
hearts1 ready and willing to know the   

truth about ,god and yourselves1 if ,st 
,paul looked at the ,corinthians in this
 light1 may not ,god have looked at them
 in the same light8  ,if ,st ,paul      
accepted them for the sake of the good  
which was in them1 in spite of all their
 faults1 may not ,god have accepted them
 for the sake of the good which was in  
them1 in spite of all their faults8 and 
may not ,he accept us likewise8  ,i     
think it must be so4  ,for was not ,st  
,paul an inspired apostle8 and are not  
these words of his inspired by the ,holy
 ,spirit of ,god8  ,but if so1 then the 
,spirit of ,god must have looked at     
these ,corinthians in the same light as 
,st ,paul1 and therefore ,god must do   
likewise1 because the ,holy ,spirit is  
,god4  ,must it not be so8  ,can we     
suppose that ,god would take one view of
 these ,corinthians1 and then inspire   
,st ,paul to take another view8  ,what  
does being inspired mean at all1 save   
having the mind of ,christ and of       
,god1--being taught to see men and      

things as ,god sees them1 to feel for   
them and think of them as ,god does8    
,if inspiration does not mean that1 what
 does it mean8  ,therefore1 ,i think1 we
 have a right to believe that ,st       
,paul's words express the mind of ,god  
concerning these ,corinthians2 that ,god
 was pleased with their utterance and   
their knowledge1 and accepted them for  
that2 and that in the same way ,god is  
pleased with whatsoever ,he sees good in
 us1 and accepts us for that4 ,but1     
remember1 not for our own works or      
deservings any more than these          
,corinthians4  ,they were1 and we are   
accepted in ,christ1 and for the merits 
of ,christ4  ,and any good points in us1
 or in these ,corinthians1 as ,st ,paul 
says expressly 7here and elsewhere71 are
 not our own1 but come from ,christ1 by 
the inspiration of ,his ,holy ,spirit4  
,i know many people do not think thus4  
,they think of ,god as looking only at  
our faults2 as extreme to mark what is  
done amiss2 as never content with us2 as

 always crying to men1 ,yes1 you have   
done this and that well1 and yet not    
quite well1 for even in what you have   
done there are blots and mistakes2 but  
this and that you have not done1 and    
therefore you are still guilty1 still   
under infinite displeasure4  ,and they  
think that they exalt ,god's holiness by
 such thoughts1 and magnify ,his hatred 
of sin thereby4  ,and they invent       
arguments to prove themselves right1    
such as this3  ,that because ,god is an 
infinite being1 every sin committed     
against ,him is infinite2 and therefore 
deserves an infinite punishment2 which  
is a juggle of words of which any       
educated man ought to be ashamed4  ,i do
 not know where1 in the ,bible1 they    
find all this4  ,certainly not in the   
writings of ,st ,paul4  ,they seem to me
 to find it1 not in the ,bible at all1  
but in their own hearts1 judging that   
,god must be as hard upon ,his children 
as they are apt to be upon their own4   
,i know that ,god is never content with 

us1 or with any man4  ,how can ,he be8  
,but in what sense is ,he not content8  
,in the sense in which a hard           
task-master is not content with his     
slave1 when he flogs him cruelly for the
 slightest fault8  ,or in the sense in  
which a loving father is not content    
with his child1 grieving over him1      
counselling him1 as long as he sees him1
 even in the slightest matter1 doing    
less well than he might do8  ,think of  
that1 and when you have thought of it1  
believe that in this grand text ,st     
,paul speaks really by the ,spirit of   
,god1 and according to the mind of ,god1
 and teaches not these old ,corinthians 
merely1 but you and your children after 
you1 what is the mind of ,god concerning
 you1 what is the light in which ,god   
looks upon you4  ,for1 if you will but  
think over your own lives1 and over the 
,catechism which you learned in your    
youth1 has not ,god's way of dealing    
with you been just the same as ,st      
,paul's with those ,corinthians1        

teaching you to love and trust ,him     
almost before ,he taught you the        
difference between right and wrong8  ,i 
know that some think otherwise4 ,many   
who do not belong to the ,church1 and   
many1 alas6 who profess to belong to the
 ,church1 will tell you that ,god's     
method is1 first to terrify men by the  
threats of the law and the sight of     
their sins and the fear of damnation1   
and afterwards to reveal to them the    
gospel and ,his mercy and salvation in  
,christ4  ,now ,i can only answer that  
it is not so4 ,not so in fact4  ,these  
preachers themselves may do it2 but that
 is no proof that ,god does it4  ,what  
,god's plan is can only be known from   
facts1 from experience1 from what       
actually happens2 first in ,god's       
kingdom of nature1 and next in ,god's   
kingdom of grace1 which is the ,church4 
,and in the kingdom of nature how does  
,god begin with mankind8  ,what are a   
child's first impressions of this life8 
,does he hear voices from heaven telling

 little children that they are lost     
sinners8  ,does he see lightning come   
from heaven to strike sinners dead1 or  
earthquakes rise and swallow them up8   
,nothing of the kind4  ,a child's first 
impressions of this life1 what are they 
but pleasure8  ,his mother's breast1    
warmth1 light1 food1 play1 flowers1 and 
all pleasant things1--by these ,god     
educates the child1 even of the heathen 
and the savage3--and why8  ,if haply he 
may feel after ,god and find ,him1 and  
find that ,he is a ,god of love and     
mercy1 a giver of good things1 who knows
 men's necessities before they ask1--a  
good and loving ,god1 and not a being   
such as ,i will not1 ,i dare not speak  
of4  ,i say with the very heathen ,god  
deals thus4  ,we have plain ,scripture  
for that4  ,for we have1 and thanks be  
to ,god that we have1 in such times as  
these1 a missionary sermon preached by  
,st ,paul to the heathen at ,lystra4    
,and in that is not one word concerning 
these terrors of the law4  ,he says1 ,i 

preach to you ,god1 whom you ought to   
have known of yourselves1 because ,he   
has not left ,himself without witness4  
,and what is this witness of which the  
apostle speaks8  ,wrath and terror and  
destruction8 ,not so1 says ,st ,paul4   
,this is ,his witness1 that ,he has sent
 you rain and fruitful seasons1 filling 
your heart with food and gladness4  ,his
 goodness1 ,his bounty1--it is the      
witness of ,god and of the character of 
,god4  ,there is wrath and terror       
enough1 says ,st ,paul elsewhere1       
awaiting those who go on in sin4  ,but  
then what does he say is their sin8     
,despising the goodness of ,god1 by     
which ,he has been trying to win mankind
 to love and trust ,him1 before ,he     
threatens and before ,he punishes at    
all4 ,so much for the terrors of the law
 coming before the good news of the     
gospel in ,god's kingdom of nature4     
,and still less do the terrors of the   
law come first in ,god's kingdom of     
grace1 which is the ,church4  ,they did 

not come first to you or to me1 or to   
any one in ,his ,church who has been    
taught1 as churchmen should be1 their   
,catechism4  ,if any have been1         
unhappily for them1 brought up to learn 
,catechisms and hymns which do not      
belong to the ,church1 and which terrify
 little children with horrible notions  
of ,god's wrath1 and the torments       
prepared not merely for wicked men1 but 
for unconverted children1 and then teach
 them to say1--   ,can such a wretch as 
,i ,escape this dreadful end8   so much 
the worse for them4  ,we1 who are       
,church people1 are bound to believe    
that ,god speaks to us through the      
,church books1 and that it was ,his will
 that we should have been brought up to 
believe the ,catechism4 ,and in that    
,catechism we heard not one word of     
these terrors of the law or of ,god's   
wrath hanging over us4  ,we were taught 
that before we even knew right from     
wrong1 ,god adopted us freely as ,his   
children1 freely forgave us our original

 sin for the sake of ,christ's blood1   
freely renewed us by ,his ,holy ,spirit1
 freely placed us in ,his ,church2--that
 we might love ,him1 because ,he first  
loved us2 trust ,him because ,he has    
done all that even ,god could do to win 
our trust2 and obey ,him1 because we are
 boundlessly in debt to ,him for        
boundless mercies4  ,this is ,god's     
method with us in ,his ,church1 and what
 is it but ,st ,paul's method with these
 ,corinthians8  ,believe this1 then1 you
 who wish to be ,churchmen in spirit and
 in truth4 ,believe that ,st ,paul's    
conduct is to you a type and pattern of 
what ,god does1 and what you ought to   
do4  ,that ,god's method of winning you 
to do right is to make you love ,him and
 trust ,him2 and that your method of    
winning your children to do right is to 
make them love and trust you4 ,let us   
remember that if our children are not   
perfect1 they at least inherited their  
imperfections from us2 and if our       
,father in heaven1 from whom we inherit 

no sin1 but only good1 have patience    
with us1 shall we not have patience with
 our children1 who owe to us their      
fallen nature8  ,ah6 cast thy bread upon
 the waters1--the bread which even the  
poorest can give to their children      
abundantly and without stint1--the bread
 of charity1--human tenderness1         
forbearance1 hopefulness1--cast that    
bread upon the waters1 and thou shalt   
find it after many days4    ,,sermon    
,,xxii4  ,,god ,,is ,,our ,,refuge      
,westminster ,abbey1 #ahgc4  ,psalm     
xlvi4 #a4  ,god is our refuge and       
strength1 a very present help in        
trouble4  ,this is a noble psalm1 full  
of hope and comfort2 and it will be more
 and more full of hope and comfort1 the 
more faithfully we believe in the       
incarnation1 the passion1 the           
resurrection1 and the ascension of our  
,lord ,jesus ,christ4  ,for if we are to
 give credit to ,his express words1 and 
to those of every book of the ,new      
,testament1 and to the opinion of that  

,church into which we are baptised1 then
 ,jesus ,christ is none other than the  
same ,jehovah1 ,lord1 and ,god who      
brought the ,jews out of ,egypt1 who    
guided them and governed them through   
all their history--teaching1 judging1   
rewarding1 punishing them and all the   
nations of the earth4 ,this psalm1      
therefore1 is concerning our ,lord      
,jesus ,christ1 to whom all power is    
given in heaven and earth1 and who      
ascended up on high2 that ,he might be  
as ,he had been from the beginning1     
,king of kings and ,lord of lords1 the  
,master of this world and all the       
nations in it4  ,this psalm1 therefore1 
is a hymn concerning the kingdom of     
,christ and of ,god4  ,it tells us      
something of the government which       
,christ has been exercising over the    
world ever since the beginning of it1   
and which ,he is exercising over this   
world now4  ,it bids us be still1 and   
know that ,he is ,god--that ,he will be 
exalted among the nations1 and will be  

exalted in the earth1 whether men like  
it or not2 but that they ought to like  
it and rejoice in it1 and find comfort  
in the thought that ,christ ,jesus is   
their refuge and their strength--a very 
present help in trouble--as the old ,jew
 who wrote this psalm found comfort4    
,when this psalm was written1 or what   
particular events it speaks of1 ,i      
cannot tell1 for ,i do not think we have
 any means of finding out4  ,it may have
 been written in the time of ,david1 or 
of ,solomon1 or of ,hezekiah4 ,it may   
possibly have been written much later4  
,it seems to mo probably to refer--but  
,i speak with extreme diffidence--to    
that ,assyrian invasion1 and that       
preservation of ,jerusalem1 of which we 
heard in the magnificent first lesson   
for this morning and this afternoon2    
when1 at the same time that the         
,assyrians were crushing1 one by one1   
every nation in the ,east1 there was1 as
 the elder ,isaiah and ,micah tell us   
plainly1 a great volcanic outbreak in   

the ,holy ,land4  ,but all this matters 
very little to us2 because events       
analogous to those of which it speaks   
have happened not once only1 but many   
times1 and will happen often again4     
,and this psalm lays down a rule for    
judging of such startling and terrible  
events whenever they happen1 and for    
saying of them1 ,god is our refuge and  
strength1 a very present help in        
trouble4  ,it seems from the beginning  
of the psalm that there had been        
earthquakes or hurricanes in            
,judea--more probably earthquakes1 which
 were and are now frequent there4  ,it  
seems as if the land had been shaken1   
and cliffs thrown into the sea1 which   
had rolled back in a mighty wave1 such  
as only too often accompanies an        
earthquake4  ,but the ,psalmist knew    
that that was ,god's doing2 and         
therefore he would not fear1 though the 
earth was moved1 and though the hills   
were earned into the very midst of the  
sea4  ,it seems1 moreover1 that         

,jerusalem itself had1 as in ,hezekiah's
 time1 not been shaken1 or at least     
seriously injured1 by the earthquake4   
,but why8  ,god is in the midst of her1 
therefore shall she not be removed4  ,it
 seems1 also1 as if the earthquake or   
hurricane had been actually a benefit to
 ,jerusalem-- which was often then1 and 
has been often since1 in want of        
water--that either fresh springs had    
broken out1 or abundant rain had fallen1
 as occurs at times in such convulsions 
of nature4  ,but that1 too1 was ,god's  
doing on behalf of ,his chosen city4    
,the rivers of the flood had made glad  
the city of ,god1 the holy place of the 
tabernacle of the most highest4         
,moreover1 there seem to have been great
 disturbances and wars among the nations
 round4  ,the heathen had made much ado1
 and the kingdoms had been moved4  ,but 
whatever their plans were1 it was ,god  
who had brought them to naught4  ,god   
had shewed ,his voice1 and the earth    
melted away2 and 7we know not how7      

discomfiture had fallen upon them1 and a
 general peace had followed4  ,o come   
hither1 says the ,psalmist1 and behold  
the works of the ,lord1 what desolations
 ,he has made in the earth4  ,not a     
desolation of cruelty and tyranny3  but 
a desolation of mercy and justice2      
putting down the proud1 the aggressive1 
the ruthless1 and helping the meek1 the 
simple1 the industrious1 and the        
innocent4  ,it is ,he1 says the         
,psalmist1 who has made wars to cease in
 all the world1 who has broken the bow  
and snapped the spear in sunder1 and    
burned the chariots in the fire2 and so1
 by the voice of fact1 said to these    
kings and to their armies1 if they would
 but understand it1 ,be still1 and know 
that ,i am ,god--that ,i1 not you1 will 
be exalted among the nations--that ,i1  
not you1 will be exalted in the earth4  
,such is the #dfth ,psalm1 one of the   
noblest utterances of the whole ,old    
,testament4  ,and is it not as true for 
us now1 ay1 for all nations and all     

mankind now1 as it was when it was      
uttered8  ,is not ,jesus ,christ the    
same yesterday1 to-day1 and for ever8   
,have ,his words passed away8  ,did ,he 
say in vain1 ,all power is given unto me
 in heaven and earth8  ,did ,he say in  
vain1 ,lo1 ,i am with you alway1 even   
unto the end of the world8  ,i trust    
not4  ,i trust and ,i hope that you1 or 
at least some here1 believe that ,christ
 is ruling and guiding the world1 the   
church1 and every individual soul who   
trusts in ,him toward--   ,one far off  
divine event1 ,to which the whole       
creation moves4   ,i hope you do have   
that trust1 for your own sakes1 for the 
sake of your own happiness1 your own    
sound peace of mind2 for then1 and then 
only1 you can afford to be hopeful      
concerning yourselves1 your families1   
your country1 and the whole human race4 
,it must be so4  ,if you believe that   
,he who hung upon the cross for all     
mankind is your refuge and strength1 and
 the refuge and strength of all mankind1

 then1 amid all the changes and chances 
of this mortal life1 you can afford to  
be still calm in sudden calamity1       
patient in long afflictions2 for you    
know that ,he is ,god1 ,he is the ,lord1
 ,he is the ,redeemer1 ,he is the ,king4
  ,he knows best4 ,he must be right1    
whosoever else is wrong4  ,let ,him do  
what seemeth ,him good4  ,now ,i cannot 
but feel 7what wiser and better men than
 ,i am feel more deeply71 that this     
old-fashioned faith in the living       
,christ is dying out among us4  ,that   
men do not believe as they used to do in
 the living ,lord and in ,his           
government1 in that perpetual divine    
providence which the ,scriptures call   
the kingdom of ,god4  ,they have lost   
faith in ,christ's immediate and        
personal government of the world and its
 nations2 and1 therefore1 they are      
tempted more and more1 either to try to 
misgovern the world themselves1 or to   
fancy that ,christ has entrusted ,his   
government1 as to a substitute and      

vicar1 to an aged priest at ,rome4      
,they have lost faith1 likewise1 in     
,christ's immediate government of       
themselves2 their own fortunes1 their   
own characters1 and inmost souls2 and1  
therefore1 they are tempted either to   
follow no rule or guidance save their   
own instincts1 passions1 fancies2 or    
else1 in despair at their own inward    
anarchy1 to commit the keeping of their 
souls to directors and confessors1      
instead of to ,christ ,himself1 the     
,lord of the spirits of all flesh4      
,yes1 the faith which keeps a man ever  
face to face with ,god and with ,christ1
 in the least as well as in the greatest
 events of life2 which says in          
prosperity and in adversity1 in plenty  
and scarcity1 in joy and sorrow1 in     
peace and war1--,it is the ,lord's      
doing1 it is the ,lord's sending1 and   
therefore we can trust in the           
,lord--that faith is growing1 ,i fear1  
very rare4  ,that faith was more common1
 ,i think1 a generation or two back1 in 

old-fashioned church people than in any 
other4  ,it could not help being so2 for
 the good old ,prayer-,book upon which  
they were brought up is more full of    
that simple and living faith in the     
,lord1 from beginning to end1 than any  
other book on earth except the ,bible4  
,it was more common1 too1 and ,i suppose
 always will be1 among the poor than    
among the rich2 for the poor soon find  
out how little they have to depend upon 
except the ,lord and ,his good          
providence2 while the rich are tempted1 
and always will be1 to depend upon their
 own wealth and their own power1 to     
trust in uncertain riches1 and say1     
,soul1 take thine ease1 thou hast much  
goods laid up for many years4  ,it was  
more common1 too1 and ,i suppose always 
will be1 among the old than among the   
young2 for the young are tempted to     
trust not in the ,lord1 but in their own
 health1 strength1 wit1 courage1 and to 
put their hopes1 not on ,god's          
,providence1 but on the unknown chapter 

of accidents in the future1 most of     
which will never come to pass2 while the
 old have learned by experience and     
disappointment the vanity of human      
riches1 the helplessness of human       
endeavour1 the blindness of human       
foresight1 and are content to go where  
,god leads them1 and say1 ,i will go    
forth in the strength of the ,lord ,god1
 and will make mention of ,thy          
righteousness only4  ,thou1 ,o ,god1    
hast taught me from my youth up until   
now3  therefore will ,i tell of ,thy    
wondrous works4 ,forsake me not1 ,o     
,god1 in mine old age1 when ,i am       
grey-headed2 until ,i have showed ,thy  
strength unto this generation1 and ,thy 
power to all them which are yet for to  
come4  ,but1 for some reason or other1  
this generation does not seem to care to
 see ,god's strength2 and those that are
 yet for to come seem likely to believe 
less and less in ,god's power--believe  
less and less that they are in ,christ's
 kingdom1 and that ,christ is ruling    

over them and all the world4  ,they have
 not faith in the ,living ,lord4  ,but  
they must get back that faith1 if they  
wish to keep that wealth and prosperity 
after which every one scrambles so      
greedily now-a-days2 for those who      
forget ,god are treading1 they and their
 children after them1 not1 as they      
fancy1 the road to riches--they are     
treading the road to ruin4  ,so it      
always was1 so it always will be4  ,yet 
the majority of mankind will not see it1
 and the preacher must not expect to be 
believed when he says it4  ,nevertheless
 it is true4  ,those who forget that    
they are in ,christ's kingdom1 ,christ  
does not go out of ,his way to punish   
them4  ,they simply punish themselves4  
,they earn their own ruin by the very   
laws of human nature4  ,they must find  
hope in something and strength in       
something2 and if they will not see that
 ,god is their hope1 they will hope to  
get rich as fast as possible1 and make  
themselves safe so4  ,if they will not  

see that ,god is their strength1 they   
will find strength in cunning1 in       
intrigue1 in flattery of the strong and 
tyranny over the weak1 and in making    
themselves strong so4  ,they want a     
present help in trouble2 and if they    
will not believe that ,god is a present 
help in trouble1 they will try to help  
themselves out of their trouble by      
begging1 lying1 swindling1 forging1 and 
all those meannesses which fill our     
newspapers with shameful stories day by 
day1 and which all arise simply out of  
want of faith in ,god4  ,moreover1 it is
 written1 ,be still1 and know that ,i am
 ,god4  ,and if men will not be still1  
they will not know that ,he is ,god4    
,and if they do not know that the       
gracious ,christ is ,god1 they will not 
be still2 and therefore they will grow  
more and more restless1 discontented1   
envious1 violent1 irreverent1 full of   
passions which injure their own souls1  
and sap the very foundations of order   
and society and civilised life4  ,and   

what can come out of all these selfish  
passions1 when they are let loose1 but  
that in which selfishness must always   
end1 but that same mistrust and anarchy1
 ending in that same poverty and        
wretchedness1 under which so many       
countries of the world now lie1 as it   
were1 weltering in the mire4 ,alas6 say 
rather weltering in their own           
life-blood--and all because they have   
forgotten the living ,god8  ,oh1 my dear
 friends1 take these words solemnly to  
heart--for yourselves1 and for your     
children after you4  ,if you wish to    
prosper on the earth1 let ,god be in all
 your thoughts4  ,remember that the     
,lord is on your right hand2 and then1  
and then alone1 will you not be moved1  
either to terror or to sin1 by any of   
the chances and changes of this mortal  
life4  ,fret not thyself1 says the      
,psalmist1 else shalt thou be moved to  
do evil4 ,and the only way not to fret  
yourselves is to remember that ,god is  
your refuge and strength1 a very present

 help in trouble4  ,he that believeth1  
saith the ,prophet1 shall not make      
haste--not hurry himself into folly and 
disappointment and shame4  ,why should  
you hurry1 if you remember that you are 
in the kingdom of ,christ and of ,god8  
,you cannot hurry ,god's ,providence1 if
 you would2 you ought not1 if you could4
  ,god ,,must know best2 ,god's ,laws   
,,must work at the right pace1 and      
fulfil ,his ,will in the right way and  
at the right time4  ,as for what that   
,will is1 we can know from the angels'  
song on ,christmas ,eve1 which told us  
how ,god's ,will was a good will towards
 men4  ,for who is our ,lord8  ,who is  
our ,king8  ,who is our ,governor8  ,who
 is our ,lawgiver8  ,who is our ,guide8 
,christ1 who died for us on ,calvary2   
who rose again for us2 who ascended into
 heaven for us2 who sits at ,god's right
 hand for us2 who sent down ,his ,holy  
,spirit at the first ,whitsuntide2 and  
sends ,him down for ever to us2 that by 
,his gracious inspiration we may both   

perceive and know what we ought to do1  
and also may have grace and power       
faithfully to fulfil the same4  ,with   
such a ,king over us1 how can the world 
but go right8  ,with such a ,king over  
us1 what refuge or strength or help in  
trouble do we need but ,him             
,himself8--,his ,providence1 which is   
,love1 and ,his ,laws1 which are ,life4 
,,sermon ,,xxiii4  ,,pride ,,and        
,,humility    ,eversley1 #ahfi4         
,chester ,cathedral1 #ahgj4  #ast4      
,peter v4 #e4  ,god resisteth the proud1
 and giveth grace to the humble4  ,let  
me1 this evening1 say a few words to you
 on theology1 that is1 on the being and 
character of ,god4  ,you need not be    
afraid that ,i shall use long or        
difficult words4  ,sound theology is    
simple enough1 and ,i hope that my words
 about it will be simple enough for the 
worst scholar here to understand4  ,god 
resisteth the proud1 and giveth grace to
 the humble4  ,now1 this saying is an   
old one4  ,it had been said1 in         

different words1 centuries before ,st   
,peter said it4  ,the old prophets and  
psalmists say it again and again4  ,the 
idea of it runs through the whole of the
 ,old ,testament1 as anyone must know   
who has read his ,bible with common     
care4  ,but why should it be true8      
,what reason is there for it8  ,what is 
there in the character of ,god which    
makes it reasonable1 probable1 likely to
 be true8  ,that ,god would give grace  
to the humble1 and reward men for bowing
 down before ,his ,majesty1 seems not so
 difficult to understand4  ,but why     
should ,god resist the proud8  ,how does
 a man's being proud injure ,god1 who is
 ,i ,,am ,,that ,i ,,am2 perfectly      
self-sufficient1 having neither parts   
nor passions1 who tempteth no man1      
neither is tempted of any8  ,why should 
,god go out of ,his way1 as it were1 to 
care for such a paltry folly as the     
pride of an ignorant1 weak1             
short-sighted creature like man8  ,now1 
let us take care that we do not give a  

wrong answer to this question--an answer
 which too many have given1 in their    
hearts and minds1 though not perhaps in 
words1 and so have fallen into abject   
and cruel superstitions1 from which may 
,god keep us1 and our children after us4
 ,they have said to themselves1 ,god is 
proud1 and has a right to be proud3 and 
therefore ,he chooses no one to be proud
 but ,himself4  ,pride in man calls out 
,his pride1 and makes ,him angry4  ,they
 have thought of ,god as some despotic  
,sultan of the ,indies1 who is          
surrounded1 not by free men1 but by     
slaves2 who will have those slaves at   
his beck and nod4  ,in one word1 they   
have thought of ,god as a tyrant4  ,they
 have thought of ,god1 and1 may ,god    
forgive them1 have talked of ,god as if 
,he were like ,nebuchadnezzar of old1   
who1 when the three young men refused to
 obey him1 was filled with rage and     
fury1 and cast them into a burning fiery
 furnace4  ,that is some men's ,god--a  
,god who must be propitiated by         

crouching and flattery1 lest he should  
destroy them--a ,god who holds all men  
as his slaves1 and therefore hates pride
 in them4  ,for what has a slave to do  
with pride8  ,but that is not the ,god  
of the ,bible1 my friends1 nor the ,god 
of ,nature either1 the ,god who made the
 world and man4  ,for ,he is not a      
tyrant1 but a ,father4  ,he wishes men  
not to be ,his slaves1 but ,his         
children4  ,and if ,he resists the      
proud1 it is because children have no   
right to be proud4 ,if ,he resists the  
proud1 it is in fatherly love1 because  
it is bad for them to be proud4  ,not   
because the proud are injuring ,god1 but
 because they are injuring themselves1  
does ,god resist them1 and bring them   
low1 and show them what they are1 and   
where they are1 that they may repent1   
and be converted1 and turned back into  
the right way4  ,remember always that   
,god is your ,father4  ,this question1  
like all questions between ,god and man1
 is a question between a father and a   

child2 and if you see it in any other   
light1 and judge it by any other rule1  
you see it and judge it wrongly1 and    
learn nothing about it1 or worse than   
nothing4  ,if ,god were really angry    
with1 really hated1 the proud man1 or   
any other man1 would ,he need only to   
resist him8 would ,he have to wait till 
the next life to punish him8  ,my dear  
friends1 if ,god really hated you or me1
 do you not suppose that ,he would      
simply destroy us--get rid of           
us--abolish us and annihilate us off the
 face of the earth1 just as we crush a  
gnat when it bites us8  ,that ,god can  
do2 and more--,he does it now and then4 
,he will endure with much long suffering
 vessels of wrath1 fitted to            
destruction3  but a moment sometimes    
comes when ,he will endure them no      
longer1 and ,he destroys them with the  
destruction for which they have fitted  
themselves4 ,in them is fulfilled the   
parable of the rich man1 who said to    
himself1 ,soul1 thou hast much good laid

 up for many years2 take thine ease1    
eat1 drink1 and be merry4  ,but ,god    
said unto him1 ,thou fool1 this night   
thy soul shall be required of thee4     
,but for the most part1 thanks to the   
mercy of our ,heavenly ,father1 we are  
not destroyed by our pride and for our  
pride4  ,we are only chastened1 as a    
father chastens his child4  ,and that we
 are chastised for pride1 who does not  
know8  ,what proverb more common1 what  
proverb more true1 than that after pride
 comes a fall8  ,do we not know 7if we  
do not1 we shall know sooner or later7  
that the surest way to fail in any      
undertaking is to set about it in       
self-will and self-conceit2 that the    
surest way to do a foolish thing1 is to 
fancy that we are going to do a very    
wise one2 that the surest way to make   
ourselves ridiculous in the eyes of our 
fellow-men1 is to assume airs1 and      
boast1 shew ourselves off1 and end by   
shewing off only our own folly8  ,why is
 it so8  ,why has ,god so ordered the   

world and human nature1 that pride      
punishes itself8  ,because1 ,i presume1 
pride is begotten and born of a lie1 and
 ,god hates a lie1 because all lies lead
 to ruin1 and this lie of pride above   
all4  ,it is as it were the root lie of 
all lies4  ,the very lie by which1 as   
old tales tell1 ,satan fell from heaven1
 and when he tried to become a god in   
his own right1 found himself1 to his    
surprise and disappointment1 only a     
devil4  ,for pride and self-conceit     
contradict the original constitution of 
man and the universe1 which is          
this--that of ,god are all things1 and  
in ,god are all things1 and for ,god are
 all things4  ,man depends on ,god4     
,self tells him that he depends on      
himself4 ,man has nothing but what he   
receives from ,god4  ,self tells him    
that what he has is his own1 and that he
 has a right to do with it what he      
likes4 ,man knows nothing but what ,god 
teaches him4  ,self tells him that he   
has found out everything for himself1   

and can say what he thinks fit without  
fear of ,god or man4  ,therefore the    
proud1 self-willed1 self-conceited man  
must come to harm1 like ,malvolio in the
 famous play1 merely because he is in   
the blackest night of ignorance4  ,he   
has mistaken who he is1 what he is1     
where he is4  ,he is fancying himself1  
as many mad men do1 the centre of the   
universe2 while ,god is the centre of   
the universe4  ,he is just as certain to
 come to harm as a man would be on board
 a ship1 who should fancy that he       
himself1 and not the ship1 was keeping  
him afloat1 and step overboard to walk  
upon the sea4  ,we all know what would  
happen to that man4  ,let us thank ,god 
our ,father that ,he not only knows what
 would happen to such men3  but desires 
to save them from the consequences of   
their own folly1 by letting them feel   
the consequences of their own folly4    
,oh my friends1 let us search our       
hearts1 and pray to our ,father in      
,heaven to take out of them1 by whatever

 painful means1 the poisonous root of   
pride1 self-conceit1 self-will4  ,so    
only shall we be truly strong--truly    
wise4  ,so only shall we see what and   
where we are4  ,do we pride ourselves on
 being something8  ,shall we pride      
ourselves on health and strength8  ,a   
tile falling off the roof1 a little     
powder and lead in the hands of a       
careless child1 can blast us out of this
 world in a moment--whither1 who can    
tell8  ,what is our cleverness--our     
strength of mind8  ,a tiny blood vessel 
bursting on the brain1 will make us in  
one moment paralytic1 helpless1         
babblers1 and idiots4  ,what is our     
knowledge of the world8  ,that of a man1
 who is forcing his way alone through a 
thick and pathless wood1 where he has   
never been before1 to a place which he  
has never seen4  ,what is our           
wisdom--,what does a wise man say of    
his8   ,so runs my dream2 but what am   
,i8 ,an infant crying in the night2 ,an 
infant crying for the light2 ,and with  

no language but a cry4   ,yes4  ,our    
true knowledge is to know our own       
ignorance4  ,our true strength is to    
know our own weakness4  ,our true       
dignity is to confess that we have no   
dignity1 and are nobody1 and nothing in 
ourselves1 and to cast ourselves down   
before the ,dignity of ,god1 under the  
shadow of whose wings1 and in the smile 
of whose countenance1 alone1 is any     
created being safe4  ,let us cling to   
our ,father in ,heaven1 as a child1     
walking in the night1 clings to his     
father's hand4  ,let us take refuge on  
the lowest step of the throne of ,christ
 our ,lord1 and humble ourselves under  
,his mighty hand2 and1 instead of       
exalting ourselves in undue time1 leave 
,him to exalt us again in due time1 when
 the chastisement has told on us1 and   
patience had her perfect work2 casting  
all our care on ,him1 who surely cares  
for us still1 if ,he cared for us once1 
enough to die for us on the cross2      
caring for ,god's opinion and not for   

the opinion of the world4 ,and then we  
shall be among the truly humble1 to whom
 ,god gives grace-- first grace in their
 own hearts1 that they may live gracious
 lives1 modest and contented1 dignified 
and independent1 trusting in ,god and   
not in man2 and then1 grace in the eyes 
of their fellow-men1 for what is more   
graceful1 what is more gracious1        
pleasant to see1 pleasant to deal with1 
than the humble man1 the modest man8  ,i
 do not mean the cringing man1 the      
flattering man1 the man who apes        
humility for his own ends1 because he   
wants to climb high1 by pretending to be
 lowly4  ,he is neither graceful or     
gracious4  ,he is only contemptible1 and
 he punishes himself4  ,he spoils his   
own game4  ,he defeats his own purpose4 
,for men despise him1 and use him1 and  
throw him away when they have done with 
him1 as they throw away a dirty worn-out
 tool4  ,not him do ,i mean by the      
humble man1 the modest man4  ,i mean the
 man who1 like a good soldier1 knows his

 place and keeps it1 knows his duty1 and
 does it2 who expects to be treated as a
 man should be1 with fairness1          
consideration1 respect1 kindness--and   
,god will always treat him so1 whether  
man does or not3  but who1 beyond that1 
does not trouble his mind with whether  
he be private or sergeant1 lieutenant or
 colonel1 but with whether he can do his
 duty as private1 his duty as sergeant1 
his duty as lieutenant1 his duty as     
colonel2 who has learnt the golden      
lesson1 which so few learn in these     
struggling1 envious1 covetous1 ambitious
 days1 namely1 to abide in the calling  
to which he is called1 and in whatsoever
 state he is1 therewith to be content4  
,to be sure that in ,god's world1 the   
only safe way to become ruler over many 
things is to be a good ruler over a few 
things2 that if he is fit for better    
work than he is doing now1 ,god will    
find that out1 sooner and more surely   
than he1 or any man will1 and will set  
him about it2 and that1 meanwhile1 ,god 

has set him about work which he can do1 
and that the true wisdom is to do that  
and do it well1 and so approve himself  
alike to man and ,god1 humbling himself 
under the mighty hand of ,god1 that ,he 
may exalt him in good time1 by giving   
him grace and strength to do great      
things1 as ,he has given him grace and  
strength to do small things4  ,am ,i    
speaking almost to deaf ears8  ,i fear  
that few here will take my advice4  ,i  
fear that many here will have excellent 
excuses and plain reasons1 why they     
should not take it4  ,be it so4  ,they  
cannot alter eternal fact4  ,in one     
word1 they cannot alter ,theology4      
,they cannot alter the laws of ,god4    
,they cannot alter the character of     
,god4  ,and sooner or later1 in this    
world or in the next1 they will find out
 that ,theology is right3  and ,st      
,peter is right3  that ,god ,,does      
resist the proud1 that ,god ,,does give 
grace to the humble4    ,,sermon ,,xxiv4
  ,,worship    ,eversley1 ,september #d1

 #ahgj4  ,revelation xi4 #af1 #ag4  ,and
 the four and twenty elders1 which sat  
before ,god on their seats1 fell upon   
their faces1 and worshipped ,god1       
saying1 ,we give thee thanks1 ,o ,lord  
,god ,almighty1 which art1 and wast1 and
 art to come2 because thou hast taken to
 thee thy great power1 and hast reigned4
  ,my dear friends1--,i wish to speak a 
few plain words to you this morning1 on 
a matter which has been on my mind ever 
since ,i returned from ,chester1        
namely1--,the duty of the congregation  
to make the responses in ,church4  ,now 
,i am not going to scold--even to blame4
  ,to do so would be not only unjust1   
but ungrateful in me1 to a congregation 
which is as attentive and as reverent as
 you are4  ,indeed1 ,i am the only      
person to blame1 for ,i ought to have   
spoken on the subject long ago4  ,as it 
is1 coming fresh from ,chester1 and     
accustomed to hear congregations1 in    
that city and in the country round1     
reading the responses aloud throughout  

the service with earnestness1 and       
reverence1 ,i was painfully struck by   
the silence in this church4  ,i had     
before grown so accustomed to it that ,i
 did not perceive it1 just as one grows 
accustomed to a great many things which 
ought not to be1 till one forgets that1 
however usual they may be1 wrong they   
are1 and ought to be amended4  ,now1 it 
is always best to begin at the root of a
 matter4  ,so to begin at the root of   
this4  ,why do we come to church at all8
  ,some will say1 to hear the sermon4   
,that is often too true4  ,some folks do
 come to church to hear a man get up and
 preach1 just as they go to a concert to
 hear a man get up and sing1 to amuse   
and interest them for half-an-hour4     
,some go to hear sermons1 doubtless1 in 
order that they may learn from them4    
,but are there not1 especially in these 
days of cheap printing1 books of        
devotion1 tracts1 sermons1 printed1     
which contain better preaching than any 
which they are likely to hear in church8

  ,if ,,teaching is all that they come  
to church for1 they can get that in     
plenty at home4  ,moreover1 nine people 
out of ten who come to church need no   
teaching at all4  ,they know already1   
just as well as the preacher1 what is   
right and what is wrong2 they know their
 duty2 they know how to do it4 ,and if  
they do not intend to do it1 all the    
talking in the world 7as far as ,i have 
seen7 will not make them do it4         
,moreover1 if the teaching in the sermon
 be what we come to church for1 why have
 we prayer-books full of prayers1       
thanksgivings1 psalms1 and so forth1    
which are not sermons at all8  ,what is 
the use of the service1 as we call it1  
if the sermon is the only or even the   
principal object for which we come8  ,i 
trust there are many of you here who    
agree with me so fully1 that you would  
come regularly to church1 as ,i should1 
even if there were no sermon1 knowing   
that ,god preaches to every man1 in the 
depths of his own heart and conscience1 

far more solemn and startling sermons   
than any mortal man can utter4  ,others 
will answer that they come to church to 
say their prayers4  ,well3 that is a    
wiser answer than the last4  ,but if    
that be all1 why can they not say their 
prayers at home8  ,god is everywhere4   
,god is all-seeing1 all-hearing1 about  
our path and about our bed1 and spying  
out all our ways4  ,is ,he not as ready 
to hear in the field1 and in the        
workshop and in the bed-chamber1 as in  
the church8  ,when thou prayest1 says   
our ,lord1 enter into thy closet1 and   
when thou hast shut thy door1 pray to   
thy ,father which is in secret2 and thy 
,father which seeth in secret shall     
reward thee openly4  ,those are not my  
words1 they are the words of our ,lord  
,jesus ,christ ,himself2 and none can   
gainsay them4  ,none dare take from them
 or add to them2 and our coming to      
church1 therefore1 must be for more     
reasons than for the mere saying of our 
prayers4  ,others will answer--very     

many1 indeed1 will answer--we come to   
church because--because1 we hardly know 
why1 but because we ought to come to    
church4  ,some may call that a silly    
answer1 only fit for children3  but ,i  
do not think so4  ,it seems to me a very
 rational answer3  perhaps a very       
reverent and godly answer4  ,a man comes
 to church for reasons which he cannot  
explain to himself3  just so--and many  
of the deepest and best feelings of our 
hearts1 are just those that we cannot   
explain to ourselves1 though we believe 
in them1 would fight for them1 die for  
them4 ,the man who frankly confesses    
that he does not quite know why he comes
 to church is most likely to know at    
last why he does come2 most likely to   
understand the answer which ,scripture  
gives to the question why we come to    
church4  ,and what answer is that8      
,strange to say1 one which people       
now-a-days1 with their ,bibles in their 
hands1 have almost forgotten4  ,we come 
to church1 according to the ,bible1 to  

worship ,god4  ,to worship4  ,think     
awhile what that ancient and deep and   
noble word signifies4  ,so ancient is   
it1 that man learnt to worship even     
before he learnt to till the ground4    
,so deep1 that even to this day no man  
altogether understands what worshipping 
means4  ,so noble1 that the noblest     
souls on earth delight most in          
worshipping2 that the angels1 and       
archangels1 and the spirits of just men 
made perfect1 find no nobler occupation1
 no higher enjoyment1 in the heavenly   
world than worshipping for ever ,him    
whose glory fills all earth and heaven4 
,to worship4  ,that power of worship1   
that longing to worship1 that instinct  
that it is his duty to worship          
something1 is--if you will receive      
it--the true distinction between men and
 brutes4  ,philosophers have tried to   
define man as this sort of animal and   
that sort of animal4  ,the only sound   
definition is this3  man is ,,the one   
animal who worships2 and he worships1   

just because he is ,,not merely an      
animal1 but a man1 with an immortal soul
 within him4  ,just in as far as man    
sinks down again to the level of the    
brute--whether in some savage island of 
the ,south ,seas1 or in some equally    
savage alley of our own great           
cities--,god forgive us that such human 
brutes should exist here in ,christian  
,england--just so far he feels no need  
to worship4  ,he thinks of no unseen    
,god or powers above him4  ,he cares for
 nothing but what his five senses tell  
him of2 he feels no need to go to church
 and worship4  ,just in as far as a man 
rises to the true standard of a man2    
just in as far as his heart and his mind
 are truly cultivated1 truly developed1 
just so far does he become more and more
 aware of an unseen world about him2    
more and more aware that in ,god he     
lives and moves and has his being--and  
so much the more he feels the longing   
and the duty to worship that unseen ,god
 on whom he and the whole universe      

depend4  ,i know what seeming exceptions
 there are to this rule1 especially in  
these days4  ,but ,i say that they are  
only seeming exceptions4  ,i never knew 
yet 7and ,i have known many of them7 a  
virtuous and high-minded unbeliever3    
but what there was in him the instinct  
of worshipping--the longing to          
worship--he knew not what1 the spirit of
 reverence1 which confesses its own     
ignorance and weakness1 and is ready to 
set up1 like the ,athenians of old1 an  
altar--in the heart at least--to the    
unknown ,god4  ,but how to worship ,him8
  ,the word itself1 if we consider what 
it means1 will tell us that4  ,worship1 
without doubt1 is the same word as      
worth- ship4  ,it signifies the worth of
 ,him whom we worship1 that ,he is      
worthy1- -a worthy ,god1 not merely     
because of what ,he has done1 but       
because of what ,he is worth in         
,himself4  ,good1 excellent1 and perfect
 in ,himself1 and therefore to be       
admired1 praised1 reverenced1 adored1   

worshipped-- even if ,he had never done 
a kindness to you or to any human being4
 ,remember this last truth4  ,for true  
it is2 and we remember it too little4   
,of course we know that ,god is good2   
first and mainly by ,his goodness to us4
  ,because ,he is good enough to give us
 life and breath and all things1 we     
conclude that ,he is a good being4      
,because ,he is good enough to have not 
spared ,his only begotten ,son1 but     
freely given ,him for us1 when we were  
still sinners and rebels1 we conclude   
,him to be the best of all beings1 a    
being of boundless goodness4  ,but it is
 because ,god is so perfectly and       
gloriously good in ,himself1 and not    
merely because ,he has done ,,us        
kindnesses1 yea1 heaped us with         
undeserved benefits1 that we are to     
worship ,him4  ,for ,his kindnesses we  
owe ,him gratitude1 and gratitude       
without end4  ,but for ,his excellent   
and glorious goodness1 we owe ,him      
worship1 and worship without end4       

,there are some hearts1 surely1 among   
you here who know what ,i mean3  some   
here who have felt reverence and        
admiration for some great and good human
 being1 and who have felt1 too1 that    
that reverence and admiration is one of 
the most elevating and unselfish of all 
feelings1 and quite distinct from any   
gratitude1 however just1 for favours    
done2 who can say1 in their hearts1 of  
some noble human being3  ,if he never   
did me a kindness1 never spoke to me1   
never knew of my existence1 ,i should   
honour him and love him just the same1  
for the noble and good personage that he
 is1 irrespective of little me1 and my  
paltry wants4  ,then1 even such ought to
 be our feeling toward ,god1 our worship
 of ,god4  ,even so should we adore ,him
 who alone is worthy of glory1 and      
honour1 and praise1 and thanksgiving1   
because ,he is good1 and beautiful1 and 
wise ,himself1 and the cause and source 
of all goodness1 and beauty1 and wisdom1
 in all created beings1 and in the whole

 universe1 past1 present1 and to come4  
,consider1 ,i beseech you1 those        
glimpses of the ,eternal ,worship in    
heaven which ,st ,john gives us in the  
,book of ,revelation--,how he saw the   
elders fall down before ,him who sat    
upon the throne1 and worship ,him that  
liveth for ever1 and cast their crowns  
before the throne1 saying3  ,thou art   
worthy1 ,o ,lord1 to receive glory1 and 
honour1 and power2 for ,thou hast       
created all things1 and for ,thy        
pleasure they are and were created4     
,consider that--,those blessed spirits  
of just men made perfect1 confessing    
that they are nothing1 but that ,christ 
is all2 that they have nothing1 but that
 they owe all to ,christ2 and declaring 
,him worthy--not merely for any special 
mercies and kindnesses to themselves1   
not even for that crowning mercy of ,his
 incarnation1 ,his death1 ,his          
redemption2 even that seems to have     
vanished from their minds at the sight  
of ,him as ,he is4 ,they glorify ,him   

and worship ,him simply for what ,he is 
in ,himself1 for what ,he would have    
been even if--which ,god forbid--,he had
 never stooped from heaven to live and  
die on earth--for what ,he is and was   
and will be through eternity1 the       
,creator and the ,ruler1 who has made   
all things1 and for whose pleasure they 
are and were created4  ,consider that   
one text4 ,the more ,i consider it1 the 
more awful and yet most blessed depths  
of teaching do ,i find therein3  and    
consider this text also1 another glimpse
 of the worship which is in heaven4  ,i 
heard a great voice of much people in   
heaven1 singing ,alleluia2 salvation1   
and glory1 and honour1 and power1 unto  
the ,lord our ,god2 for true and        
righteous are ,his judgments4  ,what the
 special judgment was1 for which these  
blessed souls worshipped ,god1 ,i shall 
not argue here4  ,it is enough for us   
that they worshipped ,god1 as we should 
worship ,him1 because ,his judgments    
were righteous and true1 were like      

,himself1 proved ,him to be what ,he    
was1 worthy in ,himself1 because ,he is 
righteous and true4  ,and consider then1
 again--the text4  ,before ,him1 the    
righteous and true ,being who has       
created all things for ,his pleasure1   
and therefore has made them wisely and  
well2 before ,him who reigns1 and will  
reign till ,he has put all ,his enemies 
under ,his foot2 before ,him1 ,i say1   
bow down yourselves1 and find true      
nobleness in confessing your own        
paltriness1 true strength in confessing 
your own weakness1 true wisdom in       
confessing your own ignorance1 true     
holiness in confessing your own sins4   
,and not alone merely1 each in your own 
chamber1 or in your own heart4 ,that is 
the place for private confessions of    
sin1 for private prayers for help2 for  
all the secrets which we dare not1 and  
need not tell to any human being4  ,they
 indeed are not out of place here in    
church4  ,those who composed our ,prayer
 ,book felt that1 and have filled our   

services1 the ,litany especially1 with  
prayers in which each of us can offer up
 his own troubles to ,god1 if he but    
remember that he is offering up to ,god 
his neighbour's troubles also1 and the  
troubles of all mankind4  ,for this is  
the reason why we pray together in      
church2 why all men1 in all ages1       
heathen as well as ,christian1 have had 
the instinct of assembling together for 
public worship4  ,they may have fancied 
often that their deity dwelt in one     
special spot1 and that they must go     
thither to find him4  ,they may have    
fancied that he or she dwelt in some    
particular image1 and that they must    
visit1 and pray to that particular      
image1 if they wished their prayers to  
be heard4  ,all this1 however1 have men 
done in their foolishness2 but beneath  
that foolishness there have been always 
more rational ideas1 sounder notions4   
,they felt that it was ,god who had made
 them into families1 and therefore whole
 families met together to worship in    

common ,him of whom every family in     
heaven and earth is named4 ,that ,god   
had formed them into societies whether  
into tribes1 as of old1 or into         
parishes1 as here now2 and therefore    
whole parishes came together to worship 
,god1 whose laws they were bound to obey
 in their parochial society4  ,they felt
 that it was ,god who had made them into
 ,nations 7as the psalm says which we   
repeat every ,sunday morning71 and not  
they themselves2 and therefore they     
conceived the grand idea of ,national   
churches1 in which the whole nation     
should1 if possible1 worship ,sunday    
after ,sunday1 at the same time1 and in 
the same words1 that ,god to whom they  
owed their order1 their freedom1 their  
strength1 their safety1 their ,national 
unity and life4  ,and not in silence    
merely4  ,these blessed souls in heaven 
are not silent4  ,they in heaven follow 
out the human instinct which they had on
 earth1 which all men 7when they        
recollect themselves1 will have71 when  

they feel a thing deeply1 when they     
believe a thing strongly1 to speak      
it--to speak it aloud4  ,they do not    
fancy in heaven1 as the priests of ,baal
 did on earth1 that they must cry aloud1
 or ,god could not hear them4  ,they do 
not fancy1 as the heathen do1 that they 
must make vain repetitions1 and say the 
same words over and over again by rote1 
because they will be heard for their    
much speaking2 neither need you and ,i4 
,but yet they spoke aloud1 because out  
of the fulness of the heart the mouth   
speaketh2 and so should you and ,i4     
,and this brings me to the special      
object of my sermon4  ,i have told you  
what 7as it seems to me7 ,worship means2
 why we worship2 why we worship         
together2 and why we ought to worship   
aloud4  ,believe me1 this last is your  
duty just as much as mine4  ,the        
services of the ,church of ,england are 
so constructed that the whole           
congregation may take part in them1 that
 they may answer aloud in the responses1

 that they may say ,amen at the end of  
each prayer1 just as they read or chant 
aloud the alternate verses of the       
,psalms4  ,the minister does not say    
prayers for them1 but with them4  ,he is
 only their leader1 their guide4  ,and  
if they are not to join in with their   
voices1 there is really no reason why he
 should use his voice1 why he should not
 say the prayers in silence and to      
himself1 if the congregation are to say 
,amen in silence and to themselves4     
,each person in the congregation ought  
to join aloud1 first for the sake of his
 neighbours1 and then for his own sake4 
,for the sake of his neighbours3  for to
 hear each other's voices stirs up      
earnestness1 stirs up attention1 keeps  
off laziness1 inattention1 and by a     
wholesome infection1 makes all the      
congregation of one mind1 as they are of
 one speech1 in glorifying ,god4  ,and  
for his own sake1 too4  ,for1 believe   
me1 when a man utters the responses     
aloud1 he awakens his own thoughts and  

his own feelings1 too4  ,he speaks to   
himself1 and he hears himself remind    
himself of ,god1 and of his duty to     
,god1 and acknowledge himself openly 7as
 in confirmation7 bound to believe and  
do what he1 by his own confession1 has  
assented unto4  ,believe me1 my dear    
friends1 this is no mere theory4  ,it is
 to me a matter of fact and experience4 
,i cannot1 ,i have long found1 keep my  
attention steady during a service1 if ,i
 do not make the responses aloud2- -if  
,i do not join in with my voice1 ,i find
 my thoughts wandering2 and ,i am bound 
to suppose that the case is the same    
with you4  ,do not1 therefore1 think me 
impertinent or interfering1 if ,i ask   
you all to take your due share in       
worshipping ,god in this church with    
your voices1 as well as with your       
hearts4  ,let these services be more    
lively1 more earnest1 more useful to us 
all than they have been1 by making them 
more a worship of the whole             
congregation1 and not of the minister   

alone4  ,i have read of a great church  
in the ,east1 in days long1 long ago1 in
 which the responses of the vast        
congregation were so unanimous1 so loud1
 that they sounded 7says the old writer7
 like a clap of thunder4  ,that is too  
much to expect in our little country    
church3  but at least1 ,i beg you1 take 
such an open part in the responses1 that
 you shall all feel that you are really 
worshipping together the same ,god and  
,christ1 with the same heart and mind2  
and that if a stranger shall come in1 he
 may say in his heart3 ,here are people 
who are in earnest1 who know what they  
are about1 and are not ashamed of trying
 to do it2 people who evidently mean    
what they say1 and therefore say what   
they mean4    ,,sermon ,,xxv4  ,,the    
,,peace ,,of ,,god    ,baltimore1       
,u4,s41 #ahgd4  ,westminster ,abbey4    
,november #h1 #ahgd4  ,colossians4 iii  
#ae4  ,let the peace of ,god rule in    
your hearts4  ,the peace of ,god4  ,that
 is what the priest will invoke for you 

all1 when you leave this abbey4  ,do you
 know what it is8  ,whether you do or   
not1 let me tell you in a few words1    
what ,i seem to myself to have learned  
concerning that peace4  ,what it is8 how
 we can obtain it8 and why so many do   
not obtain it1 and are1 therefore1 not  
at peace8  ,it is worth while to do so4 
,for these are not peaceful times4  ,the
 peace of ,god is rare among us4  ,some 
say that it is rarer than it was4  ,i   
know not how that may be2 but ,i see all
 manner of causes at work around us     
which should make it rare4  ,we live    
faster than our forefathers4  ,we hurry1
 we bustle1 we travel1 we are eager for 
daily1 almost for hourly news from every
 quarter1 as if the world could not get 
on without us1 or we without knowing a  
hundred facts which merely satisfy the  
curiosity of the moment2 and as if the  
great ,god could not take excellent care
 of us all meanwhile4  ,we are eager1   
too1 to get money1 and get more money   
still--piercing ourselves through too   

often1 as the ,apostle warned us-- with 
many sorrows1 and falling into foolish  
and hurtful lusts1 which drown men in   
destruction and perdition4  ,we are     
luxurious--more and more fond of show2  
more apt to live up to our incomes1 and 
probably a little beyond2 more and more 
craving for this or that gew-gaw1       
especially in dress and ornament1 which 
if our neighbour has1 we must have too1 
or we shall be mortified1 envious4      
,nay1 so strong is this temper of       
rivalry1 of allowing no superiors1 grown
 in us1 that we have made now-a-days a  
god of what used to be considered the   
basest of all vices--the vice of envy-- 
and dignify it with the names of        
equality and independence4  ,men in this
 temper of mind cannot be at peace4     
,they are not content2 they cannot be   
content4  ,but with what are they not   
content8  ,that is a question worth     
asking4 ,for there is a discontent 7as  
,i have told you ere now7 which is      
noble1 manful1 heroic1 and divine4      

,just as there is a discontent which is 
base1 mean1 unmanly1 earthly--sometimes 
devilish4  ,there is a discontent which 
is certain1 sooner or later1 to bring   
with it the peace of ,god4  ,there is a 
discontent which drives the peace of    
,god away1 for ever and a day4  ,and the
 noble and peace-bringing discontent is 
to be discontented with ourselves1 as   
very few are4  ,and the mean            
peace-destroying discontent is to be    
discontented with things around us1 as  
too many are4  ,now1 my friends1 ,i     
cannot see into your hearts2 and ,i     
ought not to see4  ,for if ,i saw1 ,i   
should be tempted to judge2 and if ,i   
judged1 ,i should most certainly judge  
rashly1 shallowly1 and altogether wrong4
  ,therefore examine yourselves1 and    
judge yourselves in this matter4  ,ask  
yourselves each1 ,am ,i at peace8  ,and 
if not1 then apply to yourselves the    
rule of old ,epictetus1 the heroic      
slave1 who1 heathen though he was1      
sought ,god1 and the peace of ,god1 and 

found them1 doubt it not1 long1 long    
ago4  ,ask yourselves with ,epictetus1  
,am ,i discontented with things which   
are in my own power1 or with things     
which are not in my own power8--that is1
 discontented with myself1 or with      
things which are not myself8  ,am ,i    
discontented with myself1 or with things
 about me1 and outside of me8 ,consider 
this last question well1 if you wish to 
be true ,christians1 true philosophers1 
and1 indeed1 true men and women4  ,but  
what is it that troubles you8  ,what is 
it you want altered8  ,on what have you 
set your heart and affections8  ,is it  
something outside you8-- something which
 is ,,not you yourself8  ,if so1 there  
is no use in tormenting your soul about 
it2 for it is not in your own power1 and
 you will never alter it to your liking2
 and more1 you need not alter it1 for   
you are not responsible for it4  ,god   
sends it as it is1 for better1 for      
worse1 and you must make up your mind to
 what ,god sends4  ,do ,i mean that we  

are to submit slavishly to              
circumstances1 like dumb animals8       
,heaven forbid4  ,we are not1 like      
,epictetus1 slaves1 but free men4  ,and 
we are made in ,god's image1 and have   
each our spark1 however dim1 of that    
creative genius1 that power of creating 
or of altering circumstances1 by which  
,god made all worlds2 and to use that1  
is of our very birthright1 or what would
 all education1 progress1 civilisation  
be1 save rebellion against ,god8  ,but  
when we have done our utmost1 how little
 shall we have done6  ,canst thou1--asks
 our ,lord1 looking with loving sadness 
on the hurry and the struggle of the    
human anthill--canst thou by taking     
thought add one cubit to thy stature8   
,why1 is there a wise man or woman in   
this abbey1 past fifty years of age1 who
 does not know that1 in spite of all    
their toil and struggle1 they have gone 
not whither they willed1 but whither    
,god willed8  ,have they not found out  
that for one circumstance of their lives

 which they could alter1 there have been
 twenty which they could not1 some born 
with them1 some forced on them by an    
overruling ,providence1 irresistible    
indeed--but1 as ,i hold1 most loving and
 most fatherly1 though often            
severe--even to agony--but irresistible 
still-- till what they have really      
gained by fighting circumstance1 however
 valiantly1 has been the ,,moral gain1  
the gain in character8--the power to    
live the heroic life1 which      ,is not
 as idle ore1 ,but heated hot with      
burning fears1 ,and bathed in baths of  
hissing tears1 ,and batter'd1 with the  
shocks of doom1 ,to shape and use4      
,ah6 if a man be learning that lesson1  
which is the primer of eternal life1    
then ,i hardly pity him1 though ,i see  
him from youth to age tearing with weak 
hands at the gates of brass1 and beating
 his soul's wings to pieces against the 
bars of the iron cage4  ,but1 alas6 the 
majority of mankind tear at the gates of
 brass1 and beat against the iron cage1 

with no such good purpose1 and therefore
 with no such good result4  ,they fight 
with circumstances1 not that they may   
become better themselves1 not that they 
may right the wrongs or elevate the     
souls of their fellow-men1 not even that
 they may fulfil the sacred duty of     
maintaining1 and educating1 and         
providing for the children whom they    
have brought into the world1 and for    
whom they are responsible alike to ,god 
and to man2 but simply because          
circumstances are disagreeable to them2 
because the things around them do not   
satisfy their covetousness1 their       
luxury1 their ambition1 their vanity4   
,and therefore the majority of mankind  
want to be1 and to do1 and to have a    
hundred things which are not in their   
own power1 and of which they have no    
proof that ,god intends to give them2 no
 proof either that if they had them1    
they would make right use of them1 and  
certainly no proof at all that if they  
had them they would find peace4  ,they  

war and fight1 and have not1 because    
they ask not4  ,they ask1 and have not1 
because they ask amiss1 to consume it on
 their lusts2 and so they spend their   
lives without peace1 longing1 struggling
 for things outside them1 the greater   
part of which they do not get1 because  
the getting them is not in their own    
power1 and which if they got they could 
not keep1 for they can carry nothing    
away with them when they die1 neither   
can their pomp follow them4 ,and        
therefore does man walk in a vain       
shadow1 and disquiet himself in vain1   
looking for peace where it is not to be 
found--in everything and anything save  
in his own heart1 in duty1 and in ,god4 
,but happy are they who are discontented
 with the divine discontent1            
discontented with themselves4  ,happy   
are they who hunger and thirst after    
righteousness1 that they may become     
righteous and good men4  ,happy are they
 who have set their hearts on the one   
thing which is in their own power--being

 better than they are1 and doing better 
than they do4  ,happy are they who long 
and labour after the true riches1 which 
neither mobs nor tyrants1 man nor devil1
 prosperity nor adversity1 or any chance
 or change of mortal life1 can take from
 them--the true and eternal wealth1     
which is the ,spirit of ,god4  ,the man1
 ,i say1 who has set his heart on being 
good1 has set his heart on the one thing
 which is in his own power2 the one     
thing which depends wholly and solely on
 his own will2 the one thing which he   
can have if he chooses1 for it is       
written1 ,if ye then being evil1 know   
how to give good gifts unto your        
children1 how much more shall your      
heavenly ,father give the ,holy ,spirit 
to them that ask ,him8 ,moreover1 he has
 set his heart on the one thing which   
cannot be taken from him4  ,god will not
 take it from him2 and man1 and fortune1
 and misfortune1 cannot take it from    
him4  ,poverty1 misery1 disease1 death  
itself1 cannot make him a worse man1    

cannot make him less just1 less true1   
less pure1 less charitable1 less        
high-minded1 less like ,christ1 and less
 like ,god4  ,therefore he is at peace1 
for he is1 as it were1 intrenched in an 
impregnable fortress1 against all men   
and all evil influences4  ,and that     
castle is his own soul4  ,and the keeper
 of that castle is none other than      
,almighty ,god1 ,jesus ,christ our      
,lord1 to whose keeping he has committed
 his soul1 as unto a faithful and       
merciful ,saviour1 able to keep to the  
uttermost that which is committed to    
,him in faith and holiness4  ,therefore 
that man is at peace with himself1 for  
his conscience tells him that he is1 if 
not doing his best1 yet trying to do his
 best1 better and better day by day4    
,he is at peace with all the world2 for 
most men are longing and quarrelling for
 pleasant things outside them1 for which
 he does not greatly care1 while he is  
longing and striving for good things    
inside him in his own heart and soul2   

and so the world goes one way1 and he   
another1 and their desires do not       
interfere with each other4  ,but1 more1 
that man is at peace with ,god4  ,he is 
at peace with ,god the ,father2 for he  
is behaving as the ,father wishes ,his  
children to behave4 ,he is at peace with
 ,god the ,son2 for he is trying to do  
that which ,god the ,son did when ,he   
came not to do ,his own will1 but ,his  
,father's2 not to grasp at anything for 
himself1 but simply to sacrifice himself
 for duty1 for the good of man4  ,and he
 is at peace with ,god the ,holy        
,spirit2 for he is obeying the gracious 
inspirations of that ,spirit1 and       
growing a better man day by day4  ,and  
so the peace of ,god keeps that man's   
heart free from vain desires and angry  
passions1 and his mind from those false 
and foolish judgments which make the    
world think things important which are  
quite unimportant2 and1 again1 fancy    
things unimportant which are more       
important to them than the riches of the

 whole world4  ,my dear friends1 take my
 words home with you1 and if you wish   
for the only true and sound peace1 which
 is the peace of ,god1 do your duty4    
,try to be as good as you can1 each in  
his station in life4  ,so help you ,god4
  ,take an example from the soldier on  
the march2 and if you do that1 you will 
all understand what ,i mean4  ,the bad  
soldier has no peace1 just because he   
troubles himself about things outside   
himself1 and not in his own power4      
,will the officers lead us right8 ,that 
is not in his power4 ,let him go where  
the officers lead him1 and do his own   
duty4  ,will he get food enough1 water  
enough1 care enough1 if he is wounded8  
,i hope and trust in ,god he will2 but  
that is not in his own power4  ,let him 
take that1 too1 as it comes1 and do his 
duty4  ,will he be praised1 rewarded1   
mentioned in the newspapers1 if he      
fights well8  ,that1 too1 is not in his 
own power4  ,let him take that1 too1 as 
it comes1 and do his duty2 and so of    

everything else4  ,if the soldier on the
 march torments himself with these      
matters which are not in his own power1 
he is the man who will be troublesome   
and mutinous in time of peace1 and in   
time of war will be the first to run    
away4  ,he will tell you1 ,a man must   
have justice done him2 a man must see   
fair play for himself2 a man must think 
of himself4  ,poor fool6  ,he is not    
thinking of himself all the while1 but  
of a number of things which are outside 
him1 circumstances which stand round    
him1 and outside him1 and are not       
himself at all4  ,because he thinks of  
them--the things outside him--he is a   
coward or a mutineer1 while he fancies  
he is taking care of himself--as it is  
written1 ,whosoever shall seek to save  
his life shall lose it4  ,but if the man
 will really think of himself1 of that  
which is inside him1 of his own         
character1 his own honour1 his own      
duty--then he will say1 ,well fed or ill
 fed1 well led or ill led1 praised and  

covered with medals1 or neglected and   
forgotten1 and dying in a ditch1 ,i1 by 
myself ,i1 am the same man1 and ,i have 
the same work to do4  ,i have to        
be--myself1 and ,i have to do--my duty4 
,so help me ,god4  ,and therefore1 so   
help me ,god1 ,i will be discontented   
with no person or thing1 save only with 
myself2 and ,i will be discontented with
 myself1 not when ,i have left undone   
something extraordinary1 which ,i know  
,i could not have done1 but only when ,i
 have left undone something ordinary1   
some plain duty which ,i know ,i could  
have done1 had ,i asked ,god to help me 
to do it4  ,then in that soldier would  
be fulfilled--has been fulfilled1 thank 
,god1 a thousand times1 by men who lie  
in this abbey1 and by men1 too1 of whom 
we never heard1 whose graves are        
scattered far and wide1 by mount1 by    
stream1 by sea1--in him would be        
fulfilled1 ,i say1 the words1 ,he that  
will lose his life shall save it4  ,then
 would he have in his heart1 and in his 

mind likewise1 a peace which victory and
 safety cannot give1 and which defeat1  
and wounds1 ay1 death itself1 can never 
take away4  ,and are not you1 too1      
soldiers--soldiers of ,jesus ,christ8   
,then even as that good soldier1 you may
 be at peace1 through all the battles1  
victories1 defeats of mortal life1 if   
you will be discontented with nothing   
save yourselves1 and vow1 in spirit and 
in truth1 the one oath which is no      
blasphemy1 but an act of faith1 and an  
act of prayer1 and a confession of the  
true theology--,so help me ,god4  ,for  
then ,god will help you4  ,neither you  
nor ,i know how2 and ,i am sure neither 
you nor ,i know why--save that ,god is  
utterly good4  ,god1 ,i say1 will help  
you1 by ,his ,holy ,spirit the          
,comforter1 to do your duty1 and to be  
at peace4  ,and then the peace of ,god  
will rule in your hearts and make you   
kings to ,god4  ,for ,he will enable    
,,you each to rule1 serene1 though      
weary1 over a kingdom-- or1 alas6 rather

 a mob1 the most unruly1 the most       
unreasonable1 the most unstable1 and    
often the most fierce1 which you are    
like to meet on earth4 ,to rule1 ,i say1
 over a mob1 of which you each must     
needs be king or slave1 according as you
 choose4  ,and what is that mob8  ,what 
but your own faculties1 your own        
emotions1 your own passions--in one     
word1 your own selves8  ,yes1 with the  
peace of ,god ruling in your hearts1 you
 will be able to become what without it 
you will never be--and that is--masters 
of yourselves4    ,,sermon ,,xxvi4      
,,sins ,,of ,,parents ,,visited         
,eversley4 #aith ,sunday after ,trinity1
 #ahfh4  ,ezekiel xviii4 #a-d4  ,the    
word of the ,lord came unto me again1   
saying1 ,what mean ye1 that ye use this 
proverb concerning the land of ,israel1 
saying1 ,the fathers have eaten sour    
grapes1 and the children's teeth are set
 on edge8  ,as ,i live1 saith the ,lord 
,god1 ye shall not have occasion any    
more to use this proverb in ,israel4    

,behold1 all souls are mine2 as the soul
 of the father1 so also the soul of the 
son is mine3  the soul that sinneth1 it 
shall die4  ,this is a precious chapter1
 and a comfortable chapter likewise1 for
 it helps us to clear up a puzzle which 
has tormented the minds of men in all   
ages whenever they have thought of ,god1
 and of whether ,god meant them well1 or
 meant them ill4  ,for all men have been
 tempted4  ,we are tempted at times to  
say1--,the fathers have eaten sour      
grapes1 and the children's teeth are set
 on edge4 ,that is1 we are punished not 
for what we have done wrong1 but for    
what our fathers did wrong4  ,one man   
says1--,my forefathers squandered their 
money1 and ,i am punished by being poor4
  ,or1 my forefathers ruined their      
constitutions1 and1 therefore1 ,i am    
weakly and sickly4  ,my forefathers were
 ignorant and reckless1 and1 therefore1 
,i was brought up ignorant1 and in all  
sorts of temptation4  ,and so men       
complain of their ill-luck and bad      

chance1 as they call it1 till they      
complain of ,god1 and say1 as the ,jews 
said in ,ezekiel's time1 ,god's ways are
 unequal--partial--unfair4 ,he is a     
respecter of persons4  ,he has not the  
same rule for all men4  ,he starts men  
unequally in the race of life--some     
heavily weighted with their father's    
sins and misfortunes1 some helped in    
every way by their father's virtue and  
good fortune--and then ,he expects them 
all to run alike4  ,god is not just and 
equal4  ,and then some go on1--men who  
think themselves philosophers1 but are  
none--to say things concerning ,god of  
which ,i shall say nothing here1 lest ,i
 put into your minds foolish thoughts1  
which had best be kept out of them4     
,but1 some of you may say1 ,is it not so
 after all8  ,is it not true8  ,is not  
,god harder on some than on others8     
,does not ,god punish men every day for 
their father's sins8  ,does ,he not say 
in the ,second ,commandment that ,he    
will do so1 and visit the sins of the   

fathers upon the children to the third  
and fourth generation2 and how can you  
make that agree with what ,ezekiel      
says1--,the son shall not bear the      
iniquity of the father4  ,my dear       
friends1 ,i know that this is a puzzle1 
and always has been one4 ,like the old  
puzzle of ,god's foreknowledge and our  
free will1 which seem to contradict each
 other4  ,like the puzzle that we must  
help ourselves1 and yet that ,god must  
help us1 which seem to contradict each  
other4  ,so with this4  ,i believe of   
it1 as of the two others ,i just        
mentioned1 that there is no real        
contradiction between the two cases2 and
 that some-when1 somehow1 somewhere1 in 
the world to come1 we shall see them    
clearly reconciled2 and justify ,god in 
all ,his dealings1 and glorify ,him in  
all ,his ways4  ,but surely already1    
here1 now1 we may see our way somewhat  
into the depths of this mystery4  ,for  
,christ has come to give us light1 and  
in ,his light we may see light1 even    

into this dark matter4  ,for see3  ,god 
visits the sins of the fathers upon the 
children unto the third and fourth      
generation--but of whom8--of them that  
hate ,him4  ,now1 by those who hate ,god
 is meant1 those who break ,his         
commandments1 and are bad men4  ,if so1 
then1 ,i say that ,god is not only just 
but merciful1 in visiting the sins of   
the fathers on the children4  ,for1     
consider two cases4  ,suppose these bad 
men1 from father to son1 and from son to
 grandson1 go on in the same evil ways1 
and are incorrigible4 ,then is not ,god 
merciful to the world in punishing them1
 even in destroying them out of the     
world1 where they only do harm8  ,the   
world does not want fools1 it wants wise
 men4  ,the world does not want bad men1
 it wants good men2 and we ought to     
thank ,god1 if1 by ,his eternal laws1   
,he gets rid of bad men for us2 and1 as 
the saying is1 civilizes them off the   
face of the earth in the third or fourth
 generation4  ,and ,god does so4 ,if a  

family1 or a class1 or a whole nation   
becomes incorrigibly profligate1        
foolish1 base1 in three or four         
generations they will either die out or 
vanish4  ,they will sink to the bottom  
of society1 and become miserably poor1  
weak1 and of no influence1 and so unable
 to do harm to any but themselves4      
,whole families will sink thus1 ,i have 
seen it2 you may have seen it4  ,whole  
nations will sink thus2 as the ,jews    
sank in ,ezekiel's time1 and again in   
our ,lord's time2 and be conquered1     
trampled on1 counted for nothing1       
because they were worth nothing4  ,but  
now suppose1 again1 that the children1  
when their father's sins are visited on 
them1 are ,,not incorrigible4  ,suppose 
they are like the wise son of whom      
,ezekiel speaks1 in the #adth verse1 who
 seeth all his father's sins1 and       
considereth1 and doeth not such         
like--then has not ,god been merciful   
and kind to him in visiting his father's
 sins on him8  ,he has4 ,god is         

justified therein4  ,his eternal laws of
 natural retribution1 severe as they    
are1 have worked in love and in mercy1  
if they have taught the young man the   
ruinousness1 the deadliness of sin4     
,have the father's sins made the son    
poor8  ,then he learns not to make his  
children poor by his sin4  ,have his    
father's sins made him unhealthy8  ,then
 he learns not to injure his children's 
health4  ,have his father's sins kept   
him ignorant1 or in anywise hindered his
 rise in life8  ,then he learns the     
value of a good education1 and1 perhaps1
 stints himself to give his children    
advantages which he had not             
himself--and1 as sure as he does so1 the
 family begins to rise again after its  
fall4  ,this is no fancy1 it is fact4   
,you may see it4  ,i have seen it1 thank
 ,god4  ,how some of the purest and     
noblest women1 some of the ablest and   
most right-minded men1 will spring from 
families1 will be reared in households1 
where everything was against them--where

 there was everything to make them      
profligate1 false1 reckless1 in a       
word--bad--except the grace of ,god1    
which was trying to make them good1 and 
succeeded in making them good2 and how1 
though they have felt the punishment of 
their parents' sins upon them in many   
ways during their whole life1 yet that  
has been to them not a mere punishment1 
but a chastisement1 a purifying         
medicine1 a cross to be borne1 which    
only stirred them up to greater         
watchfulness against sin1 to greater    
earnestness in educating their children1
 to greater activity and energy in doing
 right1 and giving their children the   
advantages which they had not           
themselves4  ,and so were fulfilled in  
them two laws of ,god4 ,the one which   
,ezekiel lays down--that the bad man's  
son who executes ,god's judgments and   
walks in ,god's statutes shall not die  
for the iniquity of his father1 but     
surely live2 and the other law which    
,moses lays down--that ,god shews mercy 

unto thousands of generations1 as ,i    
believe it means--that is1 to son after 
father1 and son after father again1     
without end--as long as they love ,him  
and keep ,his commandments4  ,i do not1 
therefore1 see that there is any real   
contradiction between what ,moses says  
in the second commandment and what      
,ezekiel says in this chapter4  ,they   
are but two different sides of the same 
truth2 and ,moses is shewing the ,jews  
one side1 because they needed most to be
 taught that in his time1 and ,ezekiel  
showing them the other1 because that was
 the teaching which they needed most    
then4  ,for they were fancying          
themselves1 in their calamities1 the    
victims of some blind and cruel fate1   
and had forgotten that1 when ,god said  
that ,he visited the sins of the fathers
 on the children1 ,he qualified it by   
saying1 of them that hate ,me4          
,therefore1 be hopeful about yourselves1
 and hopeful about your children after  
you4  ,if any one here feels--,i am     

fallen very low in the world-- here all 
has been so much against me--my parents 
were the ruin of me--,let him remember  
this one word of ,ezekiel4  ,have ,i any
 pleasure at all that the wicked should 
die8 saith the ,lord ,god3  and not that
 he should return from his ways1 and    
live8  ,let him turn from his father's  
evil ways1 and do that which is lawful  
and right1 and then he can say with the 
,prophet1 in answer to all the strokes  
of fortune and the miseries of          
circumstance1 ,rejoice not against me1  
,o mine enemy3  when ,i fall ,i shall   
arise4 ,provided he will remember that  
,god requires of all men something1     
which is1 to be as good as they can be2 
then he may remember also that our ,lord
 ,himself says1 ,unto whomsoever much is
 given1 of him shall much be required2  
implying that to whom little is given1  
of him will little be required4  ,god's 
ways are not unequal4  ,he has one      
equal1 fair1 and just rule for every    
human being2 and that is perfect        

understanding1 perfect sympathy1 perfect
 good will1 and therefore perfect       
justice and perfect love4  ,and if any  
one of you answers in his heart--these  
are good words1 and all very well3  but 
they come too late4  ,i am too far gone4
  ,i ate the sour grapes in my youth1   
and my teeth must be on edge for ever   
and ever4  ,i have been a bad man1 or ,i
 have been a foolish woman too many     
years to mend now4  ,i am down1 and down
 ,i must be4  ,i have made my bed1 and  
,i must lie on it1 and die on it too4   
,oh my dear brother or sister in        
,christ1 whoever you are who says that1 
unsay it again for it is not true4      
,ezekiel tells you that it is not true1 
and one greater than ,ezekiel1 ,jesus   
,christ1 your ,saviour1 your ,lord1 your
 ,god1 tells you it is not true4  ,for  
what happens1 by ,god's eternal and     
unchangeable laws of retribution1 to a  
whole nation1 or a whole family1 may    
happen to you--to each individual man4  
,they fall by sin2 they rise again by   

repentance and amendment4  ,they may    
rise punished by their sins1 and        
punished for a long time1 heavily       
weighted by the consequences of their   
own folly1 and heavily weighted for a   
long time4  ,but they rise--they enter  
into their new life weak and wounded1   
from their own fault4  ,but they enter  
in4  ,and from that day things begin to 
mend--the weather begins to clear1 the  
soil begins to yield again--punishment  
gradually ceases when it has done its   
work1 the weight lightens1 the wounds   
heal1 the weakness strengthens1 and by  
,god's grace within them1 and by ,god's 
providence outside them1 they are made  
men of again1 and saved4  ,so you will  
surely find it in the experience of     
life4  ,no doubt in general1 in most    
cases1   ,the child is father of the man
   for good and evil4  ,a pious and     
virtuous youth helps1 by sure laws of   
,god1 towards a pious and virtuous old  
age4  ,and on the other hand1 an ungodly
 and profligate youth leads1 by the same

 laws1 toward an ungodly and profligate 
old age4  ,that is the law4  ,but there 
is another law which may stop that      
law--just as the stone falls to the     
ground by the natural law of weight1 and
 yet you may stop that law by using the 
law of bodily strength1 and holding it  
up in your hand4  ,and what is the      
gracious law which will save you from   
the terrible law which will make you go 
on from worse to worse8  ,it is         
this1--when the wicked man turneth away 
from his wickedness that he hath        
committed1 and doeth that which is      
lawful and right1 he shall save his soul
 alive4  ,it is not said that his soul  
shall come in a moment to perfect health
 and strength4  ,no4  ,there are old bad
 habits to be got rid of1 old ties to be
 broken1 old debts 7often worse debts   
than any money debts7 to be paid4  ,but 
he shall save his soul alive4  ,his soul
 shall not die of its disease4  ,it     
shall be saved4  ,it shall come to life1
 and gradually mend and be cured1 and   

grow from strength to strength1 as a    
sick man mends day by day after a deadly
 illness1 slowly it may be1 but         
surely3--for how can you fail of being  
cured if your physician is none other   
than ,jesus ,christ your ,lord and your 
,god8  ,oh1 recollect that last word4   
,if you will but recollect that1 you    
will never despair4  ,how dare any man  
say--,bad ,i am1 and bad ,i must        
remain-- while the ,god who made heaven 
and earth offers to make you good8  ,who
 dare say1--,i cannot amend--when ,god  
,himself offers to amend you8  ,who dare
 say1--,i have no strength to           
amend--when ,god offers to give you     
strength1 strength of ,his strength1 and
 life of ,his life1 even ,his ,holy     
,spirit8  ,who dare say1--,god has given
 me up2 ,he has a grudge against me     
which ,he will not lay by1 an anger     
against me which cannot be appeased1 a  
score against me which will never be    
wiped out of ,his book8  ,oh foolish and
 faint-hearted soul4  ,look1 look at    

,christ hanging on ,his cross1 and see  
there what ,god's grudge1 ,god's anger1 
,god's score of your sins is like4      
,like love unspeakable1 and nothing     
else4  ,to wash out your sins1 ,he      
spared not ,his only begotten ,son1 but 
freely gave ,him for you1 to shew you   
that ,god1 so far from hating you1 has  
loved you2 that so far from being your  
enemy1 ,he was your father2 that so far 
from willing the death of a sinner1 ,he 
willed that you and every sinner should 
turn from his wickedness and live4  ,for
 that1 ,jesus the only begotten ,son of 
,god1 came down and preached1 and       
sorrowed1 and suffered1 and died upon   
the cross4 ,he died that you may live2  
,he suffered that you may be saved2 ,he 
paid the debt1 because you could never  
pay it2 ,he bore your sins upon the     
cross1 that you might not have to bear  
them for ever and for ever in eternal   
death4  ,now1 even if you suffer        
somewhat in this life for your sins1    
that suffering is not punishment1 but   

wholesome chastisement1 as when a father
 chastens the son in whom he delighteth4
  ,all ,he asks of you is to long and   
try to give up your sins1 for ,he will  
help you to give them up4  ,all ,he asks
 of you is to long and try to lead a new
 life1 for ,he will give you power to   
lead a new life4  ,oh1 say not--,i      
cannot--when ,christ who died for you   
says you can4  ,say not--,i dare        
not--when ,christ bids you dare come    
boldly to ,his throne of grace4  ,say   
not--,i must be as ,i am-- when ,christ 
died that you should ,,not be as you    
are4  ,say not--there is no hope--when  
,christ died and rose again1 and reigns 
for ever1 to give hope to you and all   
mankind1 that when the wicked man turns 
away from his wickedness that he has    
committed1 and doeth that which is      
lawful and right1 he shall save his soul
 alive1 and all his transgressions shall
 not be mentioned unto him1 but in his  
righteousness that he hath done shall he
 live4    ,,sermon ,,xxvii4  ,,agree    

,,with ,,thine ,,adversary    ,eversley1
 #ahfa4  ,windsor ,castle1 #ahfg4  ,st4 
,matthew v4 #be1 #bf4  ,agree with thine
 adversary quickly1 whiles thou art in  
the way with him2 lest at any time the  
adversary deliver thee to the judge1 and
 the judge deliver thee to the officer1 
and thou be cast into prison4  ,verily  
,i say unto thee1 ,thou shalt by no     
means come out thence1 till thou hast   
paid the uttermost farthing4  ,this     
parable our ,lord seems to have spoken  
at least twice1 as ,he did several      
others4  ,for we find it also in the    
#abth chapter of ,st4 ,luke4 ,but it is 
there part of quite a different         
discourse4  ,i think that by seeing what
 it means there1 we shall see more      
clearly what it means here4  ,our ,lord 
there is speaking of the sins of the    
whole ,jewish nation4  ,here ,he is     
speaking rather of each man's private   
sins4  ,but ,he applies the same parable
 to both4  ,he gives the same warning to
 both4  ,not to go too far on the wrong 

road1 lest they come to a point where   
they cannot turn back1 but must go on to
 just punishment1 if not to utter       
destruction4  ,that is what ,he warned  
the ,jews all through the latter part of
 the #abth chapter of ,luke4  ,he will  
come again1 ,he says1 at an hour they do
 not think of1 and then if their elders1
 the ,scribes and ,pharisees1 are going 
on as they are now1 beating the         
man-servants and maid-servants1 and     
eating and drinking with the drunken1   
oppressing the people1 and living in    
luxury and profligacy1 ,he will cut them
 asunder1 and appoint them their portion
 with the unbelievers4  ,in this1 and in
 many other parables1 ,he had been      
warning them that their ruin was near2  
and1 at last1 turning to the whole      
crowd1 ,he appeals to them1 to their    
common sense4  ,when ye see a cloud rise
 out of the west1 straightway ye say1   
,there cometh a shower2 and so it is4   
,and when ye see the south wind blow1 ye
 say1 ,there will be heat2 and it cometh

 to pass4 ,ye hypocrites1 ye can discern
 the face of the sky and of the earth2  
but how is it that ye do not discern    
this time8  ,if ,god can give you common
 sense about one thing1 why not about   
another8  ,why can you not open your    
eyes and of yourselves judge what is    
right8  ,agree with thine adversary     
quickly1 whiles thou art in the way with
 him2 lest at any time the adversary    
deliver thee to the judge1 and the judge
 deliver thee to the officer1 and thou  
be cast into prison4  ,verily ,i say    
unto thee1 ,thou shalt by no means come 
out thence1 till thou hast paid the     
uttermost farthing4  ,so ,he spoke2 and 
they did not fully understand what ,he  
meant4  ,they thought that by their     
adversary ,he meant the ,roman governor4
  ,for they immediately began to talk to
 ,him about some ,galileans whose blood 
,pilate1 the ,roman governor1 had       
mingled with their sacrifices 7,i       
suppose in some of those wars which were
 continually breaking out in ,judea74   

,i think ,he meant more than that4      
,suppose ye that these ,galilaeans were 
sinners above all the ,galilaeans8      
,except ye repent1 ye shall all likewise
 perish4  ,as much as to say1 though ye 
did not rebel against the ,romans like  
these ,galilaeans1 you have your sins1  
which will ruin ,,you4  ,as long as you 
are hypocrites1 with your mouths full of
 the cant of religion1 and your hearts  
full of all mean and spiteful passions2 
as long as you cannot of yourselves     
discern what is right1 and have lost    
conscience1 and the everlasting         
distinction between right and wrong1 so 
long are you walking blindfold to ruin4 
,there is an adversary against you1 who 
will surely deliver you to the judge    
some day1 and then it will be too late  
to cry for mercy4  ,and who was that    
adversary8  ,who but the everlasting law
 of ,god1 which says1 ,thou shalt do    
justly8--and you ,jews are utterly      
unjust1 false1 covetous1 and            
unrighteous4  ,thou shalt love all men2 

and you are cruel and spiteful1 hating  
each other1 and making all mankind hate 
you4 ,thou shalt walk humbly with thy   
,god2 and you ,jews are walking proudly 
with ,god2 fancying that ,god belongs   
only to you2 that because you are ,his  
chosen people1 ,he will let you commit  
every sin you choose1 as long as you    
keep ,his name on your lips1 and keep up
 an empty worship of ,him in the temple4
  ,that is your adversary1 the          
everlasting moral law of ,god4 ,and who 
is the ,judge but ,god ,himself1 who is 
set on ,his throne judging right1 while 
you are doing wrong8  ,and who is the   
officer1 to whom that judge will deliver
 you8  ,there indeed the ,jews were     
right4  ,it was the ,romans whom ,god   
appointed to punish them for their sins4
  ,all which our ,lord had foretold1 as 
all the world knows1 came true forty    
years after in that horrible siege of   
,jerusalem1 which the ,jews brought on  
themselves entirely by their own folly1 
and pride1 and wicked lawlessness4  ,in 

that siege1 by famine and pestilence1 by
 the ,romans' swords1 by crucifixion1   
and by each other's hands 7for the      
different factions were murdering each  
other wholesale up to the very day      
,jerusalem was taken71 thousands of     
,jews perished horribly1 and the rest   
were sold as slaves over the face of the
 whole earth1 and led away into a       
captivity from which they could not     
escape till they had paid the uttermost 
farthing4  ,now let us look at this same
 parable in the #eth chapter of ,st     
,matthew4 ,remember first that it is    
part of the sermon on the ,mount1 which 
is all about not doctrine1 but morality1
 the law of right and wrong1 the law of 
justice and mercy4  ,you will see then  
that our ,lord is preaching against the 
same sins as in the #abth chapter of    
,st4 ,luke4  ,against a hypocritical    
religion1 joined with a cruel and unjust
 heart4  ,those of old time1 the        
,scribes and ,pharisees1 said merely1   
,thou shalt not kill4  ,and as long as  

thou dost not kill thy brother1 thou    
mayest hate him in thy heart and speak  
evil of him with thy lips4  ,but our    
,lord says1 ,not so4  ,whosoever is     
angry with his brother without a cause  
is in danger of the judgment4 ,whosoever
 shall say to him ,raca1 or worthless   
fellow1 shall speak insolently1         
brutally1 cruelly1 scornfully to him1 is
 in danger of the council4  ,but        
whosoever shall say unto him1 ,thou     
fool1 is in danger of hell fire4  ,for  
using that word to the ,jews1 so says   
the ,talmudic tradition1 ,moses and     
,aaron were shut out of the land of     
promise1 for it means an infidel1 an    
atheist1 a godless man1 or rebel against
 ,god1 as it is written1 ,the fool hath 
said in his heart there is no ,god4     
,whosoever shall curse his brother1 who 
is trying to be a good ,christian man to
 the best of his light and power1       
because he does not happen to agree with
 him in all things1 and call him a      
heretic1 and an infidel1 and an atheist1

 and an enemy of ,god--he is in danger  
of hell fire4  ,let him agree with his  
adversary quickly1 whiles he is in the  
way with him1 lest he be delivered to   
,god the judge1 and to the just         
punishment of him who has not done      
justly1 not loved mercy1 not walked     
humbly with his ,god4  ,but who is the  
adversary of that man1 and who is the   
judge1 and who is the officer8  ,our    
adversary in every case1 whenever we do 
wrong1 knowingly or unknowingly1 is the 
,law of ,god1 the everlasting laws1 by  
which ,god has ordered every thing in   
heaven and earth2 and as often as we    
break one of these laws1 let us agree   
with it again as quickly as we can1 lest
 it hale us before ,god1 the judge of   
all1 and ,he deliver us over to ,his    
officer--to those powers of nature and  
powers of spirit1 which ,he has         
appointed as ministers of ,his          
vengeance1 and they cast us into some   
prison of necessary and unavoidable     
misery1 from which we shall never escape

 till we have paid the uttermost        
farthing4  ,do you not understand me8   
,then ,i will give you an example4      
,suppose the case of a man hurting his  
health by self-indulgence of any kind4  
,then his adversaries are the laws of   
health4  ,let him agree with them       
quickly1 while he has the power of      
conquering his bad habits1 by recovering
 his health1 lest the time come when his
 own sins deliver him up to ,god his    
judge2 and ,god to ,his terrible        
officers of punishment1 the laws of     
,disease2 and they cast him into a      
prison of shame and misery from which   
there is no escape--shame and misery1   
most common perhaps among the lower     
classes3  but not altogether confined to
 them--the weakened body1 the bleared   
eye1 the stupified brain1 the premature 
death1 the children unhealthy from their
 parents' sins1 despising their parents1
 and perhaps copying their vices at the 
same time4  ,many a man have ,i seen in 
that prison1 fast bound with misery     

though not with iron1 and how he was to 
pay his debt and escape out of it ,i    
know not1 though ,i hope that ,god does 
know4  ,are any of you1 again1 in the   
habit of cheating your neighbours1 or   
dealing unfairly by them8  ,your        
adversary is the everlasting law of     
justice1 which says1 ,do as you would be
 done by1 for with what measure you mete
 to others1 it shall be measured to you 
again4  ,this may show you how a bodily 
sin1 like self-indulgence punishes      
itself by bringing a man into bondage of
 bodily misery1 from which he cannot    
escape2 and in the same way a spiritual 
sin1 like want of charity1 will bring a 
man into spiritual bondage from which he
 cannot escape4  ,and this1 as in bodily
 sins1 it will do by virtue of that     
mysterious and terrible officer of ,god1
 which we call ,habit4  ,habit1 by      
which1 we cannot tell how1 our having   
done a thing once becomes a reason for  
our doing it again1 and again after     
that1 till1 if the habit be once formed1

 we cannot help doing that thing1 and   
become enslaved to it1 and fast bound by
 it1 in a prison from which there is no 
escape4  ,look for instance at the case 
of the untruthful man4  ,let him beware 
in time4  ,who is his adversary8 ,facts 
are his adversary4  ,he says one thing1 
and ,fact says another1 and a very      
stubborn and terrible adversary ,fact   
is4  ,the day will come1 most probably  
in this life1 when ,facts will bring    
that untruthful man before ,god and     
before men likewise--and cry1--,judge   
between us which of us is right2 and    
there will come to that false man       
exposure and shame1 and a worse         
punishment still1 perhaps1 if he have   
let the habit grow too strong on him1   
and have not agreed with his adversary  
in time4  ,for have you not seen 7alas1 
you have too surely seen7 men who had   
contracted such a habit of falsehood    
that they could not shake it off-- who  
had played with their sense of truth so 
long that they had almost forgotten what

 truth meant2 men who could not speak   
without mystery1 concealment1           
prevarication1 half-statements2 who were
 afraid of the plain truth1 not because 
there was any present prospect of its   
hurting them1 but simply because it was 
the plain truth--children of darkness1  
who1 from long habit1 hated the         
light--and who1 though they had been    
found out and exposed1 could not        
amend--could not become simple1 honest1 
and truthful--could not escape from the 
prison of their own bad habits1 and the 
net of lies which they had spread round 
their own path1 till they had paid the  
uttermost penalty for their deceit8     
,look1 again1 at the case of the        
uncharitable man1 in the habit of       
forming harsh and cruel judgments of his
 neighbours4  ,then his adversary is the
 everlasting law of ,love1 which will   
surely at last punish him1 by the most  
terrible of all punishments--loss of    
love to man1 and therefore to ,god4     
,are we not 7,i am1 ,i know1 may ,god   

forgive me for it7 apt to be angry with 
our brethren without a cause1 out of    
mere peevishness8  ,let us beware in    
time4  ,are we not apt to say to them   
,raca--to speak cruelly1 contemptuously1
 fiercely of them1 if they thwart us8   
,let us beware in time still more4  ,are
 we not worst of all1 tempted 7as ,i too
 often am7 to say to them ,thou fool2 to
 call better men1 more useful men more  
pure men1 more pious men than ourselves1
 hard and cruel names1 names from which 
they would shrink with horror because   
they cannot see ,christian truth in just
 exactly the same light that we do8     
,oh6 let us beware then4 ,beware lest   
the everlasting laws of justice and     
fairness between man and man1 of love   
and charity between man and man1 which  
we have broken1 should some day deliver 
us up1 as they delivered those bigoted  
,jews of old to ,god our ,judge1 and ,he
 deliver our souls to ,his most terrible
 officers1 who are called envy1 hatred1 
malice1 and all uncharitableness2 and   

they thrust us into that blackest of all
 prisons1 on the gate of which is       
written1 ,hardness of heart1 and        
,contempt of ,god's ,word and           
commandments1 and within which is the   
outer darkness into which if a man      
falls1 he cannot see the difference     
between right and wrong3  but calls evil
 good1 and good evil1 like his          
companions in the outer darkness--      
namely1 the devil and his angels4  ,oh6 
let us who are coming to lay our gift   
upon ,god's altar at this approaching   
,christmas tide1 consider whether our   
brother hath aught against us in any of 
these matters1 and1 if so1 let us leave 
our gift upon the altar1 and be first   
reconciled to our brother1 in heart at  
least1 and with inward shame1 and       
confession1 and contrition1 and         
resolution to amend4  ,but we can only  
do that by recollecting what gift we are
 to leave on ,christ's altar1--that it  
is the gift of ,,self1 the sacrifice of 
ourselves1 with all our selfishness1    

pride1 conceit1 spite1 cruelty4         
,ourselves1 with all our sins1 we are to
 lay upon ,christ's altar1 that our sins
 may be nailed to ,his cross1 and washed
 clean in ,his blood1 everlastingly     
consumed in the fire of ,his ,spirit1   
the pure spirit of love1 which is the   
,charity of ,god1 that so1 self being   
purged out of us1 we may become holy and
 lively sacrifices to ,god1 parts and   
parcels of that perfect sacrifice which 
,christ offered up for the sins of the  
whole world--even the sacrifice of      
,himself4    ,,sermon ,,xxviii4  ,,st   
,,john ,,the ,,baptist    ,chester      
,cathedral4 #ahgb4  ,st ,luke iii4 #b1  
#c1 #g1 #i-ad4  ,the ,word of ,god came 
unto ,john the son of ,zacharias in the 
wilderness4  ,and he came into all the  
country about ,jordan1 preaching the    
baptism of repentance for the remission 
of sins4 4 4 4 ,then said he to the     
multitude that came forth to be baptized
 of him1 ,o generation of vipers1 who   
hath warned you to flee from the wrath  

to come8  ,bring forth therefore fruits 
worthy of repentance4 4 4 4  ,and now   
also the axe is laid unto the root of   
the trees3  every tree therefore that   
bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn   
down and cast into the fire4 ,and the   
people asked him saying1 ,what shall we 
do then8  ,he answereth and saith unto  
them1 ,he that hath two coats1 let him  
impart to him that hath none2 and he    
that hath meat1 let him do likewise4    
,then came also publicans to be baptized
 unto them1 and said unto him1 ,master1 
what shall we do8  ,and he said1 ,exact 
no more than that which is appointed    
you4  ,and the soldiers likewise        
demanded of him1 saying1 ,and what shall
 we do8  ,and he said unto them1 ,do    
violence to no man1 neither accuse any  
falsely1 and be content with your wages4
  ,this is ,st ,john ,baptist's day4    
,let me say a very few words--where many
 might be said--about one of the noblest
 personages who ever has appeared on    
this earth4  ,our blessed ,lord said1   

,among them that are born of women there
 hath not risen a greater than ,john the
 ,baptist1 notwithstanding1 he that is  
least in the kingdom of heaven is       
greater than he4  ,these are serious    
words2 for which of us dare to say that 
we are greater than ,john the ,baptist8 
,but let us at least think a while what 
,john the ,baptist was like4  ,so we    
shall gain at least the sight of an     
ideal man4  ,it is not the highest      
ideal4  ,our ,lord tells us that        
plainly2 and we1 as ,christians1 should 
know that it is not4  ,the ideal man is 
our ,lord ,christ ,himself1 and none    
other4  ,still1 he that has not mounted 
the lower step of the heavenly stair1   
has certainly not mounted the higher2   
and therefore1 if we have not attained  
to the likeness of ,john the ,baptist1  
still more1 we have not attained to the 
likeness of ,christ4  ,what1 then1 was  
,john the ,baptist like8  ,what picture 
of him and his character can we form to 
ourselves in our own imaginations8 for  

that is all we have to picture him      
by--helped-- always remember that--by   
the ,holy ,spirit of ,god1 who helps the
 imagination1 the poetic and dramatic   
faculty of men2 just as much as ,he     
helps the logical and argumentative     
faculty to see things and men as they   
really are1 by the spirit of love1 which
 also is the spirit of true             
understanding4  ,how1 then1 shall we    
picture ,john the ,baptist to ourselves8
  ,great painters1 greater than the     
world seems likely to see again1 have   
exercised their fancy upon his face1 his
 figure1 his actions4  ,we must put out 
of our minds1 ,i fear1 at once1 many of 
the loveliest of them all3 those in     
which ,raffaelle and others have        
depicted the child ,john1 in his camel's
 hair raiment1 with a child's cross in  
his hand1 worshipping the infant        
,christ4  ,there is also one exquisite  
picture1 by ,annibale ,caracci1 if ,i   
recollect rightly1 in which the blessed 
babe is lying asleep1 and the blessed   

,virgin signs to ,st ,john1 pressing    
forward to adore him1 not to awaken his 
sleeping ,lord and ,god4  ,but such     
imaginations1 beautiful as they are1 and
 true in a heavenly and spiritual sense1
 which therefore is true eternally for  
you1 and me1 and all mankind1 are not   
historic fact4 ,for ,st ,john the       
,baptist said himself1 and ,i knew him  
not4  ,he may have been1 we must almost 
say1 he must have been1 brought up with 
or near our ,lord4  ,he may have seen in
 ,him such a child 7we must believe     
that71 as he never saw before4  ,he knew
 ,him at least to be a princely child1  
of ,david's royal line4  ,but he was not
 conscious of who and what ,he was1 till
 the mysterious inner voice1 of whom he 
gives only the darkest hints1 said to   
him1 ,upon whom thou shalt see the      
,spirit descending1 and remaining on    
,him1 the same is ,he which baptizeth   
with the ,holy ,ghost4  ,and ,i saw and 
bare record that this is the ,son of    
,god4  ,but what manner of man was ,st  

,john the ,baptist in the meantime8     
,painters have tried their hands at     
drawing him1 and we thank them4         
,pictures1 says ,st ,augustine1 are the 
books of the unlearned4  ,and1 my       
friends1 when great painters paint1 they
 are the books of the too-learned       
likewise4 ,they bring us back1 bring us 
home1 by one glance at a human face1 a  
human figure1 a human scene of action1  
out of our philosophies1 and criticisms1
 and doctrines1 which narrow our hearts1
 without widening our heads1 to the     
deeper facts of humanity1 and therefore 
to the deeper facts of theology         
likewise4  ,but what picture of ,st     
,john the ,baptist shall we choose      
whereby to represent him to ourselves1  
as the forerunner of the incarnate ,god8
  ,the best which ,i can recollect is   
the great picture by ,guido--ah1 that he
 had painted always as wisely and as    
well--of the magnificent lad sitting on 
the rock1 half clad in his camel's hair 
robe1 his stalwart hand lifted up to    

denounce he hardly knows what1 save that
 things are going all wrong1 utterly    
wrong to him2 his beautiful mouth open  
to preach1 he hardly knows what1 save   
that he has a message from ,god1 of     
which he is half-conscious as yet--that 
he is a forerunner1 a prophet1 a        
foreteller of something and some one    
which is to come1 and which yet is very 
near at hand4  ,the wild rocks are round
 him1 the clear sky is over him1 and    
nothing more4  ,he1 the gentleman born1 
the clergyman born--for you must        
recollect who and what ,st ,john the    
,baptist was1 and that he was neither   
democrat nor vulgar demagogue1 nor      
flatterer of ignorant mobs1 but a man of
 an ancestry as ancient and illustrious 
as it was civilised1 and bound by long  
ties of duty1 of patriotism1 of         
religion1 and of the temple worship of  
,god3--he1 the noble and the priest1 has
 thrown off--not in discontent and      
desperation1 but in hope and awe--all   
his family privileges1 all that seems to

 make life worth having2 and there aloft
 and in the mountains1 alone with nature
 and with ,god1 feeding on locusts and  
wild honey and whatsoever ,god shall    
send1 and clothed in skins1 he1 like    
,elijah of old1 renews not merely the   
habits1 but the spirit and power of     
,elijah1 and preaches to a generation   
sunk in covetousness and superstition1  
party spirit1 and the rest of the seven 
devils which brought on the fall of his 
native land1 and which will bring on the
 fall of every land on earth1 preaches  
to them1 ,i say--,what8  ,the most      
common1 let me say boldly1 the most     
vulgar--in the good old sense of the    
word--the most vulgar morality4  ,he    
tells them that an awful ruin was coming
 unless they repented and mended4  ,how 
fearfully true his words were1 the next 
fifty years proved4  ,the axe1 he said1 
was laid to the root of the tree2 and   
the axe was the heathen ,roman1 even    
then master of the land4  ,but ,god1 not
 the ,roman ,caesar merely1 was laying  

the axe4 ,and ,he was a good ,god1 who  
only wanted goodness1 which ,he would   
preserve2 not badness1 which ,he would  
destroy4  ,therefore men must not merely
 repent and do penance1 they must bring 
forth fruits meet for penance2 do right 
instead of doing wrong1 lest they be    
found barren trees1 and be cut down1 and
 cast into that everlasting fire of     
,god1 which1 thanks be to ,his ,holy    
name1 burns for ever--unquenchable by   
all men's politics1 and systems1 and    
political or other economies1 to destroy
 out of ,god's ,kingdom all that        
offendeth and whatsoever loveth and     
maketh a lie-- oppressors1 quacks1      
cheats1 hypocrites1 and the rest4  ,the 
people--the farming class--came to him  
with ,what shall we do8  ,the young     
priest and nobleman1 in his garment of  
camel's hair1 has nothing but plain     
morality for them4  ,he that hath two   
coats1 let him impart to him that hath  
none2 and he that hath meat1 let him do 
likewise4  ,the publicans1 the          

renegades1 who were farming the taxes of
 the ,roman conquerors1 and making their
 base profit out of their countrymen's  
slavery1 came to him1--,master1 what    
shall we do8  ,he does not tell them not
 to be publicans4  ,he does not tell his
 countrymen to rebel1 though he must    
have been sorely tempted to do it4  ,all
 he says is1 ,make the bad and base     
arrangement as good as you can2 exact no
 more than that which is appointed you4 
,the soldiers1 poor fellows1 come to    
him4  ,whether they were ,herod's       
mercenaries1 or real gallant ,roman     
soldiers1 we are not told4  ,either had 
unlimited power under a military        
despotism1 in an anarchic and           
half-enslaved country2 but whichever    
they were1 he has the same answer to    
them of common morality4  ,you are what 
you are2 you are where you are4  ,do it 
as well as you can4  ,do no violence to 
any man1 neither accuse any man falsely1
 and be content with your wages4  ,ah1  
wise politician1 ah1 clear and rational 

spirit1 who knows and tells others to do
 the duty which lies nearest them2 who  
sees 7as old ,greek ,hesiod says71 how  
much bigger the half is than the whole2 
who1 in the hour of his country's       
deepest degradation1 had divine courage 
to say1 our deliverance lies1 not in    
rebellion1 but in doing right4  ,but he 
has sterner words4  ,pharisees1 the     
separatists1 the religious men1 who     
think themselves holier than any one    
else2 and ,sadducees1 materialist men of
 the world1 who sneer at the unseen1 the
 unknown1 the heroic1 come to him4 ,and 
for ,pharisee and ,sadducee--for the man
 who prides himself on believing more   
than his neighbours1 and for the man who
 prides himself on believing less--he   
has the same answer4  ,both are         
exclusives1 inhuman1 while they are     
pretending to be more than human4  ,he  
knew them well1 for he was born and bred
 among them1 and he forestalls our      
,lord's words to them1 ,o generation of 
vipers1 who hath warned you to flee from

 the wrath to come8  ,at last his       
preaching of common morality is put to  
the highest test4  ,the king--the tyrant
 as we should call him--the ,herod of   
the day1 an usurper1 neither a son of   
,david1 nor a king chosen by the people1
 tries to patronize him4  ,the old      
spirit of his forefather ,aaron1 of his 
forefather ,phineas1 the spirit of      
,levi1 which 7rightly understood71 is   
the ,spirit of ,god1 flashes up in the  
young priestly prophet1 in the old form 
of common morality4  ,it is not lawful  
for thee to have thy brother's wife4    
,we know the rest2 how1 at the request  
of ,herodias' daughter1 ,herod sent and 
beheaded ,john in prison1 and how she   
took his head in a charger and brought  
it to her mother4  ,great painters have 
shown us again and again the last       
act--outwardly hideous1 but really      
beautiful--of ,st ,john's heroic drama1 
in a picture of the lovely dancing girl 
with the prophet's head in a charger--a 
dreadful picture2 and yet one which     

needed to be painted1 for it was a      
terrible fact1 and is still1 and will be
 till this wicked world's end1 a matter 
for pity and tears rather than for      
indignation4  ,the most perfect         
representations1 certainly the most     
tragical ,i know of it1 are those which 
are remarkable1 not for their           
expression1 but for their want of       
expression--the young girl in brocade   
and jewels1 with the gory head in her   
hands1 thinking of nothing out of those 
wide vacant foolish eyes1 save the      
triumph of self-satisfied vanity2 for   
the spite and revenge is not in her1 but
 in her wicked mother4  ,she is just the
 very creature1 who1 if she had been    
better trained1 and taught what ,john   
the ,baptist really was1 might have     
reverenced him1 worshipped him1 and     
ministered unto him4  ,alas6 alas6 how  
do the follies of poor humanity repeat  
themselves in every age4  ,the butterfly
 has killed the lion1 without after all 
meaning much harm4  ,ah1 that such human

 butterflies would take warning by the  
fate of ,herodias' daughter1 and see how
 mere vanity will lead1 if indulged too 
long and too freely1 to awful crime4    
,one knows the old stories1--how ,herod1
 and ,herodias1 and the vain foolish    
girl fell into disgrace with the        
,emperor1 and were banished into        
,provence1 and died in want and misery4 
,one knows too the old legends1 how     
,herodias' daughter reappears in ,south 
,europe--even in old ,german legends--as
 the witch-goddess1 fair and ruinous1   
sweeping for ever through wood and wold 
at night with her troop of fiends1      
tempting the traveller to dance with    
them till he dies2 a name for ever      
accursed through its own vanity rather  
than its own deliberate sin1 from which 
may ,god preserve us all1 men as well as
 women4  ,so two women1 one wicked and  
one vain1 did all they could to destroy 
one of the noblest human beings who ever
 walked this earth4  ,and what did they 
do8  ,they did not prevent his being the

 forerunner and prophet of the incarnate
 ,son of ,god4  ,they did not prevent   
his being the master and teacher of the 
blessed ,apostle ,st ,john1 who was his 
spiritual son and heir4  ,they did not  
prevent his teaching all men and women1 
to whom ,god gives grace to understand  
him1 that the true repentance1 the true 
conversion1 the true deliverance from   
the wrath to come1 the true entrance    
into the kingdom of heaven1 the true way
 to ,christ and to ,god1 is common      
morality4  ,and now let us bless ,god's 
holy name for all ,his servants departed
 in ,his faith and fear1 and especially 
for ,his servant ,st ,john the ,baptist1
 beseeching ,him to give us grace1 so to
 follow his doctrine and holy life1 that
 we may truly repent after his preaching
 and after his example4  ,may the ,lord 
forgive our exceeding cowardice1 and    
help us constantly to speak the truth1  
boldly rebuke vice1 and patiently suffer
 for the truth's sake2 through ,jesus   
,christ our ,lord4  ,amen4    ,,sermon  

,,xxix4  ,,the ,,present ,,recompense   
,chester ,cathedral1 ,nave ,service1    
,evening4  ,may #ahgb4  ,proverbs xi4   
#ca4  ,behold1 the righteous shall be   
recompensed in the earth3  much more the
 wicked and the sinner4  ,this is the   
key-note of the ,book of ,proverbs--that
 men are punished or rewarded according 
to their deeds in this life2 nay1 it is 
the key-note of the whole ,old          
,testament4  ,the eyes of the ,lord are 
over the righteous1 and ,his ears are   
open unto their prayers2 the countenance
 of the ,lord is against them that do   
evil1 to root out the remembrance of    
them from the earth4  ,but here1 at the 
beginning of my sermon1 ,i can fancy    
some one ready to cry--,stay6 you have  
spoken too strongly4  ,that is not the  
key-note of the whole ,old ,testament4  
,there are words in it of quite a       
different note-- words which complain to
 ,god that the good are not rewarded1   
and the wicked are not punished3  as for
 instance1 when the ,psalmist says how  

the ungodly men of this evil world are  
filled with ,god's hid treasure1 and how
 they have children at their desire1 and
 leave the rest of their substance for  
their babes4  ,and again1 ,i was envious
 at the foolish1 when ,i saw the        
prosperity of the wicked4  ,for there   
are no bands in their death2 but their  
strength is firm4  ,they are not in     
trouble as other men2 neither are they  
plagued like other men4 4 4 4  ,they set
 their mouth against the heavens1 and   
their tongue walketh through the earth4 
,therefore his people return hither2 and
 waters of a full cup are wrung out to  
them4  ,and they say1 ,how doth ,god    
know8 and is there knowledge in the most
 ,high8  ,and though the ,psalmist says 
that such persons will come to a sudden 
and fearful end1 yet he confesses that  
so long as they live they have          
prospered1 while he had been punished   
all day long1 and chastened every       
morning4  ,and do we not know that so it
 is8  ,is it not obvious now1 and has it

 not been notorious in every country1   
and in all times1 that so it is8  ,do   
not good men often lead lives of poverty
 and affliction8  ,do not men make large
 fortunes1 or rise to fame and power1 by
 base and wicked means8 and do not those
 same men often enough die in their     
beds1 and leave children behind them1   
and found families1 who prosper for     
generations after they are dead8  ,how  
were they recompensed in the earth8     
,now this is one of the puzzles of life1
 which tries a man's faith in ,god1 as  
it tried the psalmists and prophets in  
old time4 ,but that the text speaks     
truth ,i do not doubt4  ,i believe that 
the prosperous bad man is recompensed in
 the earth--is punished in this life-   
-often with the most terrible of all    
punishments--,impunity2 the not being   
punished at all2 which is the worst     
thing in this life which can happen to a
 sinner4  ,but ,i am not going to speak 
of that1 but rather of the first part of
 the text1 ,the righteous shall be      

recompensed in the earth4  ,now is not  
the answer to the puzzle this3  ,that   
,god is impartial2 that ,he is no       
respecter of persons1 but causing ,his  
sun to shine on the evil and on the     
good1 and ,his rain to fall on the just 
and on the unjust2 and so rewarding     
every man according to his work1 paying 
him for all work done1 of whatever kind 
it may be8  ,some work for this world1  
which we do see1 and ,god gives them    
what they earn in this life2 some work  
for the world above1 which we cannot    
see1 and ,god gives them what they earn 
in this life1 for ever and ever         
likewise4  ,if a man wishes for treasure
 on earth1 he can have it if he will1   
and enjoy it as long as it lasts4  ,if a
 man wishes for treasure in heaven1 he  
can have it if he will1 and enjoy it as 
long as it lasts4  ,god deals fairly    
with both1 and pays both what they have 
earned4  ,some set their hearts on this 
world2 some want money1 some want power1
 some want fame and admiration from     

their fellow-men1 some want merely to   
amuse themselves4  ,then they will have 
what they want if they will take the    
right way to get it4  ,if a man wishes  
to make a large fortune1 and die rich1  
he will very probably succeed1 if he    
will only follow diligently the laws and
 rules by which ,god has appointed that 
money should be made4  ,if a man longs  
for power and glory1 and must needs be  
admired and obeyed by his fellow-men1 he
 can have his wish1 if he will go the   
right way to get what he longs for2     
especially in a free country like this1 
he will get most probably just as much  
of them as he deserves--that is1 as much
 as he has talent and knowledge enough  
to earn4  ,so did the ,pharisees in our 
,lord's time4  ,they wanted power1 fame1
 and money as religious leaders1 and    
they knew how to get them as well as any
 men who ever lived2 and they got them4 
,our ,lord did not deny that4  ,they had
 their reward1 ,he said4  ,they         
succeeded--those old ,pharisees--in     

being looked up to as the masters of the
 ,jewish mob1 and in crucifying our     
,lord ,himself4  ,they had their reward2
 and so may you and ,i4  ,if we want any
 earthly thing1 and have knowledge of   
the way to get it1 and have ability and 
perseverance enough1 then we shall very 
probably get it1 and much good it will  
do us when we have got it after all4    
,we shall have had our treasure upon    
earth and our hearts likewise2 and when 
we come to die we shall leave both our  
treasure and our hearts behind us1 and  
the ,lord have mercy on our souls4  ,but
 again1 there are those1 thank ,god1 who
 have1 or are at least trying to get1   
treasure in heaven1 which they may carry
 away with them when they die1 and keep 
for ever4  ,and who are they8  ,those   
who are longing and trying to be true   
and to be good2 who have seen how       
beautiful it is to be true and to be    
good2 to know ,god and the will of ,god2
 to love ,god and the will of ,god2 and 
therefore to copy ,his likeness and to  

do ,his will4 ,those who long for       
sanctification1 and who desire to be    
holy1 even as their ,father in heaven is
 holy1 and perfect1 even as their       
,father in heaven is perfect2 and who   
therefore think1 as ,st ,paul bade them1
 of whatsoever things are just1 true1   
pure1 lovely1 and of good report1 if    
there be any true manhood1 and if there 
be any just praise--in three words--who 
seek after whatsoever is true1          
beautiful1 and good4  ,these are they   
that have treasure in heaven4  ,for what
 is really true1 really beautiful1      
really good1 is also really heavenly4   
,god alone is perfect1 good1 beautiful1 
and true2 and heaven is heaven because  
it is filled with the glory of ,his     
goodness1 ,his beauty1 and ,his truth4  
,but wherever there is a soul on earth  
led by the ,spirit of ,god1 and filled  
by the ,spirit of ,god with good and    
beautiful and true graces and           
inspirations1 there is a soul which1 as 
,st ,paul says1 is sitting in heavenly  

places with ,christ ,jesus--a soul which
 is already in heaven though still on   
earth4  ,we confess it by our own words4
  ,we speak of a heavenly character2 we 
speak even of a heavenly countenance2   
and we speak right4  ,we see that that  
character1 though it be still imperfect1
 and marred by human weaknesses1 is     
already good with the goodness which    
comes down from heaven2 and that that   
countenance1 though it may be mean and  
plain1 is already beautiful with the    
beauty which comes down from heaven4    
,but how are such souls recompensed in  
the earth8  ,oh6 my friends1 is not a   
man recompensed in the earth whenever he
 can lift up his heart above the        
earth8--whenever he can lift up his     
heart unto the ,lord1 and behold ,his   
glory above all the earth8  ,does not   
this earth look brighter to him then8   
,the world of man looks brighter to him1
 in spite of all its sins and sorrows1  
for he sees the ,lord ruling it1 the    
,lord forgiving it1 the ,lord saving it4

  ,he sees1 by the eye of faith1 the    
,lord fulfilling ,his own promise--where
 two or three are gathered together in  
my name1 there am ,i in the midst of    
them2 and he takes heart and hope for   
the poor earth1 and says1 ,the earth is 
not deserted2 mankind is not without a  
,father1 a ,saviour1 a ,teacher1 a      
,king4  ,bad men and bad spirits are not
 the masters of the world2 and men are  
not as creeping things1 as the fishes of
 the sea1 which have no ruler over them4
  ,for ,christ has not left ,his church4
  ,he reigns1 and will reign1 till ,he  
has put all enemies under ,his feet1 and
 cast out of ,his kingdom all that      
offend1 and whatsoever loveth and maketh
 a lie2 and then the heavenly treasure  
will be the only treasure2 for          
whatsoever things are just1 whatsoever  
things are true1 pure1 lovely1 and of   
good report1 if there be any valour1 and
 if there be any praise1 those things1  
and they alone1 will be left in the     
kingdom of ,christ and of ,god4  ,is not

 that man recompensed in the earth8     
,must he not rise each morning to go    
about his daily work with a more        
cheerful heart1 saying1 with ,jeremiah1 
in like case1 ,upon this ,i awaked1 and 
beheld1 and my sleep was sweet to me8   
,yes1 ,i see in experience that the     
righteous man is recompensed in the     
earth1 every day1 and all day long4  ,in
 proportion as a man's mind is heavenly1
 just so much will he enjoy this        
beautiful earth1 and all that is        
therein4  ,i believe that if a man walks
 with ,god1 then he can walk nowhither  
without seeing and hearing what the     
ungodly and bad man will never see and  
hear1 because his eyes are blinded1 and 
his heart hardened from thinking of     
himself1 his own selfish wants1 his own 
selfish sins4 ,which1 for instance1 was 
the happier man--which the man who was  
the more recompensed in the earth this  
very day--the poor man who went for his 
,sunday walk into the country1 thinking 
of little but the sins and the follies  

of the week past1 and probably of the   
sins and the follies of the week to     
come2 or the man who went with a clear  
conscience1 and had the heart to thank  
,god for the green grass1 and the       
shining river1 and the misty mountains  
sleeping far away1 and notice the song  
of the birds1 and the scent of the      
flowers1 as a little child might do1 and
 know that his ,father in heaven had    
made all these8  ,yes1 my friends1      
,christ is very near us1 though our eyes
 are holden by our own sins1 and        
therefore we see ,him not4  ,but just in
 proportion as a man walks with ,god1   
just in proportion as the eyes of his   
soul are opened by the ,spirit of ,god1 
he recovers1 ,i believe1 the privilege  
which ,adam lost when he fell4  ,he     
hears the ,word of the ,lord walking    
among the trees of the garden in the    
cool of the day2 and instead of trying1 
like guilty ,adam1 to hide himself from 
his ,maker1 answers1 with reverence and 
yet with joy1 ,speak1 ,lord1 for thy    

servant heareth4  ,nay1 ,i would go     
further still1 and say1 ,is not the     
righteous man recompensed on the earth  
every time he hears a strain of noble   
music8  ,to him who has his treasure in 
heaven1 music speaks about that treasure
 things far too deep for words4  ,music 
speaks to him of whatsoever is just1    
true1 pure1 lovely1 and of good report1 
of whatsoever is manful and ennobling1  
of whatsoever is worthy of praise and   
honour4  ,music1 to that man1 speaks of 
a divine order and a divine proportion2 
of a divine harmony1 through all the    
discords and confusions of men2 of a    
divine melody1 through all the cries and
 groans of sin and sorrow4  ,what says a
 wiser and a better man than ,i shall   
ever be1 and that not of noble music1   
but of such as we may hear any day in   
any street8  ,even that vulgar music1 he
 says1 which makes one man merry1       
another mad1 strikes in me a deep fit of
 devotion1 and a profound contemplation 
of ,god1 the first composer4  ,there is 

something more of divinity in it than   
the ear discovers4  ,it is an           
hieroglyphical and shadowed lesson of   
the whole world1 and of the creatures of
 ,god4  ,such a melody to the ear as the
 whole world1 well understood1 would    
afford to the understanding4  ,that man1
 ,i insist1 was indeed recompensed on   
the earth1 when music1 which is to the  
ungodly and unrighteous the most earthly
 of all arts1 which to the heathens and 
the savages1 to frivolous and profligate
 persons1 only tempts to silly          
excitement or to brutal passion1 was to 
him as the speech of angels1 a          
remembrancer to him of that eternal and 
ever-present heaven1 from which all     
beauty1 truth1 and goodness are shed    
forth over the universe1 from the glory 
of the ever-blessed ,trinity--,father1  
,son1 and ,holy ,spirit4  ,does any one 
say--,these things are too high for me2 
,i cannot understand them8  ,my dear    
friends1 are they not too high for me   
likewise8  ,do you fancy that ,i        

understand them1 though my reason1 as   
well as ,holy ,scripture1 tells me that 
they are true8  ,i understand them no   
more than ,i understand how ,i draw a   
single breath1 or think a single        
thought4  ,but it is good for you1 and  
for me1 and for every man1 now and then1
 to hear things which we do ,,not       
understand2 that so we may learn our own
 ignorance1 and be lifted up above      
ourselves1 and renounce our fancied     
worldly wisdom1 and think within        
ourselves3--,would it not be wiser to   
confess ourselves fools1 and take our   
,lord's advice1 and be converted1 and   
become as little children8  ,for        
otherwise1 our ,lord says1 we shall in  
nowise enter into this very kingdom of  
heaven of which ,i have been telling    
you4  ,for this is one of the things    
which ,god hides from the wise and      
prudent1 and yet revealeth unto babes4  
,yes1 that is the way to understand all 
things1 however deep--to become as      
little children4  ,a little child proves

 that all ,i say is true1 and that it   
knows that all ,i say is true4  ,though 
it cannot put its feelings into words1  
it acts on them by a mere instinct1     
which is the gift of ,god4  ,why does a 
little child pick flowers8  ,why does a 
little child dance when it hears a      
strain of music8  ,and deeper still1 why
 does a little child know when it has   
done wrong8  ,why does it love to hear  
of things beautiful and noble1 and      
shrink from things foul and mean1 if    
what ,i say is not true8  ,the child    
does so1 because it is nearer heaven1   
not further off1 than we grown folk4    
,ah6 that we would all lay to heart what
 one said of old1 who walked with       
,god3--   ,dear soul1 could'st thou     
become a child1 ,once more on earth1    
meek1 undefiled1 ,then ,paradise were   
round thee here1 ,and ,god ,himself for 
ever near4    ,,sermon ,,xxx4  ,,the    
,,kingdom ,,of ,,heaven    ,chapel      
,royal1 ,st ,james'4 #ahgc4  ,st4 ,matt4
 xxii4 #b-g4  ,the kingdom of heaven is 

like unto a certain king1 which made a  
marriage for his son1 and sent forth his
 servants to call them that were bidden 
to the wedding3  and they would not     
come4  ,again1 he sent forth other      
servants1 saying1 ,tell them which are  
bidden1 ,behold1 ,i have prepared my    
dinner3  my oxen and fatlings are       
killed1 and all things are ready3  come 
unto the marriage4  ,but they made light
 of it1 and went their ways1 one to his 
farm1 another to his merchandise3  ,and 
the remnant took his servants1 and      
entreated them spitefully1 and slew     
them4  ,but when the king heard thereof1
 he was wroth3  and he sent forth his   
armies1 and destroyed those murderers1  
and burned up their city4  ,this        
parable1 if we understand it aright1    
will help to teach us theology- -that   
is1 the knowledge of ,god1 and of the   
character of ,god4  ,for it is a parable
 concerning the kingdom of heaven1 and  
the laws and customs of the kingdom of  
heaven--that is1 the spiritual and      

eternal laws by which ,god governs men4 
,now1 what any kingdom or government is 
like must needs depend on what the king 
or governor of it is like2 at least if  
that king is all-powerful1 and can do   
what he likes4  ,his laws will be like  
his character4  ,if he be good1 he will 
make good laws4  ,if he be bad1 he will 
make bad laws4  ,if he be harsh and     
cruel--if he be careless and            
indulgent--so will his laws be4  ,if he 
be loving and generous1 delighting in   
seeing his subjects happy1 then his laws
 will be so shaped that his subjects    
will be happy1 if they obey those laws4 
,but also--and this is a very serious   
matter1 and one to which foolish people 
in all ages have tried to shut their    
eyes1 and false preachers in all ages   
have tried to blind men's eyes-- also1  
,i say1 if his laws be good1 and        
bountiful1 and sure to make men happy1  
then the good king will have those laws 
obeyed4  ,he will not be an indulgent   
king1 for in his case to be indulgent   

will be cruelty1 and nothing less4  ,the
 good king will not say1--,i have given 
you laws by which you may live happy2   
but ,i do not care whether you obey them
 or not4 ,i have1 as it were1 set you   
up1 in life1 and given you advantages by
 which you may prosper if you use them2 
but ,i do not care whether you use them 
or not4  ,for to say that would be as   
much as to say that ,i do not care if   
you make yourselves miserable1 and make 
others miserable likewise4  ,the good   
king will say1--,you shall obey my laws1
 for they are for your good4  ,you shall
 use my gifts1 for they are for your    
good4  ,and if you do not1 ,i will      
punish you4  ,you shall respect my      
authority4  ,and if you do not--if you  
go too far1 if you become wanton and    
cruel1 and destroy your fellow-subjects 
unjustly off the face of the earth2 then
 ,i will destroy you off the face of he 
earth1 and burn up your city4  ,i will  
destroy any government or system of     
society which you set up in opposition  

to my good and just laws4  ,and if you  
merely despise the gifts1 and refuse to 
use them--then ,i will cast you out of  
my kingdom1 inside which is freedom and 
happiness1 and light and knowledge1 into
 the darkness outside1 bound hand and   
foot1 into the ignorance and brutal     
slavery which you have chosen1 where you
 may reconsider yourself1 weeping and   
gnashing your teeth as you discover what
 a fool you have been4  ,our ,lord's    
parable has fulfilled itself again and  
again in history1 and will fulfil itself
 as long as foolish and rebellious      
persons exist on earth4  ,this is one of
 the laws of the kingdom of heaven4  ,it
 must be so1 for it arises by necessity 
out of the character of ,christ1 the    
king of heaven4--,infinite bounty and   
generosity2 but if that bounty be       
despised and insulted1 or still more1 if
 it be outraged by wanton tyranny or    
cruelty1 then--for the benefit of the   
rest of mankind--awful severity4 ,so it 
is1 and so it must be2 simply because   

,god is good4  ,at least1 this is the   
kind of king which the parable shows to 
us4  ,the king in it begins1 not by     
asking his subjects to pay him taxes1 or
 even to do him service1 but to come to 
a great feast--a high court ceremonial- 
-the marriage of his son4  ,whatsoever  
else that may mean1 it certainly means  
this--that the king intended to treat   
these men1 not as his slaves1 but as his
 guests and friends4  ,they will not    
come4  ,they are too busy2 one over his 
farm1 another over his merchandise4     
,they owe1 remember1 safe possession of 
their farm1 and safe transit for their  
merchandise1 to the king1 who governs   
and guards the land4  ,but they forget  
that1 and refuse his invitation4  ,some 
of them1 seemingly out of mere          
insolence1 and the spirit of rebellion  
against authority1 just because it is   
authority1 go a step too far4  ,to show 
that they are their own masters1 and    
intend to do what they like1 they take  
the king's messengers1 and treat them   

spitefully1 and kill them4  ,then there 
arises in that king a noble indignation4
  ,we do not read that the king         
sentimentalised over these rebels1 and  
said1--,after all1 their evil1 like all 
evil1 is only a lower form of good4     
,they had a fine instinct of freedom and
 independence latent in them1 only it   
was in this case somewhat perverted4    
,they are really only to be pitied for  
knowing no better2 but ,i trust1 by     
careful education1 to bring them to a   
clearer sense of their own interests4   
,i shall therefore send them to a       
reformatory1 where1 in consideration of 
the depressing circumstances of their   
imprisonment1 they will be better looked
 after1 and have lighter work1 than the 
average of my honest and peaceable      
subjects4  ,if the king had spoken thus1
 he would have won high applause in     
these days2 at least till the farms and 
the merchandise1 the property and the   
profits of the rest of his subjects1    
were endangered by these favoured       

objects of his philanthropy2 who1 having
 found that rebellion and even murder   
was pardonable in one case1 would       
naturally try whether it was not        
pardonable in other cases likewise4     
,but what we read of the king--and we   
must really remember1 in fear and       
trembling1 who spoke this parable1 even 
our ,lord ,himself1--is this--,he sent  
forth his armies1 soldiers1 men         
disciplined to do their duty at all     
risks1 and sworn to carry out the law1  
and destroyed those murderers1 and      
burned up their city4  ,yes1 the king   
was very angry1 as he had a right to be4
  ,yes1 let us lay that to heart1 and   
tremble1 from the very worst of us all  
to the very best of us all4  ,there is  
an anger in ,god4  ,there is indignation
 in ,god4 ,our highest reason ought to  
tell us that there must be anger in     
,god1 as long as sin and wrong exist in 
any corner of the universe4  ,for all   
that is good in man is of the likeness  
of ,god4  ,and is it not a good feeling1

 a noble feeling1 in man1 to be         
indignant1 or to cry for vengeance on   
the offender1 whenever we hear of       
cruelty1 injustice1 or violence8  ,is   
that not noble8  ,i say it is4  ,i say  
that the man whose heart does not burn  
within him at the sight of tyranny and  
cruelty1 of baseness and deceit1 who is 
not ready to say1 ,take him1 and do to  
him as he has done to others2 that man's
 heart is not right with ,god1 or with  
man either4  ,his moral sense is        
stunted4  ,he is on the way to become1  
first1 if he can1 a tyrant1 and then a  
slave4  ,and shall there be no noble    
indignation in ,god when ,he beholds all
 the wrong which is done on earth8      
,shall the just and holy ,god look on   
carelessly and satisfied at injustice   
and unholiness which vexes even poor    
sinful man8  ,god forbid6  ,to think    
that1 would1 to my mind1 be to fancy    
,god less just1 less merciful1 than man4
  ,and if any one says1 ,anger is a     
passion1 a suffering from something     

outside oneself1 and ,god can have no   
passions2 ,god cannot be moved by the   
sins and follies of such paltry atoms as
 we human beings are3  the answer is1   
,man's anger--even just anger--is1 too  
often1 a passion2 weak-minded persons1  
ill-educated persons1 especially when   
they get together in mobs1 and excite   
each other1 are carried away when they  
hear even a false report of cruelty or  
injustice1 by their really wholesome    
indignation1 and say and do foolish1 and
 cruel1 and unjust things1 the victims  
of their own passion4  ,but even among  
men1 the wiser a man is1 the purer1 the 
stronger-minded1 so much the more can he
 control his indignation1 and not let it
 rise into passion1 but punish the      
offender calmly1 though sternly1        
according to law4  ,even so1 our reason 
bids us believe1 does ,god1 who does all
 things by law4  ,his eternal laws      
punish of themselves1 just as they      
reward of themselves4  ,the same law of 
,god may be the messenger of ,his anger 

to the bad1 while it is the messenger of
 ,his love to the good4  ,for ,god has  
not only no passions1 but no parts2 and 
therefore ,his anger and ,his love are  
not different1 but the same4  ,and ,his 
love is ,his anger1 and ,his anger is   
,his love4  ,an awful thought and yet a 
blessed thought4  ,think of it1 my      
friends-- think of it day and night4    
,under ,god's anger1 or under ,god's    
love1 we must be1 whether we will or    
not4  ,we cannot flee from ,his         
presence4  ,we cannot go from ,his      
spirit4  ,if we are loving1 and so rise 
up to heaven1 ,god is there--in love4   
,if we are cruel1 and wrathful1 and so  
go down to hell1 ,god is there also--in 
wrath3  with the clean ,he will be      
clean1 with the froward man ,he will be 
froward4  ,in ,god we live and move1 and
 have our being4  ,on us1 and on us     
alone1 it depends1 what sort of a life  
we shall live1 and whether our being    
shall be happy or miserable4  ,on us1   
and on us alone1 it depends1 whether we 

shall live under ,god's anger1 or live  
under ,god's love4  ,on us1 and on us   
alone1 it depends whether the eternal   
and unchangeable ,god shall be to us a  
consuming fire1 or light1 and life1 and 
bliss for evermore4  ,we never had more 
need to think of this than now2 for     
there has spread over the greater part  
of the civilised world a strong spirit  
of disbelief in the living ,god4  ,men  
do not believe that ,god punishes sin   
and wrong- doing1 either in this world  
or in the world to come4  ,and it is not
 confined to those who are called       
infidels1 who disbelieve in the         
incarnation and kingdom of our ,lord    
,jesus ,christ4  ,would to ,god it were 
so6  ,everywhere we find ,christians of 
all creeds and denominations alike1     
holding the very same ruinous notion1   
and saying to themselves1 ,god does not 
govern this present world4  ,god does   
not punish or reward in this present    
life4  ,this world is all wrong1 and the
 devil's world1 and therefore ,i cannot 

prosper in the world unless ,i am a     
little wrong likewise1 and do a little  
of the devil's work4  ,so one lies1     
another cheats1 another oppresses1      
another neglects his plainest social    
duties1 another defiles himself with    
base political or religious intrigues1  
another breaks the seventh commandment1 
or1 indeed1 any and every one of the    
commandments which he finds troublesome4
  ,and when one asks in                 
astonishment--,you call yourselves      
,christians8  ,you believe in ,god1 and 
the ,bible1 and ,christianity8  ,do you 
not think that ,god will punish ,,you   
for all this8  ,do you not hear from the
 psalmists1 and prophets1 and apostles1 
of a ,god who judges and punishes such  
generations as this8  ,of a wrath of    
,god which is revealed from heaven      
against all unrighteousness of men1 who1
 like you1 hold down the truth in       
unrighteousness1 knowing what is right  
and yet doing what is wrong8  ,then they
 answer1 at least in their hearts1 ,oh  

dear no6  ,god does not govern men now1 
or judge men now4 ,he only did so1 our  
preachers tell us1 under the old ,jewish
 dispensation2 and such words as you    
quote from our ,lord1 or ,st ,paul1 have
 only to do with the day of judgment1   
and the next life1 and we have made it  
all right for the next life4  ,i1 says  
one1 regularly perform my religious     
duties2 and ,i1 says another1 build     
churches and chapels1 and give large    
sums in charity2 and ,i1 says another1  
am converted1 and a member of a church2 
and ,i1 says another1 am elect1 and     
predestined to everlasting life--and so 
forth1 and so forth4  ,each man turning 
the grace of ,god into a cloak for      
licentiousness1 and deluding himself    
into the notion that he may break the   
eternal laws of ,god1 and yet go to     
heaven1 as he calls it1 when he dies3   
not knowing1 poor foolish man1 that as  
the noble commination service well says1
 the dreadful judgments of ,god are not 
waiting for certain people at the last  

day1 thousands of years hence1 but      
hanging over all our heads already1 and 
always ready to fall on us4  ,not       
knowing that it is as true now as it was
 two thousand years ago1 that ,god is a 
righteous judge1 strong and patient4    
,if a man will not turn1 ,he will whet  
,his sword2 ,he hath bent ,his bow1 and 
made it ready1 against those who travail
 with mischief1 who conceive sorrow1 and
 bring forth ungodliness4  ,they dig up 
pits for their neighbours1 and fall     
themselves into the destruction which   
they have made for others2 not knowing  
that it is as true now as it was two    
thousand years ago1 that ,god is for    
ever saying to the ungodly1 ,why dost   
thou preach my laws1 and takest my      
covenant in thy mouth2 whereas thou     
hatest to be reformed1 and hast cast my 
words behind thee8  ,thou hast let thy  
mouth speak wickedness1 and with thy    
tongue thou hast set forth deceit4      
,these things hast thou done1 and ,i    
held my tongue1 and thou thoughtest1    

wickedly1 that ,i am even such a one as 
thyself4  ,but ,i will reprove thee1 and
 set before thee the things which thou  
hast done4  ,o consider this1 ye that   
forget ,god3  lest ,i pluck you away1   
and there be none to deliver you4  ,let 
us lay this to heart1 and say1 there can
 be no doubt--,i at least have          
none--that there is growing up among us 
a serious divorce between faith and     
practice2 a serious disbelief that the  
kingdom of heaven is about us1 and that 
,christ is ruling us1 as ,he told us    
plainly enough in ,his parables1 by the 
laws of the kingdom of heaven2 and that 
,he does1 and will punish and reward    
each man according to those laws1 and   
according to nothing else4  ,we pride   
ourselves on our superior light1 and our
 improved civilisation1 and look down on
 the old ,roman ,catholic missionaries1 
who converted our forefathers from      
heathendom in the ,middle ,ages4  ,now1 
,i am a ,protestant1 if ever there was  
one1 and ,i know well that these men had

 their superstitions and false          
doctrines4  ,they made mistakes1 and    
often worse than mistakes1 for they were
 but men4  ,but this ,i tell you1 that  
if they had not had a deep and sound    
belief that they were in the kingdom of 
,god1 the kingdom of heaven2 and that   
they and all men must obey the laws of  
the kingdom of heaven2 and that the     
first law of it was1 that wrongdoing    
would be punished1 and rightdoing       
rewarded1 in this life1 every day1 and  
all day long1 as sure as ,christ the    
living ,lord reigned in righteousness   
over all the earth2 if they had not     
believed that1 ,i say1 and acted on it1 
we should probably have been heathen at 
this day4  ,as it is1 unless we         
,protestants get back the old belief1   
that ,god is a living ,god1 and that    
,his judgments are abroad in the earth1 
and that only in keeping ,his           
commandments can we get life1 and not   
perish1 we shall be seriously in danger 
of sinking at last into that hopeless   

state of popular feeling1 into which    
more than one nation in our own time has
 fallen1--that1 as the prophet of old   
says1 a wonderful and horrible thing is 
committed in the land2 the              
prophets--that is1 the preachers and    
teachers--prophesy falsely2 and the     
priests--the ministers of religion--bear
 rule by their means2 and my people love
 to have it so--love to have their      
consciences drugged by the news that    
they may live bad lives1 and yet die    
good deaths4  ,and what will ye do in   
the end thereof8 asks ,jeremiah4  ,what 
indeed6 ,what the ,jews did in the end  
thereof you may read in the book of the 
prophet ,jeremiah4  ,they did nothing1  
and could do nothing--with their        
morality their manhood was gone4  ,sin  
had borne its certain fruit of anarchy  
and decrepitude4  ,the wrath of ,god    
revealed itself as usual1 by no miracle1
 but through inscrutable social laws4   
,they had to submit1 cowardly and       
broken-hearted1 to an invasion1 a siege1

 and an utter ruin4 ,i do not say1 ,god 
forbid1 that we shall ever sink so low1 
and have to endure so terrible a        
chastisement3  but this ,i say1 that the
 only way in which any nation of which  
,i ever read in history1 can escape1    
sooner or later1 from such a fate1 is to
 remember every day1 and all day long1  
that the wrath of ,god is revealed from 
heaven against all ill-doing of men1 who
 hold the truth in unrighteousness1     
knowing what is true and what is right1 
yet telling lies1 and doing wrong4  ,let
 us lay this to heart1 with seriousness 
and godly fear4  ,for so we shall look  
up with reverence1 and yet with hope1 to
 ,christ the ascended king1 to whom all 
power is given in heaven and earth2 for 
ever asking ,him for ,his ,holy ,spirit1
 to put into our minds good desires1 and
 to enable us to bring these desires to 
good effect4  ,and so we shall live for 
ever under our great taskmaster's eye1  
and find out that that eye is not merely
 the eye of a just judge1 not merely the

 eye of a bountiful king1 but more the  
eye of a loving and merciful ,saviour1  
in whose presence is life even here on  
earth2 and at whose right hand1 even in 
this sinful world1 are pleasures for    
evermore4    ,,sermon ,,xxxi4  ,,the    
,,unchangeable ,,christ    ,eversley4   
#ahde4  ,hebrews xiii4 #h4  ,jesus      
,christ the same yesterday1 and to-day1 
and for ever4  ,let me first briefly    
remind you1 as the truth upon which my  
whole explanation of this text is built1
 that man is not meant either for       
solitude or independence4  ,he is meant 
to live ,,with his fellow-men1 to live  
,,by them1 and to live ,,for them4  ,he 
is healthy and godly1 only when he knows
 all men for his brothers2 and himself1 
in some way or other1 as the servant of 
all1 and bound in ties of love and duty 
to every one around him4  ,it is not1   
however1 my intention to dwell upon this
 truth1 deep and necessary as it is1 but
 to turn your attention to one of its   
consequences2 ,i mean to the            

disappointment and regret of which so   
many complain1 who try1 more or less    
healthily1 to keep that truth before    
them1 and shew it forth in their daily  
life4  ,it has been1 and is now1 a      
common complaint with many who interest 
themselves about their fellow-creatures1
 and the welfare of the human race1 that
 nothing in this world is sure1--nothing
 is permanent2 a continual ebb and flow 
seems to be the only law of human life4 
,men change1 they say2 their friendships
 are fickle2 their minds1 like their    
bodies1 alter from day to day4  ,the    
heart whom you trust to-day1 to- morrow 
may deceive2 the friend for whom you    
have sacrificed so much1 will not in his
 turn endure the trial of his           
friendship4  ,the child on whom you may 
have reposed your whole affection for   
years1 grows up and goes forth into the 
world1 and forms new ties1 and you are  
left alone4  ,why then love man8  ,why  
care for any born of woman1 if the      
happiness which depends on them is      

exposed to a thousand chances--a        
thousand changes8 ,again2 we hear the   
complaint that not only men1 but        
circumstances change4 ,why knit myself1 
people will ask1 to one who to-morrow   
may be whirled away from me by some eddy
 of circumstances1 and so go on his way1
 while ,i see him no more8  ,why relieve
 distress which fresh accidents may     
bring back again to-morrow1 with all its
 miseries8  ,why attach ourselves to a  
home which we may leave to-morrow1--to  
pursuits which fortune may force us to  
relinquish1--to bright hopes which the  
rolling clouds may shut out from us1--to
 opinions which the next generation may 
find to have been utterly mistaken1--to 
a circle of acquaintances who must in a 
few years be lying silent and solitary1 
each in his grave8  ,why1 in short1 set 
our affections on anything in this      
earth1 or struggle to improve or settle 
aught in a world where all seems so     
temporary1 changeful1 and uncertain1    
that nought doth endure but mutability8 

,such is and has been the complaint1    
mixed up of truth and falsehood1 poured 
out for ages by thousands who have loved
 7as the world would say7 too well--who 
have tried to build up for themselves   
homes in this world2 forgetting that    
they were strangers and pilgrims in it2 
and so1 when the floods came1 and swept 
away that small fool's paradise of      
theirs1 repined1 and were astonished1 as
 though some strange thing had happened 
to them4  ,the time would fail me did ,i
 try fully to lay before you how this   
dread and terror of change1 and this    
unsatisfied craving after an eternal    
home and an unchanging friendship       
embittered the minds of all the more    
thoughtful heathens before the coming of
 ,christ1 who1 as the apostle says1 all 
their lives were in bondage to the fear 
of death4  ,how all their schemes and   
conceptions of the course of this world1
 resolved themselves into one dark      
picture of the terrible river of time1  
restless1 pitiless1 devouring all life  

and beauty as fast as it arose1 ready to
 overwhelm the speakers themselves also 
with the coming wave1 as it had done all
 they loved before them1 and then roll  
onward for ever1 none knew whither6     
,the time would fail me1 too1 did ,i try
 to explain how after ,he had appeared1 
,who is the same yesterday1 to-day1 and 
for ever1 men have still found the same 
disappointment in all the paths of life4
  ,many1 not seeing that the            
manifestation of an incarnate ,god was  
the answer to all such doubts1 the      
healer of all such wounds1 have sickened
 at this same change and uncertainty1   
and attempted self-deliverance by all   
kinds of uncouth and most useless       
methods4  ,some have shielded           
themselves1 or tried to shield          
themselves1 in an armour of stoical     
indifference--of utter selfishness1     
being sure that at all events there was 
one friendship in the world which could 
neither change nor fade--,self-love4    
,others1 again1 have withdrawn          

themselves in disgust1 not indeed from  
their ,god and ,saviour1 but from their 
fellow-men1 and buried themselves in    
deserts1 hoping thereby to escape what  
they despaired of conquering1 the       
chances and changes of this mortal life4
  ,thus they1 alas1 threw away the gold 
of human affections among the dross of  
this world's comfort and honour4  ,wiser
 they were1 indeed1 than those last     
mentioned2 but yet shew ,i you a more   
excellent way4  ,it is strange1 and     
mournful1 too1 that this complaint1 of  
unsatisfied hopes and longings should   
still be often heard from ,christian    
lips6 ,strange1 indeed1 when the object 
and founder of our religion1 the king   
and head of all our race1 the ,god whom 
we are bound to worship1 the eldest     
brother whom we are bound to love1 the  
,saviour who died upon the cross for us1
 is the same yesterday1 and to-day1 and 
for ever6 ,strange1 indeed1 when we     
remember that ,god was manifest in the  
flesh1 that ,he might save humanity and 

its hopes from perpetual change and     
final destruction1 and satisfy all those
 cravings after an immutable object of  
man's loyalty and man's love4  ,yes1 ,he
 has given us1 in ,himself1 a king who  
can never misgovern1 a teacher who can  
never mislead1 a priest whose sacrifice 
can never be unaccepted1 a protector who
 can never grow weary1 a friend who can 
never betray4  ,and all that this earth 
has in it really worth loving1--the ties
 of family1 of country1 of universal    
brotherhood--the beauties and wonders of
 ,god's mysterious universe--all true   
love1 all useful labour1 all innocent   
enjoyment--the marriage bed1 and the    
fireside circle--the bounties of        
harvest1 and the smiles of spring1 and  
all that makes life bright and this     
earth dear--all these things ,he has    
restored to man1 spiritual and holy1    
deep with new meaning1 bright with purer
 enjoyment1 rich with usefulness1 not   
merely for time1 but for eternity1 after
 they had become1 through the           

accumulated sin and folly of ages1 foul1
 dead1 and well nigh forgotten4  ,he has
 united these common duties and         
pleasures of man's life to ,himself1 by 
taking them on ,himself on earth2 by    
giving us ,his spirit to understand and 
fulfil those duties2 by making it a duty
 to ,him to cultivate them to the       
uttermost4  ,he has sanctified them for 
ever1 by shewing us that they are types 
and patterns of still higher relations  
to ,himself1 and to ,his ,father and our
 ,father1 from whom they came4  ,christ 
our ,lord and ,saviour is a witness to  
us of the enduring1 the everlasting     
nature of all that human life contains  
of beauty and holiness1 and real value4 
,he is a witness to us that ,wisdom is  
eternal2 that that all-embracing sight1 
that all-guiding counsel1 which the     
,lord possessed in the beginning of ,his
 way1 before ,his works of old1 ,he who 
was set up from everlasting1 who was    
with ,him when ,he made the world1 still
 exists1 and ever shall exist1          

unchanged4  ,the word of the ,lord      
standeth sure6  ,that ,word which was in
 the beginning1 and was with ,god1 and  
was ,god6  ,glorious truth6 that1 amid  
all the inventions which man has sought 
out1 while every new philosopher has    
been starting some new method of        
happiness1 some new theory of human life
 and its destinies1 ,god has still been 
working onward1 unchecked1 unaltered1   
the same yesterday1 and to-day1 and for 
ever4  ,o1 sons of men6 perplexed by all
 the apparent contradictions and cross  
purposes and opposing powers and        
principles of this strange1 dark1 noisy 
time1 remember to your comfort that your
 ,king1 a man like you1 yet very ,god1  
now sits above1 seeing through all which
 you cannot see through2 unravelling    
surely all this tangled web of time1    
while under ,his guiding eye all things 
are moving silently onward1 like the    
stars in their courses above you1 toward
 their appointed end1 when ,he shall    
have put down all rule and all          

authority1 and power1 for ,he must      
reign1 till ,he hath put all enemies    
under ,his feet4  ,and then1 at last1   
this cloudy sky shall be all clear and  
bright1 for ,he1 the ,lamb1 shall be the
 light thereof4  ,christ is the witness 
to us also of the eternity of           
,love1--,of ,god's love- -the love of   
the ,father who wills1 of ,himself who  
has purchased1 of the ,holy ,ghost who  
works in us our salvation2 and of the   
eternity of all love2 that true love is 
not of the flesh1 but of the spirit1 and
 therefore hath its root in the         
spiritual world1 above all change and   
accidents of time or circumstance4      
,think1 think1 my friends4  ,for what is
 life that we should make such ado about
 it1 and hug it so closely1 and look to 
it to fill our hearts8  ,what is all    
earthly life with all its bad and good  
luck1 its riches and its poverty1 but a 
vapour that passes away8--noise and     
smoke overclouding the enduring light of
 heaven4  ,a man may be very happy and  

blest in this life2 yet he may feel     
that1 however pleasant it is1 at root it
 is no reality1 but only a shadow of    
realities which are eternal and infinite
 in the bosom of ,god1 a piecemeal      
pattern1 of the ,light ,kingdom--the    
city not made with hands--eternal in the
 heavens4  ,for all this time-world1 as 
a wise man says1 is but like an image1  
beautifully and fearfully emblematic1   
but still only an emblem1 like an air   
image1 which plays and flickers in the  
grand1 still mirror of eternity4  ,out  
of nothing1 into time and space we all  
came into noisy day2 and out of time and
 space into the silent night shall we   
all return into the spirit world--the   
everlasting twofold mystery--into the   
light- world of ,god's love1 or the     
fire-world of ,his anger--every like    
unto its like1 and every man to his own 
place4   ,choose well1 your choice is   
,brief but yet endless2 ,from ,heaven1  
eyes behold you ,in eternity's          
stillness4 ,there all is fullness1 ,ye  

brave to reward you2 ,work and despair  
not4    ,,sermon ,,xxxii4  ,,reformation
 ,,lessons    ,eversley4 #ahfa4  #b     
,kings xxiii4 #c1 #d1 #be1 #bf4  ,and   
the king stood by a pillar1 and made a  
covenant before the ,lord1 to walk after
 the ,lord1 and to keep his commandments
 and his testimonies and his statutes   
with all their heart and all their soul1
 to perform the words of this covenant  
that were written in this book4  ,and   
all the people stood to the covenant4   
,and the king commanded ,hilkiah the    
high priest1 and the priests of the     
second order1 and the keepers of the    
door1 to bring forth out of the temple  
of the ,lord all the vessels that were  
made for ,baal1 and for the grove1 and  
for all the host of heaven3  and he     
burned them without ,jerusalem in the   
fields of ,kidron1 and carried the ashes
 of them unto ,beth-el4 4 4 4  ,and like
 unto him was there no king before him1 
that turned to the ,lord with all his   
heart1 and with all his soul1 and with  

all his might1 according to all the law 
of ,moses2 neither after him arose there
 any like him4 ,notwithstanding the     
,lord turned not from the fierceness of 
his great wrath1 wherewith his anger was
 kindled against ,judah1 because of all 
the provocations that ,manasseh had     
provoked him withal4  ,you heard this   
chapter read as the first lesson for    
this afternoon's service2 and a lesson  
it is indeed--a lesson for you and for  
me1 as it was a lesson for our          
forefathers4  ,if you had been          
worshipping in this church three hundred
 years ago1 you would have understood1  
without my telling you1 why the good and
 wise men who shaped our prayer-book    
chose this chapter to be read in church4
  ,you would have applied the words of  
it to the times in which you were       
living4  ,you would have felt that the  
chapter spoke to you at once of joy and 
hope1 and of sorrow and fear4  ,there is
 no doubt at all what our forefathers   
would have thought of1 and did think of1

 when they read this chapter4  ,the     
glorious reformation which young ,king  
,josiah made was to them the pattern of 
the equally glorious ,reformation which 
was made in ,england somewhat more than 
three hundred years ago4  ,young ,king  
,josiah1 swearing to govern according to
 the law of the ,lord1 was to them the  
pattern of young ,king ,edward ,,vi4    
determining to govern according to the  
laws of the ,bible4  ,the finding of the
 law of the ,lord in ,josiah's time1    
after it had been long lost1 was to them
 the pattern of the sudden spread among 
them of the ,bible1 which had been      
practically hidden from them for        
hundreds of years1 and was then         
translated into ,english and printed1   
and put freely into the hands of every  
man1 rich and poor1 who was able to read
 it4  ,king ,josiah's destruction of the
 idols1 and the temples of the false    
gods1 and driving out the wizards and   
workers with familiar spirits1 were to  
them a pattern of the destruction of the

 monasteries and miraculous images and  
popish superstitions of every kind1 the 
turning the monks out of their convents1
 and forcing them to set to honest      
work--which had just taken place        
throughout ,england4  ,and the hearts of
 all true ,englishmen were stirred up in
 those days to copy ,josiah and the     
people of ,jerusalem1 and turn to the   
,lord with all their heart1 and with all
 their soul1 and with all their might1  
according to ,god's law and gospel1 in  
the two ,testaments1 both ,old and ,new4
  ,one would have thought that at such a
 time the hearts of our forefathers     
would be full of nothing but hope and   
joy1 content and thankfulness4  ,and yet
 it was not so4  ,one cannot help seeing
 that in the prayer-book1 which was put 
together in those days1 there is a great
 deal of fear and sadness4  ,you see it 
especially in the ,litany1 which was to 
be said not only on ,sundays1 but on    
,wednesdays and ,fridays also4  ,some   
people think the ,litany painfully      

sad--too sad4  ,it was not too sad for  
the time in which it was written4  ,our 
forefathers1 three hundred years ago1   
meant what they said when they cried to 
,god to have mercy upon them1 miserable 
sinners1 and not to remember their      
offences nor the offences of their      
forefathers1 c4  ,they meant1 and had   
good reason to mean1 what they said1    
when they cried to ,god that those evils
 which the craft and subtilty of the    
devil and men were working against them 
might be brought to nought1 and by the  
providence of ,his goodness be          
dispersed--to arise and help and deliver
 them for ,his name's sake and for ,his 
honour2 and to turn from them1 for the  
glory of ,his name1 all those evils     
which they righteously had deserved4    
,they were in danger and in terror1 our 
forefathers1 three hundred years ago4   
,and when they heard this lesson read in
 church1 it was not likely to make their
 terror less4  ,for what says the #bfth 
verse of this chapter8                  

,notwithstanding1 in spite of all this  
reformation1 and putting away of idols  
and determining to walk according to the
 law of the ,lord1 the ,lord turned not 
from the fierceness of ,his great wrath1
 wherewith ,his anger was kindled       
against ,judah4  ,and what followed8    
,josiah was killed in battle--by his own
 fault too--by ,pharaoh ,nechoh1 ,king  
of ,egypt4  ,and then followed nothing  
but disaster and misery4  ,the ,jews    
were conquered first by the ,king of    
,egypt1 and taxed to pay to him an      
enormous tribute2 and then1 in the wars 
between ,egypt and ,babylon1 conquered a
 second time by the ,king of ,babylon1  
the famous ,nebuchadnezzar1 in that     
dreadful siege in which it is said      
mothers ate their own children through  
extremity of famine4  ,and then after   
seventy years1 after every one of that  
idolatrous and corrupt generation had   
died in captivity1 the poor ,jews were  
allowed to go back to their native land1
 chastened and purged in the fire of    

affliction1 and having learnt a lesson  
which1 to do them justice1 they never   
forgot again1 and have not forgotten to 
this day2 that to worship a graven      
image1 as well as to work               
unrighteousness1 is abomination to the  
,lord-- that ,god1 and ,god alone1 is to
 be worshipped1 and worshipped in       
holiness and purity1 in mercy and in    
justice4  ,and it was some such fate as 
this1 some terrible ruin like that of   
the ,jews of old1 that our forefathers  
feared three hundred years ago4  ,their 
hearts were not yet altogether right    
with ,god4  ,they had not shaken off the
 bad habits of mind1 or the bad morals  
either1 which they had learnt in the old
 ,romish times--too many of them were   
using their liberty as a cloak of       
licentiousness2 and1 under pretence of  
religion1 plundering not only ,god's    
,church1 but ,god's poor4  ,and many    
other evils were rife in ,england then1 
as there are sure to be great evils side
 by side with great good in any country 

in times of change and revolution4  ,and
 so our forefathers needed chastisement1
 and they had it4  ,king ,edward1 upon  
whom the ,protestants had set their     
hopes1 died young2 and then came times  
which tried them literally as by fire4  
,first came the terrible persecutions in
 ,queen ,mary's time1 when hundreds of  
good men and women were burnt alive for 
their religion4  ,and even after her    
death1 for thirty years1 came times1    
such as ,hezekiah speaks of--times of   
trouble and rebuke and blasphemy1 plots1
 rebellions1 civil war1 at home and     
abroad2 dangers that grew ever more and 
more terrible1 till it seemed at last   
certain that ,england would be          
conquered1 in the ,pope's name1 by the  
,king of ,spain3  and if that had come  
to pass 7and it all but came to pass in 
the famous year #aehh71 the ,king of    
,spain would have become ,king of       
,england2 the best blood of ,england    
would have been shed upon the scaffold2 
the best estates parted among ,spaniards

 and traitors2 ,england enslaved to the 
most cruel nation of those times2 and   
the ,inquisition set up to persecute1   
torture1 and burn all who believed in   
what they called1 and what is1 the      
gospel of ,jesus ,christ4  ,that was to 
have happened1 and it was only1 as our  
forefathers confessed1 by the infinite  
mercy of ,god that it did not happen4   
,they were delivered strangely and      
suddenly1 as the ,jews were4  ,for forty
 years they had been1 chastised1 and    
purged and humbled for their sins2 and  
then1 and not till then1 came times of  
safety and prosperity1 honour and glory1
 which have lasted1 thanks be to ,god1  
ever since4   ,and now1 my dear friends1
 what has this to do with us8  ,if this 
chapter was a lesson to our forefathers1
 how is it to be a lesson to us         
likewise8  ,i have always told you 7as  
those who have really understood their  
,bibles in all ages have told men7 that 
the ,bible sets forth the eternal laws  
of ,god's kingdom--the laws by which    

,god1 that is1 our ,lord ,jesus ,christ1
 governs nations and kingdoms--and not  
only nations and kingdoms1 but you and  
me1 and every individual ,christian man2
 all these things1 says ,st ,paul1 are  
written for our admonition4  ,the       
history of the ,jews is1 or may be1 your
 history or mine1 for good or for evil2 
as ,god dealt with them1 so is ,he      
dealing with you and me4  ,by their     
experience we must learn4  ,by their    
chastisements we must be warned4  ,so   
says ,st ,paul4  ,so have all preachers 
said who have understood ,st ,paul--and 
so say ,i to you4 ,and the lesson that  
we may learn from this chapter is1 that 
we may repent and yet be punished4  ,i  
know people do not like to believe that2
 ,i know that it is much more convenient
 to fancy that when a man repents1 and1 
as he says1 turns over a new leaf1 he   
need trouble himself no more about his  
past sins4  ,but it is a mistake2 not   
only is the letter and spirit of        
,scripture against him1 but facts are   

against him4  ,he may not choose to     
trouble himself about his past sins2 but
 he will find that his past sins trouble
 him1 whether he chooses or not1--and   
that often in a very terrible way1 as   
they troubled those poor ,jews in their 
day1 and our forefathers after the      
,reformation4  ,what8 some will say1 is 
it not expressly written in ,scripture  
that 'when the wicked man turneth away  
from his wickedness that he hath        
committed1 and doeth that which is      
lawful and right1 he shall save his soul
 alive8' and 'all his transgressions    
that he hath committed they shall not be
 mentioned unto him1' but that 'in his  
righteousness which he hath done he     
shall live8'  ,no doubt it is so        
written1 my friends4  ,and no doubt it  
is perfectly and literally true3  but   
answer me this1 when does the wicked man
 do that which is lawful and right8     
,the minute after he has repented8 or   
the day after8 or even seven years      
after8--the minute after he is forgiven1

 and received freely back again as      
,god's child1 as he will be1 for the    
sake of that precious blood which       
,christ poured out upon the cross8      
,would to ,god it were so1 my friends4  
,would to ,god it were so easy to do    
right1 after having been accustomed to  
do wrong4  ,would to ,god it were so    
easy to get a clean heart and a right   
spirit4  ,would to ,god it were so easy 
to break through all the old bad        
habits--perhaps the habits of a whole   
life-time4 ,but it is in vain to expect 
this sudden change of character4  ,as   
well may we expect a man1 who has been  
laid low with fever1 to get up and go   
about to his work the moment his disease
 takes a favourable turn4  ,no4  ,after 
the forgiveness of sin must come the    
cure of sin4  ,and that cure1 like most 
cures1 is a long and a painful process4 
,the sin may have been some animal sin1 
like drunkenness2 and we all know how   
difficult it is to cure that4  ,or it   
may have been a spiritual sin--pride1   

vanity1 covetousness4  ,can any man put 
off these bad habits in a moment1 as he 
puts off his coat8  ,those who so fancy1
 can know very little of human nature1  
and have observed their own hearts and  
their fellow creatures very carelessly4 
,if you will look at facts1 what you    
will find is this3- -that all sins and  
bad habits fill the soul with evil      
humours1 just as a fever or any other   
severe disease fills the body2 and that1
 as in the case of a fever1 those evil  
humours remain after the acute disease  
is past1 and are but too apt to break   
out again1 to cause relapses1 to torment
 the poor patient1 perhaps to leave his 
character crippled and disfigured all   
his life--certainly to require long and 
often severe treatment by the heavenly  
physician1 ,christ1 the purifier as well
 as the redeemer of our sin-sick souls4 
,heavy1 therefore1 and bitter and       
shameful is the burden which many a man 
has to bear after he has turned from    
self to ,god1 from sin to holiness4  ,he

 is haunted1 as it were1 by the ghosts  
of his old follies4  ,he finds out the  
bitter truth of ,st ,paul's words1 that 
there is another law in his body warring
 against the law of his mind1 of his    
conscience1 and his reason2 so that when
 he would do good1 evil is present with 
him4  ,the good that he would do he does
 not do2 and the evil that he would not 
do he does4  ,till he cries with ,st    
,paul1 ,o wretched man that ,i am6 who  
shall deliver me from the body of this  
death8 and feels that none can deliver  
him1 save ,jesus ,christ our ,lord4     
,yes4  ,but there is our comfort1 there 
is our hope--,christ1 the great healer1 
the great physician1 can deliver us1 and
 will deliver us from the remains of our
 old sins1 the consequences of our own  
follies4  ,not1 indeed1 at once1 or by  
miracle2 but by slow education in new   
and nobler motives1 in purer and more   
unselfish habits4  ,and better for us1  
perhaps1 that ,he should not cure us at 
once1 lest we should fancy that sin was 

a light thing1 which we could throw off 
whenever we chose2 and not what it is1  
an inward disease1 corroding and        
corrupting1 the wages whereof are death4
  ,therefore it is1 that because ,christ
 loves us ,he hates our sins1 and cannot
 abide or endure them1 will punish them1
 and is merciful and loving in punishing
 them1 as long as a tincture or remnant 
of sin is left in us4  ,let us then1 if 
our consciences condemn us of living    
evil lives1 turn and repent before it be
 too late2 before our consciences are   
hardened2 before the purer and nobler   
feelings which we learnt at our mothers'
 knees are stifled by the ways of the   
world2 before we are hardened into bad  
habits1 and grown frivolous1 sensual1   
selfish and worldly4  ,let us repent4   
,let us put ourselves into the hands of 
,christ1 the great physician1 and ask   
,him to heal our wounded souls1 and     
purge our corrupted souls2 and leave to 
,him the choice of how ,he will do it4  
,let us be content to be punished and   

chastised4  ,if we deserve punishment1  
let us bear it1 and bear it like men2 as
 we should bear the surgeon's knife1    
knowing that it is for our good1 and    
that the hand which inflicts pain is the
 hand of one who so loves us1 that ,he  
stooped to die for us on the cross4     
,let ,him deal with us1 if ,he see fit1 
as ,he dealt with ,david of old1 when   
,he forgave his sin1 and yet punished it
 by the death of his child4  ,let ,him  
do what ,he will by us1 provided ,he    
does--what ,he will do--make us good    
men4  ,that is what we need to be--just1
 merciful1 pure1 faithful1 loyal1       
useful1 honourable with true honour1 in 
the sight of ,god and man4  ,that is    
what we need to be4  ,that is what we   
shall be at last1 if we put ourselves   
into ,christ's hand1 and ask ,him for   
the clean heart and the right spirit1   
which is ,his own spirit1 the spirit of 
all goodness4  ,and provided we attain1 
at last1 to that--provided we attain1 at
 last1 to the truly heroic and divine   

life1 which is the life of virtue1 it   
will matter little to us by what wild   
and weary ways1 or through what painful 
and humiliating processes1 we have      
arrived thither4  ,if ,god has loved us1
 if ,god will receive us1 then let us   
submit loyally and humbly to ,his law4  
,whom the ,lord loveth ,he chasteneth1  
and scourgeth every son whom ,he        
receiveth4    ,,sermon ,,xxxiii4        
,,human ,,soot    ,preached for the     
,kirkdale ,ragged ,schools1 ,liverpool1 
#ahgj4  ,st ,matt1 xviii4 #ad4  ,it is  
not the will of your ,father which is in
 heaven1 that one of these little ones  
should perish4  ,i am here to plead for 
the ,kirkdale ,industrial ,ragged       
,school1 and ,free ,school-room ,church4
  ,the great majority of children who   
attend this school belong to the class  
of street arabs1 as they are now called2
 and either already belong to1 or are   
likely to sink into1 the dangerous      
classes--professional law-breakers1     
profligates1 and barbarians4  ,how these

 children have been fed1 civilized1     
christianized1 taught trades and        
domestic employments1 and saved from    
ruin of body and soul1 ,i leave to you  
to read in the report4  ,let us take    
hold of these little ones at once4      
,they are now soft1 plastic1 mouldable2 
a tone will stir their young souls to   
the very depths1 a look will affect them
 for ever4  ,but a hardening process has
 commenced within them1 and if they are 
not seized at once1 they will become    
harder than adamant2 and then scalding  
tears1 and the most earnest trials1 will
 be all but useless4  ,this report      
contains full and pleasant proof of the 
success of the schools2 but it contains 
also full proof of a fact which is      
anything but pleasant--of the existence 
in ,liverpool of a need for such an     
institution4  ,how is it that when a    
ragged school like this is opened1 it is
 filled at once3  that it is enlarged   
year after year1 and yet is filled and  
filled again8  ,whence comes this large 

population of children who are needy1 if
 not destitute2 and who are1 or are in a
 fair way to become1 dangerous8  ,and   
whence comes the population of parents  
whom these children represent8  ,how is 
it that in ,liverpool1 if ,i am rightly 
informed1 more than four hundred and    
fifty children were committed by the    
magistrates last year for various       
offences2 almost every one of whom1 of  
course1 represents several more1        
brothers1 sisters1 companions1 corrupted
 by him1 or corrupting him4  ,you have  
your reformatories1 your training ships1
 like your ,akbar1 which ,i visited with
 deep satisfaction yesterday-           
-institutions which are an honour to the
 town of ,liverpool1 at least to many of
 its citizens4  ,but how is it that they
 are ever needed8  ,how is it--and this1
 if correct1 or only half correct1 is a 
fact altogether horrible--that there are
 now between ten and twelve thousand    
children in ,liverpool who attend no    
school--twelve thousand children in     

ignorance of their duty to ,god and man1
 in training for that dangerous class1  
which you have1 it seems1 contrived to  
create in this once small and quiet port
 during a century of wonderful          
prosperity4  ,and consider this1 ,i     
beseech you--how is it that the         
experiment of giving these children a   
fair chance1 when it is tried 7as it has
 been in these schools7 has succeeded8  
,i do not wonder1 of course1 that it has
 succeeded1 for ,i know ,who made these 
children1 and ,who redeemed them1 and   
,who cares for them more than you or ,i1
 or their best friends1 can care for    
them4  ,but do you not see that the very
 fact of their having improved1 when    
they had a fair chance1 is proof        
positive that they had not had a fair   
chance before8  ,how is that1 my        
friends8  ,and this leads me to ask you 
plainly--what do you consider to be your
 duty toward those children2 what is    
your duty toward those dangerous and    
degraded classes1 from which too many of

 them spring8  ,you all know the parable
 of the ,good ,samaritan4  ,you all know
 how he found the poor wounded ,jew by  
the wayside2 and for the mere sake of   
their common humanity1 simply because he
 was a man1 though he would have        
scornfully disclaimed the name of       
brother1 bound up his wounds1 set him on
 his own beast1 led him to an inn1 and  
took care of him4  ,is yours the duty   
which the good ,samaritan felt8--the    
duty of mere humanity8  ,how is it your 
duty to deal1 then1 with these poor     
children8 ,that1 and ,i think a little  
more4  ,let me say boldly1 ,i think     
these children have a deeper and a      
nearer claim on you2 and that you must  
not pride yourselves1 here in           
,liverpool1 on acting the good          
,samaritan1 when you help a ragged      
school4  ,we do not read that the good  
,samaritan was a merchant1 on his march1
 at the head of his own caravan4  ,we do
 not read that the wounded man was one  
of his own servants1 or a child of one  

of his servants1 who had been left      
behind1 unable from weakness or         
weariness to keep pace with the rest1   
and had dropped by the wayside1 till the
 vultures and the jackals should pick   
his bones4  ,neither do we read that he 
was a general1 at the head of an        
advancing army1 and that the poor       
sufferer was one of his own rank and    
file1 crippled by wounds or by disease1 
watching1 as many a poor soldier does1  
his comrades march past to victory1     
while he is left alone to die4  ,still  
less do we hear that the sufferer was   
the child of some poor soldier's wife1  
or even of some drunken camp-follower1  
who had lost her place on the           
baggage-waggon1 and trudged on with the 
child at her back1 through dust and     
mire1 till1 in despair1 she dropped her 
little one1 and left it to the mercies  
of the ,god who gave it her4  ,in either
 case1 that good ,samaritan would have  
known what his duty was4 ,i trust that  
you will know1 in like case1 what your  

duty is4  ,for is not this1 and none    
other1 your relation to these children  
in your streets1 ragged1 dirty1         
profligate1 sinking and perishing1 of   
whom our ,lord has said--,it is not the 
will of your ,father which is in heaven 
that one of these little ones should    
perish8  ,it is not ,his will4  ,i am   
sure that it is not your will either4   
,i believe that1 with all my heart4  ,i 
do not blame you1 or the people of      
,liverpool1 nor the people of any city  
on earth1 in our present imperfect state
 of civilisation1 for the existence     
among them of brutal1 ignorant1         
degraded1 helpless people4  ,it is no   
one's fault1 just because it is every   
one's fault--the fault of the system4   
,but it is not the will of ,god2 and    
therefore the existence of such an evil 
is proof patent and sufficient that we  
have not yet discovered the whole will  
of ,god about this matter2 that we have 
not yet mastered the laws of true       
political economy1 which 7like all other

 natural laws7 are that will of ,god    
revealed in facts4  ,our processes are  
hasty1 imperfect1 barbaric--and their   
result is vast and rapid production3    
but also waste1 refuse1 in the shape of 
a dangerous class4 ,we know well how1 in
 some manufactures1 a certain amount of 
waste is profitable--that it pays better
 to let certain substances run to       
refuse1 than to use every product of the
 manufacture2 as in a steam mill1 where 
it pays better not to consume the whole 
fuel1 to let the soot escape1 though    
every atom of soot is so much wasted    
fuel4  ,so it is in our present social  
system4  ,it pays better1 capital is    
accumulated more rapidly1 by wasting a  
certain amount of human life1 human     
health1 human intellect1 human morals1  
by producing and throwing away a regular
 percentage of human soot--of that      
thinking1 acting dirt1 which lies about1
 and1 alas6 breeds and perpetuates      
itself in foul alleys and low public    
houses1 and all dens and dark places of 

the earth4  ,but1 as in the case of the 
manufactures1 the ,nemesis comes1 swift 
and sure4  ,as the foul vapours of the  
mine and the manufactory destroy        
vegetation and injure health1 so does   
the ,nemesis fall on the world of man2  
so does that human soot1 these human    
poison gases1 infect the whole society  
which has allowed them to fester under  
its feet4  ,sad1 but not hopeless6      
,dark1 but not without a gleam of light 
on the horizon6  ,for ,i can conceive a 
time when1 by improved chemical science1
 every foul vapour which now escapes    
from the chimney of a manufactory1      
polluting the air1 destroying the       
vegetation1 shall be seized1 utilised1  
converted into some profitable          
substance2 till the black country shall 
be black no longer1 the streams once    
more crystal clear1 the trees once more 
luxuriant1 and the desert which man has 
created in his haste and greed shall1 in
 literal fact1 once more blossom as the 
rose4  ,and just so can ,i conceive a   

time when1 by a higher civilisation1    
formed on a political economy more truly
 scientific1 because more truly         
according to the will of ,god1 our human
 refuse shall be utilised1 like our     
material refuse1 when man1 as man1 even 
down to the weakest and most ignorant1  
shall be found to be 7as he really is7  
so valuable1 that it will be worth while
 to preserve his health1 to develop his 
capabilities1 to save him alive1 body1  
intellect1 and character1 at any cost2  
because men will see that a man is1     
after all1 the most precious and useful 
thing on the earth1 and that no cost    
spent on the development of human beings
 can possibly be thrown away4  ,i       
appeal1 then1 to you1 the commercial men
 of ,liverpool1 if there are any such in
 this congregation4  ,if not1 ,i appeal 
to their wives and daughters1 who are   
kept in wealth1 luxury1 refinement1 by  
the honourable labours of their         
husbands1 fathers1 brothers1 on behalf  
of this human soot4  ,merchants are 7and

 ,i believe that they deserve to be7 the
 leaders of the great caravan1 which    
goes forth to replenish the earth and   
subdue it4  ,they are among the generals
 of the great army which wages war      
against the brute powers of nature all  
over the world1 to ward off poverty and 
starvation from the ever-teeming        
millions of mankind4  ,have they no     
time--,i take for granted that they have
 the heart--to pick up the footsore and 
weary1 who have fallen out of the march1
 that they may rejoin the caravan1 and  
be of use once more8  ,have they no     
time--,i am sure they have the heart--to
 tend the wounded and the               
fever-stricken1 that they may rise and  
fight once more8  ,if not1 then must not
 the pace of their march be somewhat too
 rapid1 the plan of their campaign      
somewhat precipitate and ill-directed1  
their ambulance train and their medical 
arrangements somewhat defective8  ,we   
are all ready enough to complain of     
waste of human bodies1 brought about by 

such defects in the ,british army4      
,shall we pass over the waste1 the      
hereditary waste of human souls1 brought
 about by similar defects in every great
 city in the world8  ,waste of human    
souls1 human intellects1 human          
characters--waste1 saddest of all1 of   
the image of ,god in little children4   
,that cannot be necessary4  ,there must 
be a fault somewhere4  ,it cannot be the
 will of ,god that one little one should
 perish by commerce1 or by manufacture1 
any more than by slavery1 or by war4    
,as surely as ,i believe that there is a
 ,god1 so surely do ,i believe that     
commerce is the ordinance of ,god2 that 
the great army of producers and         
distributors is ,god's army4  ,but for  
that very reason ,i must believe that   
the production of human refuse1 the     
waste of human character1 is not part of
 ,god's plan2 not according to ,his     
ideal of what our social state should   
be2 and therefore what our social state 
can be4  ,for ,god asks no              

impossibilities of any human being4     
,but as things are1 one has only to go  
into the streets of this1 or any great  
city1 to see how we1 with all our       
boasted civilisation1 are1 as yet1 but  
one step removed from barbarism4  ,is   
that a hard word8  ,why1 there are the  
barbarians around us at every street    
corner6  ,grown barbarians--it may be   
now all but past saving--but bringing   
into the world young barbarians1 whom we
 may yet save1 for ,god wishes us to    
save them4  ,it is not the will of their
 ,father which is in heaven that one of 
them should perish4  ,and for that very 
reason ,he has given them capabilities1 
powers1 instincts1 by virtue of which   
they need not perish4 ,do not deceive   
yourselves about the little dirty1      
offensive children in the street4  ,if  
they be offensive to you1 they are not  
to ,him who made them4  ,take heed that 
ye despise not one of these little ones2
 for ,i say unto you1 ,that in heaven   
their angels do always behold the face  

of my ,father which is in heaven4  ,is  
there not in every one of them1 as in   
you1 the ,light which lighteth every man
 that cometh into the world8  ,and know 
you not ,who that ,light is1 and what   
,he said of little children8 ,then1 take
 heed1 ,i say1 lest you despise one of  
these little ones4 ,listen not to the   
,pharisee when he says1 ,except the     
little child be converted1 and become as
 ,i am1 he shall in nowise enter into   
the kingdom of heaven4  ,but listen to  
the voice of ,him who knew what was in  
man1 when ,he said1 ,except ye be       
converted1 and become as little         
children1 ye shall not enter into the   
kingdom of heaven4  ,their souls are    
like their bodies1 not perfect1 but     
beautiful enough1 and fresh enough1 to  
shame any one who shall dare to look    
down on them4  ,their souls are like    
their bodies1 hidden by the rags1 foul  
with the dirt of what we miscall        
civilisation4  ,but take them to the    
pure stream1 strip off the ugly1        

shapeless rags1 wash the young limbs    
again1 and you shall find them1 body and
 soul1 fresh and lithe1 graceful and    
capable--capable of how much1 ,god alone
 who made them knows4  ,well said of    
such1 the great ,christian poet of your 
northern hills--   ,not in entire       
forgetfulness1 ,and not in utter        
nakedness1 ,but trailing clouds of glory
 do we come ,from ,god1 who is our home4
   ,truly1 and too truly1 alas6 he goes 
on to say--   ,shades of the            
prison-house begin to close ,upon the   
growing boy4   ,will you let the shades 
of that prison-house of mortality be    
peopled with little save obscene        
phantoms8  ,truly1 and too truly1 he    
goes on--   ,the youth1 who daily       
further from the east ,must travel1     
still is ,nature's priest1 ,and by the  
vision splendid1 ,is on his way         
attended4   ,will you leave the youth to
 know nature only in the sense in which 
an ape or a swine knows it2 and to      
conceive of no more splendid vision than

 that which he may behold at a penny    
theatre8  ,truly again1 and too truly1  
he goes on--   ,at length the man       
perceives it die away1 ,and fade into   
the light of common day4   ,yes1 to     
weak1 mortal man the prosaic age of     
manhood must needs come1 for good as    
well as for evil4  ,but will you let    
that age be--to any of your fellow      
citizens--not even an age of rational   
prose1 but an age of brutal             
recklessness2 while the light of common 
day1 for him1 has sunk into the darkness
 of a common sewer8  ,and all the while 
it was not the will of their ,father in 
heaven that one of these little ones    
should perish4  ,is it your will1 my    
friends2 or is it not8  ,if it be not1  
the means of saving them1 or at least   
the great majority of them1 is easier   
than you think4  ,circumstances drag    
downward from childhood1 poor1 weak1    
fallen1 human nature4  ,circumstances   
must help it upward again once more4    
,do your best to surround the wild      

children of ,liverpool with such        
circumstances as you put round your own 
children4  ,deal with them as you wish  
,god to deal with your beloved4         
,remember that1 as the wise man says1   
the human plant1 like the vegetable1    
thrives best in light2 and you will     
discover1 by the irresistible logic of  
facts1 by the success of your own       
endeavours1 by seeing these young souls 
grow1 and not wither1 live1 and not     
die--that it is not the will of your    
,father which is in heaven that one of  
these little ones should perish4        
,,sermon ,,xxxiv4  ,,national ,,sorrows 
,,and ,,national ,,lessons    ,on the   
illness or the ,prince of ,wales4       
,chapel ,royal1 ,st ,james's1 ,december 
#agth1 #ahga4  #b ,sam4 xix4 #ad4  ,he  
bowed the heart of all the men of       
,judah1 even as the heart of one man4   
,no circumstances can be more different1
 thank ,god1 than those under which the 
heart of the men of ,judah was bowed    
when their king commander appealed to   

them1 and those which have1 in the last 
few days1 bowed the heart of this nation
 as the heart of one man4  ,but the     
feeling called out in each case was the 
same--,loyalty1 spontaneous1 contagious1
 some would say unreasoning3  but it may
 be all the deeper and nobler1 because  
for once it did not wait to reason1 but 
was content to be human1 and to feel4   
,if those men who have been so heartily 
loyal of late--respectable1             
business-like1 manful persons1 of a race
 in nowise given to sentimental         
excitement--had been asked the cause of 
the intense feeling which they have     
shown during the last few days1 they    
would probably1 most of them1 find some 
difficulty in giving it4  ,many would   
talk frankly of their dread lest        
business should be interfered with2 and 
no shame to them1 if they live by       
business4  ,others would speak of       
possible political complications2 and   
certainly no blame to them for dreading 
such4  ,but they would most of them     

speak1 as frankly1 of a deeper and less 
selfish emotion4  ,they would speak1 not
 eloquently it may be1 but earnestly1 of
 sympathy with a mother and a wife2 of  
sympathy with youth and health fighting 
untimely with disease and death--they   
would plead their common humanity1 and  
not be ashamed to have yielded to that  
touch of nature1 which makes the whole  
world kin4  ,and that would be          
altogether to their honour4  ,honourably
 and gracefully has that sympathy showed
 itself in these realms of late4  ,it   
has proved that in spite of all our     
covetousness1 all our luxury1 all our   
frivolity1 we are not cynics yet1 nor   
likely1 thanks be to ,almighty ,god1 to 
become cynics2 that however encrusted   
and cankered with the cares and riches  
of this world1 and bringing1 alas1 very 
little fruit to perfection1 the old     
,british oak is sound at the root--still
 human1 still humane4  ,but there is1 ,i
 believe1 another and an almost deeper  
reason for the strong emotion which has 

possessed these men2 one most intimately
 bound up with our national life1       
national unity1 national history2 one   
which they can hardly express to        
themselves2 one which some of them are  
half ashamed to express1 because they   
cannot render a reason for it2 but which
 is still there1 deeply rooted in their 
souls2 one of those old hereditary      
instincts by which the histories of     
whole nations1 whole races1 are guided1 
often half-unconsciously1 and almost in 
spite of themselves2 and that is        
,loyalty1 pure and simple ,loyalty--the 
attachment to some royal race1 whom they
 conceived to be set over them by ,god4 
,an attachment1 mark it well1 founded   
not on their own will1 but on grounds   
very complex1 and quite independent of  
them2 an attachment which they did not  
make1 but found2 an attachment which    
their forefathers had transmitted to    
them1 and which they must transmit to   
their children as a national            
inheritance1--at once a symbol of and a 

support to the national unity of the    
whole people1 running back to the time  
when1 in dim and mythic ages1 it emerged
 into the light of history as a         
wandering tribe4  ,this instinct1 as a  
historic fact1 has been strong in all   
the progressive ,european nations2      
especially strong in the ,teutonic2 in  
none more than in the ,english and the  
,scotch4 ,it has helped to put them in  
the forefront of the nations4  ,it has  
been a rallying point for all their     
highest national instincts4  ,their     
,sovereign was to them the divinely     
appointed symbol of the unity of their  
country4 ,in defending him1 they        
defended it4  ,it did not interfere1    
that instinct of loyalty1 with their    
mature manhood1 freedom1 independence4  
,they knew that if royalty were indeed  
,god's ordinance1 it had its duties as  
well as its rights4  ,and when their    
kings broke the law1 they changed their 
kings4  ,but a king they must have1 for 
their own sakes2 not merely for the sake

 of the nation's security and peace1 but
 for the sake of their own self-respect4
  ,they felt1 those old forefathers of  
ours1 that loyalty was not a degrading1 
but an ennobling influence2 that a free 
man can give up his independence without
 losing it2 that--as the example of that
 mighty ,german army has just shown an  
astounded world--independence is never  
more called out than by subordination2  
and that a free man never feels himself 
so free as when obeying those whom the  
laws of his country have set over him2  
an able man never feels himself so able 
as when he is following the lead of an  
abler man than himself4  ,and what if1  
as needs must happen at whiles1 the     
sovereign were not a man1 but a woman or
 a child8  ,then was added to loyalty in
 the hearts of our forefathers1 and of  
many another nation in ,europe1 an      
instinct even deeper1 and tenderer1 and 
more unselfish--the instinct of         
chivalry2 and the widowed queen1 or the 
prince1 became to them a precious jewel 

committed to their charge by the will of
 their forefathers and the providence of
 ,god2 an heirloom for which they were  
responsible to ,god1 and to their       
forefathers1 and to their children after
 them1 lest their names should be       
stained to all future generations by the
 crime of baseness toward the weak4     
,this was the instinct of the old       
,teutonic races4  ,they were often      
unfaithful to it--as all men are to     
their higher instincts2 and fulfilled it
 very imperfectly--as all men fulfil    
their duties4  ,but it was there-- in   
their heart of hearts4  ,it helped to   
make them2 and1 therefore1 it helped to 
make us4  ,it ennobled them2 it called  
out in them the sense of unity1 order1  
discipline1 and a lofty and unselfish   
affection4  ,and ,i thank ,god1 as an   
,englishman1 for any event1 however     
exquisitely painful1 which may call out 
those true graces in us1 their          
descendants4  ,and1 therefore1 my good  
friends1 if any cynic shall sneer1 as he

 may1 after the present danger is past1 
at this sudden outburst of loyalty1 and 
speak of it as unreasoning and childish1
 answer not him4  ,give not that which  
is holy unto the dogs1 neither cast ye  
your pearls before swine1 lest they     
trample them under their feet1 and turn 
again and rend you4  ,but answer        
yourselves1 and answer too your         
children1 when they ask you what has    
moved you thus--answer1 ,i say1 not     
childishly1 but childlike3  ,we have    
gone back1 for a moment at least1 to    
,england's childhood--to the mood of    
,england when she was still young4  ,and
 we are showing thereby that we are not 
yet decayed into old age4  ,that if we  
be men1 and not still children1 yet the 
child is father to the man2 and the     
child's heart still beats underneath all
 the sins and all the cares and all the 
greeds of our manhood4  ,more than one  
foreign nation is looking on in wonder  
and in envy at that sight4  ,god grant  
that they may understand all that it    

means4  ,god grant that they may        
understand of how wide and deep an      
application is the great law1 ,except ye
 be converted1 changed1 and turned round
 utterly1 and become as little children1
 ye shall not enter into the kingdom of 
heaven4  ,god grant that they may       
recover the childlike heart1 and replace
 with it that childish heart which pulls
 to pieces at its own irreverent fancy  
the most ancient and sacred             
institutions1 to build up ever fresh    
baby-houses out of the fragments1 as a  
child does with its broken toys4        
,therefore1 my friends1 be not ashamed  
to have felt acutely4  ,be not ashamed  
to feel acutely still1 till all danger  
is past1 or even long after all danger  
is past2 when you look back on what     
might have been1 and what it might have 
brought1 ay1 must have brought1 if not  
to you1 still to your children after    
you4  ,for so you will show yourselves  
worthy descendants of your forefathers3 
so you will show yourselves worthy      

citizens of this ,british empire4  ,so  
you will show yourselves1 as ,i believe1
 worthy ,christian men and women4  ,for 
,christ1 the ,king of kings and         
subjects1 sends all sorrow1 to make us  
feel acutely4  ,we do not1 the great    
majority of us1 feel enough4  ,our      
hearts are dull and hard and light1 ,god
 forgive us2 and we forget continually  
what an earnest1 awful world we live    
in--a whole eternity waiting for us to  
be born1 and a whole eternity waiting to
 see what we shall do now we are born4  
,yes2 our hearts are dull and hard and  
light2 and1 therefore1 ,christ sends    
suffering on us to teach us what we     
always gladly forget in comfort and     
prosperity--what an awful capacity of   
suffering we have2 and more1 what an    
awful capacity of suffering our         
fellow-creatures have likewise4  ,we sit
 at ease too often in a fool's paradise1
 till ,god awakens us and tortures us   
into pity for the torture of others4    
,and so1 if we will not acknowledge our 

brotherhood by any other teaching1 ,he  
knits us together by the brotherhood of 
common suffering4  ,but if ,god thus    
sends sorrow to ennoble us1 to call out 
in us pity1 sympathy1 unselfishness1    
most surely does ,he send for that end  
such a sorrow as this1 which touches in 
all alike every source of pity1 of      
sympathy1 of unselfishness at once4     
,surely ,he meant to bow our hearts as  
the heart of one man2 and ,he has1 ,i   
trust and hope1 done that which ,he     
meant to do4  ,god grant that the effect
 may be permanent4  ,god grant that it  
may call out in us all an abiding       
loyalty4  ,god grant that it may fill us
 with some of that charity which bears  
all things1 hopes all things1 believes  
all things1 which rejoices not in       
iniquity1 but rejoices in the truth2 and
 make us thrust aside henceforth1 in    
dignified disgust1 the cynic and the    
slanderer1 the ribald and the rebel4    
,but more4  ,god grant that the very    
sight of the calamity with which we have

 stood face to face1 may call out in us 
some valiant practical resolve1 which   
may benefit this whole nation1 and bow  
all hearts as the heart of one man1 to  
do some one right thing4  ,and what     
right thing8 ,what but the thing which  
is pointed to by plain and terrible     
fact1 as the lesson which ,god must mean
 us to learn1 if ,he means us to learn  
any1 from what has so nearly befallen8  
,let our hearts be bowed as the heart of
 one man1 to say--that so far as we have
 power1 so help us ,god1 no man1 woman1 
or child in ,britain1 be he prince or be
 he beggar1 shall die henceforth of     
preventable disease4  ,let us repent of 
and amend that scandalous neglect of the
 now well-known laws of health and      
cleanliness which destroys thousands of 
lives yearly in this kingdom1 without   
need and reason2 in defiance alike of   
science1 of humanity1 and of our        
,christian profession4  ,two hundred    
thousand persons1 ,i am told1 have died 
of preventable fever since the ,prince  

,consort's death ten years ago4  ,is    
that not a sin to bow our hearts as the 
heart of one man8  ,ah1 if this foul and
 needless disease1 by striking once at  
the very highest1 shall bring home to us
 the often told1 seldom heeded fact that
 it is striking perpetually at hundreds 
among the very lowest1 whom we leave to 
sicken and die in dens unfit for        
men--unfit for dogs2 if this tragedy    
shall awaken all loyal citizens to      
demand and to enforce1 as a duty to     
their sovereign1 their country1 and     
their ,god1 a sanatory reform in town   
and country1 immediate1 wholesale1      
imperative2 if it shall awaken the      
ministers of religion to preach about   
that1 and hardly aught but that-- till  
there is not a fever ally or a malarious
 ditch left in any ,british city2--then 
indeed this fair and precious life will 
not have been imperilled in vain1 and   
generations yet unborn will bless the   
memory of a prince who sickened as poor 
men sicken1 and all but died1 as poor   

men die1 that his example--and1 it may  
be hereafter1 his exertions--might      
deliver the poor from dirt1 disease1 and
 death4  ,for him himself ,i have no    
fear4  ,we have committed him to ,god4  
,it may be that he has committed himself
 to ,god4  ,it may be that he has       
already learned lessons which ,god alone
 can teach4  ,it may be that those      
lessons will bring forth hereafter royal
 fruit right worthy of a royal root4    
,at least we can trust him in ,god's    
hands1 and believe that if this great   
woe was meant to ennoble us it was meant
 to ennoble him2 that if it was meant to
 educate us it was meant to educate him2
 that ,god is teaching him2 and that in 
,god's school-house he is safe4  ,for   
think1 my friends1 if we1 who know him  
partly1 love him much2 then ,god1 who   
knows him wholly1 loves him more4  ,and 
so ,god be with him1 and with you1 and  
with your prayers for him4  ,amen4      
,,sermon ,,xxxv4  ,,grace ,,and ,,glory 
,chapel ,royal1 ,whitehall4 #ahfe4  ,for

 the consumptive hospital4  ,st ,john   
ii4 #aa4  ,this beginning of miracles   
did ,jesus in ,cana of ,galilee1 and    
manifested forth his glory4  ,this word 
glory1 whether in its ,greek or its     
,roman shape1 had a very definite       
meaning in the days of the ,apostles4   
,it meant the admiration of men4  ,the  
,greek word1 as every scholar knows1 is 
derived from a root signifying to seem1 
and expresses that which a man seems1   
and appears to his fellow men4  ,the    
,latin word glory is expressly defined  
by ,cicero to mean the love1 trust1 and 
admiration of the multitude2 and a      
consequent opinion that the man is      
worthy of honour4  ,glory1 in fact1 is a
 relative word1 and can be only used of 
any being in relation to other rational 
beings1 and their opinion of him4  ,the 
glory of ,god1 therefore1 in ,scripture1
 must needs mean that admiration which  
men feel1 or ought to feel for ,god4    
,there is a deeper1 an altogether       
abysmal meaning for that word3  ,and    

now1 ,o ,father1 glorify thou me with   
thy own self1 with the glory which ,i   
had with thee before the world was4     
,but on that text1 speaking of the      
majesty of the ever- blessed ,trinity1  
,i dare not attempt to comment2 though1 
could ,i explain it1 ,i should4  ,when  
,st4 ,john says that ,christ manifested 
forth ,his glory1 and ,his disciples    
believed on ,him1 it is plain that ,he  
means by ,his glory that which produced 
admiration and satisfaction1 not alone  
in the mind of ,god the ,father1 but in 
the minds of men4  ,now1 what the       
,romans thought glorious in their days  
is notorious enough4 ,no one can look   
upon the picture of a ,roman triumph    
without seeing that their idea of glory 
was force1 power1 brute force1          
self-willed dominion1 selfish           
aggrandizement4  ,but this was not the  
glory which ,st4 ,john saw in ,christ1  
for ,his glory was full of grace1 which 
is incompatible with self- will and     
selfishness4  ,the ,greek's meaning of  

glory is equally notorious4  ,he called 
it wisdom4 ,we call it craft--the glory 
of the sophist1 who could prove or      
disprove anything for gain or display2  
the glory of the successful adventurer1 
whose shrewdness made its market out of 
the stupidity and vice of the barbarian4
  ,but this is not the glory of ,christ1
 for ,st4 ,john saw that it was full of 
truth4  ,therefore1 neither strength nor
 craft are the glory of ,christ2 and1   
therefore1 they are not the glory of    
,god4  ,for the glory of ,christ is the 
glory of ,god1 and none other1 because  
,he is very ,god1 of very ,god begotten4
  ,in ,christ1 man sees the unseen1 and 
absolute1 and eternal ,god as ,he is1   
was1 and ever will be4  ,no man hath    
seen ,god at any time2 the only begotten
 ,son1 which is in the bosom of the     
,father1 ,he hath declared ,him3--and   
that perfectly and utterly2 for in ,him 
dwells all the fulness of the ,godhead  
bodily1 so that ,he ,himself could say1 
,he that hath seen me hath seen the     

,father4  ,this is the ,catholic ,faith4
  ,god grant that ,i may believe it with
 my whole heart4  ,god grant that you   
may believe it with your whole hearts   
likewise1 and not merely with your      
intellects and brains4  ,but1 it may be 
said1 though ,god be not glorious and   
admirable for selfish force1 which it   
were blasphemous to attribute to ,him1  
,he is still admirable for ,his power4  
,though ,he be not glorious for craft1  
,he is still glorious for ,his wisdom4  
,i deny both4  ,i deny that power is any
 object of admiration1 unless it be used
 well for good ends4  ,to admire power  
for its own sake is one of those errors1
 which has been well called             
,titanolatry1 the worship of giants4    
,neither is wisdom an object of         
admiration1 unless it be used for good  
ends4  ,to worship it for its own sake  
is a common error enough--the idolatry  
of ,intellect4  ,but it is none the less
 an error1 and a grievous one4  ,god's  
power and wisdom are glorious only in as

 far as they are used 7as they are      
utterly7 for good ends2 only1 in plain  
words1 as far as ,god is 7as ,he is     
perfectly7 good4 ,and the true glory of 
,god is that ,god is good4  ,so says the
 ,scripture2 and so ,i bid you all      
remember1 for it is a truth which you   
and ,i and all mankind are perpetually  
ready to forget4  ,let me but ask you   
one question as a test whether or not ,i
 am right4  ,if the ,supreme ,being used
 ,his power1 as the ,roman ,caesar used 
his2 if ,he used ,his wisdom as the     
,greek sophist used his1 would ,he be   
glorious then and worthy of admiration8 
,the old heathen ,a,eschylus answered   
that question for mankind long ago on   
the ,athenian stage4  ,i should be      
ashamed to answer it again in a         
,christian pulpit4  ,and when ,i say    
,,good1 ,i mean good1 even as man can   
be1 and ought to be1 and is1 more or    
less1 good4 ,the theory that because    
,god's morality is absolute1 it may1    
therefore1 be different from man's      

morality1 in ,,kind as well as in       
,,degree1 is equally contrary to the    
letter and to the spirit of ,scripture4 
,man1 according to ,scripture1 is made  
in ,god's moral image and likeness1 and 
however fallen and degraded that image  
may be1 still the ultimate standard of  
right and wrong is the same in ,god and 
in man4  ,how else dare ,abraham ask of 
,god1 ,shall not the ,judge of all the  
earth do right8  ,how else has ,god's   
command to the old ,jews any meaning1   
,be ye holy1 for ,i am holy8  ,how else 
have all the passages in the ,psalms1   
,prophets1 ,evangelists1 ,apostles1     
which speak of ,god's justice1 mercy1   
faithfulness1 any honest or practical   
meaning to human beings8  ,how else can 
they be aught but a mockery1 a delusion1
 and a snare to the tens of thousands   
who have found in them hope and trust1  
that ,god would deliver them and the    
world from evil8  ,what means the       
command to be perfect as our ,father in 
heaven is perfect8  ,what mean the words

 that we partake of a divine nature8    
,how else is the command to love ,god   
anything but an arbitrary and impossible
 demand1--demanding love1 which every   
writer of fiction tells you1 and tells  
you truly1 cannot be compelled--can only
 go forth toward a being who shows      
himself worthy of our love1 by          
possessing those qualities which we     
admire in our fellow men8  ,no4         
,against such a theory ,i must quote1 as
 embodying all that ,i would say1 and   
corroborating1 on entirely independent  
ground1 the ,scriptural account of human
 morality--against such a theory1 ,i say
 ,i must quote the words of our greatest
 living logician4  ,language has no     
meaning for the words ,just1 ,merciful1 
,benevolent 7he might have added        
truthful likewise7 save that in which we
 predicate them of our fellow creatures2
 and unless that is what we intend to   
express by them1 we have no business to 
employ the words4  ,if in affirming them
 of ,god we do not mean to affirm these 

very qualities1 differing only as       
greater in degree1 we are neither       
philosophically nor morally entitled to 
affirm them at all 4 4 4  ,what belongs 
to ,god's goodness as ,infinite 7or more
 properly ,absolute7 ,i do not pretend  
to know2 but ,i know that infinite      
goodness must be goodness1 and that what
 is not consistent with goodness is not 
consistent with infinite goodness4 4 4 4
 ,besides1 he says--and to this sound   
reductio ad absurdum ,i call the        
attention of all who believe their      
,bibles--unless ,i believe ,god to      
possess the same moral attributes which 
,i find1 in however inferior a degree1  
in a good man1 what ground of assurance 
have ,i of ,god's veracity8 ,all trust  
in a ,revelation presupposes a          
conviction that ,god's attributes are   
the same1 in all but degree1 with the   
best human attributes4  ,if1 instead of 
the 'glad tidings' that there exists a  
,being in whom all the excellences which
 the highest human mind can conceive1   

exist in a degree inconceivable to us1  
,i am informed that the world is ruled  
by a being whose attributes are         
infinite1 but what they are we cannot   
learn1 nor what are the principles of   
his government1 except that 'the highest
 human morality which we are capable of 
conceiving' does not sanction them2     
convince me of it and ,i will bear my   
fate as ,i may4  ,but when ,i am told   
that ,i must believe this1 and at the   
same time call this being by the names  
which express and affirm the highest    
human morality1 ,i say in plain terms   
that ,i will not4  ,whatever power such 
a being may have over me1 there is one  
thing which he shall not do3  he shall  
not compel me to worship him4  ,i will  
call no being good1 who is not what ,i  
mean when ,i apply that epithet to my   
fellow creatures4  ,that ,st4 ,john     
would have assented to these bold and   
honest words1 that such is ,st4 ,john's 
conception of human and divine morality1
 the story in the text shows1 to my     

mind1 especially4  ,it is1 so to speak1 
a crucial experiment1 by which the truth
 of the ,scripture theory is verified4  
,the difficulty in all ages about a     
standard of morality has been--,how can 
we fix it8  ,even if we agree that man's
 goodness ought to be the counterpart of
 ,god's goodness1 we know that in       
practice it is not1 as mankind has      
differed in all ages and countries about
 what is right and wrong4  ,the ,hindoo 
thinks it right to burn widows1 wrong to
 eat animal food2 and between such      
extremes there are numberless minor     
differences4  ,hardly any act is        
conceivable which has not been thought  
by some man1 somewhere1 somehow1 morally
 right or morally wrong4  ,if all that  
we can do is1 to choose out those       
instances of morality which seem to us  
most right1 and impute them to ,god1    
shall we not have an ever-shifting1     
probably a merely conventional standard 
of right and wrong8  ,and worse--shall  
we not be always in danger of deifying  

our own superstitions--perhaps our own  
vices3  of making a ,god in our own     
image1 because we cannot know that ,god 
in whose image we are made8  ,most true1
 unless we believe rightly the          
incarnation of our ,lord ,jesus ,christ1
 perfect ,god and perfect man4  ,in     
,him1 says the ,bible1 the perfect human
 morality is manifested1 and shown by   
,his life and conduct to be identical   
with the divine4  ,he bids us be perfect
 even as our ,father in heaven is       
perfect2 and ,he only has a right- -in  
the sense of a sound and fair           
reason--for so doing2 because ,he can   
say1 and has said1 ,he that hath seen me
 hath seen the ,father4  ,at least1 such
 is the doctrine of ,st4 ,john4  ,he    
tells us that the ,word1 who was ,god1  
was made flesh1 and dwelt in his land   
and neighbourhood2 and that he and his  
fellows beheld ,his glory2 and saw that 
it was the glory of the only-begotten of
 the ,father1 full of grace and truth4  
,and then1 in the next chapter1 he goes 

on to tell us how that glory was first  
manifested forth--by turning water into 
wine at a marriage feast4  ,on the truth
 of the story1 ,i say simply1 in        
passing1 that ,i believe it fully and   
literally2 as ,i do also ,st4 ,john's   
assertions about our ,lord's ,divinity4 
,but ,i only wish to point out to you   
why ,i called this miracle the crucial  
experiment1 which proved ,god's goodness
 to be identical with that which we call
 7and rightly7 goodness in man4  ,it is 
by the seeming insignificance thereof1  
by the seeming non-necessity1 by the    
seeming humbleness of its circumstances1
 by the seeming smallness of its        
results1 issuing merely 7as far as      
,scripture tells us1 and therefore as   
far as we need know1 or have a right to 
imagine7 in the giving of a transitory  
and unnecessary physical pleasure4  ,in 
short1 by the very absence of that      
,dignus deo vindice nodus1 that knot    
which only a ,god could untie1 which    
heathens demanded ere a god was allowed 

to interfere in the plot of a tragedy2  
which too many who call themselves      
,christians demand before the living    
,god is allowed to interfere in that    
world in which without ,him not a       
sparrow falls to the ground4  ,in a     
moral case of this kind1 if you will    
consider1 that which seems least is     
often the greatest4  ,that which seems  
the lowest1 because the simplest and    
meanest manifestation of a moral law1   
may be--probably is--the deepest1 the   
highest1 the most universal4  ,life is  
made up of little things1 say the       
practically wise1 and they say true1 for
 our ,lord says so likewise4  ,he that  
is faithful in that which is least is   
faithful also in much4  ,if you look on 
morality1 virtue1 goodness1 holiness1   
sanctification--call it what you        
will--as merely the obligation of an    
,,external law1 you will be tempted to  
say1 ,let me be faithful to it in its   
greater and more important cases1 and   
that is enough4  ,the pettier ones must 

take care of themselves1 ,i have not    
time enough to attend to them1 and ,god 
will not1 it may be1 require them of me4
  ,but if the morality1 goodness1       
holiness be in you what it was in       
,christ1 without measure--a ,,spirit1   
even the spirit of ,god--a spirit within
 you1 possessing you1 and working on    
you1 and in you--then that which seems  
most petty and unimportant will often be
 most important1 the test of the        
soundness of your heart1 of the reality 
of your feelings4  ,we all know--every  
writer of fiction1 at least1 should     
know--how true this is in the case of   
love between man and woman1 between     
parent and child3  how the little       
kindnesses1 the half-unconscious        
gestures1 the petty labours of love1 of 
which their object will never be aware1 
the scrupulousness which is able to     
greatly find quarrel in a straw1 when   
honour is at stake1--how these are the  
very things which show that the         
affection is neither the offspring of   

dry and legal duty1 nor of selfish      
enjoyment1 but lies far down in the     
unconscious abysses of the heart and    
being itself3--as ,christ--to compare   
7for ,he ,himself permits1 nay commands1
 us to do so in ,his parables7 our      
littleness with ,his immensity- -as     
,christ1 ,i say1 showed1 when ,he chose 
first to manifest ,his glory--the glory 
of ,his grace and truth--by increasing  
for a short hour the pleasures of a     
village feast4  ,i might say much more  
on the point2 how ,he showed these by   
,his truth2 how ,he proved that ,he1 and
 therefore ,his ,father and your        
,father1 was not that ,deus quidam      
deceptor1 whom some suppose ,him1       
mocking the intellect of ,his creatures 
by the ,,facts of nature which ,he has  
created1 tempting the souls of ,his     
creatures by the very faculties and     
desires which ,he ,himself has given    
them4  ,but ,i wish now to draw your    
minds rather to that one word           
,,grace--,grace1 what it means1 and how 

it is a manifestation of glory4  ,few   
,scriptural expressions have suffered   
more that this word ,grace from the     
storms of theological controversy4      
,springing flesh in the minds of        
,apostles1 as did many other noble words
 in that heaven-enriched soil1 the only 
adequate expressions of an idea which   
till then had never fully possessed the 
mind of man1 it meant more than we can  
now imagine2 perhaps more that we shall 
ever imagine again4  ,we1 alas6 only    
know the word with its fragrance        
battered out1 its hues rubbed off1 its  
very life anatomized out of it by the   
battles of rival divines1 till its mere 
skeleton is left1 and all that grace    
means to most of us is simply and dryly 
a certain spiritual gift of ,god4       
,doubtless it means that2 but if it     
meant nothing more at first1 why was not
 the plain word ,gift enough for the    
,apostles8 ,why did they use ,grace8    
,why did they use1 too1 in the sense of 
giving and gifts1 nouns and verbs       

derived from that root-word1 ,,charis1  
grace1 which plainly signified so much  
to them8  ,a word1 the root-meaning of  
which was neither more nor less than a  
certain heathen goddess1 or             
goddesses--the inspirer of beauty in    
art1 the impersonation of all that is   
pure1 charming1 winning1 bountiful--in  
one word1 of all that is graceful and   
gracious in the human character4  ,the  
fact is strange1 but the fact is there2 
and being there1 we must face it and    
explain it4  ,of course1 the ,apostles  
use the word grace in a far deeper and  
loftier meaning2 raise it1              
mathematically speaking1 to a far higher
 power4  ,there is no need to remind you
 of that4  ,but why did they choose and 
use the word at all--a word whose old   
meaning every heathen knew--unless for  
some innate fitness in it to express    
something in the character of ,god8  ,to
 tell men that there was in ,god a      
graciousness1 as of the most gracious of
 all human beings1 which gave to ,his   

character a moral beauty1 a charm1 a    
winningness1 which1 as even the old     
,jewish prophet1 before the             
,incarnation1 could perceive and boldly 
declare1 drew them with the cords of a  
man and with the bands of love1         
attracting them by the very human       
character of its graciousness4  ,the    
glory as of the only-begotten of the    
,father1 full of grace4 ,meditate on    
those words4  ,full of grace1--of that  
spirit which we1 like the old heathens1 
consider rather a feminine than a       
masculine excellence2 the spirit1 which1
 as ,st4 ,james says of ,god the        
,father1 gives simply and upbraideth    
not2 gives gracefully1 as we ourselves  
say--in the right and happy use of the  
adverb2 does not spoil its gifts by     
throwing them in the teeth of the giver1
 but gives for mere giving's sake2      
pleases where it can be done1 without   
sin or harm1 for mere pleasing's sake2  
most human and humane when it is most   
divine2 the spirit by which ,christ     

turned the water into wine at the       
marriage feast1 and so manifested forth 
,his absolute and eternal glory4  ,and  
how8  ,how8  ,thus1 if you will receive 
it2 if you will believe a truth which is
 too often hidden from the wise and     
prudent1 and yet revealed unto babes2   
which will never be understood by the   
proud ,pharisee1 the sour fanatic1 the  
ascetic who dreads and distrusts his    
,father in heaven2 but which is clear   
and simple enough to many a clear and   
simple heart1 honest and single-eyed1   
sunny itself1 and bringing sunshine     
wherever it comes1 because it is        
inspired by the gracious spirit of ,god1
 and delights to show kindness for      
kindness' sake1 and to make happy for   
happiness' sake1 taking no merit to     
itself for doing that1 which is as      
instinctive as its very breath4         
,this1--that the graciousness which     
,christ showed at that marriage feast is
 neither more nor less than the         
boundless love of ,god1 who could not   

live alone in the abyss1 but must needs1
 out of ,his own ,divine ,charity1      
create the universe1 that ,he might have
 somewhat beside ,himself whereon to    
pour out the ocean of ,his love1 which  
finds its own happiness in giving       
happiness to all created things1 from   
the loftiest of rational beings down to 
the gnat which dances in the sun1 and   
for aught we know1 to the very lichen   
which nestles in the ,alpine rock4      
,this is the character of ,god1 unless  
,scripture be a dream of man's          
imagination4  ,thus far you may know    
,god2 thus far you may see ,god as ,he  
is2 and know and see that ,he is just   
with the justice of a man1 only more    
just2 merciful with the mercy of a man1 
only more merciful2 truthful with the   
truthfulness of a man1 only more        
truthful2 gracious with the graciousness
 of a man1 only more gracious2 and      
loving8  ,that we dare not say3  for if 
we say so much1 the ,scripture commands 
us to say more4  ,the ,scripture tells  

us that the whole absolute morality of  
,god is summed up-- as our own human    
morality ought to be--in ,his ,love4    
,that love is the fulfilment of the     
,moral ,law in ,him as in us2 that it is
 the root and cause and spirit of ,his  
justice1 mercy1 truth1 and graciousness2
 that it belongs not to ,his attributes1
 as they may be said to be1 but to ,his 
essence and ,his spirit2 that we must   
not1 if we be careful of our words1 say1
 ,god is loving1 because we are bidden  
to say1 ,god is ,love4  ,thus1 the      
commands1 ,thou shalt love the ,lord thy
 ,god--and thy neighbour as thyself1 are
 shown to be not arbitrary and          
impossible demands1 miscalled moral     
obligations1 while they are merely legal
 and external ones2 but true moral      
obligations1 in the moral sense1 to     
which heart and spirit can answer1 ,i   
rejoice to do thy will1 ,o ,god2 ,thy   
law is within my heart4  ,you ought to  
love ,god1 because ,he is supremely     
loveable and worthy of your love4  ,you 

can love ,god1 because you can          
appreciate and know ,god2 for you are   
,his child1 made in ,his moral likeness1
 and capable of seeing ,him as ,he is   
morally1 and of seeing in ,him the full 
perfection of all that attracts your    
moral sense1 when it is manifested in   
any human being4  ,and you can love your
 neighbour as yourselves1 because1 and  
in as far as you have in you the ,spirit
 of ,god1 the spirit of universal love1 
which proceedeth out for ever both from 
the ,father and the ,son to all beings  
and things which ,they have made4  ,and 
of one thing ,i am sure1 that in        
proportion as you are led and inspired  
by that ,spirit of ,god which showed in 
our ,lord1 in the very deepest and      
truest sense1 as the spirit of humanity1
 just so you will feel a genial and     
hearty pleasure in lessening all human  
suffering1 however slight2 in increasing
 all harmless human pleasure1 however   
transitory2 and in copying ,him who1 at 
the marriage feast1 gracefully and      

graciously turned the water into wine4  
,i do not1 of course1 mean that you are 
to do no more than that2 to prefer      
sentiment to duty1 to amuse and glorify 
yourselves by paying tithe of mint1     
anise1 and cummin1 and neglect the      
weightier matters of the law1 judgment1 
mercy1 and faith4 ,but ,i do mean that  
you are not to distrust your own        
sentiments1 not to crush your own       
instinctive sympathies4  ,the very      
lowest of them--that which makes you    
shrink at the sight of pain1 and rejoice
 in the sight of pleasure1 is not       
natural1 and common to you with the     
animals2 it is supernatural and divine4 
,it is a schoolmaster to bring you to   
,christ1 to that higher inspiration of  
,his1 which tells your heart to         
alleviate the unseen woes which will    
never come into painful contact with    
your sensibilities1 to bestow pleasures 
in which you yourself have no immediate 
share4  ,it will tell your hearts       
especially in the case of this very     

,hospital for ,consumption not to be    
slack in giving1 because so much of what
 you will give--it is painful to        
recollect how much--will be spent1 not  
in prevention1 not even in cure1 but in 
mere alleviation1 mere increased bodily 
ease1 mere savoury food1 even mere      
passing amusements for wearied minds4   
,be it so4  ,if 7which ,god forbid7 we  
could do nothing ,,save alleviate2 if   
7which ,god forbid7 permanent cure1 even
 lengthening of life1 were impossible1  
,i should say just as much1 ,give4      
,give money to alleviate2 give1 even    
though what you give were1 in the       
strictly economic sense1 ,,wasted4  ,we 
are ready enough1 most of us1 to waste  
upon ourselves4 ,it is well for us to   
taste once in a way the luxury of       
wasting on others2 though ,i have yet to
 learn that anything can be called      
wasted which lessens1 even for a moment1
 the amount of human suffering4  ,a     
plan1 for instance1 is on foot for      
sending twenty of the patients to       

,madeira for the winter4  ,the ,british 
,consul1 to his honour1 guarantees their
 maintenance1 if the ,hospital will pay 
their passage out and home4  ,some may  
say--,an unnecessary expense--a         
problematical benefit4  ,be it so4  ,i  
believe that it will not be such2 that  
it may save many lives--they may revive3
  but were it not so1 ,i would still say
 ,give4  ,let them go1 even if every    
soul in that ship were doomed4  ,let    
them go4  ,let them drink the fresh sea 
breeze before they die2 let them see the
 green tropic world2 let them forget    
their sorrow for a while2 let them feel 
springing up afresh in them the         
celestial fount of hope4  ,we let the   
guilty criminal eat and drink well the  
morn ere he is led forth to die--shall  
we not do as much by those who are      
innocent8  ,but especially would ,i say1
 try to lessen such suffering as that   
for which ,i plead to-day1 because it is
 undeserved in the true sense of that   
word--not earned by any act of their    

own4  ,these poor souls suffer for no   
sins of their own2 they have done       
nothing to bring on themselves a disease
 which attacks too often the fairest1   
the seemingly strongest and healthiest1 
the most temperate and most pure4  ,they
 suffer1 some it may be for the sins of 
their forefathers1 some from causes of  
disease which science cannot as yet     
control1 cannot even discover4  ,they   
are objects of unmixed pity and         
sympathy3  they should be so to us2 for 
they are so to ,him who made them4  ,on 
this disease ,god does bestow a special 
alleviation--a special mark of ,his     
pity1 of ,his tenderness1 in a word of  
,his grace4  ,that unclouded intellect1 
that unruffled temper1 that cheerful    
resignation1 that brave and yet calm    
facing of the inevitable future1 that   
ever-fresh hope1 which is no delusion   
but a token that ,god ,himself has taken
 away the sting of death and the victory
 of the grave1 till the very thought of 
death has vanished1 or is looked on     

merely as the gate to a life of health1 
and strength1 and peace1 and joy3--all  
these symptoms1 so common1 so normal1   
all but universal--this ,euthanasia     
which ,god has provided for those who1  
humanly speaking1 are innocent1 yet     
must1 for the general good of humanity1 
leave this world for another2-- what are
 they but the voice of ,god to us1      
telling that ,he loves1 that ,he pities1
 that ,he alleviates2 and bidding us go 
and do likewise8  ,god has alleviated   
where we cannot4  ,he has bidden us     
thereby1 if ,his likeness and spirit be 
indeed in us1 to alleviate where we can2
 and believe that by every additional   
comfort1 however petty1 which we        
provide1 we are copying the ,ideal ,man1
 who1 because ,he was very ,god of very 
,god1 could condescend1 at the marriage 
feast1 to turn the water into wine4     
,,sermon ,,xxxvi4  ,,useless ,,sacrifice
    ,preached at ,southsea for the      
,mission of the ,good ,shepherd4        
,october #ahga4  ,isaiah i4 #aa-ag4  ,to

 what purpose is the multitude of your  
sacrifices unto me8 saith the ,lord3  4 
4 4  ,when ye come to appear before me1 
who hath required this at your hand1 to 
tread my courts8  ,bring no more vain   
oblations2 incense is an abomination to 
me2 the new moons and sabbaths1 the     
calling of assemblies1 ,i cannot away   
with2 it is iniquity1 even the solemn   
meeting4  ,your new moons and your      
appointed feasts my soul hateth3 they   
are a trouble to me2 ,i am weary to bear
 them4  ,and when ye spread forth your  
hands1 ,i will hide mine eyes from you3 
yea1 when ye make many prayers1 ,i will 
not hear3  your hands are full of blood4
  ,wash you1 make you clean2 put away   
the evil of your doings from before mine
 eyes2 cease to do evil2 learn to do    
well2 seek judgement1 relieve the       
oppressed1 judge the fatherless1 plead  
for the widow4  ,i have been asked to   
plead to-day for the mission of the     
,good ,shepherd in ,portsea4  ,i am     
informed that ,portsea contains some    

thirteen thousand souls1 divided between
 two parishes4  ,that they1 as ,i       
feared1 include some of the most        
ignorant and vicious of both sexes which
 can be found in the kingdom2 that there
 are few or no rich people in the place2
 that the rich who have an interest in  
the labour of these masses live away    
from the place1 and from the dwellings  
of those whom they employ--a social evil
 new to ,england2 but growing1 alas6    
fearfully common in it2 and that vice1  
and unthrift1 uncertain wages1 and      
unhealthy dwellings produce there1 as   
elsewhere1 misery and savagery most     
deplorable4  ,i am told1 too1 that this 
mission has been working1 nobly and     
self-denyingly1 among these unhappy     
people for some years past4  ,that it   
can1 and ought to largely extend its    
operations2 that it is in want of fresh 
funds2 that it is proposed to build a   
new church1 which1 it is hoped1 will be 
a centre of civilization and            
organization1 as well as of religion and

 morality1 for the district2 and ,i am  
bidden to invite you1 as close          
neighbours of ,portsea1 to help in the  
good work4  ,i1 of course1 know too     
little of local facts1 or of the temper 
of the people of ,southsea4  ,but ,i am 
bound to believe it to be the same as ,i
 have found it elsewhere4  ,and ,i      
therefore shall confine myself to       
general questions1 and shall treat this 
case of ,portsea1 as what it is1 alas6  
one among a hundred similar ones1 and   
say to you simply what ,i have said for 
twenty-five years1 wherever and whenever
 ,i can get a hearing4  ,and therefore  
if ,i seem here and there to speak      
sharply and sternly1 recollect that ,i  
pay you a compliment in so doing--first1
 that ,i speak not to you1 but to all   
,english men and women2 and next1 that  
,i speak as to those who have noble     
instincts1 if they will be only true to 
them3--as to ,english people1 who are   
not afraid of being told the truth2 to  
,english people who do wrong rather from

 forgetfulness and luxury1 than from    
meanness and cruelty aforethought2 who1 
as far as ,i have seen1 need1 for the   
most part1 only to be reminded that they
 are doing wrong1 to reawaken them to   
their better selves1 and set them trying
 honestly and bravely to do right4  ,let
 me then begin this sermon with a       
parable4  ,alas6 that the parable should
 represent a common and notorious fact4 
,suppose yourselves in some stately     
palace1 amid marbles and bronzes1       
statues and pictures1 and all that      
cunning brain and cunning hand1 when    
wedded to the high instinct of beauty1  
can produce4  ,the furniture is of the  
very richest1 and kept with the most    
fastidious cleanliness4  ,the floors of 
precious wood are polished like mirrors4
  ,the rooms have every appliance for   
the ease of the luxurious inmates4      
,everywhere you see1 not mere brute     
wealth1 but taste1 purity1 and comfort4 
,there is no lack of intellect          
either3--wise and learned books fill the

 library shelves2 maps and scientific   
instruments crowd the tables4  ,nor of  
religion either2--for the house contains
 a private chapel1 fitted up in the     
richest style of mediaeval              
ecclesiastical art4  ,and as you walk   
along from polished floor to polished   
floor1 you seem to pass in review every 
object which the body1 or the mind1 or  
the spirit1 of the most civilized human 
being can need for its satisfaction4    
,but1 next to the chapel itself1 a scent
 of carrion makes you start4  ,you look1
 against the will of your smart and     
ostentatious guide1 through a half-open 
door1 and see another sight--a room1    
dark and foul1 mildewed and ruinous2    
and1 swept carelessly into a corner1 a  
heap of dirt1 rags1 bones1 waifs and    
strays of every kind1 decaying all      
together4  ,you ask1 with astonishment  
and disgust1 how comes that there8 and  
are told1 to your fresh astonishment and
 disgust1 that that is only where the   
servants sweep the litter4  ,but        

crouching behind the litter1 in the     
darkest corner1 something moves4  ,you  
go up to it1 in spite of the entreaties 
of your guide1 and find an aged idiot   
gibbering in her rags4  ,who is she8    
,oh1 an old servant--or a child1 or     
possibly a grand-child1 of some old     
servant--your guide does not remember   
which4  ,she is better out of the way   
there in the corner4  ,at all events she
 can find plenty to eat among the       
dirt-heap2 and as for her soul1 if she  
has one1 the clergyman is said to come  
and see her now and then1 so probably it
 will be saved4  ,would you not turn    
away from that palace with the          
contemptuous thought-- ,civilized8      
,refined8  ,these people's civilization 
is but skin-deep4 ,their refinement is  
but an outside show4  ,look into the    
first back room1 and you find that they 
are foul barbarians still4  ,and yet    
such1 literally such and no better1 is  
the refinement of modern ,england2 such1
 and no better1 is the civilization of  

our great towns4 ,such ,i fear from what
 ,i am told1 is the civilization of     
,southsea1 beside the barbarism to be   
found in ,portsea close at hand4  ,dirt 
and squalor1 brutality and ignorance    
close beside such luxury as the world   
has not seen1 it may be1 since the bad  
days of ,heathen ,rome4  ,but more1 if  
you turned away1 you would say to       
yourselves1 if you were thoughtful      
persons--not only what barbarism1 but   
what folly4  ,the owner and his         
household are in daily danger4  ,the    
idiot in discontent1 or even in mere    
folly1 may seize a lighted candle1 burn 
petroleum1 as she did in ,paris of late1
 and set the whole palace on fire4  ,and
 more1 the very dirt is in itself       
inflammable1 and capable1 as it festers1
 of spontaneous combustion4  ,how many a
 stately house has been burnt down ere  
now1 simply by the heating of greasy    
rags1 thrust away in some neglected     
closet4  ,let the owner of the house    
beware4  ,he is living1 voluntarily1    

over a volcano of his own making4  ,but 
more--what if you were told that the    
fault lay not so much in the negligence 
of servants as in that of the owner     
himself1 that the master of that palace 
had over him a ,king1 to whom all that  
was foul1 neglectful1 cruel1 was        
inexpressibly hateful1 so hateful that  
,he once had actually stepped off the   
throne of the universe to die for such  
creatures as that poor idiot and her    
forgotten parents8  ,would you not      
question whether the prayers offered up 
in that chapel would have any answer    
from ,him1 save that awful answer ,he   
once gave8  ,when ye spread forth your  
hands1 ,i will hide mine eyes3  yea1    
when ye make many prayers1 ,i will not  
hear2 your hands are full of blood4     
,oh1 my friends1 you who understand my  
parable1 has the awful thought never    
struck you that such may be ,god's      
answer to the prayers of a nation which 
leaves in its midst such barbarism1 such
 heathenism1 as exists in every great   

town of this realm8  ,and what if you   
were told next that the laws of ,his    
kingdom were eternal and inexorable1 and
 that one of ,his cardinal laws is--that
 as a man sows1 so shall he reap2 that  
every sin punishes itself1 even though  
the sinner does not know that he has    
sinned2 that he who knew not his        
master's will1 and did it not1 shall be 
beaten with few stripes2 that the       
innocent babe does not escape unburnt1  
because it knew not that fire burns2    
that the good man who lives in a        
malarious alley does not escape fever   
and cholera1 because he does not know   
that dirt breeds pestilence2 that1 in a 
word1 he who knew not his master's will1
 and did it not1 shall be beaten with   
few stripes2 but that he who knew his   
master's will1 and did it not1 shall be 
beaten with many stripes8  ,then of how 
many and how heavy stripes1 think you1  
will the inhabitant of that palace be   
counted worthy1 who has been taught by  
,christianity for the last fifteen      

hundred years1 and by physical science  
and political economy for the last fifty
 years1 and yet persists1 in defiance of
 his own knowledge1 in leaving his      
used-up servants1 and their children and
 grand-children after them1 to rot1     
body1 mind1 and soul1 in the very       
precincts of the palace1 having no other
 excuse to offer for this than that it  
is too much trouble to treat them       
better1 and that1 on the whole1 he can  
make money more rapidly by thus throwing
 away that human dirt1 and leaving it to
 decay where it can1 regardless what it 
pollutes and poisons2 just as the       
manufacturer can make money more rapidly
 by not consuming his own smoke1 but    
letting it stream out of the chimney to 
poison with blackness and desolation the
 green fields where ,god meant little   
children to gather flowers8  ,ladies1 to
 you ,i appeal1 not merely as women1 but
 as ,ladies1 if 7as ,i am assured by    
those who know you71 ladies you are1 in 
the grand old meaning of that grand old 

word4  ,if so--you know then1 what it is
 to be a lady and what not4  ,you know  
that it is not to go1 like the daughters
 of ,zion in ,isaiah's time1 with       
mincing gait1 and borrowed head-gear1   
and tasteless finery1 the head well-nigh
 empty1 the heart full of little save   
vanity and vexation of spirit1 busy all 
the week over cheap novels and expensive
 dresses1 and on ,sunday over a little  
dilettante devotion4  ,you know1 ,i take
 for granted1 that whatever the world   
may think or say1 that to be that1 is   
not to be a lady4  ,for you know1 ,i    
take for granted1 what that word lady   
meant at first4 ,that it meant she who  
gave out the loaves1 the housewife who  
provided food and clothes2 the          
stewardess of her household and         
dependants2 the spinner among her       
maidens2 the almsgiver to the poor2 the 
worshipper in the chapel1 praying for   
wild men away in battle4  ,the being    
from whom flowed forth all gracious     
influences of thought and order1 of     

bounty and compassion1 of purity and    
piety1 civilizing and ,christianizing a 
whole family1 a whole domain4  ,this it 
was to be a lady1 in the old days when  
too many men had little care save to    
make war4  ,and this it is to be a lady 
still1 in the new days in which too many
 men have little care save to make      
money4  ,show then that you can be      
ladies still4  ,that the spirit is the  
spirit of your ancestresses1 though the 
form in which it must show itself is    
changed with the change of society4  ,to
 you ,i appeal2 to as many in this      
church as are ladies1 not in name only1 
but in spirit and in truth4  ,say to    
your fathers1 husbands1 brothers1 sons1 
and say too1 and that boldly1 to the    
tradesmen with whom you deal--,do you   
hear this8  ,do you hear that there are 
savages and heathens1 generations of    
them1 within a rifle-shot of the house8 
,and you cannot exterminate them2 cannot
 drive them out1 much less kill them4   
,you must convert them1 improve them1   

make them civilized and ,christian1 if  
not for their own sakes1 at least for   
our sakes1 and for our children4  ,and  
if they should answer3  ,my dears1 it is
 too true4  ,but we did not make them or
 put them there1 and they are not in our
 parish4  ,they are no concern of ours1 
and besides they will not hurt us4      
,answer them3  ,not made by our fault6  
,true1 our hands are more or less clean3
  but what of that8  ,there they are4   
,if you had a tribe of ,red ,indians on 
the frontier of your settlement1 would  
you take the less guard against them1   
because you did not put them there8     
,not in our parish1 and what of that8   
,they are in our county2 they are in    
,england4  ,has man the right1 has man  
the power in the sight of ,god to draw  
any imaginary line of demarcation       
between ,englishman and ,englishman1    
especially when that line is drawn      
between rich and poor8  ,england knows  
no line of demarcation1 save the shore  
of the great sea2 and even that her     

generosity is overleaping at this moment
 at the call of mere humanity1 in bounty
 to sufferers by the ,west ,indian      
hurricane1 and by the ,chicago fire4    
,will you send your help across the     
,atlantic2 and deny it to the sufferers 
at your own doors8  ,at least1 if the   
rich be confined by an imaginary line   
across1 the poor on the other side will 
not--they will cross it freely enough2  
and what they will bring with them will 
be concern enough of ours4  ,would it   
not be our concern if there was small-  
pox1 scarlet fever1 cholera among them8 
,should we not fear lest that might hurt
 us8  ,would you not bestir yourselves  
then8  ,and do you not know that it is  
among such people as these that         
pestilence is always bred8  ,and if not1
 is not the pestilence of the soul more 
subtle and more contagious than any     
pestilence of the body8  ,what is the   
spreading power of fever to the         
spreading power of vice1 which springs  
from tongue to tongue1 from eye to eye1 

from heart to heart8  ,what matter      
whether they be one mile off or five8   
,will not they corrupt our servants2 and
 those servants again our children8     
,and say to them1 if you be prudent and 
thrifty housewives1 ,do not tell us that
 their condition costs you nothing4     
,even in pocket you are suffering       
now--as all ,england is suffering--from 
the existence of heathens and savages1  
reckless1 profligate1 pauperized4  ,for 
if you pay no poor-rates for their      
support1 the shop-keepers with whom you 
deal pay poor-rates2 and must and do    
repay themselves1 out of your pockets1  
in the form of increased prices for     
their goods4  ,and when you have said   
all this1 ladies1 and more1--for more   
will suggest itself to your woman's     
wit1--say to them with ,st ,paul--,and  
yet show we unto you a more excellent   
way1--a nobler argument--and that is    
,charity4  ,not almsgiving4  ,i had     
almost said1 anything but that2 making  
bad worse1 the improvident more         

improvident1 the liar more ready to lie1
 the idler more ready to idle4  ,but the
 ,charity which is ,humanity1 which is  
the spirit of pure pity1 the ,spirit of 
,christ and of ,god4  ,say then1 ,even  
if these poor creatures did us no harm1 
as they must and will do--civilize and  
christianize them for their own sakes1  
simply because they must be so very     
miserable--miserable too often with     
acute and conscious misery2 too often   
with a worse misery1 dull and           
unconscious1 which knows not1 stupified 
by ignorance and vice1 that it is       
miserable1 and ought to be more         
miserable still4  ,for who is so worthy 
of our pity1 as he who knows not that he
 is pitiable8--who takes ignorance1     
dirt1 vice1 passion1 and the            
wretchedness which vice and passion     
bring1 as all in the day's work1 as he  
takes the rain and hail1 the frost and  
snow1--as unavoidable necessities of    
mortal life1 for which the only         
temporary alleviation is--drink8  ,if   

the refined and pure-minded lady does   
not pity such beings as that1 ,i know   
not of what her refinement is made4  ,if
 the religious lady will not bestir     
herself1 and make sacrifices to teach   
such people that that is not what ,god  
meant them to be--to stir up in them a  
noble self-discontent1 a noble          
self-abhorrence1 which may be the       
beginning of repentance and amendment of
 life--,i know not of what her religion 
is made4  ,one word more--,i know that  
such thoughts as ,i have put before you 
to-day are painful4  ,i know that we    
all--,i as much as anyone in this       
church--are tempted to put them by1 and 
say1 ,i will think of things beautiful1 
not of things ugly2 of art1 poetry1     
science--all that is orderly1 graceful1 
ennobling2 and not of dirt1 ignorance1  
vice1 misery1 all that is disorderly1   
degrading4  ,nay1 even the most pious at
 times are tempted to say1 ,i will think
 of heaven and not of earth4  ,i will   
lift up my heart1 and try to behold the 

glory and the goodness of ,god1 and not 
the disgrace and sin of man4  ,but only 
for a time may they thus think and      
speak4  ,happy if they can1 at moments1 
lift up their hearts unto the ,lord1 and
 catch one glimpse of ,him enthroned in 
perfect serenity and perfect order1     
governing the worlds with that          
all-embracing justice1 which is at the  
same time all-embracing love1 and so1   
giving ,him thanks for ,his great glory1
 gain heart and hope to--what8  ,to     
descend again1 even were it from the    
beatific vision itself1 to this         
disordered earth1 to work a little--and1
 alas how little- -at lessening the sum 
of human ignorance1 human vice1 human   
misery--even as their ,lord and ,saviour
 stooped from the throne of the         
universe1 and from the bosom of the     
,father1 to toil and die for such as    
curse about the streets outside4        
,,sermon ,,xxxvii4  ,,the ,,surprise    
,,of ,,the ,,righteous    ,preached at  
,southsea for the ,mission of the ,good 

,shepherd4  ,october #ahga4  ,st ,matt4 
xxv4 #cd-cg4  ,then shall the ,king say 
unto them on his right hand1 ,come1 ye  
blessed of my ,father1 inherit the      
kingdom prepared for you from the       
foundation of the world3  ,for ,i was an
 hungred1 and ye gave me meat3  ,i was  
thirsty1 and ye gave me drink3  ,i was a
 stranger1 and ye took me in3  naked1   
and ye clothed me3  ,i was sick1 and ye 
visited me3  ,i was in prison1 and ye   
came unto me4  ,then shall the righteous
 answer him1 saying1 ,lord1 when saw we 
,thee an hungred1 and fed ,thee8 or     
thirsty1 and gave ,thee drink8  ,let us 
consider awhile this magnificent        
parable1 and consider it carefully1 lest
 we mistake its meaning4  ,and let us   
specially consider one point about it1  
which is at first sight puzzling1 and   
which has caused1 ere now1 many to miss 
7as ,i believe1 with some of the best   
commentators1 7 the meaning of the      
whole--which is this3  that the         
righteous in the parable did not know   

that when they did good to their        
fellow-creatures1 they did it to ,christ
 the ,lord4  ,now there are two kinds of
 people who do know that1 because they  
have been taught it by ,holy ,scripture1
 who would make two very different      
answers to the ,lord1 when ,he spoke in 
such words to them4  ,at least so we may
 suppose1 for they are ready to make    
such answers here on earth2 and         
therefore1 we may suppose that if they  
dared1 they would answer so at the day  
of judgment4  ,one party would--or at   
least might say1 ,yes1 ,lord1 ,i knew   
that whatever ,i did to the poor1 ,i did
 to ,thee2 and therefore ,i did all ,i  
could for the poor4  ,i started         
charitable institutions1 ,i spoke at    
missionary meetings1 ,i put my name down
 for large sums in every subscription   
list1 ,i built churches and chapels1    
schools and hospitals2 ,i gained the    
reputation among men of being a leading 
philanthropist1 foremost in every good  
work4  ,what answer the man who said    

that would receive from the ,lord1 ,i   
know not2 for who am ,i that ,i should  
put words into the mouth of my ,creator 
and my ,god8  ,but ,i think that the    
awful majesty of the ,lord's very       
countenance might strike such a man     
dumb1 ere he had time to say those vain 
proud words1 and strike his conscience  
through with the thought1 ,yes1 ,i have 
been charitable3  but have ,i been      
humane8  ,i have been a philanthropist3 
but have ,i really loved my fellow-men8 
,have ,i not made my interest in the    
heathen whom ,i have not seen1 an excuse
 for despising and hating my countrymen 
whom ,i have seen1 if they dared to     
differ from me in religion or in        
politics8  ,i have given large sums in  
charity3  but have ,i ever sacrificed   
anything for my fellow-men8  ,i have    
given ,christ back a pound in every     
hundred--perhaps even out of every ten  
which ,he has given me3  but what did ,i
 do with the other nine pounds save     
spend them on myself8  ,is there a      

luxury in which a respectable man could 
safely indulge1 which ,i have denied    
myself8  ,what have ,i been after all1  
with all my philanthropy and charity1   
but a selfish1 luxurious1 pompous       
personage8 an actor doing my alms to be 
seen of men8  ,i did my good works as   
unto ,christ8--,no2 ,i did them as unto 
myself--to get honour from men while ,i 
lived1 and to save my selfish soul when 
,i died4  ,god be merciful to me a      
sinner6  ,that such thoughts ought to   
pass through too many persons' hearts in
 this generation1 ,i fear is too        
certain4  ,god grant that they may do so
 before it is too late4  ,but it is     
plain1 at least1 that these are not the 
sheep of whom ,christ speaks4  ,again1  
there are another1 and a very different 
kind of persons1 who we have a right to 
fancy1 would answer the ,lord somewhat  
thus3  ,oh ,lord1 speak not of it4  ,it 
may be ,i have tried to do a little good
 to a poor suffering creature here and  
there2 to feed a few hungry1 clothe a   

few naked1 visit a few sick and         
prisoners4  ,but ,lord1 how could ,i do 
less8 after all that ,thou hast done and
 suffered for me2 and after ,thy own    
gracious saying1 that inasmuch as ,i did
 anything to the least of ,thy brethren1
 ,i did it to ,thee4  ,what less could  
,i do1 ,lord8--and after all1 what a    
pitifully small amount ,i have done6    
,thou did'st hunger for me-- for whom   
have ,i ever hungered8  ,thou did'st    
suffer for me--for whom have ,i ever    
suffered8  ,thou did'st die for me--for 
whom have ,i ever died8  ,and ,i did    
not--,i fear in the depth of my         
heart--do what ,i did really for ,thee2 
but for the very pleasure of doing it4  
,i began to do good from a sense of duty
 to ,thee2 but after a while ,i did     
good1 ,i fear1 only because it was so   
pleasant--so pleasant to see human faces
 looking up into mine with gratitude2 so
 pleasant to have little children1 even 
though they were none of my own1        
clinging to me in trust2 so pleasant    

when ,i went home at night to feel that 
,i had made one human being a little    
happier1 a little better1 even only a   
little more comfortable2 so pleasant to 
give up my own pleasure1 in order to    
give pleasure to others1 that ,i fear ,i
 forgot ,thee in my own enjoyment4  ,if 
,i sinned in that1 ,lord forgive4  ,but 
at least1 ,i have had my reward4  ,my   
work among ,thy poor was its own reward1
 a reward of inward happiness beyond all
 that earth can give--and now ,thou     
speakest of rewarding me over and above1
 with ,i know not what of undeserved    
bliss4  ,thou art too good1 ,o ,lord1 as
 is ,thy wont from all eternity4  ,let  
me go and hide myself--a more than      
unprofitable servant1 who has not done  
the hundredth part of that which it was 
my duty to do4  ,what answer the ,lord  
would make to the modest misgivings of  
that sweet soul1 ,i cannot say2 for     
again1 who am ,i1 that ,i should put    
words into the mouth of my ,creator and 
my ,god8  ,but this ,i know1 that ,i had

 rather be-- what ,i am not1 and never  
shall be--such a soul as that in the    
last day1 than own all the kingdoms of  
the world and the glory thereof4        
,still1 it is plain that such persons1  
however holy1 however loving1 are not   
those of whom our ,lord speaks in this  
parable4  ,for they1 too1 know1 and must
 know1 that inasmuch as they showed     
mercy unto one of the least of the      
,lord's brethren1 they showed it unto   
,him4  ,but the special peculiarity of  
the persons of whom our ,lord speaks1 is
 that they did not know1 that they had  
no suspicion1 that in showing kindness  
to men1 they were showing kindness to   
,christ4  ,lord1 they answer1 when saw  
we ,thee8  ,it is a revelation to them1 
in the strictest and deepest sense of   
the word4  ,a revelation1 that is an    
unveiling1 a drawing away of a veil     
which was before their eyes and hiding  
from them a divine and most blessed     
fact1 of which they had been unaware4   
,but who are they8  ,i think we must    

agree with some of the best             
commentators1 among others with that    
excellent divine and excellent man1 now 
lost to the ,church on earth1 the late  
,dean of ,canterbury1 that they are     
persons who1 till the day of judgment1  
have never heard of ,christ2 but who    
then1 for the first time1 as ,dean      
,alford says1 are overwhelmed with the  
sight of the grace which has been       
working in and for them1 and the glory  
which is now their blessed portion4     
,such persons1 perhaps1 as those two    
poor negresses--to remind you of a story
 which was famous in our fathers'       
time--those two poor negresses1 ,i say1 
who found the ,african traveller1 ,mungo
 ,park1 dying of fever and starvation1  
and saved his life1 simply from human   
love--as they sung to themselves by his 
bedside--   ,let us pity the poor white 
man2 ,he has no mother to make his bed1 
,no wife to grind his corn4   ,perhaps  
it is such as those1 who have succoured 
human beings they knew not why1 simply  

from a divine instinct1 from the voice  
of ,christ within their hearts1 which   
they felt they must obey1 though they   
knew not whose voice it was4  ,perhaps1 
,i say1 it is such as those1 that       
,christ will astonish at the last day by
 the words1 ,come ye blessed of my      
,father1 inherit the kingdom prepared   
for you from the foundation of the      
world4  ,if this be the true meaning of 
our ,lord's words1 what comfort and hope
 they may give us1 when we think1 as we 
are bound to think1 if we have a true   
humanity in us1 of the hundreds of      
millions of heathen now alive1 and of   
the thousands of millions of heathen who
 have lived and died4 ,sinful they are  
as a whole4  ,sinning1 it may be1       
without law1 but perishing without law4 
,for the wages of sin are death1 and can
 be nothing else4  ,but may not ,christ 
have ,his elect among them8  ,may not   
,his ,spirit be working in some of them8
  ,may ,he not have ,his sheep among    
them1 who hear ,his voice though they   

know not that it is ,his voice8  ,they  
hear a voice within their hearts        
whispering to them1 ,be loving1 be      
merciful1 be humane1 in one word be     
just1 and do to others as you would they
 should do to you4  ,and whose voice can
 that be but the voice of ,christ1 and  
the ,spirit of ,god8  ,those loving     
instincts come not from the fleshly     
fallen nature1 or natural man4  ,that   
says to us1 ,be selfish2 do not be      
loving4 ,do to others not what you would
 they should do to you1 but do to others
 whatever is pleasant and profitable to 
yourselves4  ,and alas6 the heathen1 and
 too many who call themselves           
,christians1 listen to that carnal      
voice1 and live the life of selfishness 
and pleasure1 of anger and revenge1 of  
tyranny and cruelty--the end of which is
 death4  ,but if any among those        
heathen--hearing within their hearts the
 other voice1 the gracious voice which  
says1 ,do unto others as you would they 
should do unto you1--feel that that     

voice is a good voice and a right       
command1 which must be obeyed1 and which
 it is beautiful and delightful to obey1
 and so obey it2 may we not hope then1  
that ,christ1 who has called them1 will 
perfect ,his own work2 and in ,his own  
good way1 and ,his own good time1       
deliver them from their sin and         
ignorance1 and vouchsafe to them at last
 that knowledge of the true and holy    
,god1 ,father1 ,son1 and ,holy ,spirit1 
whom truly to know is everlasting life8 
,they are ,christ's lost sheep3  but    
they are still ,his sheep who hear ,his 
voice4  ,may ,he not fulfil ,his own    
words to them1 and go forth and seek    
such souls1 and lay them on ,his        
shoulder1 and bring them home2 saying to
 ,his ,church on earth1 and to ,his     
,church in heaven1 ,rejoice with ,me3   
for ,i have found my sheep which was    
lost8  ,now if we can thus have hope for
 some among the heathen abroad1 shall we
 not have hope1 too1 for some among the 
heathen at home8 for some among that    

mass of human corruption which welters  
around the walls of so many of our      
cities8  ,i am not going to make vain   
excuses for them2 and say they are but  
the victims of circumstance4  ,the great
 majority of them are the victims of    
their own low instincts4  ,they have    
chosen the broad and easy road of       
animalism1 which leads to destruction4  
,they have sown to the flesh1 and they  
will of the flesh reap corruption4  ,for
 the laws of ,god are inexorable2 and   
the curse of the law is sure1 namely1   
,the wages of sin are death4  ,neither  
dare ,i encourage too vast hopes and    
say1 ,if we had money enough1 if we had 
machinery enough1 if we had zeal enough1
 we might convert them all1 and save    
them all4  ,i dare not believe it4 ,the 
many1 ,i fear1 will always go the broad 
road2 the few the narrow one4 ,and all  
we dare say is1 if we have faith enough1
 we can convert some4  ,we can at least 
fulfil our ordination vow4  ,we can seek
 out ,christ's sheep scattered abroad   

about this naughty world1 and tell them 
of ,his fold1 and try to bring them     
home4  ,but how shall we know ,christ's 
sheep when we see them8  ,how1 but by   
the very test which ,christ has laid    
down1 it seems to me1 in this very      
parable8  ,is there in one of them the  
high instincts--even the desire to do a 
merciful act8  ,let us watch for that3  
and when in the most brutal man1        
and--alas that ,i should have to use the
 words--in the most brutal woman1 we see
 any touch of nobleness1 justice1       
benevolence1 pity1 tenderness--in one   
word1 any touch1 however momentary1 of  
unselfishness1- -let us spring at that1 
knowing that there is the soul we seek2 
there is a lost sheep of ,christ2 there 
is ,christ ,himself1 working unknown    
upon a human soul2 there is a soul ready
 for the gospel1 and not far from the   
kingdom of ,god4  ,but what shall we say
 to that lost sheep8  ,shall we terrify 
it by threats of hell8  ,shall we even  
allure it by promises of heaven8  ,not  

so--not so at least at first--for that  
would be to appeal to bodily fear and   
bodily pleasure1 to the very selfishness
 from which ,christ is trying to deliver
 it2 and to neglect the very prevenient 
grace1 the very hold on the soul which  
,christ ,himself offers us4  ,let us    
determine with ,st4 ,paul to know       
nothing among our fellow-men but ,christ
 crucified4  ,let us appeal just to that
 in the soul which is unselfish2 not to 
the instincts of loss and gain1 but to  
those nobler instincts of justice and   
mercy2 just because they are not the    
man's or the woman's instincts2 but     
,christ's within them1 the light of     
,christ and the ,spirit of ,christ1 the 
spirit of love and justice saying1 ,do  
unto others as you would they should do 
unto you4  ,do you doubt that8  ,i trust
 not4  ,for to doubt that is to doubt   
whether ,god be truly the ,giver of all 
good things4 ,to doubt that is to begin 
to disbelieve ,st4 ,paul's great saying1
 ,in me1 that is1 in my flesh1 dwelleth 

no good thing4  ,to doubt that is to lay
 our hearts and minds open to the       
insidious poison of that ,pelagian      
heresy which1 received under new shapes 
and names1 is becoming the cardinal     
heresy of modern disbelief4  ,no2 we    
will have faith in ,christ1 faith in our
 creeds1 faith in catholic doctrine2 and
 will say to that man or that woman1    
even as they wallow still in the        
darkness and the mire1 ,behold your     
,god6  ,that cup of cold water which you
 gave1 you knew not why1-- ,christ told 
you to give it1 and to ,him you gave4   
,that night watch beside the bed of a   
woman as fallen as yourself1--,christ   
bade you watch1 and you watched by ,him4
  ,for that drunken ruffian1 whom you1 a
 drunken ruffian yourself1 leaped into  
the sea to save1 ,christ bade you leap1 
and like ,st4 ,christopher of old1 you  
bore1 though you knew it not1 your      
,saviour and your ,god to land4  ,and if
 they shall make answer1 ,and who is ,he
 that ,i did not know ,him8 who is ,he  

that ,i should know ,him now8  ,let us  
point them--and whither else should we  
point them in heaven or earth8--to      
,christ upon the cross1 and say1 ,behold
 your ,god6  ,this ,he did1 this ,he    
condescended1 this ,he dared1 this ,he  
suffered for you1 and such as you4 ,this
 is what ,he1 the ,maker of the         
universe1 is like4  ,this is what ,he   
has been trying to make you like1 in    
your small degree1 every time a noble1 a
 generous1 a pitiful1 a merciful emotion
 crossed your heart2 every time you     
forgot yourself1 even for a moment1 and 
thought of the welfare of a fellow-man4 
,if that tale1 if that sight1 if that   
revelation and unveiling of ,christ to  
the poor sinful soul does not work in it
 an abhorrence of past sin1 a craving   
after future holiness1 an admiration and
 a reverence for ,christ ,himself1 which
 is1 ipso facto1 saving faith2 if that  
soul does not reply- -it may not be in  
words1 but in feelings too deep for     
words1--,yes2 this is indeed noble1     

indeed ,godlike1 worthy of a ,god1 and  
worthy therefore to be at once imitated 
and adored3 then1 indeed1 the ,cross of 
,christ must have lost that miraculous  
power which it has possessed1 for more  
than eighteen hundred years1 as the     
highest moral ideal which ever was seen1
 or ever can be seen1 by the reason and 
the heart of man4    ,,sermon ,,xxxviii4
  ,,the ,,lord',s ,,prayer    ,windsor  
,castle1 #ahfg4  ,chester ,cathedral1   
#ahgj4  ,matthew vi4 #i1 #aj4  ,after   
this manner1 therefore1 pray ye1 ,our   
,father which art in heaven1 hallowed be
 thy name1 thy kingdom come1 thy will be
 done1 on earth as it is in heaven4     
,let us think for a while on these great
 words4  ,let us remember that some day 
or other they will certainly be         
fulfilled4  ,let us remember that       
,christ would not have bidden us use    
them1 unless ,he intended that they     
should be fulfilled4  ,and let us       
remember1 likewise1 that we must help to
 fulfil them4  ,we need to be reminded  

of this from time to time1 for we are   
all inclined to forget it4  ,we are     
inclined to forget that mankind has a   
,father in heaven1 who is ruling1 and   
guiding1 and educating us1 ,his human   
children1 to      ,one far off divine   
event1 ,toward which the whole creation 
moves4   ,we are apt to fancy that the  
world will always go on very much as it 
goes on now2 that it will be guided1 not
 by the will of ,god1 but by the will of
 man2 by man's craft2 by man's ambition2
 by man's self-interest2 by man's       
cravings after the luxuries1 and even   
after the mere necessities of this life4
  ,in a word1 we are apt to fancy that  
man1 not ,god1 is the master of this    
earth on which we live1 and that men    
have no king over them in heaven4  ,the 
,lord's ,prayer tells us that men ,,have
 a king over them in heaven1 and that   
that king is a ,father likewise--a      
,father whose name will one day be      
hallowed above all names4  ,that the    
world will not always go on as it goes  

on now1 but that the ,father's kingdom  
will come4  ,that above the will of man1
 there is a will of ,god1 which must be 
done1 and therefore will be done some   
day4  ,in a word1 the ,lord's ,prayer   
tells us that this world is under a     
,divine government2 that the ,lord1 even
 ,jesus ,christ our ,saviour1 is ,king1 
be the people never so impatient4  ,that
 ,he sitteth between the cherubim1      
master of all the powers of nature1 be  
the earth never so unquiet4  ,that ,his 
power loves justice4  ,that ,he has     
prepared equity4  ,that ,he has         
executed1 and therefore will execute to 
the end1 judgment and righteousness in  
the earth4  ,that ,christ reigns in     
justice and in love4  ,that ,he has for 
those who disobey ,his laws the most    
terrible penalties2 for those who obey  
them blessings such as eye hath not seen
 nor ear heard1 nor hath it entered into
 the heart of man to conceive4  ,that   
,he must reign till ,he has put all     
enemies under ,his feet and delivered up

 the kingdom to ,god1 even the ,father4 
,that on that great day ,he will prove  
,his royalty1 and ,his ,father's        
royalty1 in the sight of all heaven and 
earth1 and make every soul of man aware1
 in a fashion which none shall mistake1 
that ,he is ,lord and ,king4  ,this is  
the message which the ,lord's ,prayer   
brings--a message of mingled fear and   
joy4  ,but a message of more joy than   
fear4  ,else why does our ,lord bid us  
pray for it that it may come to         
pass8--pray daily1 before we even pray  
for our daily bread1 or the forgiveness 
of our sins--that ,his ,father's name   
may be hallowed1 ,his ,father's kingdom 
come1 ,his ,father's will be done8  ,he 
bids us pray for that because it will   
bring blessings4  ,blessings to every   
soul of man who desires to be good and  
true4  ,because it will satisfy every   
aspiration which has ever risen up from 
the heart of man after what is noble1   
what is generous1 what is just1 what is 
useful1 what is pure4  ,surely it is so4

  ,consider but these short words of my 
text1 and think what the world would be 
like if they were fulfilled2 what the   
next world will actually be like when   
they are fulfilled4  ,hallowed be thy   
name4  ,but what name8  ,the name of    
,father4  ,if that name were hallowed by
 men1 there would be an end of all      
superstitions4 ,the root of all         
superstitions1 fanaticisms1 and false   
religions is this-- that they do not    
hallow the name of ,father4  ,they do   
not see that it is a ,holy name1 a      
beautiful and tender as well as an awful
 and venerable name4 ,they think of     
fathers1 like too many among themselves1
 proud1 and arbitrary1 selfish and      
cruel4  ,they say in their hearts1 even 
such fathers as we are1 such is ,god4   
,therefore1 they shrink from ,god1 and  
turn from ,him to idols1 to the ,virgin 
,mary1 or ,saints1 or any other beings  
who can deliver them 7as they fancy7 out
 of the hands of their ,father in       
heaven4  ,if men once learnt to hallow  

the name of ,father1 to think of a      
father as one who not only possessed    
power but felt love1 who not only had   
rights which he would enforce1 and      
issued commands which must be obeyed1   
but who felt yearning sympathy for his  
children's weakness1 an active interest 
in their education1 and was ready to    
labour for1 to sacrifice himself for1   
his family--,that would be truly to     
hallow the name of ,father1 and look on 
it as a holy thing1 whether in heaven   
above or in earth beneath4  ,to hallow  
the ,father's name would abolish all the
 superstition of the world4  ,and so the
 coming of the ,father's kingdom would  
abolish all the misrule and anarchy of  
the world4  ,for the kingdom of ,god the
 ,father is a kingdom of perfect order1 
perfect justice1 perfect usefulness4    
,surely the first consequences of that  
kingdom's coming would be1 that every   
one would be exactly in his right place1
 and that every one would get his exact 
deserts4  ,that would indeed be the     

kingdom of ,god on earth4  ,the prospect
 of such a kingdom would be painful     
enough to those who were in their wrong 
place1 to those who were undeserving4   
,all who were useless1 taking wages     
either from man or from ,god1 without   
doing any work in return1 all these     
would have but too good reason to dread 
the coming of the kingdom of ,god4  ,but
 those who were trying earnestly to do  
their work1 though amid many mistakes   
and failures1 why should they dread the 
coming of the kingdom of ,god8  ,why    
should they shrink from remembering     
that1 though ,god's kingdom is not come 
in perfection and fulness1 it is here   
already1 and they are in it8  ,why      
should they shrink from that thought8   
,they will find it full of comfort1 of  
strength1 and hope1 if they will but    
hallow their ,father's name1 and        
remember the fact of all facts--that    
they have a ,father in heaven4  ,there  
are thousands on earth1 from the highest
 to the lowest1 who can say honestly--to

 take the commonest instance--every     
parent can say it--,i have a heavy work 
to do1 a heavy responsibility to fulfil4
 ,god knows ,i did not seek it1 thrust  
myself into it2 it was thrust upon me4  
,it came to me in the course of nature  
or of society1 and circumstances over   
which ,i had no control4  ,in one word  
it was ,,my ,,duty4 ,but now that ,i    
have my duty to do1 behold ,i cannot do 
it4  ,i try my best1 but ,i fail4  ,i   
come short daily of my own low standard 
of duty4  ,how much more of ,god's      
perfect standard of it6  ,and the burden
 of responsibility1 the regret for      
failure1 is more than ,i can bear4  ,to 
such we may answer1 hallow your         
,father's name1 and be of good cheer4   
,,your ,,father has given you your work4
  ,because ,he is a ,father1 ,he is     
surely educating you for your work4     
,because ,he is a ,father1 ,he will     
surely set you no task which you are    
unable to fulfil4  ,because ,he is a    
,father1 ,he will help you to fulfil    

your task4  ,your station and calling is
 ,his will2 and because it is a         
,father's will it is a good will4  ,and 
the ,judge of your work--,he is no stern
 taskmaster1 no unfeeling tyrant1 but   
,jesus ,christ1 your ,lord1 who died for
 you on the ,cross4  ,he knows what is  
in man4  ,he remembereth that we are but
 dust4  ,else the spirit would fail     
before ,him and the souls which ,he has 
made4  ,he can be touched with the      
feeling of our infirmities1 seeing that 
,he was tempted in all things like as we
 are1 yet without sin4  ,he can         
sympathise utterly2 ,he can make all    
just allowances2 ,he will judge not by  
outward results1 but by the inward will 
and desire4  ,he will judge not by the  
hearing of the ear1 nor the seeing of   
the eye1 as the shallow cruel world     
judges1 but ,he will judge righteous    
judgment4  ,trust your cause to ,him1   
and trust yourself to ,him4  ,believe   
that if ,he can sympathise1 ,he can also
 help2 for from ,him1 as well as from   

,his ,father1 proceeds the ,holy        
,spirit1 the ,lord and giver of life1   
the spirit of wisdom and understanding1 
the spirit of power and might1 the      
spirit of knowledge and the fear of the 
,lord1 and ,he will inspire you to see  
your duty1 and do your duty1 and rejoice
 in your duty1 in spite of weariness and
 failure1 and all the burdens of the    
flesh and of the spirit4  ,thy will be  
done on earth as it is in heaven4  ,if  
that were done1 it would abolish all the
 vice of the world1 and therefore the   
misery which springs from vice4  ,ah1   
that ,god's will were but done on earth 
as it is in the material heaven         
overhead1 in perfect order and          
obedience1 as the stars roll in their   
courses1 without rest1 yet without      
haste2 as all created things1 even the  
most awful1 fire and hail1 snow and     
vapour1 wind and storm1 fulfil ,god's   
word1 who hath made them sure for ever  
and ever1 and given them a law which    
shall not be broken4  ,but above them2  

above the divine and wonderful order of 
the material universe1 and the winds    
which are ,god's angels1 and the flames 
of fire which are ,his messengers2 above
 all1 the prophets and apostles have    
caught sight of another divine and      
wonderful order of ,,rational beings1 of
 races1 loftier and purer than          
man--angels and archangels1 thrones and 
dominions1 principalities and powers1   
fulfilling ,god's will in heaven as it  
is not alas6 fulfilled on earth4  ,and  
beside them1 beside the innumerable     
company of angels1 are there not the    
spirits of just men made perfect1 freed 
from the fetters of the gross animal    
body1 and now somewhere in that         
boundless universe in which this earth  
is but a tiny speck1 doing ,god's will1 
as they longed to do it on earth1 with  
clearer light1 fuller faith1 deeper     
love1 mightier powers of usefulness8    
,ah1 that we were like to them6  ,ah1   
that we could perform the least part of 
our day's work on earth as it is        

performed by saints and angels for ever 
in heaven6  ,when we think of what this 
poor confused world is1 and then what it
 might be1 were ,god's will done therein
 as it is done in heaven2 what it might 
be if even the little of ,god's will    
which we already know1 the little of    
,god's laws which are proved already to 
be certain1 were carried out with any   
earnestness by the majority of mankind1 
or even of one civilized nation--when we
 think--to take the very lowest         
ground--of the health and wealth1 the   
peace and happiness1 which would cover  
this earth did men only do the will of  
,god2 then1 if we have human hearts     
within us--if we care at all for the    
welfare of our fellow- men--ought not   
this to be the prayer of all our        
prayers1 and ought we not to welcome any
 event1 however awful1 which would bring
 mankind to reason and to virtue1 and to
 ,god1 and abolish the sin and misery of
 this unhappy world8  ,to abolish the   
superstition1 the misrule1 the vice1 the

 misery of this world4  ,that is what   
,christ will do in the day when ,he has 
put all enemies under ,his feet4  ,that 
is what ,christ has been doing1 step by 
step1 ever since that day when first ,he
 came to do ,his ,father's will on earth
 in great humility4  ,therefore1 that is
 what we must do1 each in our place and 
station1 if we be indeed ,his subjects1 
fellow-workers with ,him in the         
improvement of the human race1          
fellow-soldiers with ,him in the battle 
against evil4  ,but what we wish to do  
for our fellow-creatures1 we must do    
first for ourselves4  ,we can give them 
nothing save what ,god has already given
 us4 ,we must become good before we can 
make them good1 and wise before we can  
make them wise4  ,let us pray1 then1 the
 ,lord's ,prayer in spirit and in truth4
  ,let us pray that we may hallow the   
name of ,god1 our ,father4  ,let us pray
 that ,his kingdom may come in our own  
hearts4  ,let us pray that we may do    
,his will on earth as those whom we love

 and honour do it in heaven4  ,let us   
keep that before us1 day and night1 as  
the aim and purpose of our lives4  ,let 
us pray for forgiveness of our failures 
in that2 for help to do that better as  
our years run on4  ,so we shall be ready
 for the day in which ,christ shall have
 accomplished the number of ,his elect1 
and hastened ,his kingdom4  ,so we shall
 be found in that dread day1 not on the 
side of evil1 but of ,god2 not on the   
side of darkness1 anarchy1 and vice1 but
 on the side of light1 of justice1 and  
of virtue1 which is the side of ,christ 
and of ,god4  ,and so we1 with all those
 that are departed in the faith of ,his 
holy name1 shall have our perfect       
consummation and bliss in ,his eternal  
and everlasting glory1 to which may ,he1
 of ,his great mercy1 bring us all4     
,amen4    ,,sermon ,,xxxix4  ,,the      
,,distracted ,,mind    ,eversley4 #ahga4
  ,matthew vi4 #cd4  ,take no thought   
for the morrow1 for the morrow shall    
take thought for the things of itself4  

,sufficient unto the day is the evil    
thereof4  ,scholars will tell you that  
the words take no thought do not exactly
 express our ,lord's meaning in this    
text4  ,that they should rather stand1  
,be not anxious about to-morrow4  ,and  
doubtless they are right on the whole4  
,but the truth is1 that we have no word 
in ,english which exactly expresses the 
,greek word which ,st ,matthew uses in  
his gospel1 and which we are bound to   
believe exactly expresses our ,lord's   
meaning1 in whatever language ,he spoke4
  ,the nearest ,english word1 ,i        
believe1 is--distracted4 ,be ye not     
distracted about to-morrow4  ,i do not  
mean the vulgar sense of the word--which
 is losing one's senses4  ,but the old  
and true sense1 which is still used by  
those who speak good ,english4  ,to     
distract1 means literally to pull a     
thing two different ways--even to pull  
it asunder4  ,we speak of distracting a 
man's attention1 when we call him off   
from looking at one thing to make him   

look at something else1 and we call     
anything which interrupts us in our     
business1 or puts a thought suddenly out
 of our heads1 a distraction4  ,now the 
,greek word which ,st ,matthew uses1    
means very nearly this--,be not divided 
in your thoughts--do not think of two   
things at once--do not distract your    
attention from to- day's work1 by       
fearing and hoping about to-morrow4     
,sufficient for the day is the evil     
thereof2 and you will have quite trouble
 enough to get through to-day honestly  
and well1 without troubling yourself    
with to- morrow--which may turn out very
 unlike anything which you can dream4   
,this1 ,i think1 is the true meaning of 
the text2 and with it1 ,i think1 agrees 
another word of our ,lord's which ,st   
,luke gives--,and be ye not of doubtful 
mind4  ,literally1 ,do not be up in the 
air--blown helpless hither and thither1 
by every gust of wind1 instead of       
keeping on the firm ground1 and walking 
straight on about your business1 stoutly

 and patiently1 step after step4  ,have 
no vain fears or vain hopes about the   
future2 but do your duty here and now4  
,that is our ,lord's command1 and in it 
lies the secret of success in life4     
,for do we not find1 do we not find1 my 
friends1 in practice1 that our ,lord's  
words are true8  ,who are the people who
 get through most work in their lives1  
with the least wear and tear1 not merely
 to their bodily health1 but to their   
tempers and their characters8  ,are they
 the anxious people8  ,those who imagine
 to themselves possible misfortunes1 and
 ask continually--,what if this         
happened--or that8  ,what would become  
of me then8  ,how should ,i be able to  
pull through such a trouble8  ,where    
shall ,i find friends8  ,how shall ,i   
make myself safe against the chances and
 changes of life8  ,do we not know that 
those people are the very ones who do   
little work1 and often less than none1  
by thus distracting their attention and 
their strength from their daily duty1   

daily business8  ,that while they are   
looking anxiously for future            
opportunities1 they are neglecting the  
opportunities which they have already4  
,while they are making interest with    
others to help them1 they forget to help
 themselves4 ,that in proportion as they
 lose faith in ,god and ,his goodness1  
they lose courage and lose cheerfulness2
 and have too often to find a false     
courage and a false cheerfulness1 by    
drowning their cares in drink1 or in    
mean cunning and plotting and planning1 
which usually ends in failure and in    
shame8  ,are those who do most work1    
either the plotting or intriguing       
people8  ,i do not mean base false      
people4  ,of them ,i do not speak here4 
,but really good and kind people1 honest
 at heart1 who yet are full of          
distractions of another sort2 who are of
 double mind--look two ways at once1 and
 are afraid to be quite open1 quite     
straightforward--who like to ,,compass  
their ends1 as the old saying is1 that  

is to go round about1 towards what they 
want1 instead of going boldly up to it2 
who like to try two or more ways of     
getting the same thing done2 and1 as the
 proverb has it1 have many irons in the 
fire2 who love little schemes1 and      
plots1 and mysteries1 even when there is
 no need for them4  ,do such people get 
most work done8 ,far1 far from it4      
,they take more trouble about getting a 
little matter done1 than simpler and    
braver men take about getting great     
matters done4 ,they fret themselves1    
they weary themselves1 they waste their 
brains and hearts--and sometimes their  
honesty besides--and if they fail1 as in
 the chances and changes of this mortal 
life they must too often fail1 have     
nothing for all their schemings save    
vanity and vexation of spirit4  ,but the
 man who will get most work done1 and   
done with the least trouble1 whether for
 himself1 for his family1 or in the     
calling and duty to which ,god has      
called him1 will be the man who takes   

our ,lord's advice4  ,who takes no      
thought for the morrow1 and leaves the  
morrow to take thought for itself4      
,that man will believe that this world  
is a well-ordered world1 as it needs    
must be1 seeing that ,god made it1 ,god 
redeemed it1 ,god governs it2 and that  
,god is merciful in this--that ,he      
rewardeth every man according to his    
works4  ,that man will take thought for 
to-day1 earnestly and diligently1 even  
at times anxiously and in fear and      
trembling2 but he will not distract1 and
 divide1 and weaken his mind by taking  
thought for to-morrow also4  ,each day  
he will set about the duty which lies   
nearest him1 with a whole heart and with
 a single eye1 giving himself to it for 
the time1 as if there was nothing else  
to be done in the world4  ,as for what  
he is to do next1 he will think little  
of that4  ,little1 even1 will he think  
of whether his work will succeed or not4
  ,that must be as ,god shall will4     
,all that he is bound to do is to do his

 best2 and his best he can only do by   
throwing his whole soul into his work4  
,as his day1 he trusts his strength will
 be2 and he must not waste the strength 
which ,god has given him for to-day on  
vain fears or vain dreams about         
to-morrow4 ,to-day is quite full enough 
of anxiety1 of care1 of toil1 of        
ignorance4 ,sufficient for the day is   
the evil thereof4  ,yes2 and sufficient 
for the day is the good thereof         
likewise4  ,to-day1 and to-morrow1 too1 
may end very differently from what he   
hoped4  ,yes2 but they may end1 too1    
very differently from what he feared4   
,let him throw his whole soul into the  
thing which he is about1 and leave the  
rest to ,god4  ,for so only will he come
 to the day's end in that wholesome and 
manful temper1 contented if not         
cheerful1 satisfied with the work he has
 had to do1 if not satisfied with the   
way in which he has done it1 which will 
leave his mind free to remember all his 
comforts1 all his blessings1 even to    

those commonest of all blessings1 which 
we are all too apt to forget1 just      
because they are as necessary as the air
 we breathe2 which will show him how    
much light there is1 even on the darkest
 day4  ,he has not got this or that fine
 thing1 it may be1 for which he longed3 
but he has at least his life1 at least  
his reason1 at least his conscience1 at 
least his ,god4  ,are not they enough to
 possess8  ,are not they enough         
wherewith to lie down at night in peace1
 and rise to-morrow to take what comes  
to-morrow1 even as he took what came    
to-day8  ,and will he not be most fit to
 take what comes to-morrow like a       
,christian man1 whether it be good or   
evil1 with his spirit braced and yet    
chastened1 by honest and patient labour1
 instead of being weakened and irritated
 by idling over to-day1 while he dreamed
 and fretted about to-morrow8  ,ah6  ,i 
fancy that ,i hear some one say--perhaps
 a woman--,so easy to preach1 but so    
difficult to practise4  ,so difficult to

 think of one thing at a time4  ,so     
difficult not to plot1 not to fret1 with
 a whole family of children dependent on
 you6  ,what does the preacher know of a
 woman's troubles8  ,how many things she
 has to think of1 day by day1 not one of
 which she dares forget--and yet can    
seldom or never1 for all her            
recollecting1 contrive to get them all  
done8  ,how can she help being          
distracted by the thought of to-morrow8 
,can he feel for frail me8  ,does he    
know what ,i go through8  ,yes4  ,i do  
know2 and ,i wonder1 and admire4 ,to me 
the sight of any poor woman managing her
 family respectably and thriftily1 is   
one of the most surprising sights on    
earth1 as it is one of the most         
beautiful sights on earth4  ,how she    
finds time for it1 wit for it1 patience 
for it1 courage for it1 ,i cannot       
conceive4  ,i have wondered often why   
many a woman does not lie down and die1 
for sheer weariness of body and soul4   
,i have fancied often that ,god must    

give some special grace to all good     
mothers1 to enable them to do all that  
they do1 and bear all they bear4  ,but  
still1 the women who do most1 who bring 
up their families best1 are surely those
 who obey their ,lord's command1 who    
give their whole souls to each day's    
work1 and think as little as they can of
 to-morrow4  ,with them1 surely1 the    
true wisdom is1 not to fret1 not to     
plot1 to do the duty which lies nearest 
them1 and leave the rest to ,god2 to get
 each week's bill paid1 trusting to ,god
 to send money for the week to come2 to 
get their children every day to school2 
to correct in them each fault as it     
shews itself1 without looking forward   
too much to how the child will turn out 
at last4  ,for them1 and for parents of 
all ranks1 the wisest plan1 ,i believe1 
is to make no far-fetched plans for     
their children's future1 certainly no   
ambitious intrigues for their marriage3 
but simply to educate them--that is1 to 
bring out in them1 day by day1 all that 

is purest and best1 wisest and ablest1  
and leave the rest to ,god2 sure that if
 they are worth anything1 their ,father 
in heaven will find them work to do1 and
 a place at ,his table1 in this life and
 in the life to come4  ,yes1 my dear    
friends1 this is the true philosophy1   
the philosophy which ,christ preaches to
 us all--to old and young1 rich and     
poor1 ploughman and scholar1 maid1 wife1
 and widow1 all alike4  ,fret not4      
,plot not4  ,look not too far ahead4    
,fret not--lest you lose temper1 and be 
moved to do evil4  ,plot not--lest you  
lose faith in ,god1 and be moved to be  
dishonest4  ,look not too far ahead--,so
 far only1 as to keep yourselves out of 
open and certain danger- -lest you see  
what is coming before you are ready for 
the sight4  ,if we foresaw the troubles 
which may be coming1 perhaps it would   
break our hearts2 and if we foresaw the 
happiness which is coming1 perhaps it   
would turn our heads4  ,let us not      
meddle with the future1 and matters     

which are too high for us1 but refrain  
our souls1 and keep them low1 like      
little children1 content with the day's 
food1 and the day's schooling1 and the  
day's play-hours1 sure that the ,divine 
,master knows that all is right1 and how
 to train us1 and whither to lead us1   
though we know not1 and need not know1  
save this--that the path by which ,he is
 leading each of us--if we will but obey
 and follow1 step by step--leads up to  
,everlasting ,life4    ,,sermon ,,xl4   
,,the ,,lesson ,,of ,,life    ,fifth    
,sunday in ,lent4  ,chester ,training   
,college1 #ahgj4  ,windsor ,castle1     
#ahga4  ,hebrews v4 #g1 #h4  ,who in the
 days of ,his flesh1 when ,he had       
offered up prayers and supplications    
with strong crying and tears1 unto ,him 
that was able to save ,him from death1  
and was heard in that ,he feared2 though
 ,he were a ,son1 yet learned ,he       
obedience by the things which ,he       
suffered4  ,this is the lesson of life4 
,this is ,god's way of educating us1 of 

making us men and women worthy of the   
name of men and women1 worthy of the    
name of children of ,god4  ,as ,christ  
learnt1 so must we4  ,if it was         
necessary for ,him who know no sin1 how 
much more for us who have sins enough   
and to spare4  ,though ,he was the      
eternal ,son of ,god1 yet ,he learnt    
obedience by the things which ,he       
suffered4  ,though we are ,god's adopted
 children1 we must learn obedience by   
what we suffer4  ,he had to offer up    
prayer with strong crying4  ,so shall we
 have to do again and again before we   
die4  ,he was heard in that ,he feared  
,god1 and said1 ,father not my will1 but
 ,thine be done4  ,and so shall we4  ,he
 was perfected by sufferings4  ,god     
grant that we may be so likewise4  ,he  
had to do like us4  ,god grant that we  
may do like ,him4  ,god grant it4  ,that
 is all ,i can say4  ,i cannot be sure  
of it1 for myself or for any of you4  ,i
 can only hope1 and trust in ,god4      
,life is hard work--any life at least   

which is worth being called life1 which 
is not the life of a swine1 who thinks  
of nothing but feeding himself1 or of a 
butterfly which thinks of nothing but   
enjoying itself4  ,those are easy lives 
enough3  but the end thereof is death4  
,the swine goes to the slaughter4  ,the 
butterfly dies of the frost--and there  
is an end of them4 ,but the manly life1 
the life of good deeds and noble        
thoughts1 and usefulness1 and purity1   
the life which is discontented with     
itself1 and which the better it is1     
longs the more to be better still2 the  
life which will endure through this     
world into the world to come1 and on and
 upward for ever and for ever4--,that   
life is not an easy life to live2 it is 
very often not a pleasant life2 very    
often a sad life--so sad that that is   
true of it which the great poet says--  
,who ne'er his bread in sorrow ate1 ,who
 never in the midnight hours ,sat       
weeping on his lonely bed1 ,he knows you
 not1 you ,heavenly ,powers4   ,you may 

say this is bad news4  ,i do not believe
 it is4  ,i believe it is good news1 and
 the very best of news3  but if it is   
bad news1 ,i cannot help it4  ,i did not
 make it so4  ,god made it so4  ,and    
,god must know best4 ,god is love4  ,and
 we are ,his children1 and ,he loves us4
  ,and therefore ,his ways with us must 
be good and loving ways1 and any news   
about them must be good news1 and a     
gospel1 though we cannot see it so at   
first4  ,in any case1 if it is so1 it is
 better to remember that it is so4  ,and
 ,lent1 and ,passion ,week1 and ,good   
,friday are meant to put us in mind of  
it year by year1 because we are all of  
us only too ready to forget it1 and shut
 our eyes to it4  ,lent and ,passion    
,week1 ,i say1 are meant to put us in   
mind4  ,and the preacher is bound to put
 you in mind of it now and then4  ,he is
 bound1 not too often perhaps1 lest he  
should discourage young hearts1 but now 
and then1 to put you in mind of the old 
,greek proverb1 the very words of which 

,st4 ,paul uses in the text1 that ta    
pa88ata a88ata--sorrows are lessons2 and
 that the most truly pitiable people    
often are those who have no sorrows1 and
 ask for no man's pity4  ,for so it is4 
,the very worst calamity1 ,i should say1
 which could befall any human being     
would be this--,to have his own way from
 his cradle to his grave2 to have       
everything he liked for the asking1 or  
even for the buying2 never to be forced 
to say1 ,i should like that3  but ,i    
cannot afford it4  ,i should like this3 
but ,i must not do it--,never to deny   
himself1 never to exert himself1 never  
to work1 and never to want4  ,that man's
 soul would be in as great danger as if 
he were committing great crimes4        
,indeed1 he would very probably before  
he died commit great crimes--like       
certain negroes whom ,i have seen       
abroad1 who live a life of such lazy    
comfort and safety1 and superabundance  
of food1 that they are beginning more   
and more to live the life of animals    

rather than men4 ,they are like those of
 whom the ,psalmist says1 ,their eyes   
swell out with fatness1 and they do even
 what they lust4  ,so do they1 and      
indulge in gross vices1 which1 if not   
checked in some way1 will end in        
destroying them off the face of the     
earth in a few generations more4  ,i had
 rather1 for the sake of my character1  
my manhood1 my immortal soul1 ,i had    
rather1 ,i say1 a hundred times over1 be
 an ,english labourer1 struggling on on 
twelve shillings a week1 and learning   
obedience1 self-denial1 self- respect1  
and trust in ,god1 by the things        
suffered in that hard life here at home1
 than be a ,negro in ,tropic islands1   
fattening himself in sloth under that   
perpetual sunshine1 and thinking nought 
of ,god1 because1 poor fool1 he can get 
all he wants without ,god's help4  ,no1 
my dear young friends1 this is good for 
a man4  ,it is necessary for a man1 if  
he is to be a man and a child of ,god1  
and not a mere animal1 to have to work  

hard whether he likes or not4  ,it is   
good for a man to bear the yoke in his  
youth1 as ,jeremiah told the ,jews1     
when1 because they would not bear ,god's
 light yoke in their youth1 but ran riot
 into luxury and wantonness1 and        
superstition and idolatry which come    
thereof1 they had to bear the heavy yoke
 of the ,babylonish captivity in their  
old age4 ,it is good for a man to be    
checked1 crossed1 disappointed1 made to 
feel his own ignorance1 weakness1 folly2
 made to feel his need of ,god2 to feel 
that1 in spite of all his cunning and   
self-confidence1 he is no better off in 
this world than a lost child in a dark  
forest1 unless he has a ,father in      
,heaven1 who loves him with an eternal  
love1 and a ,holy ,spirit in ,heaven1   
who will give him a right judgment in   
all things2 who will put into his mind  
good desires1 and enable him to bring   
those desires to good effect2 and a     
,saviour in ,heaven who can be touched  
with the feeling of his infirmities1    

because ,he too was made perfect by     
sufferings2 ,he too was tempted in all  
points like as we are1 yet without sin4 
,and1 therefore1 my dear friends1 those 
words which we read in the ,visitation  
of the ,sick about this matter are not  
mere kind words1 meant to give comfort  
for the moment4  ,they are truth and    
fact and sound philosophy4  ,they are as
 true for the young lad in health and   
spirits as for the old folk crawling    
towards their graves4  ,it is true1 and 
you will find it true1 that sickness and
 all sorts of troubles1 are sent to     
correct and amend in us whatever doth   
offend the eyes of our ,heavenly        
,father4  ,it is true1 and you will find
 it true1 that whom the ,lord loveth ,he
 chasteneth1 and scourgeth every son    
whom ,he receiveth4  ,it is true1 and   
you will find it true 7though ,god knows
 it is a difficult lesson enough to     
learn71 that there should be no greater 
comfort to ,christian persons1 than to  
be made like ,christ1 by suffering      

patiently not only the hard work of     
every-day life1 but adversities1        
troubles1 and sicknesses1 and our       
,heavenly ,father's correction1         
whensoever1 by any manner of adversity1 
it shall please ,his gracious goodness  
to visit them4  ,for ,christ ,himself   
went not up to joy1 but first ,he       
suffered pain2 ,he entered not into ,his
 glory1 before ,he was crucified4  ,so  
truly our way to eternal joy is to      
labour and to suffer here with ,christ4 
,it is true1 and you will find it true1 
when years hence you look back1 as ,i   
trust you all will1 calmly and          
intelligently1 on the events of your own
 lives--you will find1 ,i say1 that the 
very events in your lives which seemed  
at the time most trying1 most vexing1   
most disastrous1 have been those which  
wore most necessary for you1 to call out
 what was good in you1 and to purge out 
what was bad2 that by those very        
troubles your ,lord1 who knows the value
 of suffering1 because ,he has suffered 

,himself1 was making true men1 true     
women of you2 hardening your heads1     
while ,he softened your hearts2 teaching
 you to obey ,him1 while ,he taught you 
not to obey your own fancies and your   
own passions2 refining and tempering    
your characters in the furnace of trial1
 as the smith refines soft iron into    
trusty steel2 teaching you1 as the great
 poet says--      ,that life is not as  
idle ore1 ,but heated hot with burning  
fears1 ,and bathed in baths of hissing  
tears1    ,and battered with the strokes
 of doom1    ,to shape and use4   ,yes1 
you will learn that1 and more than that1
 and say in peace--,before ,i was       
troubled ,i went wrong1 but now have ,i 
kept thy commandments4  ,and to such an 
old age may our ,lord ,jesus ,christ    
bring you and me and all we love4       
,amen4    ,,sermon ,,xli4  ,,sacrifice  
,,to ,,caesar ,,or ,,to ,,god           
,eversley1 #ahfi4  ,chester ,cathedral1 
#ahgb4  ,matthew xxii4 #ba4  ,render    
therefore unto ,caesar the things which 

are ,caesar's2 and unto ,god the things 
that are ,god's4  ,many a sermon has    
been preached1 and many a pamphlet      
written1 on this text1 and 7as too often
 has happened to ,holy ,scripture71 it  
has been made to mean the most opposite 
doctrines1 and twisted in every         
direction1 to suit men's opinions and   
superstitions4  ,some have found in it a
 command to obey tyrants1 invaders1 any 
and every government1 just or unjust4   
,others have found in it rules for      
drawing a line between the authority of 
the ,state and of the ,church1 i4e41    
between what the ,government have a     
right to command1 and what the ,clergy  
have a right to demand2 and many more   
matters have they fancied that they     
discovered in the text which ,i do not  
believe are in it at all4  ,for to      
understand the original question--,is it
 lawful to pay tribute to ,caesar or no8
 we must imagine to ourselves a state of
 things in ,judea utterly different1    
thank ,god1 from anything which has been

 in these realms for now eight hundred  
years4  ,the ,caesar1 or ,emperor of    
,rome1 had obtained by conquest an      
authority over the ,jews very like that 
which we have over the ,hindoos in      
,india4  ,and what was working in the   
mind of the ,jews was very like that    
which was working in the minds of the   
,hindoos in the ,sepoy                  
,rebellion--whether it was not a sacred 
and religious duty to rise against their
 conquerors and drive them out4  ,we    
know from the ,new ,testament that both 
our ,lord and ,his apostles again and   
again warned them not to rebel1 warned  
them that they would not succeed3  but  
ruin themselves thereby2 for that those 
who took the sword would perish by the  
sword4  ,and we know1 too1 that the     
,jews would not take our ,lord's advice1
 nor the apostles'1 but did rise again  
and again1 both in ,judea and elsewhere1
 gallantly and desperately enough1 poor 
creatures1 in mad useless rebellion1    
till the ,romans all but destroyed them 

off the face of the earth4  ,but what   
has that to do with us1 free            
self-governed ,englishmen1 in this      
peaceful and prosperous land8  ,in the  
early middle age1 when the clergy       
represented and defended ,roman pure    
,christianity and civilization against  
the half-heathen and half-barbaric      
,teutons who had conquered the ,roman   
,empire1 then doubtless the text became 
once more full of meaning1 and the      
clergy had again and again to defend the
 things which belonged to ,god against  
the rapacity or the wilfulness of many a
 barbaric ,caesar4  ,but what has that1 
again1 to do with us8  ,those who apply 
the text to any questions which can at  
present arise between the ,church and   
the ,state1 mistake alike1 it seems to  
me1 the nature and functions of an      
,established ,church1 and the nature and
 functions of a free ,government4  ,do  
,i mean1 then1 that the text has nothing
 to do with us8  ,god forbid6  ,i       
believe that every word of our ,lord's  

has to do with us1 and with every human 
being1 for their meaning is infinite1   
eternal1 and inexhaustible4 ,and what   
the latter half of the text has to do   
with us1 ,i will try to show you1 while 
,i tell you openly1 that the first half 
of it1 about rendering to ,caesar the   
things which are ,caesar's1 has nothing 
to do with us1 and never need1 save     
through our own cowardice and           
effeminacy1 or folly4  ,we have no      
,caesar over us in free ,england1 and   
shall not have1 while ,queen ,victoria1 
and her children after her reign2 but if
 ever one1 or many 7which ,god forbid671
 should arise and try to set themselves 
up as despots over us1 ,i trust we shall
 know how to render them their due1 be  
they native or foreigner1 in the same   
coin in which our forefathers have      
always paid tyrants and invaders4  ,no4 
,the only ,caesar which we have to      
fear--and he is a tyrant who seems      
ready1 nowadays1 to oppose and exalt    
himself above all that is called ,god1  

or is worshipped1--patronizing1 of      
course1 ,religion1 as a harmless        
sanction for order and respectability1  
but dictating morality1 while telling us
 all day long1 with a thousand voices   
and a thousand pens--,right is not the  
eternal law of ,god4 ,whatever profits  
me1 whatever ,i like1 whatever ,i       
vote--that and that alone is right1 and 
you must do it at your peril4  ,do you  
know who that ,caesar is1 my friends8   
,he is called ,public ,opinion--the huge
 anonymous idol which we ourselves help 
to make1 and then tremble before the    
creation of our own cowardice2 whereas1 
if we will but face him1 in the fear of 
,god and the faith of ,christ1          
determined to say the thing which is    
true1 and do the thing which is right1  
we shall find the modern ,caesar but a  
phantom of our own imagination2 a       
tyrant1 indeed1 as long as he is feared1
 but a coward as soon as he is defied4  
,to that ,caesar let us never bow the   
knee4  ,render to him all that he       

deserves--the homage of common courtesy1
 common respectability1 common          
charity--not in reverence for his wisdom
 and strength1 but in pity for his      
ignorance and weakness4  ,but render    
always to ,god the things which are     
,god's4  ,that duty1 my good friends1   
lies on us1 as on all mankind still1    
from our cradle to our grave1 and after 
that through all eternity4 ,let us go   
back1 or rather1 let us go home to the  
eternal laws of ,god1 which were1 ages  
before we were born1 and will be1 ages  
after we are dead--to the everlasting   
,rock on which we all stand1 which is   
the will and mind of our ,lord ,jesus   
,christ the ,son of ,god1 to whom all   
power is given 7as ,he said ,himself7 in
 heaven and on earth4  ,and we have need
 to do so1 for in such times of change  
as these are1 there will always be too  
many who fancy that changes in society  
and government change their duty about  
religion1 and are1 some of them1 sorely 
puzzled as to their duty to ,god3  and  

others ready to take advantage of the   
change to throw off their duty to ,god1 
and run into licence and schism and     
fanaticism4  ,now let all people clearly
 understand1 and settle it in their     
hearts1 that no change in ,church or in 
,state can change in the least their    
duty to ,god and to man4  ,if the world 
were turned upside down1 ,god would     
still be where ,he is1 and we where we  
are--in ,his presence4  ,right would    
still be right1 my friends1 and wrong   
wrong1 though all the loud voices in the
 world shouted that wrong is right and  
right wrong4  ,no change of time1 place1
 society1 government1 circumstance of   
any kind1 can alter our duty to ,god1   
and our power of doing that duty4       
,whatever the ,caesar of the hour may   
require us to render to him1 what we are
 bound to render to ,god remains the    
same4  ,the two things are different    
,,in ,,kind1 so different1 that they    
never need interfere with each other4   
,even if1 which ,god forbid1 the        

connection between ,church and ,state   
were dissolved2 even if1 which ,god     
forbid1 the ,church of ,england were    
destroyed for a while--if all ,churches 
were destroyed--yea1 if not a place of  
worship were left for a while in this or
 any other land2 yet even then1 ,i say1 
we could still render to ,god the things
 which are ,god's1 and offer to ,him    
spiritual sacrifices1 more pleasing to  
,him than the most gorgeous ceremonies  
which the devotion1 and art1 and wealth 
of man ever devised--sacrifices1 by     
virtue of which the ,church would arise 
out of her ruins1 like the ,jewish      
,church after the captivity1 more pure1 
more glorious1 and more triumphant than 
ever4  ,what do ,i mean8  ,i mean       
this--that there are three sacrifices   
which every man1 woman1 and child can   
offer1 and should offer1 however lowly1 
however uneducated in what the world    
calls education nowadays4  ,those they  
can offer to ,god1 and with them they   
can worship ,god1 and render to ,god the

 things which are ,god's1 wherever they 
are1 whatever they are doing1 whatever  
be the laws of their country1 or the    
state of society round them4  ,for of   
these sacrifices our ,lord ,himself     
said1 ,the true worshippers shall       
worship the ,father in spirit and in    
truth3  for the ,father seeketh such to 
worship ,him4  ,now what are these      
spiritual sacrifices8  ,first and       
foremost1 surely1 the sacrifice of      
repentance1 of which it is written1 ,the
 sacrifice of ,god is a broken spirit4  
,a broken and a contrite heart1 oh ,god1
 ,thou wilt not despise4  ,surely when  
we--even the best of us--look back on   
our past lives2 when we recollect1 if   
not great and positive sins and crimes1 
yet the opportunities which we have     
neglected2 the time1 and often the money
 which we have wasted2 the meannesses1  
the tempers1 the spite1 the vanity1 the 
selfishness1 which we have too often    
indulged--,when we think of what we have
 been1 and what we might have been1 what

 we are1 and what we might be2 when we  
measure ourselves1 not by the paltry1   
low1 and often impure standard of the   
world around us1 but by the pure1 lofty1
 truly heroical standard of our ,lord   
,jesus ,christ--what can we say1 but    
that we are miserable--that is1 pitiful 
and pitiable sinners1 who have left     
undone what we ought to have done1 and  
done that which we ought not to have    
done1 till there is no health in us8    
,and if you ask me1 ,how is it a        
sacrifice to ,god to confess to ,him    
that we are sinners8 the answer is      
simple4  ,it is a sacrifice to ,god1 and
 a sacrifice well-pleasing to ,him1     
simply because it is ,the ,truth4  ,god 
wants nothing from us2 we can give ,him 
nothing4  ,the wild beasts of the forest
 are ,his1 and so are the cattle on a   
thousand hills4  ,if ,he be hungry ,he  
will not tell us for the whole world is 
,his and all that is therein4  ,but what
 ,he asks is1 that for our own sakes we 
should see the truth about ourselves1   

see what we really are1 and sacrifice   
that self- conceit which prevents our   
seeing ourselves as ,god our ,father    
sees us4 ,and why does that please ,god8
  ,simply because it puts us in our     
right state1 and in our right place1    
where we can begin to become better men1
 let us be as bad as we may4  ,if a man 
be a fool1 the best possible thing for  
him is that he should find out that he  
is a fool1 and confess that he is a     
fool1 as the first1 and the absolutely  
necessary first step to becoming wise4  
,therefore repentance1 contrition1      
humility1 is the very foundation-stone  
of all goodness1 virtue1 holiness1      
usefulness2 and ,god desires to see us  
contrite1 simply because ,he desires to 
see us good men and good women4  ,next1 
the sacrifice of thankfulness1 of which 
it is written1 ,i will offer to thee the
 sacrifice of thanksgiving1 and will    
call upon the name of the ,lord4  ,and  
again--,by ,christ let us offer the     
sacrifice of praise continually1 that   

is1 the fruit of our lips1 giving thanks
 unto ,his name4 ,ah6 my friends1 if we 
offered that sacrifice oftener1 we      
should have more seldom need to offer   
the first sacrifice of repentance4  ,i  
am astonished when ,i look at my own    
heart1 by which alone ,i can judge the  
hearts of others1 to see how unthankful 
one is4  ,how one takes as a matter of  
course1 without one aspiration of       
gratitude to our ,father in heaven--how 
one takes1 as a matter of course1 ,i    
say1 life1 health1 reason1 freedom1     
education1 comfort1 safety1 and all the 
blessings of humanity1 and of this      
favoured land4  ,how we never really    
feel that these are all ,god's          
undeserved and unearned mercies2 and    
then1 how1 if we set our hearts on      
anything which we have not got1 forget  
all that we have already1 and begin     
entreating ,god to give us something    
which1 if we had1 we know not whether it
 would be good for us2 like children    
crying peevishly for sweets1 after their

 parents have given them all the        
wholesome food they need4  ,ah6 that we 
would offer to ,god more frankly the    
sacrifice of thanksgiving6  ,so we      
should do ,god justice1 by confessing   
all we owe to ,him2 and so1 we must     
believe1 we should please ,god2 for if  
,god be indeed our ,father in heaven1 as
 surely as a parent is pleased with the 
affection and gratitude of his child1 so
 will our ,father in heaven be pleased  
when ,he sees us love ,him1 who first   
loved us4  ,next--the sacrifice of      
righteousness1 of which it is written1  
,present your bodies a living sacrifice1
 holy1 acceptable to ,god1 which is your
 reasonable service4  ,to be good and to
 do good1 even to long to be good and to
 long to do good1 to hunger and thirst  
after righteousness1 is the best and    
highest sacrifice which any human being 
can offer to his ,father in heaven4     
,for so he honours his father most      
truly2 for he longs and strives to be   
like that ,father2 to be good as ,god is

 good1 holy as ,god is holy1 beneficent 
and useful even as ,god is infinitely   
beneficent and useful2 being1 in one    
word1 perfect1 as his ,father in heaven 
is perfect4 ,this is the best and       
highest act of worship1 the truest      
devotion4  ,for pure worship 7says ,st  
,james71 and undefiled before ,god and  
the ,father1 is this1 to visit the      
fatherless and widows in their          
affliction1 and to keep ourselves       
unspotted from the world4  ,yes--every  
time we perform an act of kindness to   
any human being1 aye1 even to a dumb    
animal2 every time we conquer our own   
worldliness1 love of pleasure1 ease1    
praise1 ambition1 money1 for the sake of
 doing what our conscience tells us to  
be our duty1 we are indeed worshipping  
,god the ,father in spirit and in truth1
 and offering him a sacrifice which ,he 
will surely accept1 for the sake of ,his
 beloved ,son1 by whose spirit all good 
deeds and thoughts are inspired4  ,think
 of these things1 my friends1 always1   

but1 above all1 think of them as often  
as you come--as would to ,god all would 
come--to the altar of the ,lord1 and the
 ,holy ,communion of ,his body and      
blood4  ,for there1 indeed1 you render  
to ,god that which is ,god's--namely1   
yourselves2 there you offer to ,god the 
true sacrifice1 which is the sacrifice  
of yourselves-- the sacrifice of        
repentance1 the sacrifice of            
thanksgiving1 the sacrifice of          
righteousness1 or at least of hunger and
 thirst after righteousness2 and there  
you receive in return your share of     
,god's sacrifice1 the sacrifice which   
you did not make for ,him1 but which ,he
 made for you1 when ,he spared not ,his 
only-begotten ,son but freely gave ,him 
for us4  ,that is the sacrifice of all  
sacrifices1 the wonder of all wonders1  
the mystery of all mysteries2 and it is 
also the righteousness of all           
righteousness1 the generosity of all    
generosity1 the nobleness of all        
nobleness1 the beauty of all beauty1 the

 love of all love4  ,thinking of that1  
beholding in that bread and wine the    
tokens of the boundless love of ,god1   
then surely1 surely1 our repentance for 
past follies1 our thankfulness for      
present blessings1 our longing to be    
good1 pure1 useful1 humane1 generous1   
high-minded--in one word1 to be         
holy--ought to rise up in us1 into a    
passion1 as it were1 of noble shame at  
our own selfishness1 and admiration of  
,god's unselfishness1 a longing to      
follow ,his divine example1 and to live1
 not for ourselves1 but for our         
fellow-men4  ,if we could but once      
understand the full meaning of those    
awful yet glorious words1 ,he that      
spared not ,his own ,son1 but delivered 
,him up for us all1 how shall ,he not   
with ,him also freely give us all       
things8 then1 indeed1 we should         
understand that the one overpowering    
reason for being unselfish and doing    
good is this--that we are ,god's        
children1 and that ,god our ,father is  

utterly unselfish1 and utterly does     
good1 even at the sacrifice of ,himself2
 and that therefore when we are         
unselfish1 and do good1 even at the     
sacrifice of ourselves1 we do indeed1 in
 spirit and in truth1 render unto ,god  
the things that are ,god's4    ,,sermon 
,,xlii4  ,,the ,,unjust ,,steward       
,eversley1 #ahff4  ,,ninth ,,sunday     
,,after ,,trinity4  ,luke xvi4 #h4  ,and
 the ,lord commended the unjust steward1
 because he had done wisely4  ,none of  
our ,lord's parables has been as        
difficult to explain as this one4       
,learned and pious men have confessed   
freely1 in all ages1 that there is much 
in the parable which they cannot        
understand2 and ,i am bound to confess  
the same4  ,the puzzle is1 plainly1 why 
our ,lord should ,,seem to bid us to    
copy the conduct of a bad man and a     
cheat4  ,for this is the usual          
interpretation4  ,the steward has been  
cheating his master already4 ,when he is
 found out and about to be dismissed1 he

 cheats his master still further1 by    
telling his debtors to cheat1 and so    
wins favour with them4  ,but does our   
,lord bid us copy a cheat8  ,i cannot   
believe that2 and the text ,i should    
have said ought to give us a very       
different notion4  ,we read that the    
lord--that is1 the steward's            
master--commended the unjust steward4   
,what8  ,commended him for cheating him 
a second time1 and teaching his debtors 
to cheat him8  ,he must have been a man 
of a strange character--very unlike any 
man whom we know1 or1 at all events1 any
 man whom we should wish to know--to    
have done that4  ,but it is said--he    
commended him for having acted wisely4  
,now that word wisely may merely mean   
prudently1 sensibly1 and with common    
sense4  ,but if the master thought that 
to cheat1 or to teach others to cheat1  
was acting either wisely or prudently1  
then he was a very foolish and          
short-sighted man1 and altogether       
mistaken4  ,for be sure and certain1 and

 settle it in your minds1 that neither  
falsehood or dishonesty is ever either  
wise or prudent1 but short-sighted1     
foolish1 certain to punish itself4      
,such teaching is totally contrary to   
our ,lord's own teaching4  ,agree with  
thine adversary quickly1 ,he says1 while
 thou art in the way with him1 lest he  
deliver thee to the ,judge4  ,if thou   
hast done wrong1 right it again as soon 
as possible2 for your sin will surely   
find you out1 and avenge itself4  ,give 
the devil his due1 says the good old    
proverb4  ,pay him at once and be done  
with him3  but never think to escape out
 of his clutches1 as too many wretched  
and foolish sinners do1 by running up a 
fresh score with him1 and trying to hide
 old sins by new ones4  ,be sure that if
 the steward cheated his master a second
 time1 the master was foolish and       
mistaken1 and as it were a partner in   
the steward's sin by commending him4    
,but if so2 why does our ,lord mention  
it8  ,what had our ,lord to do1 what    

have we to do1 with the opinion of so   
foolish a man8  ,it seems to me that the
 only reason for our ,lord's using the  
words of the text1 must be1 that the    
master was right1 not wrong1 in         
commending the steward4  ,but it seems  
to me1 also1 that the master could be   
right only1 if the steward was right    
also--if the steward had done the right 
and just thing at last1 and1 instead of 
cheating his master a second time1 had  
done his best to make restitution for   
his own sins4  ,but how could that be8  
,we know nothing of what these debtors  
were4  ,all we know is that one believed
 that he owed the ,lord a hundred       
measures of oil2 and another believed   
that he owed him a hundred measures of  
wheat2 and that the steward told one to 
put down in his bill eighty1 and the    
other fifty4  ,now suppose that the     
steward had been cheating and oppressing
 these men1 as was common enough in     
those days with stewards1 and has been  
common enough since2 suppose that he had

 been charging them more than they      
really owed1 and1 it may be1 putting the
 surplus into his own pocket1 and so    
wasting his master's goods--that the one
 really owed only eighty measures of    
oil1 and the other really owed only     
fifty of wheat2 what could be more      
simple1 or more truly wise either1 when 
he was found out1 than to do this--to go
 round to the debtors and confess3  ,i  
have been overcharging you2 you do not  
owe what ,i have demanded of you2 take  
your bill and write four-score1 for that
 is what you really owe8  ,this is but a
 guess on my part4  ,but all other      
explanations are only guesses likewise1 
because we do not know how business was 
transacted in those days and in that    
country4  ,we do not know whether these 
debtors were tenants1 paying rent in    
kind1 or traders to whom goods had been 
advanced1 or what they were4  ,we do not
 know whether the steward was agent of  
the estate1 or house steward1 or what he
 was4  ,but this we do know--that to    

mend one act of villainy by committing a
 fresh one1 is not wisdom1 but          
foolishness2 and we may be sure that our
 ,lord would never have held up the     
unjust steward as an example to us1 or  
quoted his master's opinion of him1 if  
all he did was to commit fraud on fraud1
 and make bad worse1 thereby risking his
 own more utter ruin4  ,and this view of
 the parable surely agrees with our     
,lord's own lesson1 which ,he draws from
 it4  ,and ,i say unto you1 ,make to    
yourselves friends of the mammon of     
righteousness4  ,but what does that     
mean8  ,wise men have been puzzled by   
that text as much as by the parable2 but
 surely our ,lord ,himself explains it  
in the verses which follow3  ,he that is
 faithful in that which is least1 is    
faithful also in much2 and he that is   
unjust in that which is least1 is unjust
 also in much4  ,he that is ,,faithful4 
,the unjust steward was commended for   
acting wisely4  ,now1 it seems the way  
to act wisely is to act faithfully--that

 is honestly4  ,our ,lord bids us copy  
the unjust steward1 and make ourselves  
friends of the mammon of                
unrighteousness4  ,now1 it seems1 ,he   
tells us that the way to make friends of
 men by money transactions is to deal   
faithfully and honestly by them4 ,this  
then was perhaps why the ,lord commended
 the unjust steward1 because he had been
 converted in time1 and seen his true   
interest2 and for once at least in his  
life become just4  ,he had found out    
that after all1 honesty is the best     
policy2 as ,god grant all of us may find
 out if any of us have not found it out 
already4  ,honesty is the best policy4  
,faithfulness1 as our ,lord calls it1 is
 the true wisdom4  ,and in that1 as our 
,lord says1 the children of this world  
are wiser in their generation than the  
children of light4  ,the children of    
this world1 the plain worldly men of    
business1 find that to conduct their    
business they must be faithful1         
diligent1 punctual1 accurate1 cautious1 

business-like4  ,they must have         
practical common sense1 which is itself 
a kind of honesty4 ,they must be men of 
their word1 just and true in their      
dealings1 or sooner or later1 they will 
fail4  ,their schemes1 their money1     
their credit1 their character1 will fail
 them1 and they will be overwhelmed by  
ruin4  ,and that is just what too often 
the children of light forget4  ,the     
children of light have a higher light1 a
 deeper teaching from ,god1 than the    
children of the world4  ,they have a    
great insight into what ought to be2    
they see that mankind might be far      
wiser1 happier1 better1 holier than they
 are2 they have noble and lofty hopes   
for the future2 they desire the welfare 
and the holiness of mankind4  ,but they 
are too apt to want practical common    
sense4  ,and so they are laughed at 7and
 deservedly7 as dreamers1 as fanatics1  
as foolish unpractical people1 who are  
wasting their talents on impossible     
fancies4  ,often while their minds are  

full of really useful and noble schemes1
 they neglect their business1 their     
families1 their common duties1 till they
 cause misery to those around them1 and 
shame to themselves4  ,often1 too1 they 
are tempted to be actually dishonest1 to
 fancy that the means sanctify the end2 
that it is lawful to do evil that good  
may come2 and so1 in order to carry out 
some fine scheme of theirs1 to say false
 things1 or do mean or cruel things1 not
 for their own interest1 but1 as they   
fancy1 for the cause of ,god3  as if    
,god1 and ,god's cause1 could ever be   
helped by the devil and his works4 ,and 
so they cast a scandal on religion1 and 
give the enemies of the ,lord reason to 
blaspheme4  ,so it was1 it seems1 in our
 ,lord's time--so it has been too often 
since4  ,the children of light--those   
who ought to be of most use to their own
 generation--are sometimes of least use 
to it1 through their own weaknesses and 
follies4  ,they will not remember that  
he that is not faithful in that which is

 least1 in the every-day concerns of    
life1 is not likely to be faithful in   
that which is greatest2 that if they    
will not be faithful in the unrighteous 
mammon--that is1 if they cannot resist  
the temptations to meanness and         
unfairness which come with all money    
transactions1 ,god will not commit to   
them the true riches--the power of      
making their fellow creatures wiser1    
happier1 better4  ,if they will not be  
faithful in that which is another       
man's--in plain ,english1 if they will  
not pay their debts honestly1 who will  
give them that which is their own--the  
inspiration of ,god's indwelling        
,spirit8  ,would to ,god all high       
religious professors would recollect    
that1 and be just and honest1 before    
they pretend to higher graces and       
counsels of perfection4  ,this lesson1  
then1 ,i think our ,lord means to teach 
us4  ,i do not say it is the only lesson
 in the parable2 ,god forbid4  ,but ,i  
think that our ,lord's own words show us

 that this ,,is one lesson4  ,that1     
however pious we are1 however           
enlightened we are1 however useful we   
wish to be2 in one word1 however much we
 are1 or fancy ourselves to be1 children
 of light1 our first duty as ,christian 
men is the duty which lies nearest      
us--that of which it is written3  ,if a 
man know not how to rule his own house1 
how shall he take care of the ,church of
 ,god8  ,and again1 ,if any provide not 
for his own and specially for those of  
his own house1 he hath denied the faith1
 and is worse than an infidel4  ,our    
first duty1 ,i say1 as ,christian men1  
is to be just and honest in money       
matters and every-day business2 and over
 and above that1 to be generous and     
liberal therein4 ,not merely to         
pay--which the very publicans in our    
,lord's time did--but to give1          
generously1 liberally2 lending1 if we   
can afford it1 as our ,lord bids us1    
hoping for nothing again2 and           
remembering that he who giveth to the   

poor lendeth to the ,lord1 and          
whatsoever he layeth out1 it shall be   
repaid him again4  ,yes1 my friends1 we 
must all needs take our ,lord's         
advice--make to yourselves friends of   
the mammon of unrighteousness1 that when
 ye fail1 they may receive you into     
everlasting habitations4  ,,when ,,ye   
,,fail-- literally1 when you are        
eclipsed1 as the sun is eclipsed4  ,that
 must happen to all of us1 to the best1 
the wisest1 the most famous4  ,each must
 be eclipsed1 and passed in the race of 
life1 and forgotten for some younger    
man4  ,each in turn must fail4  ,one may
 fail in money--the mammon for which he 
toiled may take to itself wings and fly 
away2 or he may fail in his plans1 noble
 plans1 and useful though they seemed2  
and he may find1 as he grows old1 that  
the world has not gone ,,his way1 but   
quite another one2 or he may fail in    
health1 and be cut down and crippled1   
and laid by in the midst of his work4   
,and even if he escapes all these       

disasters1 he must needs fail at last1  
by mere old age1 when the days come when
 thou shalt say1 ,i have no pleasure in 
them2 when the sun and the light are    
darkened1 and the clouds return after   
the rain1 when the strong men bow       
themselves1 and those who look out of   
the windows are dark2 and he shall rise 
up at the voice of a bird1 and fears    
shall be in the way1 and the grasshopper
 shall be a burden1 and desire shall    
fail3 because man goeth to his long     
home1 and the mourners go about the     
streets4  ,think for yourselves4  ,what 
would you wish your end to be-- lonely1 
unhappy1 without the love1 the respect1 
the care of your fellow- men2 or        
surrounded by friends who comfort your  
failing body and soul on earth1 and     
receive you at last into everlasting    
habitations8  ,make friends1 make       
friends against that day1 whether or not
 you make them out of the mammon of     
unrighteousness4  ,if you have been     
unrighteous1 bring friends back to you1 

as the steward did1 by being just and   
fair1 by confessing your faults freely1 
by doing your best to atone for them4   
,and if you have no share in the mammon 
of unrighteousness1 still make friends4 
,make them by truth and justice1 make   
them by generosity and usefulness4  ,to 
ease every burden1 and let the oppressed
 go free1 to feed the hungry1 clothe the
 naked1 and what the very poorest can   
do--comfort the mourner2 to nurse the   
sick1 to visit the fatherless and widows
 in their affliction1 and so keep       
ourselves unspotted from the selfishness
 of the world--,this is that true       
,religion1 acceptable in the sight of   
,god the ,father--and happy he who has  
so served ,god4  ,happy for him1 when he
 begins to fail1 to see round him       
attached hearts1 and grateful faces1    
hands ready to tend him1 as he has      
tended others4  ,and happier still to   
remember that on the other side of the  
dark river of death are other grateful  
faces1 other loving hearts1 ready to    

welcome him into everlasting            
habitations--and among them1 and above  
them all1 one whose form is as the ,son 
of ,man1 full of all humanity ,himself1 
and loving and rewarding all humanity in
 ,his creatures1 saying1 ,inasmuch as ye
 did it to one of the least of these my 
brethren1 ye have done it unto ,me4     
,,sermon ,,xliii4  ,,the ,,rich ,,and   
,,the ,,poor    ,chapel ,royal1         
,whitehall1 #ahga4  ,proverbs xxii4 #b4 
,the rich and poor meet together3  the  
,lord is the maker of them all4  ,i have
 been asked to preach here this         
afternoon on behalf of the ,parochial   
,mission ,women's ,fund4  ,i may best   
describe the object for which ,i plead1 
as an attempt to civilise and           
,christianise the women of the lower    
classes in the poorer districts of      
,london and other great towns1 by means 
of women of their own class--women1 who 
have gone through the same struggles as 
they have1 and who will be trusted by   
them to understand and to sympathize    

with their needs and difficulties4      
,these mission women are in             
communication with lady-superintendents 
in each ecclesiastical district4  ,these
 are1 ,i understand1 usually the wives  
of small tradesmen1 or of clerks4       
,they1 again1 are in communication with 
ladies at the ,west ,end of ,london1 who
 are willing to give personal help and  
money for certain objects1 but not      
indiscriminate alms4  ,and thus a series
 of links is established between the    
most prosperous and the least prosperous
 classes1 by means of which the rich and
 the poor may meet together1 and        
learn--to the infinite benefit of       
both--that the ,lord is the maker of    
them all4  ,considering this excellent  
scheme1 ,i could not help seeing as a   
background to it1 a very different and a
 far darker scene4  ,i could not help   
remembering that during these very days1
 the poorer classes of another great    
city had taken up an attitude full of   
awful lessons to us1 and to every       

civilized country upon earth4  ,we have 
been reading of a hundred thousand armed
 men encamped in the suburbs of         
,belleville and ,montmartre1 with cannon
 and mitrailleuses1 uttering through    
their organs1 threats which leave no    
doubt that the meaning of this movement 
is--as some of them boldly phrase it1--a
 war of the poor against the rich4      
,there is no mistaking what that means4 
,this madness has been stopped for the  
time1 we are told1 principally 7as was  
to be expected71 by the superior common 
sense of their wives4  ,but only1 ,i    
fear1 for a time4 ,such men will go far1
 if not this time1 then some other time4
  ,for they believe what they say1 and  
know what they want4  ,they have done   
with phrases1 done with illusions4      
,they are no longer deceived and        
hampered by party cries against this and
 that grievance1 real or imaginary1 the 
abolition of which the working classes  
demand so eagerly from time to time1 in 
the vain belief that if it were only got

 rid of the millennium would be at hand4
  ,they have done long ago with remedial
 half-measures4 ,landed aristocracy1    
,established ,church1 military classes1 
privileged classes1 restricted suffrage1
 and all the rest1 have been abolished  
in their country for two generations and
 more3  but behold1 the poor man finds  
himself 7or fancies himself1 which is   
just as dangerous7 no richer1 safer1    
happier after all1 and begins to see a  
far simpler remedy for all his ills4    
,he has too little of this world's      
goods1 while others have too much4      
,what more fair1 more simple1 than that 
he should take some of the rich man's   
goods1 and if he resists1 kill him1     
crying1 ,thou sayest1 let me eat and    
drink1 for to-morrow ,i die4  ,then ,i  
too will eat and drink1 for to-morrow ,i
 die8  ,and so will the rich and poor   
meet together with a vengeance1 simply  
because neither of them has learnt that 
the ,lord is the maker of them all4     
,this is a hideous conclusion4  ,but it 

is one towards which the poor will tend 
in every country in which the rich are  
merely rich1 spending their wealth in   
self-enjoyment1 atoned for by a modicum 
of alms4  ,i said a modicum of alms4  ,i
 ought to have said1 any amount of alms1
 any amount of charity4  ,throughout the
 great cities of ,europe--in ,london as 
much as anywhere--hundreds of thousands 
are saying1 ,we want no alms4  ,we      
intend to reconstitute society1 even at 
the expense of blood1 so that no man1   
woman1 or child1 shall need the rich    
man's alms4  ,we do not choose1 for it  
is not just1 that he should take credit 
to himself for giving us a shilling when
 he owes us a pound1 ten1 a hundred     
pounds--owes us1 in fact1 all by which  
he and his class are richer than us and 
our class4 ,and we will make him pay his
 debt4  ,i do not say that such words   
are wise4  ,i believe them to be        
foolish-- suicidal4  ,i believe that it 
is those who patiently wait on the      
,lord1 and not the discontented who fret

 themselves till they do evil1 who will 
inherit the land1 and be refreshed in   
peace4  ,i believe that all those who   
take the sword will perish by the sword2
 that those who appeal to brute force   
will always find it--just because it is 
brute force--always strongest on the    
side of the rich1 who can hire it for   
evil1 as for good4  ,i only say1 that so
 hundreds of thousands think2 so they   
speak1 and will speak more and more     
loudly1 as long as the present tone of  
society endures1--good-natured and well 
meaning1 but luxurious1 covetous1       
ignoble1 frivolous1 ignorant2           
believing--all classes alike1 not only  
that money makes the man1 but worse     
far--that money makes the woman also2   
and all the while half-ashamed of       
itself1 half-distrustful of itself1 and 
trying to buy off man by alms1 and ,god 
by superstition4  ,so long as the great 
mass of the poor of any city know       
nothing of the great mass of the rich of
 that city1 save as folk who roll past  

them in their carriages1 seemingly easy 
while they are struggling1 seemingly    
happy while they are wretched1 so long  
will the rich of that city be supposed1 
however falsely1 to be what the ,french 
workmen used to call mangeurs           
d'hommes--exploiteurs d'hommes--to get  
their wealth by means of the poverty1   
their comfort by means of the misery of 
their fellow-men2 and so long will they 
be exposed to that mere envy and hatred 
which pursues always the more           
prosperous1 till1 in some national      
crisis1 when the rich and poor meet     
together1 both parties will be but too  
apt to behave1 through mutual fear and  
hate1 as if not ,god1 but the devil1 was
 the maker of them all4  ,these words   
are strong4  ,how can they be too       
strong1 in face of what is now passing  
in a neighbouring land8  ,not too       
strong1 either1 in view of the actual   
state of vast masses of the poor in     
,london itself1 and indeed of any one of
 our great cities4  ,that matter has    

been reported on1 preached on1 spoken   
on1 till all other civilized countries  
reproach ,britain with the unique       
contrast between the exceeding wealth of
 some classes and the exceeding poverty 
of others2 till we1 instead of being    
startled by the reproach1 take the      
present state of things as a matter of  
course1 a physical necessity1 a law of  
nature and society1 that there should   
be1 in the back streets of every great  
city1 hordes of1 must ,i say1 savages8  
neither decently civilized nor decently 
,christianized1 uncertain1 most of them1
 of regular livelihood1 and therefore   
shiftless and reckless1 extravagant in  
prosperity1 and in adversity falling at 
once into want and pauperism4 ,you may  
ask any clergyman1 any minister of      
religion of any denomination1 whether   
the thing is not so4  ,or if you want to
 read the latest news about the         
degradation of your fellow-subjects1    
read a little book called ,east and     
,west1 and judge for yourselves1 whether

 such a population1 numbered by hundreds
 of thousands1 are in a state pleasing  
to ,god1 or safe for those classes of   
whom they only know that they pay them  
wages1 and that these wages are as small
 as they can be forced to take4  ,read  
that book2 and then ask yourselves1 is  
it wonderful that1 in one district1     
before the mission of the society for   
which ,i plead was established1 the poor
 used seriously to believe that it was  
the wish and endeavour of the rich to   
grind them down1 and keep them poor4    
,we1 of course1 know that the poor folk 
were mistaken but do we not know1 too-- 
some of us--that there are political    
economists in the world1 who1 though    
they would not willingly make the poor  
poorer than they are1 are still of      
opinion that it is good for the nation1 
on the whole1 that the present state of 
things should continue2 that there      
should be always a reserve of labour1 in
 plain ,english1 a vast multitude who   
have not quite work enough to live on1  

ready to be called on in any emergency  
of business1 and used1 to beat down1 by 
their competition1 the wages of their   
fellow-workmen8 ,is this theory         
altogether novel and unheard of8  ,or   
this theory also1 that for this very    
reason1 ,emigration1 which looks the    
very simplest remedy for most of this   
want1--while nine-tenths of the         
bounteous earth is waiting to be subdued
 and replenished by the poor wretches   
who cannot get at it--that ,emigration1 
,i say1 is an unnecessary movement--that
 the people are all wanted at home--to  
be such as the parson and the mission   
women find them8  ,and it may be that   
the poor folk have heard--for a bird of 
the air may carry the matter in these   
days of a free press--that some rich    
folk1 at least1 hold this opinion1 and  
translate it freely out of the delicate 
language of political economy1 into the 
more vigorous dialect used in the fever 
alleys and smallpox courts in which the 
poor are left to wait for work4  ,but if

 there be any rich persons in this      
congregation who hold these peculiar    
economic doctrines1 let me recommend to 
them1 more than to any other persons    
present1 that they would support a      
society which alleviates the hard       
pressure of their system2 which helps to
 make it tolerable and prudent by       
teaching the poor to save2 by teaching  
them1 in ,london alone1--how to save    
#ed1jjj in the last eleven years4  ,let 
them help this society heartily4  ,the  
children of this world are--in their    
generation--wiser than the children of  
light4  ,but how long their generation  
will last1 depends mainly 7we are told7 
on how far they make themselves friends 
out of the mammon of unrighteousness4   
,but if1 again1 there be rich people in 
this congregation1 as ,i trust there are
 many and many1 who start1 indignant1 at
 such an imputation1 and utterly deny   
its truth--then1--if it be false1 why in
 the name of ,god1 and of humanity1 and 
of common prudence1 why do they not go  

to these people and tell them so8  ,why 
do they not prove that it is not so1 by 
showing a little more human sympathy1   
not merely for them behind their backs1 
but sympathy with them face to face8    
,if they wish to know how much can be   
done by only a little active kindness1  
they have only to read the pages of that
 painful1 and yet pleasant1 book--,east 
and ,west1-- which ,i have just quoted2 
and to read1 also1 an appendix to it--a 
,paper originally read at the ,church   
,congress1 ,manchester1 by the present  
,lord ,chancellor--a document which it  
would be an impertinence in me to       
recommend or praise4  ,bring yourselves 
then boldly into contact with these     
classes1 and especially into contact    
with the women--with the wives and      
mothers4  ,for it is through the women1 
through them mainly1 if not altogether1 
that civilization and religion can be   
introduced among any degraded class4    
,it was so in the ,middle ,age4  ,the   
legends which tell us how woman was then

 the civilizer1 the softener1 the       
purifier1 the perpetual witness to      
fierce and coarse men1 that there were  
nobler aims in life than pleasure1 and  
power1 and the gratification of revenge2
 that not self-assertion1 but           
self-sacrifice was the ,divine ideal1   
toward which all must aspire4  ,these   
old legends are immortal2 for they speak
 of facts and laws which will endure as 
long as there are women upon earth4     
,through the woman1 the civilizer and   
the ,christianizer must reach the man4  
,through the wife1 he must reach the    
husband4  ,through the mother1 he must  
reach the children4 ,i say he must4  ,it
 is easy to complain that the clergy in 
every age and country have tried to     
obtain influence over women4  ,they have
 been forced to do so1 because otherwise
 they could obtain no influence at all4 
,and if a priesthood should arise       
hereafter1 whose calling was to teach   
not religion but irreligion1 not the    
good news that there is a good ,god1 and

 that we can know ,him2 but the bad news
 that there is no ,god1 or1 if there is1
 we cannot know ,him2 then would that   
priesthood find it necessary to appeal  
like all other priesthoods1 to the      
women1 and to teach them how to teach   
their children4  ,but more4  ,it is not 
religion only which must be taught      
through the wives and mothers1 but sound
 science also1 and sound economy4  ,if  
you intend 7as ,i trust some here       
intend7 to teach the labouring classes  
those laws of health and life1 on which 
depend the comfort1 the wholesomeness1  
often the decency and the morality of   
the poor man's home1 then you must teach
 those laws first to the house-mother1  
who brings the children into the world1 
and brings them up1 who puts them to bed
 at night1 and prepares their food by   
day4  ,if you wish to teach habits of   
thrift1 and sound notions of economy to 
the labouring classes1 you must teach   
them first to the housewife1 who has to 
make the weekly earnings cover1 if      

possible1 the week's expenses4  ,if you 
wish to soften and to purify the man1   
you must first soften and purify the    
woman1 or at least encourage her not to 
lose what womanliness she has left1 amid
 sights1 and sounds1 and habits which   
tend continually to destroy her         
womanhood4  ,you must encourage her1 ,i 
say1 to remember always that she is a   
woman still1 and let her teach-- as none
 can teach like her--true manfulness to 
her husband and her sons4  ,and how can 
you best do that8  ,not by giving her   
shillings1 not by preaching at her1 not 
by scolding her3  but by behaving to her
 as what she is--a woman and a          
sister--and cheering her heavy heart by 
simple human kindliness4  ,what she     
wants amid all her poverty and toil1 her
 child-bearing and child-rearing1 what  
she wants1 ,i say1 to keep her brave and
 strong1 is to know by actual sight and 
speech that she is still not an outcast2
 not alone2 that she is still a member  
of the human family1 that her           

fellow-woman has not forgotten her2 and 
that1 therefore1 it may be1 ,he that was
 born of woman has not forgotten her    
either4  ,that she has1 after all1 a    
,god in heaven1 who can be touched with 
the feeling of her infirmities1 and can 
help her and those she loves1 to        
struggle through all their temptations1 
seeing that ,he too was tempted in all  
things like them1 yet without sin4  ,it 
is only personal intercourse with       
them--only the meeting of the rich and  
poor together1 in the belief that ,god  
is the maker of them all1 that will do  
that4  ,but it will do it4  ,only       
personal intercourse will reconcile     
these people to their condition1 in as  
far as they ,,ought to be reconciled to 
it4  ,but personal intercourse will     
reconcile them to it1 as far as it      
ought1 but no further4  ,and ,i think   
that the system of personal intercourse 
attempted by this ,society is1 on the   
whole1 the best yet devised4  ,it is    
imperfect1 as all attempts to make that 

straight which is crooked1 and to number
 that which is wanting--to patch1 in a  
word1 a radically vicious system of     
society1-- must be imperfect2 but it is 
the best plan which ,i have yet seen4   
,i find no fault with other plans1 ,god 
forbid6  ,wisdom is justified of all her
 children2 and the amount of evil is so 
great1 and 7as ,i believe1 so           
dangerous71 that ,i must bid ,god-speed 
to any persons who will do anything1    
always saving and excepting             
indiscriminate almsgiving4  ,but it     
seems to me that the soothing and       
civilizing1 and in due time             
,christianising1 effect of personal     
intercourse cannot begin better than    
through a woman1 herself of the working 
class1 who has struggled as these poor  
souls have struggled1 and conquered1    
more or less1 where they are failing4   
,that through her they should be brought
 in contact with women of the more      
comfortable and cultivated class1 who   
are their immediate employers1 if not   

their immediate neighbours2 and through 
them1 again1 brought in contact with    
women of that class1 of whom ,i shall   
only say1 that if they were not meant   
for some such noble work as this--and   
not for mere pleasure and mere display1 
then for what purpose1 in heaven or     
earth1 were they made8 and why has      
,providence taken the trouble 7as it    
were7 to elaborate1 by long ages of     
civilization1 that most exquisite of all
 products of nature and of art--,a      
,lady8  ,ah6 what the ladies of ,england
 might do1 and that without interfering 
in the least with their duties as wives 
and mothers1 if they would work         
together1 as a class6  ,if they would   
work as well and humanly while they are 
in towns1 as most of them do work while 
they are in the country2 as some of them
 do1 to their honour1 in the towns      
already6  ,but how many8 what proportion
 do those who do good bear to those who 
do nothing8  ,what a small amount of    
humanizing and civilizing intercourse   

with some women of the labouring class  
is there in the case of the wives of    
rich men who come up to town1 merely for
 the season1 and forget that it is their
 temporary and uncertain stay in ,london
 which causes much of the temporary and 
uncertain employment of the ,london     
poor1 and their consequent temptation to
 unthrift and recklessness6  ,how little
 humanizing and civilizing intercourse  
with the poor is carried on by the wives
 of those employers of labour who       
surely1 surely owe something more to    
their husband's work people1 than to be 
aware 7by hearsay7 that they are duly   
paid every ,saturday night8  ,but ,i    
shall be told3  ,we need not fear--we   
can justify ourselves before ,god and   
man4  ,i shall be reminded of all that  
has been done1 and done well too1 for   
the poor during the last generation1 and
 bidden not to calumniate my countrymen4
  ,true1 much has been done2 and done   
well4  ,and true also it is that no     
effort to make the rich and poor meet   

together1 to bring the different classes
 of society into contact with each      
other1 but has succeeded--has sown good 
seed--which ,i trust may bring forth    
good fruit in the day when every tree   
shall be judged by its fruit4  ,the     
events of #ahcj1 startling and warning1 
and those of #ahdh1 more pregnant1 if   
possible1 with warning than the former1 
awakened a spirit of humanity in        
,england1 which was also a spirit of    
prudence and of common sense4  ,but ,i  
cannot conceal from myself1 or you1 that
 the earnestness which was awakened in  
those days is dying out in these4  ,the 
richer classes of every country are     
tempted from time to time to fits of    
laziness--fits of frivolity and luxury1 
surfeits1 in which men say1 with a shrug
 and a yawn--,why be very much in       
earnest8  ,why take so much trouble8    
,somebody must always be rich1 why      
should not ,i8  ,somebody must enjoy the
 money1 why should not ,i8  ,at all     
events1 things will last my time4  ,and 

that such a surfeit has fallen upon the 
rich of this land1 is a fact2 for that  
this is the tone of to-day1 and that the
 tone increases1 none can deny who knows
 that which calls itself the ,,world1   
and calls itself so only too truly2 the 
world of which it is written1 that all  
that is in the world-- the lust of the  
flesh1 and the lust of the eyes1 and the
 pride of life-- is not of the ,father1 
but of the world4  ,and the world       
passeth away1 and the lust thereof4     
,but he who doeth the will of ,god1 he  
alone abideth for ever4  ,god grant that
 we1 who have just seen the most        
cunningly organized and daintily        
bedizened specimen of a world1 which    
ever flaunted on the earth since men    
began to build their towers of ,babel1  
collapse and crumble at a single blow1  
may take ,god's hint1 that the fashion  
of this world passeth away4  ,let the   
idle1 the frivolous1 the sensual1 and   
those who1 like ,figaro's ,marquis1 have
 earned all earthly happiness by only   

taking the trouble to be born--let them 
look back on this last awful            
,christmas-tide1 and hear1 speaking in  
fact unmistakeable1 the voice of the    
,lord4  ,think ye that they whose blood 
,pilate mingled with their sacrifices   
were sinners above all the ,galilaeans1 
because they suffered such things8  ,i  
tell you1 ,nay3  but except ye repent1  
ye shall all likewise perish4  ,there   
are those who will hear such words with 
a smile1 even with a sneer1 and say1    
,such wholesale judgments of ,god1 even 
granting that there are such things1    
are1 after all1 very rare3  it is very  
seldom that a whole class1 a whole      
system of society1 is punished in       
mass--and why then need we trouble      
ourselves about so remote a probability8
  ,then know this--that as surely as    
,god sometimes punishes wholesale1 so   
surely is ,he always punishing in       
detail4  ,by that infinite concatenation
 of moral causes and effects1 which     
makes the whole world one mass of       

special ,providences1 every sin of ours 
will punish itself1 and probably punish 
itself in kind4  ,are we selfish8  ,we  
shall call out selfishness in others4   
,do we neglect our duty8  ,then others  
will neglect their duty to us4  ,do we  
indulge our passions8  ,then others1 who
 depend on us1 will indulge theirs1 to  
our detriment and misery4  ,do we       
squander our money8 ,then our children  
and our servants will squander our money
 for us4  ,do we8--but what use to go on
 reminding men of truths which no one   
believes1 because they are too painful  
and searching to be believed in comfort8
  ,what use to tell men what they never 
will confess to be true-- that by every 
crime1 folly1 even neglect of theirs1   
they drive a thorn into their own flesh1
 which will trouble them for years to   
come1 it may be to their dying day8     
,and yet so it is4   ,though the mills  
of ,god grind slowly1 yet they grind    
exceeding small2 ,though with patience  
,he stands waiting1 with exactness      

grinds ,he all4   ,as those who neglect 
their fellow-creatures will discover1 by
 the most patent undeniable proofs1 in  
that last great day1 when the rich and  
poor shall meet together1 and then1 at  
least1 discover that the ,lord is the   
maker of them all4    ,footnotes3  #a   
,these sermons by the ,rev4 ,charles    
,kingsley ,m4,a41 late rector of        
,eversley and ,canon of ,westminster1   
were edited by the ,rev4 ,w4 ,harrison1 
,m4,a41 rector of ,brington4--,,dp4