material from the ,google ,print project47 ,transcriber's ,note ,minor punctuation inconsistencies have been silently corrected4 ,title page3 ,,memories ,,of ,,of ,,gennesaret changed to ,,memories ,,of ,,gennesaret p#i3 ,verse number #b4 added to ,mark1 viii4 for consistency p#bc3 brethern changed to brethren p#ajf3 vail changed to veil p#abd3 duplicate word one removed p#abf3 the its great fountain changed to its great fountain p#abh3 frowed changed to frowned ,,the ,,mind ,,of ,,jesus4 ,,by ,,john ,r4 ,,macduff1 ,d4,d4 ,,author ,,of ,,morning ,,and ,,night ,,watches1 ,,the ,,words ,,of ,,jesus1 ,,family ,,prayer1 ,,footsteps ,,of ,,st4 ,,paul1 ,,memories ,,of ,,gennesaret1 ,,bow ,,in ,,the ,,cloud1 ,,story ,,of ,,bethlehem1 ,,etc4 ,,new ,,york ,,robert ,,carter ,,brothers1 ,no4 #ecj ,,broadway4 #ahfj4 ,the ,mind of ,jesus4 ,,the ,,mind ,,of ,,jesus6 ,what a study is this6 ,to attain a dim reflection of it1 is the ambition of angels--higher they can not soar4 ,to be conformed to the image of ,his ,son6--it is the end of ,god in the predestination of ,his ,church from all eternity4 ,we shall be like ,him6--it is the ,bible picture of heaven6 ,in a former little volume1 we pondered some of the gracious ,words which proceeded out of the mouth of ,jesus4 ,in the present1 we have a few faint lineaments of that holy ,character which constituted the living exposition and embodiment of ,his precepts4 ,but how lofty such a standard6 ,how all creature-perfection shrinks abashed and confounded before a ,divine portraiture like this6 ,he is the true ,angel standing in the sun1 who alone projects no shadow2 so bathed in the glories of ,deity that likeness to ,him becomes like the light in which ,he is shrouded--no man can approach unto it4 ,may we not1 however1 seek at least to approximate1 though we can not adequately resemble8 ,it is impossible on earth to associate with a fellow-being without getting1 in some degree1 assimilated to him4 ,so1 the more we study the ,mind of ,christ1 the more we are in ,his company--holding converse with ,him as our best and dearest friend--catching up his holy looks and holy deeds--the more shall we be transformed into the same image4 ,consider1 says the ,great ,apostle 7literally 'gaze on'7 ,christ ,jesus 7,heb4 iii4 #a74 ,study feature by feature1 lineament by lineament1 of that ,peerless ,exemplar4 ,gaze on the ,sun of ,righteousness1 till1 like gazing long on the natural sun1 you carry away with you1 on your spiritual vision1 dazzling images of ,his brightness and glory4 ,though ,he be the ,archetype of all goodness1 remember ,he is no shadowy model--though the ,infinite ,jehovah1 ,he was the ,man ,christ ,jesus4 ,we must never1 indeed1 forget that it is not the mind1 but the work of ,immanuel1 which lies at the foundation of a sinner's hope4 ,he must be known as a ,saviour1 before ,he is studied as an ,example4 ,his doing and dying is the center jewel1 of which all the virtues of ,his holy life are merely the setting4 ,but neither must we overlook the ,scripture obligation to walk in ,his footsteps and imbibe ,his ,spirit1 for if any man have not the ,spirit of ,christ1 he is none of ,his6 ,oh1 that each individual ,christian were more ,saviour-like6 that1 in the manifestation of a holy character and heavenly demeanor1 it might be said in some feeble measure of the faint and imperfect reflection--,such was ,jesus6 ,how far short we are of such a criterion1 mournful experience can testify4 ,but it is at least comforting to know that there is a day coming1 when1 in the full vision and fruition of the ,glorious ,original1 the exhortation of our motto-verse will be needed no more2 when we shall be able to say1 in the words of an inspired apostle1 ,we have the ,,mind ,,of ,,christ6 ,contents4 ,,page ,the ,mind of ,jesus #c ,compassion #i ,resignation in ,trial #ac ,devotedness to ,god #ag ,forgiveness of ,injuries #ba ,meekness #be ,thankfulness #bi ,unselfishness #cc ,submission to ,god's ,word #cg ,prayerfulness #da ,love to the ,brethren #de ,sympathy #di ,fidelity in ,rebuke #ec ,gentleness in ,rebuke #eg ,endurance of ,contradiction #fa ,pleasing ,god #fe ,grief at ,sin #fi ,humility #gc ,patience #gg ,subjection #ha ,not ,retaliating #he ,bearing the ,cross #hi ,holy ,zeal #ic ,benevolence #ig ,firmness in ,temptation #aja ,receiving ,sinners #aje ,guilelessness #aji ,activity in ,duty #aac ,committing our ,way to ,god #aag ,love of ,unity #aba ,not of the ,world #abe ,calmness in ,death #abi ,let ,,this ,,mind ,be in you1 ,which was also in ,christ ,jesus4 ,first ,day4 ,,compassion4 ,i have compassion on the multitude4--,mark1 viii4 #b4 ,what a pattern to ,his people1 the tender compassion of ,jesus6 ,he found the world ,he came to save a moral ,bethesda4 ,the wail of suffering humanity was every where borne to ,his ear4 ,it was ,his delight to walk its porches1 to pity1 relieve1 comfort1 save6 ,the faintest cry of misery arrested ,his footsteps--stirred a ripple in this fountain of ,infinite ,love4 ,was it a leper1--that dreaded name which entailed a life-long exile from friendly looks and kindly words8 ,there was ,one1 at least1 who had tones and deeds of tenderness for the outcast4 ,jesus1 being moved with compassion1 put forth ,his hand1 and touched him4 ,was it some blind beggars on the ,jericho highway1 groping in darkness1 pleading for help8 ,jesus stood still1 and had compassion on them1 and touched their eyes6 ,was it the speechless pleadings of a widow's tears at the gate of ,nain1 when she followed her earthly pride and prop to the grave8 ,when the ,lord saw her1 ,he had compassion on her1 and said1 ,weep not6 ,even when ,he rebukes1 the bow of compassion is seen in the cloud1 or rather1 that cloud1 as it passes1 dissolves in a rain-shower of mercy4 ,he pronounces ,jerusalem desolate1 but the doom is uttered amid a flood of anguished sorrow6 ,reader6 do the compassionate words and deeds of a tender ,saviour find any feeble echo and transcript in yours8 ,as you traverse in thought the wastes of human wretchedness1 does the spectacle give rise1 not to the mere emotional feeling which weeps itself away in sentimental tears1 but to an earnest desire to do something to mitigate the sufferings of woe-worn humanity8 ,how vast and world-wide the claims on your compassion6--now near1 now at a distance--the unmet and unanswered cry of perishing millions abroad--the heathendom which lies unsuccored at your own door--the public charity languishing--the mission staff dwarfed and crippled from lack of needful funds--a suffering district--a starving family--a poor neighbor--a helpless orphan--it may be1 some crowded hovel1 where misery and vice run riot--or some lonely sick chamber1 where the dim lamp has been wasting for dreary nights--or some desolate home which death has entered1 where ,joseph is not1 and ,simeon is not1 and where some sobbing heart1 under the tattered garb of poverty1 mourns1 unsolaced and unpitied1 its loved and lost4 ,are there none such within your reach1 to whom a trifling pittance would be as an angel of mercy8 ,how it would hallow and enhance all you possess1 were you to seek to live as almoner of ,jehovah's bounties6 ,if ,he has given you of this world's substance1 remember it is bestowed1 not to be greedily hoarded or lavishly squandered4 ,property and wealth are talents to be traded on and laid out for the good of others--sacred trusts1 not selfishly to be enjoyed1 but generously to be employed4 ,the poor are the representatives of ,jesus1 their wants ,he considers as ,his own1 and ,he will recompense accordingly4 ,the feeblest expression of ,christian pity and love1 though it be but the widow's mite1 or the cup of cold water1 or the kindly look and word when there is neither mite nor cup to give1 yet1 if done in ,his name1 it is entered in the book of life as a loan to the ,lord2 and in that day when the books are opened1 the loan will be paid back with usury4 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,second ,day4 ,,resignation ,,in ,,trial4 ,not my will1 but ,thine be done6--,luke1 xxii4 #db4 ,where was there ever resignation like this6 ,the life of ,jesus was one long martyrdom4 ,from ,bethlehem's manger to ,calvary's cross1 there was scarce one break in the clouds2 these gathered more darkly and ominously around ,him till they burst over ,his devoted head as ,he uttered ,his expiring cry4 ,yet throughout this pilgrimage of sorrow no murmuring accent escaped ,his lips4 ,the most suffering of all suffering lives was one of uncomplaining submission4 ,not my will1 but ,thy will1 was the motto of this wondrous ,being6 ,when ,he came into the world ,he thus announced ,his advent1 ,lo1 ,i come1 ,i delight to do ,thy will1 ,o my ,god6 ,when ,he left it1 we listen to the same prayer of blended agony and acquiescence1 ,o my ,father1 if it be possible let this cup pass from me6 ,nevertheless not as ,i will1 but as ,thou wilt4 ,reader6 is this mind also in you8 ,ah1 what are your trials compared to ,his6 ,what the ripples in your tide of woe1 compared to the waves and billows which swept over him6 ,if ,he1 the spotless ,lamb of ,god1 murmured not1 how can you murmur8 ,his were the sufferings of a bosom never once darkened with the passing shadow of guilt or sin4 ,your severest sufferings are deserved1 yea1 infinitely less than deserved6 ,are you tempted to indulge in hard suspicions1 as to ,god's faithfulness and love1 in appointing some peculiar trial8 ,ask yourself1 ,would ,jesus have done this8 ,should ,i seek to pry into the deep things of ,god1 when ,he1 in the spirit of a weaned child1 was satisfied with the solution1 ,even so1 ,father1 for so it seems good in ,thy sight8 ,even so1 ,father6 ,afflicted one6 tossed with tempest1 and not comforted1 take that word on which thy ,lord pillowed ,his suffering head1 and make it1 as ,he did1 the secret of thy resignation4 ,the sick child will take the bitterest draught from a father's hand4 ,this cup which ,thou1 ,o ,god1 givest me to drink1 shall ,i not drink it8 ,be it mine to lie passive in the arms of ,thy chastening love1 exulting in the assurance that all ,thy appointments1 though sovereign1 are never arbitrary1 but that there is a gracious need be in them all4 ,my ,father6 my ,covenant ,god6 the ,god who spared not ,jesus6 ,it may well hush every repining word4 ,drinking deep of his sweet spirit of submission1 you will be able thus to meet1 yea1 even to welcome1 your sorest cross1 saying1 ,yes1 ,lord1 all is well1 just because it is ,thy blessed will4 ,take me1 use me1 chasten me1 as seemeth good in ,thy sight4 ,my will is resolved into ,thine4 ,this trial is dark2 ,i can not see the 'why and the wherefore' of it--but 'not my will1 but ,thy will6' ,the gourd is withered2 ,i can not see the reason of so speedy a dissolution of the loved earthly shelter2 sense and sight ask in vain why these leaves of earthly refreshment have been doomed so soon to droop in sadness and sorrow4 ,but it is enough4 ',the ,lord prepared the worm2' 'not my will1 but ,thy will6' ,oh1 how does the stricken soul honor ,god by thus being dumb in the midst of dark and perplexing dealings1 recognizing in these1 part of the needed discipline and training for a sorrowless1 sinless1 deathless world2 regarding every trial as a link in the chain which draws it to heaven1 where the whitest robes will be found to be those here baptized with suffering1 and bathed in tears6 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,third ,day4 ,,devotedness ,,to ,,god4 ,wist ye not that ,i must be about my ,father's business8-- ,luke1 ii4 #di4 ,my meat and my drink are to do the will of ,him that sent me1 and to finish ,his work4 ,that one object brought ,jesus from heaven--that one object he pursued with unflinching1 undeviating constancy1 until ,he could say1 ,it is finished4 ,however short man comes of his chief end1 ,glory to ,god in the highest was the motive1 the rule1 and exponent of every act of that wondrous life4 ,with us1 the magnet of the soul1 even when truest1 is ever subject to partial oscillations and depressions1 trembling at times away from its great attraction-point4 ,his never knew one tremulous wavering from its all-glorious center4 ,with ,him there were no ebbs and flows1 no fits and starts4 ,he could say1 in the words of that prophetic psalm which speaks so preminently of ,himself1 ,i have set the ,lord always before me6 ,reader6 do you feel that in some feeble measure this lofty life-motto of the sinless ,son of ,god is written on your home and heart1 regulating your actions1 chastening your joys1 quickening your hopes1 giving energy and direction to your whole being1 subordinating all the affections of your nature to their high destiny8 ,with pure and unalloyed motives1 with a single eye1 and a single aim1 can you say1 somewhat in the spirit of ,his brightest follower1 ,this one thing ,i do8 ,are you ready to regard all you have--rank1 name1 talents1 riches1 influence1 distinctions--valuable1 only so far as they contribute to promote the glory of ,him who is first and last1 and all in all8 ,seek to feel that your heavenly ,father's is not only a business2 but the business of life4 ,whose ,i am1 and whom ,i serve1--let this be the superscription written on your thoughts and deeds1 your employments and enjoyments1 your sleeping and waking4 ,be not1 as the fixed stars1 cold and distant2 but be ever bathing in the sunshine of conscious nearness to ,him who is the sun and center of all happiness and joy4 ,each has some appointed work to perform1 some little niche in the spiritual temple to occupy4 ,yours may be no splendid services1 no flaming or brilliant actions to blaze and dazzle in the eye of man4 ,it may be the quiet1 unobtrusive inner work1 the secret prayer1 the mortified sin1 the forgiven injury1 the trifling act of self-sacrifice for ,god's glory and the good of others1 of which no eye but the ,eye which seeth in secret is cognizant4 ,it matters not how small4 ,remember1 with ,him1 motive dignifies action4 ,it is not what we do1 but how we do it4 ,he can be glorified in little things as well as great things1 and by nothing more than the daily walk1 the daily life4 ,beware of any thing that would interfere with a surrender of heart and soul to ,his service--worldly entanglements1 indulged sin1 an uneven walk1 a divided heart1 nestling in creature comforts1 shrinking from the cross4 ,how many hazard1 if they do not make shipwreck1 of their eternal hopes by becoming idlers in the vineyard2 lingerers1 like ,lot2 world-lovers1 like ,demas2 do-nothing ,christians1 like the inhabitants of ,meroz6 ,the command is1 ,go1 work6 ,words tell what you should be2 deeds tell what you are4 ,let those around you see there is a reality in walking with ,god1 and working for ,god6 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,fourth ,day4 ,,forgiveness ,,of ,,injuries4 ,then said ,jesus1 ,father1 forgive them2 for they know not what they do4--,luke1 xxiii4 #cd4 ,many a death-struggle has been made to save a friend4 ,a dying ,saviour gathers up ,his expiring breath to plead for ,his foes6 ,at the climax of ,his own woe1 and of human ingratitude--man-forsaken1 and ,god-deserted--,his faltering voice mingles with the shout of ,his murderers1--,father1 forgive them2 for they know not what they do6 ,had the faithless ,peter been there1 could he have wondered at the reply to a former question1--,lord1 how often shall my brother sin against me1 and ,i forgive him1--till seven times8 ,jesus said unto him1 ,i say not unto thee1 ,until seven times2 but1 ,until seventy times seven4 7,matt4 xviii4 #ba47 ,superiority to insult and ignominy1 with some1 proceeds from a callous and indifferent temperament1--a cold1 phlegmatic1 stoical insensibility1 alike to kindness or unkindness4 ,it was not so with ,jesus4 ,the tender sensibilities of ,his holy nature rendered ,him keenly sensible to ingratitude and injury1 whether this was manifested in the malice of undisguised enmity1 or the treachery of trusted friendship4 ,perhaps to a noble nature the latter of these is the more deeply wounding4 ,many are inclined to forgive an open and unmasked antagonist1 who are not so willing to forget or forgive heartless faithfulness1 or unrequited love4 ,but see1 too1 in this respect1 the conduct of the blessed ,redeemer6 ,mark how ,he deals with ,his own disciples who had basely forsaken him and fled1 and that1 too1 in the hour ,he most needed their sympathy4 ,no sooner does ,he rise from the dead than ,he hastens to disarm their fears and to assure them of an unaltered and unalterable affection4 ,go tell my brethren1 is the first message ,he sends2 ,peace be unto you1 is the salutation at the first meeting2 ,children6 is the word with which ,he first greets them on the shores of ,tiberias4 ,even ,joseph1 7the ,old ,testament type and pattern of generous forgiveness17 when he makes himself known to his brethren1 recalls the bitter thought1 ,whom ye sold into ,egypt4 ,the true ,joseph1 when ,he reveals ,himself to ,his disciples1 buries in oblivion the memory of by-gone faithlessness4 ,he meets them with a benediction4 ,he leaves them at ,his ascension with the same--,he lifted up ,his hands and blessed them6 ,reader6 follow in all this the spirit of your ,lord and ,master4 ,in rising from the study of ,his holy example1 seek to feel that with you there shall be no such name1 no such word1 as enemy6 ,harbor no resentful thought1 indulge in no bitter recrimination4 ,surrender yourself to no sullen fretfulness4 ,let the law of kindness be in your heart4 ,put the best construction on the failings of others ,make no injurious comments on their frailties2 no uncharitable insinuations4 ,consider thyself1 lest thou also be tempted4 ,when disposed at any time to cherish an unforgiving spirit towards a brother1 think1 if thy ,god had retained ,his anger for ever1 where wouldst thou have been8 ,if ,he1 the ,infinite ,one1 who might have spurned thee for ever from ,his presence1 hath had patience with thee1 and forgiven thee all1 wilt thou1 on account of some petty grievance which thy calmer moments would pronounce unworthy of a thought1 indulge in the look of cold estrangement1 the unrelenting word1 or unforgiving deed8 ,if any man have a quarrel against any1 even as ,christ forgave you1 so also do ye4 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,fifth ,day4 ,,meekness4 ,i am meek and lowly in heart4--,matt4 xi4 #bi4 ,there is often a beautiful blending of majesty and humility1 magnanimity and lowliness1 in great minds4 ,the mightiest and holiest of all ,beings that ever trod our world was the meekest of all4 ,the ,ancient of ,days was as the infant of days4 ,he who had listened to nothing but angel-melodies from all eternity1 found1 while on earth1 melody in the lispings of an infant's voice1 or in an outcast's tears6 ,no wonder an innocent lamb was ,his emblem1 or that the annointing ,spirit came down upon ,him in the form of the gentle dove4 ,he had the wealth of worlds at ,his feet4 ,the hosts of heaven had only to be summoned as ,his retinue4 ,but all the pageantry of the world1 all its dreams of carnal glory1 had1 for ,him1 no fascination4 ,the ,tempter1 from a mountain-summit1 showed ,him a wide scene of splendid misery2 but ,he spurned alike the thought and the adversary away6 ,john and ,james would call down fire from heaven on a ,samaritan village2 ,he rebukes the vengeful suggestion6 ,peter1 on the night of the betrayal1 cuts off the ear of an assassin2 the intended ,victim1 again1 only challenges ,his disciple1 and heals ,his enemy6 ,arraigned before ,pilate's judgment-seat1 how meekly ,he bears nameless wrongs and indignities6 ,suspended on the cross--the execrations of the multitude are rising around1 but ,he hears as though ,he heard them not2 they extract no angry look1 no bitter word--,behold the ,lamb of ,god6 ,need we wonder that meekness and poverty of spirit should stand foremost in ,his own cluster of beatitudes2 that ,he should select this among all ,his other qualities for the peculiar study and imitation of ,his disciples1 ,learn of ,me1 for ,i am meek2 or that an apostle should exhort by the meekness and gentleness of ,christ6 ,how different the world's maxims1 and ,his6 ,the world's--,resent the affront1 vindicate honor6 ,his--,overcome evil with good6 ,the world's--,only let it be when for your faults ye are buffeted that ye take it patiently4 ,his--,when ye do well and suffer for it1 ye take it patiently1 this is acceptable with ,god4 7#a ,pet4 ii4 #bj47 ,reader6 strive to obtain1 like your adorable ,lord1 this ornament of a meek and quiet spirit1 which1 in the sight of ,god1 is of great price4 ,be clothed with gentleness and humility4 ,follow not the world's fleeting shadows that mock you as you grasp them4 ,if always aspiring--ever soaring on the wing--you are likely to become discontented1 proud1 selfish1 time-serving4 ,in whatever position of life ,god has placed you1 be satisfied4 ,what6 ambitious to be on a pinnacle of the temple--a higher place in the ,church1 or in the world8--,satan might hurl you down6 ,be not high-minded1 but fear4 ,and with respect to others1 honor their gifts1 contemplate their excellences only to imitate them4 ,speak kindly1 act gently1 condescend to men of low estate4 ,be assured1 no happiness is equal to that enjoyed by the meek ,christian4 ,he has within him a perpetual inner sunshine1 a perennial well-spring of peace4 ,never ruffled and fretted by real or imagined injuries1 he puts the best construction on motives and actions1 and by a gentle answer to unmerited reproach often disarms wrath4 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,sixth ,day4 ,,thankfulness4 ,i thank ,thee1 ,o ,father1 ,lord of heaven and earth4--,matt4 xi4 #be4 ,a thankful spirit pervaded the entire life of ,jesus1 and surrounded with a heavenly halo ,his otherwise darkened path4 ,in moments we least expect to find it1 this beauteous ray breaks through the gloom4 ,in instituting the memorial of ,his death1 ,he gave thanks6 ,even in crossing the ,kedron to ,gethsemane1 ,he sang an hymn6 ,we know in seasons of deep sorrow and trial that every thing wears a gloomy aspect4 ,dumb ,nature herself to the burdened spirit seems as if she partook in the hues of sadness4 ,the life of ,jesus was one continuous experience of privation and woe--a ,valley of ,baca1 from first to last2 yet1 amid accents of plaintive sorrow1 there are ever heard subdued undertones of thankfulness and joy6 ,ah1 if ,he1 the suffering ,man of sorrows1 could1 during a life of unparalleled woe1 lift up ,his heart in grateful acknowledgment to ,his ,father in heaven1 how ought the lives of those to be one perpetual hymn of thankfulness1 who are from day to day and hour to hour 7for all they have1 both temporally and spiritually7 pensioners on ,god's bounty and love6 ,reader6 cultivate this thankful spirit2 it will be to thee a perpetual feast4 ,there is1 or ought to be1 with us no such thing as small mercies2 all are great1 because the least are undeserved4 ,indeed1 a really thankful heart will extract motive for gratitude from every thing1 making the most even of scanty blessings4 ,st4 ,paul1 when in his dungeon at ,rome1 a prisoner in chains1 is heard to say1 ,i have all1 and abound6 ,guard1 on the other hand1 against that spirit of continual fretting and moping over fancied ills2 that temptation to exaggerate the real or supposed disadvantages of our condition1 magnifying the trifling inconveniences of every-day life into enormous evils4 ,think1 rather1 how much we have to be thankful for4 ,the world in which we live1 in spite of all the scars of sin and suffering upon it1 is a happy world4 ,it is not1 as many would morbidly paint it1 flooded with tears and strewn with wrecks1 plaintive with a perpetual dirge of sorrow4 ,true1 the ,everlasting ,hills are in glory1 but there are numberless eminences of grace1 and love1 and mercy below2 many green spots in the lower valley1 many more than we deserve6 ,god will reward a thankful spirit4 ,just as on earth1 when a man receives with gratitude what is given1 we are more disposed to give again1 so also1 the ,lord loveth a cheerful receiver1 as well as a cheerful giver4 ,let ours1 moreover1 be a ,gospel thankfulness4 ,let the incense of a grateful spirit rise not only to the ,great ,giver of all good1 but to our ,covenant ,god in ,christ4 ,let it be the spirit of the child exulting in the bounty and beneficence of his ,father's house and home6 ,giving thanks always for all things unto ,god and the ,father1 in the name of our ,lord ,jesus ,christ6 ,while the sweet melody of gratitude vibrates through every successive moment of our daily being1 let love to our adorable ,redeemer show for whom and for what it is we reserve our notes of loftiest and most fervent praise4 ,thanks be unto ,god for ,his unspeakable gift6 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,seventh ,day4 ,,unselfishness4 ,for even ,christ pleased not ,himself4--,rom4 xv4 #h4 ,too legibly are the characters written on the fallen heart and a fallen world--,all seek their own6 ,selfishness is the great law of our degenerated nature4 ,when the love of ,god was dethroned from the soul1 self vaulted into the vacant seat1 and there1 in some one of its ,proteus shapes1 continues to reign4 ,jesus stands out for our imitation a grand solitary exception in the midst of a world of selfishness4 ,his entire life was one abnegation of self2 a beautiful living embodiment of that charity which seeketh not her own4 ,he who for others turned water into wine1 and provided a miraculous supply for the fainting thousands in the wilderness1 exerted no such miraculous power for ,his own necessities4 ,during ,his forty days' temptation1 no table did ,he spread for ,himself1 no booth did ,he rear for his unpillowed head4 ,twice do we read of ,him shedding tears--on neither occasion were they for ,himself4 ,the approach of ,his cross and passion1 instead of absorbing ,him in ,his own approaching suffering1 seemed only to elicit new and more gracious promises to ,his people4 ,when ,his enemies came to apprehend ,him1 ,his only stipulation was for ,his disciples' release--,let these go their way4 ,in the very act of departure1 with all the boundless glories of eternity in sight1 they were still all ,his care4 ,ah1 how different is the spirit of the world6 ,with how many is day after day only a new oblation to that idol which never darkened with its shadow ,his ,holy heart2 pampering their own wishes2 envying and grieving at the good of a neighbor2 unable to brook the praise of a rival2 establishing their own reputation on the ruins of another2 thus engendering jealousy1 discontent1 peevishness1 and every kindred unholy passion4 ,but ye have not so learned ,christ6 ,reader6 have you been sitting at the feet of ,him who pleased not ,himself8 ,are you dying daily2--dying to self as well as to sin8 ,are you animated with this as the high end and aim of existence--to lay out your time1 and talents1 and opportunities1 for ,god's glory1 and the good of your fellow-men2 not seeking your own interests1 but rather ceding these1 if1 by doing so1 another will be made happier1 and your ,saviour honored8 ,you may not have it in your power to manifest this mind of ,jesus on a great scale1 by enduring great sacrifices2 nor is this required4 ,his denial of self had about it no repulsive austerity2 but you can evince its holy influence and sway by innumerable little offices of kindness and good-will2 taking a generous interest in the welfare and pursuits of others1 or engaging and coperating in schemes for the mitigation of human misery4 ,avoid ostentation--another repulsive form of self4 ,be willing to be in the shade2 sound no trumpet before you4 ,the evangelist ,matthew made a great feast1 which was graced by the presence of ,jesus2 in his ,gospel he says not one word about it6 ,seek to live more constantly and habitually under the constraining influence of the love of ,jesus4 ,selfishness withers and dies beneath ,calvary4 ,ah1 believer6 if ,christ had pleased ,himself1 where wouldst thou have been this day8 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,eighth ,day4 ,,submission ,,to ,,god',s ,,word4 ,jesus said unto him1 ,it is written4--,matt4 iv4 #g4 ,we can not fail to be struck1 in the course of the ,saviour's public teaching1 with ,his constant appeal to the word of ,god4 ,while1 at times1 ,he utters1 in ,his own name1 the authoritative behest1 ,verily1 verily1 ,i say unto you1 ,he as often thus introduces some mighty work1 or gives intimation of some impending event in ,his own momentous life1 ,these things must come to pass1 that the ,scriptures be fulfilled1 which saith4 ,he commands ,his people to search the ,scriptures2 but ,he sets the example by searching and submitting to them ,himself4 ,whether he drives the money-changers from their sacrilegious traffic in the temple1 or foils his great adversary on the mount of temptation1 he does so with the same weapon1 ,it is written4 ,when ,he rises from the grave1 the theme of ,his first discourse is one impressive tribute to the value and authority of the same sacred oracles4 ,the disciples on the road to ,emmaus listen to nothing but a ,bible lesson4 ,he expounded unto them in all the ,scriptures the things concerning ,himself4 ,how momentous the instruction herein conveyed6 ,the necessity of the absolute subjection of the mind to ,god's written ,word--making churches1 creeds1 ministers1 books1 religious opinion1 all subordinate and subservient to this--,how readest thou8 rebuking the philosophy1 falsely so called1 that would distort the plain statements of ,revelation1 and bring them to the bar of proud ,reason4 ,if an infallible ,redeemer1 a law to ,himself1 was submissive in all respects to the written law1 shall fallible man refuse to sit with the teachableness of a little child1 and listen to the ,divine message8 ,there may be1 there is1 in the ,bible1 what reason staggers at3 we have nothing to draw with1 and the well is deep4 ,but1 ,thus saith the ,lord1 is enough4 ,faith does not first ask what the bread is made of1 but eats it4 ,it does not analyse the components of the living stream1 but with joy draws the water from the wells of salvation4 ,reader6 take that ,word as the lamp to thy feet1 and the light to thy path4 ,in days when false lights are hung out1 there is the more need of keeping the eye steadily fixed on the unerring beacon4 ,make the ,bible the arbiter in all difficulties--the ultimate court of appeal4 ,like ,mary1 sit at the feet of ,jesus1 willing only to learn of ,him4 ,how many perplexities it would save you6 how many fatal steps in life it would prevent--how many tears6 ,it is a great matter1 says the noblest of modern ,christian philosophers1 when the mind dwells on any passage of ,scripture1 just to think how true it is4 7,chalmers' ,life74 ,in every dubious question1 when the foot is trembling on debatable ground1 knowing not whether to advance or recede1 make this the final criterion1 ,what saith the ,scripture8 ,the world may remonstrate--erring friends may disapprove--,satan may tempt--ingenious arguments may explain away2 but1 with our finger on the revealed page1 let the words of our ,great ,example be ever a ,divine formula for our guidance3--,this commandment have ,i received of my ,father6 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,ninth ,day4 ,,prayerfulness4 ,he continued all night in prayer to ,god4--,luke1 vi4 #ab4 ,we speak of this ,christian and that ,christian as a man of prayer4 ,jesus was emphatically so4 ,the ,spirit was poured upon ,him without measure1 yet--,he prayed6 ,he was incarnate wisdom1 needing not that any should teach ,him4 ,he was infinite in ,his power1 and boundless in ,his resources1 yet--,he prayed6 ,how deeply sacred the prayerful memories that hover around the solitudes of ,olivet and the shores of ,tiberias6 ,he seemed often to turn night into day to redeem moments for prayer1 rather than lose the blessed privilege4 ,we are rarely1 indeed1 admitted into the solemnities of ,his inner life4 ,the veil of night is generally between us and the ,great ,high ,priest1 when ,he entered the holiest of all2 but we have enough to reveal the depth and fervor1 the tenderness and confidingness of this blissful intercommunion with ,his heavenly ,father4 ,no morning dawns without ,his fetching fresh manna from the mercy-seat4 ,he wakeneth morning by morning2 ,he wakeneth mine ear to hear as the learned4 7,isa4 l4 #d74 ,beautiful description6--a praying ,redeemer1 wakening1 as if at early dawn1 the ear of ,his ,father1 to get fresh supplies for the duties and the trials of the day6 ,all ,his public acts were consecrated by prayer1--,his baptism1 ,his transfiguration1 ,his miracles1 ,his agony1 ,his death4 ,he breathed away ,his spirit in prayer4 ,his last breath1 says ,philip ,henry1 was praying breath4 ,how sweet to think1 in holding communion with ,god--,jesus drank of this very brook6 ,he consecrated the bended knee and the silent chamber4 ,he refreshed ,his fainting spirit at the same great ,fountain-head from which it is life for us to draw and death to forsake4 ,reader6 do you complain of your languid spirit1 your drooping faith1 your fitful affections1 your lukewarm love8 ,may you not trace much of what you deplore to an unfrequented chamber8 ,the treasures are locked up from you1 because you have suffered the key to rust2 the hands hang down because they have ceased to be uplifted in prayer4 ,without prayer6--,it is the pilgrim without a staff--the seaman without a compass--the soldier going unarmed and unharnessed to battle4 ,beware of encouraging what indisposes to prayer--going to the audience chamber with soiled garments1 the din of the world following you1 its distracting thoughts hovering unforbidden over your spirit4 ,can you wonder that the living water refuses to flow through obstructed channels1 or the heavenly light to pierce murky vapors6 ,on earth1 fellowship with a lofty order of minds imparts a certain nobility to the character2 so1 in a far higher sense1 by communion with ,god you will be transformed into ,his image1 and get assimilated to ,his likeness4 ,make every event in life a reason for fresh going to ,him4 ,if difficulted in duty1 bring it to the test of prayer4 ,if bowed down with anticipated trial1--fearing to enter the cloud1--remember ,christ's preparation1 ,sit ye here while ,i go and pray yonder4 ,let prayer consecrate every thing--your time1 talents1 pursuits1 engagements1 joys1 sorrows1 crosses1 losses4 ,by it1 rough paths will be made smooth1 trials disarmed of their bitterness1 enjoyments hallowed and refined1 the bread of the world turned into angels' food4 ,it is in the closet1 says ,payson1 the battle is lost or won6 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,tenth ,day4 ,,love ,,to ,,the ,,brethren4 ,and walk in love1 as ,christ also hath loved us4--,eph4 v4 #b4 ,jesus1 says a writer1 came from heaven on the wings of love4 ,it was the element in which he moved and walked4 ,he sought to baptize the world afresh with it4 ,when we find ,him teaching us by love to vanquish an enemy1 we need not wonder at the tenderness of ,his appeals to the brethren to love one another4 ,like a fond father impressing his children1 how the ,divine ,teacher lingers over the lesson1 ,this is ,my commandment6 ,if selfishness had guided ,his actions1 we might have expected him to demand all ,his people's love for himself4 ,but ,he claims no such monopoly4 ,he not only encourages mutual affection1 but ,he makes it the badge of discipleship6 ,he gives them at once its measure and motive4 ,love one another1 as ,i have loved you6 ,what a love was that6--it reached to the lowliest and humblest1--,inasmuch as ye did it to the least of these1 ye did it unto ,me4 ,ah6 if such was the ,elder ,brother's love to ,his younger brethren1 what should the love of these younger brothers be for one another6 ,how humbling that there should be so much that is sadly and strangely unlike the spirit which our blessed ,master sought to inculcate alike by precept and example6 ,individual ,christians1 why these bitter estrangements1 these censorious words1 these harsh judgments1 this want of kind consideration of the feelings and failings of those who may differ from you8 ,why are your friendships so often like the summer brook1 soon dried8 ,you hope1 ere long1 to meet in glory4 ,doubtless when you enter on that sabbath of love1 many a greeting will be this1 ,alas6 my brother1 that on earth ,i did not love thee more6 ,do you see the image of ,god in a professing believer8 ,it is your duty to love him for the sake of that image4 ,no church1 no outward livery1 no denominational creed1 should prevent your owning and claiming him as a fellow-pilgrim and fellow-heir4 ,it has been said of a portrait1 however poor the painting1 however unfinished the style1 however faulty the touches1 however coarse and unseemly the frame1 yet if the likeness be faithful1 we overlook many subordinate defects4 ,so it is with the ,christian3 however plain the exterior1 however rough the setting1 or even manifold the blemishes still found cleaving to a partially-sanctified nature1 yet if the ,redeemer's likeness be feebly and faintly traced there1 we should love the copy for the sake of the ,divine ,original4 ,there may be other bonds of association and intercourse linking spirit with spirit2 family ties1 mental congenialities1 intellectual tastes1 philanthropic pursuits2 but that which ought to take the precedence of all1 is the love of ,god's image in the brethren4 ,what will heaven be but this love perfected--loving ,christ1 and beloved by those who love ,him8 ,reader6 seek to love ,him more1 and you will love ,his people more4 ,john had more love than the other disciples4 ,why8 ,he drank deepest of the love within that ,bosom on which he delighted to lean1 every beat of which was love4 ,walk1 then1 in love6 ,let it be the very foot-road you tread2 let your way to heaven be paved with it4 ,soon shall we come to look within the portal4 ,then shall every jarring and dissonant note be merged into the sublime harmonies of the new heavens and the new earth1 and we shall all see eye to eye6 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,eleventh ,day4 ,,sympathy4 ,jesus wept4--,john1 xi4 #ce4 ,it is an affecting thing to see a ,great man in tears6 ,jesus wept6 ,it was ever ,his delight to tread in the footsteps of sorrow--to heal the broken-hearted--turning aside from ,his own path of suffering to weep with those that weep4 ,bethany6 ,that scene1 that word1 is a condensed volume of consolation for yearning and desolate hearts4 ,what a majesty in those tears6 ,he had just been discoursing on ,himself as the ,resurrection and the ,life--the next moment ,he is a ,weeping ,man by a human grave1 melted in anguished sorrow at a bereaved one's side6 ,think of the funeral at the gate of ,nain1 reading its lesson to dejected myriads--,let thy widows trust in me6 ,think of the farewell discourse to ,his disciples1 when1 muffling all ,his own foreseen and anticipated sorrows1 ,he thought only of soothing and mitigating theirs6 ,think of the affecting pause in that silent procession to ,calvary1 when ,he turns round and stills the sobs of those who are tracking ,his steps with their weeping6 ,think of that wondrous epitome of human tenderness1 just ere ,his eyes closed in their sleep of agony--in the mightiest crisis of all time--when filial love looked down on an anguished mother1 and provided her a son and a home6 ,ah1 was there ever sympathy like this6 ,son6 ,brother6 ,kinsman6 ,saviour6 all in one6 ,the majesty of ,godhead almost lost in the tenderness of a ,friend4 ,but so it was1 and so it is4 ,the heart of the now enthroned ,king beats responsive to the humblest of ,his sorrow-stricken people4 ,i am poor and needy1 yet the ,lord carries me on ,his heart6 7margin47 ,let us go and do likewise4 ,let us be ready1 like our ,lord1 to follow the beck of misery1--to deliver the needy when he crieth1 the poor also1 and him that hath no helper4 ,sympathy costs but little4 ,its recompense and return are great1 in the priceless consolation it imparts4 ,few there are who undervalue it4 ,look at ,paul--the weary1 jaded prisoner1--chained to a soldier--recently wrecked1 about to stand before ,csar4 ,he reaches ,appii ,forum and the ,three ,taverns1 dejected and depressed4 ,brethren come from ,rome1 a distance of sixty miles1 to offer their sympathy4 ,the aged man is cheered6 ,his spirit1 like ,jacob's1 revived6 ,he thanked ,god1 and took courage6 ,reader6 let this mind1 this holy1 ,christ-like habit be in you1 which was also in your adorable ,master4 ,delight1 when opportunity occurs1 to frequent the house of mourning--to bind up the widow's heart1 and to dry the orphan's tears4 ,if you can do nothing else1 you can whisper into the ear of disconsolate sorrow those majestic solaces1 which1 rising first in the graveyard of ,bethany1 have sent their undying echoes through the world1 and stirred the depths of ten thousand hearts4 ,exercise your souls1 says ,butler1 in a loving sympathy with sorrow in every form4 ,soothe it1 minister to it1 succor it1 revere it4 ,it is the relic of ,christ in the world1 an image of the ,great ,sufferer1 a shadow of the cross4 ,it is a holy and venerable thing4 ,jesus ,himself looked for some to take pity1 but there was none2 and for comforters1 but ,he found none6 ,it shows how even ,he valued sympathy1 and that1 too1 in its commonest form of pity1 though an ungrateful ,world denied it4 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,twelfth ,day4 ,,fidelity ,,in ,,rebuke4 ,the ,lord turned and looked upon ,peter4--,luke1 xxii4 #fa4 ,jesus never spake one unnecessarily harsh or severe word4 ,he had a ,divine sympathy for the frailties and infirmities of a tried1 and suffering1 and tempted nature in others4 ,he was forbearing to the ignorant1 encouraging to the weak1 tender to the penitent1 loving to all1--yet how faithful was ,he as the ,reprover of sin6 ,silent under ,his own wrongs1 with what burning invectives did ,he lay bare the ,pharisees' masked corruption and hypocrisy6 ,when ,his ,father's name and temple were profaned1 how did ,he sweep1 with an avenging hand1 the mammon-crowd away1 replacing the superscription1 ,holiness to the ,lord1 over the defiled altars6 ,nor was it different with ,his own disciples4 ,with what fidelity1 when rebuke was needed1 did ,he administer it3 the withering reprimand conveyed sometimes by an impressive word 7,matt4 xvi4 #bc72 sometimes by a silent look 7,luke1 xxii4 #fa74 ,faithful always were the wounds of this ,friend4 ,reader6 art thou equally faithful with thy ,lord in rebuking evil2 not with the wrath of man1 which worketh not the righteousness of ,god1 but with a holy jealousy of ,his glory1 feeling1 with the sensitive honor of the good soldier of ,jesus ,christ1 that an affront offered to ,him is offered to thyself8 ,the giving of a wise reproof requires much ,christian prudence and delicate discretion4 ,it is not by a rash and inconsiderate exposure of failings that we must attempt to reclaim an erring brother4 ,but neither1 for the sake of a false peace1 must we compromise fidelity2 even friendship is too dearly purchased by winking at sin4 ,perhaps1 when ,peter was led to call the ,apostle who honestly reproved him1 ,our beloved brother ,paul1 in nothing did he love his rebuker more1 than for the honest boldness of his ,christian reproof4 ,if ,paul had1 in that crisis of the ,church1 with a timidity unworthy of him1 evaded the ungracious task1 what1 humanly speaking1 might have been the result8 ,how often does a seasonable reprimand1 a faithful caution1 save a lifetime of sin and sorrow6 ,how many a death-bed has made the disclosure1 ,that kind warning of my friend put an arrest on my career of guilt2 it altered my whole being2 it brought me to the cross1 touched my heart1 and1 by ,god's grace1 saved my soul6 ,on the other hand1 how many have felt1 when death has put his impressive seal on some close earthly intimacy1 ,this friend1 or that friend1--,i might have spoken a solemn word to him2 but now he is no more2 the opportunity is lost1 never to be recalled6 ,reader6 see that you act not the spiritual coward4 ,when tempted to sit silent when the name of ,god is slighted or dishonored1 think1 would ,jesus have done so8--would ,he have allowed the oath to go unrebuked--the lie to be uttered unchallenged--the ,sabbath with impunity to be profaned8 ,where there is a natural diffidence which makes you shrink from a more bold and open reproof1 remember much may be done to discountenance sin1 by the silent holiness of demeanor which refuses to smile at the unholy allusion or ribald jest4 ,a word spoken in due season1 how good is it6 ,speak gently1 yet speak faithfully3 be pitiful--be courteous3 yet quit you like men2 be strong6 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,thirteenth ,day4 ,,gentleness ,,in ,,rebuke4 ,simon1 son of ,jonas1 lovest thou me8--,john1 xxi4 #ae4 ,no word here of the erring disciple's past faithlessness2--his guilty cowardice--unmentioned2--his base denial--his oaths--and curses1 and treacherous desertion--all unmentioned6 ,the memory of a threefold denial is suggested1 and no more1 by the threefold question of unutterable tenderness1 ,simon1 son of ,jonas1 lovest thou me8 ,when ,jesus finds ,his disciples sleeping at the gate of ,gethsemane1 ,he rebukes them2 but how is the rebuke disarmed of its poignancy by the merciful apology which is added--,the spirit indeed is willing1 but the flesh is weak6 ,how different from their unkind insinuation regarding ,him1 when1 in the vessel on ,tiberias1 ,he was asleep--,master carest thou not that we perish6 ,the woman of ,samaria is full of earthliness1 carnality1 sectarianism1 guilt4 ,yet how gently the ,saviour speaks to her--how forbearingly1 yet faithfully4 ,he directs the arrow of conviction to that seared and hardened conscience1 till ,he lays it bleeding at ,his feet6 ,truly1 ,he will not break the bruised reed--,he will not quench the smoking flax4 ,by the goodness of ,god1 ,he would lead to repentance4 ,when others are speaking of merciless violence1 ,he can dismiss the most guilty of profligates with the words1 ,neither do ,i condemn thee2 go1 and sin no more4 ,how many have an unholy pleasure in finding a brother in the wrong--blazing abroad his failings2 administering rebuke1 not in gentle forbearance and kindly expostulation1 but with harsh and impatient severity6 ,how beautifully did ,jesus unite intense sensibility to sin1 along with tenderest compassion for the sinner1 showing in this that ,he knoweth our frame6 ,many a scholar needs gentleness in chastisement4 ,the reverse would crush a sensitive spirit1 or drive it to despair4 ,jesus tenderly considers the case of those ,he disciplines1 tempering the wind to the shorn lamb4 ,in the picture of the good shepherd bearing home the wandering sheep1 ,he illustrated by parable what ,he had often and again taught by ,his own example4 ,no word of needless harshness or upbraiding uttered to the erring wanderer6 ,ingratitude is too deeply felt to need rebuke6 ,in silent love1 ,he lays it on ,his shoulders rejoicing4 ,reader6 seek to mingle gentleness in all your rebukes2 bear with the infirmities of others2 make allowance for constitutional frailties2 never say harsh things1 if kind things will do as well2 do not unnecessarily lacerate with recalling former delinquencies4 ,in reproving another1 let us rather feel how much we need reproof ourselves4 ,consider thyself1 is a searching ,scripture motto for dealing with an erring brother4 ,remember thy ,lord's method of silencing fierce accusation--,let him that is without sin cast the first stone4 ,moreover1 anger and severity are not the successful means of reclaiming the backslider1 or of melting the obdurate4 ,like the smooth stones with which ,david smote ,goliath1 gentle rebukes are generally the most powerful4 ,the old fable of the traveller and his cloak has a moral here as in other things4 ,the genial sunshine will effect its removal sooner than the rough tempest4 ,it was said of ,leighton1 that he rebuked faults so mildly1 that they were never repeated1 not because the admonished were afraid1 but ashamed to do so4 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,fourteenth ,day4 ,,endurance ,,in ,,contradiction4 ,who endured such contradiction of sinners against ,himself4-- ,heb4 xii4 #c4 ,what endurance was this6 ,perfect truth in the midst of error2 perfect love in the midst of ingratitude and coldness2 perfect rectitude in the midst of perjury1 violence1 fraud2 perfect constancy in the midst of contumely and desertion2 perfect innocence1 confronting every debased form of depravity and guilt2 perfect patience1 encountering every species of gross provocation--oppressed and afflicted1 ,he opened not ,his mouth6 ,for my love 7in return for my love71 they are mine adversaries2 but 7see ,his endurance6--the only species of revenge of which ,his sinless nature was capable7 ,i give myself unto prayer6 7,ps4 cix4 #d47 ,reader6 let this mind be in you1 which was also in ,christ ,jesus6 ,the greatest test of an earthly soldier's courage is patient endurance6 ,the noblest trait of the spiritual soldier is the same4 ,having done all to stand1 ,he endured1 as seeing ,him who is invisible6 ,beware of the angry recrimination1 the hasty ebullition of temper4 ,amid unkind insinuations--when motives are misrepresented1 and reputation assailed2 when good deeds are ridiculed1 kind intentions coldly thwarted and repulsed1 chilling reserve manifested where you expected nothing but friendship--what a triumph over natural impulse to manifest a spirit of meek endurance6--like a rainbow1 radiant with the hues of heaven1 resting peacefully amid the storms of derision and the floods of ungodly men4 ,what an opportunity of magnifying the sustaining grace of ,god6 ,it is a small thing for me to be judged of you1 or of man's judgment2 ,he that judgeth me is the ,lord4 ,the ,lord is on my side2 ,i will not fear what man can do unto me4 ,blessed is the man that endureth4 ,he that endureth to the end1 the same shall be saved4 ,if faithful to our ,god1 we must expect to encounter contradiction in the same form which ,jesus did--the contradiction of sinners4 ,it has been well said1 ,there is no cross of nails and wood erected now for the ,christian1 but there is one of words and looks which is never taken down4 ,if believers are set as lights in the earth1 lamps in the city of destruction1 we know that he that doeth evil hateth the light4 ,marvel not1 my brethren1 if the world hate you6 ,weary and faint ones1 exposed to the shafts of calumny and scorn because of your fidelity to your ,god2 encountering1 it may be1 the coldness and estrangement of those dear to you1 who can not1 perhaps1 sympathize in the holiness of your walk and the loftiness of your aims1 consider ,him that endured such contradiction of sinners against ,himself1 lest ye be weary and faint in your minds6 ,what is your contradiction to ,his8 ,soon your cross1 whatever it be1 will have an end4 ,the seat of the scorner has no place in yonder glorious heaven1 where all will be peace--no jarring note to disturb its blissful harmonies6 ,look forward to the great coronation-day of the ,church triumphant1--the day of your divine ,lord's appearing1 when motives and aims1 now misunderstood1 will be vindicated1 wrongs redressed1 calumnies and aspersions wiped away4 ,meanwhile1 rejoice that you are counted worthy to suffer shame for ,his name4 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,fifteenth ,day4 ,,pleasing ,,god4 ,i do always those things that please ,him4--,john1 viii4 #bi4 ,what a glorious motto for a man--,i live for ,god6 ,it is religion's truest definition4 ,it is the essence of angelic bliss--the motive-principle of angelic action2 ,ye ministers of ,his1 that do ,his pleasure4 ,the ,lord of angels knew no higher1 no other motive4 ,it was1 during ,his incarnation1 the regulator and directory of ,his daily being4 ,it supported ,him amid the depressing sorrows of ,his woe-worn path4 ,it upheld him in their awful termination in the garden and on the cross4 ,for a moment1 sinking human nature faltered under the load ,his ,godhead sustained2 but the thought of pleasing ,god nerved and revived ,him4 ,not my will1 but ,thine be done4 ,it is only when the love of ,god is shed abroad in the heart1 that this animating desire to please ,him can exist4 ,in the holy bosom of ,jesus1 that love reigned paramount1 admitting no rival--no competing affection4 ,though infinitely inferior in degree1 it is the same impelling principle which leads ,his people still to link enjoyment with ,his service1 and which makes consecration to ,him of heart and life its own best recompense and reward4 ,there is a gravitation1 says one whose life was the holy echo of his words1 in the moral as in the physical world4 ,when love to ,god is habitually in the ascendant1 or occupying the place of will1 it gathers round it all the other desires of the soul as satellites1 and whirls them along with it in its orbit round the center of attraction4 7,hewitson's ,life47 ,till the heart1 then1 be changed1 the believer can not have this testimony that he pleases ,god4 ,the world1 self1 sin--these be the gods of the unregenerate soul4 ,and even when changed1 alas that there should be so many ebbings and flowings in our tide of devotedness6 ,jesus could say1 ,i do always those things that please the ,father4 ,glory to ,god burned within ,his bosom like a living fire4 ,many waters could not quench it4 ,his were no fitful and inconsistent frames and feelings1 but the persistent habit of a holy life1 which had the one end in view1 from which it never diverged or deviated4 ,let it be so1 in some lowly measure with us4 ,let ,god's service not be the mere livery of high days1--of set times and seasons2 but1 like the alabaster box of ointment1 let us ever be giving forth the fragrant perfume of holiness4 ,even when the shadows of trial are falling around us1 let us pass through the cloud with the sustaining motive--,all my wish1 ,o ,god1 is to please and glorify ,thee6 ,by giving or taking--by smiting or healing--by the sweet cup or the bitter--',father1 glorify thy name6' ,i don't want to be weary of ,god's dealing with me1 said ,bickersteth1 on his death-bed2 ,i want to glorify ,jesus in them1 and to find ,him more precious4 ,do ,i shrink from trials--duties--crosses--because involving hardships and self-denial1 or because frowned on by the world8 ,let the thought of ,god's approving countenance be enough4 ,let me dread no censure1 if conscious of acting in accordance with ,his will4 ,let the ,apostle's monitory word determine many a perplexing path--,if ,i please men1 ,i am not the servant of ,christ4 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,sixteenth ,day4 ,,grief ,,at ,,sin4 ,being grieved for the hardness of their hearts4--,mark1 iii4 #e4 ,on this one occasion only is the expression used with reference to ,jesus--7what intensity of emotion does it denote1 spoken of a sinless nature67--,he looked round on them with anger6 ,never did ,he grieve for ,himself4 ,his intensest sorrows were reserved for those who were tampering with their own souls1 and dishonoring ,his ,god4 ,the continual spectacle of moral evil1 thrust on the gaze of spotless purity1 made ,his earthly history one consecutive history of grief1 one perpetual cross and passion4 ,in the tears shed at the grave of ,bethany1 sympathy1 doubtless1 for the world's myriad mourners1 had its own share 7the bereaved could not part with so precious a tribute in their hours of sadness71 but a far more impressive cause was one undiscerned by the weeping sisters and sorrowing crowd2 ,his knowledge of the deep and obdurate impenitence of those who were about to gaze on the mightiest of miracles1 only to despise1 and wonder1 and perish4 ,jesus wept6--but ,his profoundest anguish was over resisted grace1 abused privileges1 scorned mercy4 ,it was the ,divine ,artificer mourning over ,his shattered handiwork2 the ,almighty ,creator weeping over ,his ruined world2 ,god1 the ,god-man1 grieving over the ,temple of the soul1 a humiliating wreck of what once was made after ,his own image6 ,can we sympathize in any respect with such exalted tears8 ,do we mourn for sin1 our own sin--the deep insult which it inflicts on ,god--the ruinous consequences it entails on ourselves8 ,do we grieve at sin in others8 ,do we know any thing of vexing our souls1 like righteous ,lot1 from day to day1 with the world's unlawful deeds1 the stupid hardness and obduracy of the depraved heart1 which resists alike the appliances of wrath and love1 judgment and mercy8 ,ah6 it is easy1 in general terms1 to condemn vice1 and to utter harsh1 severe1 and cutting denunciations on the guilty3 it is easy to pass uncharitable comments on the inconsistencies or follies of others3 but to grieve as our ,lord did1 is a different thing2 to mourn over the hardness of heart1 and yet to have the burning desire to teach it better things2 to hate1 as ,he did1 the sin1 but1 like ,him also1 to love the sinner6 ,reader6 look specially to your own spirit4 ,in one respect1 the example of ,jesus falls short of your case4 ,he had no sin of ,his own to mourn over4 ,he could only commiserate others4 ,your intensest grief must begin with yourself4 ,like the watchful ,levite of old1 be a guardian at the temple-gates of your own soul4 ,whatever be your besetting iniquity1 your constitutional bias to sin1 seek to guard it with wakeful vigilance4 ,grieve at the thought of incurring one passing shadow of displeasure from so kind and compassionate a ,saviour4 ,let this be a holy preservative in your every hour of temptation1 ,how can ,i do this great wickedness1 and sin against ,god8 ,grieve for a perishing world--a groaning creation fettered and chained in unwilling subjection to vanity4 ,do what you can1 by effort1 by prayer1 to hasten on the hour of jubilee1 when its ashy robes of sin and sorrow shall be laid aside1 and1 attired in the beauties of holiness1 it shall exult in the glorious liberty of the sons of ,god6 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,seventeenth ,day4 ,,humility4 ,he riseth from supper1 and laid aside ,his garments2 and took a towel and girded ,himself4 ,after that ,he poureth water into a basin1 and began to wash the disciples' feet4--,john1 xiii4 #d1 #e4 ,what a matchless picture of humility6 ,at the very moment when ,his throne was in view2 angel-anthems floating in ,his ear2 the hour come when ,he was to depart out of this world2 possessing a lofty consciousness of ,his peerless dignity1 that ,he came from ,god and went to ,god2 ,,then ,jesus took a towel1 and girded ,himself1 and began to wash the disciples' feet6 ,all heaven was ready at that moment to cast their combined crowns at ,his feet4 ,but the ,high and the ,lofty ,one1 inhabiting eternity1 is on earth as one that serveth6 ,that infinite stoop6 it sinks all creature humiliation to nothing1 and renders it impossible for a creature to humble himself4--7,evans74 ,humility follows ,him1 from ,his unhonored birthplace to ,his borrowed grave4 ,it throws a subdued splendor over all ,he did4 ,the poor in spirit1--the mourner1--the meek1--claim ,his first beatitudes4 ,he was severe only to one class--those who looked down upon others4 ,however ,he is employed2 whether performing ,his works of miraculous power1 or receiving angel-visitants1 or taking little children in ,his arms1 ,he stands forth clothed with humility4 ,nay1 this humility becomes more conspicuous as ,he draws nearer glory4 ,before ,his death1 ,he calls ,his disciples ,friends2 subsequently1 it is ,brethren1 ,children4 ,how sad the contrast between the ,master and ,his disciples6 ,two hours had not elapsed after ,he washed their feet1 when there was a strife among them which should be the greatest6 ,let the mental image of that lowly ,redeemer be ever bending over us4 ,his example may well speak in silent impressiveness1 bringing us down from our pedestal of pride4 ,there surely can be no labor of love too humiliating when ,he stooped so low4 ,let us be content to take the humblest place2 not envious of the success or exaltation of another2 not1 like ,diotrephes1 loving preminence2 but willing to be thought little of2 saying with the ,baptist1 with our eye on our ,lord1 ,he must increase1 but ,i must decrease6 ,how much we have cause to be humble for6 the constant cleaving of defilement to our souls2 and even what is partially good in us1 how mixed with imperfection1 self-seeking1 arrogance1 vain-glory6 ,a proud ,christian is a contradiction in terms4 ,the ,seraphim of old 7type of the ,christian ,church1 and of believers7 had six wings--two were for errands of love1 but with four he covered himself6 ,it has been beautifully said1 ,you lie nearest the ,river of ,life when you bend to it2 you can not drink1 but as you stoop4 ,the corn of the field1 as it ripens1 bows its head2 so the ,christian1 as he ripens in the ,divine life1 bends in this lowly grace4 ,christ speaks of ,his people as lilies--they are lilies of the valley1 they can only grow in the shade6 ,humble yourselves under the mighty hand of ,god4 ,go with what ,rutherford calls a low sail4 ,it is the livery of your blessed ,master2 the family badge--the family likeness4 ,with this man will ,i dwell1 even with him that is humble4 ,yes6 the humble1 sanctified heart is ,god's second ,heaven6 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,eighteenth ,day4 ,,patience4 ,he was brought as a lamb to the slaughter4--,isa4 liii1 #g4 ,how great was the patience of ,jesus6 ,even among ,his own disciples1 how forbearingly ,he endured their blindness1 their misconceptions and hardness of heart6 ,philip had been for three years with ,him1 yet he had not known ,him6--all that time he had remained in strange and culpable ignorance of his ,lord's dignity and glory4 ,see how tenderly ,jesus bears with him2 giving him nothing in reply for his confession of ignorance but unparalleled promises of grace6 ,peter1 the honored and trusted1 becomes a renegade and a coward4 ,justly might his dishonored ,lord1 stung with such unrequited love1 have cut the unworthy cumberer down4 ,but ,he spares him1 bears with him1 gently rebukes him1 and loves him more than ever6 ,see the ,divine ,sufferer in the terminating scenes of ,his own ignominy and woe4 ,how patient6--,as a sheep before her shearers is dumb1 so ,he opened not ,his mouth4 ,in these awful moments1 outraged ,omnipotence might have summoned twelve legions of angels and put into the hand of each a vial of wrath4 ,but ,he submits in meek1 majestic silence4 ,verily1 in ,him patience had her perfect work6 ,think of this same patience with ,his ,church and people since ,he ascended to glory4 ,the years upon years ,he has borne with their perverse resistance of ,his grace1 their treacherous ingratitude1 their wayward wanderings1 their hardness of heart and contempt of ,his holy word4 ,yet1 behold the forbearing love of this ,saviour of ,god6 ,his hand of mercy is stretched out still6 ,child of ,god6 art thou now undergoing some bitter trial8 ,the way of thy ,god1 it may be1 all mystery2 no footprints of love traceable in the checkered path2 no light1 in the clouds above2 no ray in the dark future4 ,be patient6 ,the ,lord is good to them that wait for ,him4 ,they that wait on the ,lord shall renew their strength6 ,or hast thou been long tossed on some bed of sickness--days of pain and nights of weariness appointed thee8 ,be patient6 ,i trust this groaning1 said a suffering saint1 is not murmuring4 ,god1 by this very affliction1 is nurturing within thee this beauteous grace which shone so conspicuously in the character of thy dear ,lord4 ,with ,him it was a lovely habit of the soul4 ,with thee1 the tribulation which worketh patience is needful discipline4 ,it is good for a man that he should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of ,god4 ,art thou suffering some unmerited wrong or unkindness1 exposed to harsh and wounding accusations1 hard for flesh and blood to bear8 ,be patient6 ,beware of hastiness of speech or temper2 remember how much evil may be done by a few inconsiderate words spoken unadvisedly with the lip4 ,think of ,jesus standing before a human tribunal1 in the silent submissiveness of conscious innocence and integrity4 ,leave thy cause with ,god4 ,let this be the only form of thy complaint1 ,o ,god1 ,i am oppressed2 undertake ,thou for me6 ,in patience1 then1 possess ye your souls4 ,let it not be a grace for peculiar seasons1 called forth on peculiar exigences2 but an habitual frame manifested in the calm serenity of a daily walk2--placidity amid the little fretting annoyances of every-day life--a fixed purpose of the heart to wait upon ,god1 and cast its every burden upon ,him4 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,nineteenth ,day4 ,,subjection4 ,as the ,father gave me commandment1 even so ,i do4--,john1 xiv4 #ca4 ,jesus as ,god-man had omnipotence slumbering in ,his arm4 ,he had the hoarded treasures of eternity in ,his grasp4 ,he had only to speak1 and it was done4 ,but1 as an example to ,his people1 ,his whole life on earth was one impressive act of subordination and dependence4 ,at ,nazareth ,he was subject to ,his parents4 ,there ,he remained in studied obscurity1 occupying for thirty years a lowly hut1 willing to continue in a state of seclusion1 till the ,father's summons called ,him to ,his appointed work4 ,at ,his baptism1 sinless ,himself1 ,he gives this reason for receiving a sinner's rite at a sinner's hands--,suffer it to be so now1 for thus it becometh ,me to fulfill all righteousness4 ,the same beautiful spirit of filial subjection shines conspicuous amid ,his acts of stupendous power4 ,jesus lifted up ,his eyes and said1 ,father1 ,i thank ,thee that ,thou hast heard ,me2 and ,i know that ,thou hearest ,me always2 but because of the people which stand by1 ,i said it1 that they may believe that ,thou has sent ,me4 ,even among ,his own disciples ,his language is1 ,i am among you as ,he that serveth4 ,with an act of submission ,he closed ,his pilgrimage and work of love4 ,father1 into ,thy hands ,i commend ,my spirit4 ,what an example to us1 in all this1 is our beloved ,lord6 ,surely1 if ,he1 ,god only wise--the ,self-existent ,one1 to whom all power was committed2--the ,sinless ,one1 never liable to err1 on whom the ,spirit was poured without measure--if ,he manifested such habitual dependence on ,his heavenly ,father1 how earnestly ought we1 weak1 erring1 fallible creatures1 to seek to live every hour--every moment--as pensioners on ,god's grace and love1 following in all things ,his directing hand6 ,as the servant has his eyes on his master1 or the child on its parent1 so should our eyes be on the ,lord our ,god4 ,howsoever ,he speaks1 be it ours with all docility to follow the voice1 indorsing every utterance of providence1 and every precept of ,scripture1 with our ,lord's own words1 ,this is the ,father's will6 ,beware of self-dependence4 ,the first step in spiritual declension is this3 ,let him that thinketh he standeth6 ,the secret of real strength is this3 ,kept by the power of ,god6 ,how it sweetens all our blessings1 and alleviates all our sorrows1 to regard both as emanations from a loving ,father's hand4 ,even if we should be1 like the disciples of old1 constrained to go into the ship2 if all should be darkness and tempest1 frowning providences--the wind contrary2 how blessed to feel that in embarking on the unquiet element1 the ,lord has bidden us6 ,paul could not speak even of taking an earthly journey1 without the parenthesis 7if the ,lord will74 ,how many trials1 and sorrows1 and sins1 would it save us1 if the same were the habitual regulator of our daily life6 ,it would lead to calm contentment with our lot1 hushing every disquieting suggestion with the thought that that lot1 with all that is apparently adverse in it1 was ordained for us4 ,it would teach us not to be aspiring after great things1 but humbly to wait the will and purposes of a wise ,provider2 not to go before our ,heavenly ,guide1 but to follow ,him1 saying1 in meek subjection1 ,lord1 my heart is not haughty1 nor mine eyes lofty1 neither do ,i exercise myself in great matters1 or in things too high for for me 444 my soul is even as a weaned child6 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,twentieth ,day4 ,,not ,,retaliating4 ,who1 when ,he was reviled1 reviled not again4--#a ,peter1 ii4 #bc4 ,what a common dictate of the fallen and regenerate heart to resent and recriminate6 ,how alien to natural feeling to answer cutting taunts1 and meet unmerited wrong with the ,divine method the ,gospel prescribes--,overcome evil with good6 ,it was in the closing scenes of the ,saviour's humiliation1 when1 silent and unresenting1 ,he stood dumb before ,his shearers1 that this beautiful feature in ,his character was most wondrously manifested2 but it beams forth1 also1 for our imitation in the ordinary and less prominent incidents of ,his pilgrimage4 ,when ,he met ,nathanael of ,cana in ,galilee1 ,he found him clinging to an unreasonable prejudice--,can any good thing come out of ,nazareth8 ,the severe remark is allowed to pass unnoticed4 ,overlooking the unkind insinuation1 the ,saviour fixes on the favorable feature of his character1 ,behold an ,israelite indeed1 in whom is no guile6 ,after ,his resurrection1 ,he appears to ,his disciples4 ,they were cowering in shame1 half afraid to confront the glance of injured goodness4 ,he breathes on them1 and says1 ,peace be unto you6 ,peter was the one of all the rest who had most reason to dread estranged looks and upbraiding words2 but a special message is sent to reassure that trembling spirit that there was no alienation in the unresentful ,heart he had so deeply wounded2 ,go and tell the disciples 444 and ,peter6 ,even when ,judas first revealed himself to his ,lord as the betrayer1 we believe it was not in bitter irony or rebuke1 but in the fullness of pitying tenderness1 that ,jesus addressed him1 ,friend1 wherefore art thou come8 ,tears and prayers were ,his only revenge on the city and scene of ,his murder4 ,beginning at ,jerusalem1 was the closing illustration of a spirit not of this world--a significant parting testimony that in the bosom that uttered it retaliation had no place4 ,more than one of the disciples seem to have imbibed much of this mind of their ,lord4 ,we owe ,st4 ,paul1 says ,augustine1 to the death of ,stephen2 they stoned ,stephen 444 and he kneeled down and cried with a loud voice1 ,lord6 lay not this sin to their charge4 ,take another example3 ,the great ,apostle of the ,gentiles felt himself under a painful necessity faithfully to rebuke ,peter in presence of the whole ,church4 ,he had recorded that rebuke1 too1 in one of his epistles4 ,it was thus to be handed down to every age as a permanent and humiliating evidence of the wavering inconstancy of his fellow-laborer4 ,peter1 doubtless1 must have felt acutely the severity of the chastisement4 ,does he resent it8 ,he1 too1 puts on record1 long after1 in one of his own epistles a sentence regarding his ,rebuker1 but it is this--,our beloved brother ,paul6 ,reader6 when tempted to utter the harsh word1 or give the cutting or hasty answer1 seek to check yourself with the question1 ,is this the reply my ,saviour would have given8 ,if your fellow-men should prove unkind1 inconsiderate1 ungrateful1 be it yours to refer the cause to ,god4 ,speak of the faults of others only in prayer2 manifesting more sorrow for the sin of the censorious and unkind1 than for the evil inflicted on yourselves4 ,retaliate6 ,no such word should have a place in the ,christian's vocabulary4 ,retaliate6 ,if ,i cherish such a spirit towards my brother1 how can ,i meet that brother in heaven8--,but ye have not so learned in ,christ4 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,twenty-first ,day4 ,,bearing ,,the ,,cross4 ,and ,he bearing ,his cross4--,john1 xix4 #ag4 ,when did ,jesus bear the cross8 ,not that moment alone1 surely1 when the bitter tree was placed on ,his shoulders1 on the way to ,golgotha4 ,its vision may be said to have risen before ,him in ,his infant dreams in ,bethlehem's cradle2 there1 rather1 its reality began2 and ,he ceased not to carry it1 till ,his work was finished1 and the victory won6 ,a cloud1 of old1 hovered over the mercy-seat in the tabernacle and temple4 ,so it was with the ,great ,antitype--the living ,mercy-,seat--,he had ever a cloud of woe hanging over him4 ,he carried our sorrows4 ,reader6 dwell much and often under the shadow of your ,lord's cross1 and it will lead you to think lightly of your own6 ,if ,he gave utterance to not one murmuring word1 canst thou complain8 ,if we were deeper students of his bitter anguish1 we should think less of the ripplings of our waves1 amidst ,his horrible tempest4--7,evans47 ,the saint's cross assumes many and diverse shapes4 ,sometimes it is the bitter trial1 the crushing pang of bereavement--desolate households1 and aching hearts4 ,sometimes it is the crucifixion of sin1 the determined battle with lusts which war against the soul4 ,sometimes it is the resistance of evil maxims and practices of a lying world2 vindicating the honor of ,christ1 in the midst1 it may be1 of taunt1 and obloquy1 and shame4 ,and as there are different crosses1 so there are different ways of bearing them4 ,to some1 ,god says1 put your shoulder to the burden2 lift it up1 and bear it on2 work1 and toil1 and labor6 ,to others1 ,he says1 ,be still1 bear it1 and suffer6 ,believer6 thy cross may be hard to endure2 it may involve deep struggles--tears by day1 watchings by night2 bear it meekly1 patiently1 justifying ,god's wisdom in laying it on4 ,rejoice in the assurance that ,he gives not one atom more of earthly trial than ,he sees to be really needful2 not one redundant thorn pierces your feet4 ,in the very bearing of the cross for ,his sake1 there are mighty compensations4 ,what new views of your ,saviour's love6 ,his truth1 ,his promises1 ,his sustaining grace1 ,his sufferings1 ,his glory6 ,what new filial nearness2 increased delight in prayer2 an inner sunshine when it is darkest without6 ,the waves cover you1 but underneath them all1 are the everlasting arms6 ,do not look out for a situation without crosses4 ,be not over anxious about smooth paths2--leaving your ,god1 as ,orpah did ,naomi1 just when the cross requires to be carried4 ,immoderate earthly enjoyments--unbroken earthly prosperity--write upon these1 ,beware6 ,you may live to see them become your greatest trials6 ,remember the old saying1 ,no cross1 no crown4 ,the sun of the saint's life generally struggles through weeping clouds4 ,one of the loveliest passages of ,scripture is that in which1 the portals of heaven being opened1 we overhear this dialogue between two ransomed ones--,and one of the elders answered saying unto me1 ,what are these which are arrayed in white robes1 and whence came they8 ,and ,i said unto him1 ,sir1 thou knowest4 ,and he said to me1 ,these are they which came out of great tribulation6 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,twenty-second ,day4 ,,holy ,,zeal4 ,the zeal of ,thine house hath eaten me up4--,john1 ii4 #ag4 ,zeal1 is a principle2 enthusiasm is a feeling4 ,the one is a spark of a sanguine temperament and overheated imagination4 ,the other1 a sacred flame kindled at ,god's altar1 and burning in ,god's shrine4--7,vaughan47 ,such was the holy1 heavenly zeal of our ,great ,exemplar6 ,his were no transient outbursts of ardor1 which time cooled and difficulties impeded4 ,his life was one indignant protest against sin2--one ceaseless current of undying love for souls1 which all the malignity of foes1 and unkindness of friends1 could not for one moment divert from its course4 ,even when ,he rises from the dead1 and we imagine ,his work at an end1 ,his zeal only meditates fresh deeds of love4 ,still ,his heart and ,his care1 says ,godwin1 is upon doing more4 ,having now dispatched that great work on earth1 ,he sends ,his disciples word that ,he is hastening to heaven as fast as ,he can1 to do another4 7,john1 xx4 #ag74 ,reader6 do you know any thing of this zeal1 which many waters could not quench8 ,see that1 like your ,lord's1 it be steady1 sober1 consistent1 undeviating4 ,how many are1 like the children of ,ephraim1 carrying bows--all zealous when zeal demands no sacrifice1 but turning their backs in the day of battle6 ,others running well for a time1 but gradually hindered1 through the benumbing influences of worldliness1 selfishness1 and sin4 ,two disciples1 apparently equally devoted and zealous1 send through ,paul1 in one of his epistles1 a conjoint ,christian salutation--,luke and ,demas greet you4 ,a few years afterward1 thus he writes from his ,roman dungeon--,only ,luke is with me1 ,demas hath forsaken me1 having loved this present world6 ,while zeal is commendable1 remember the ,apostle's qualification1 ,it is good to be zealously affected always in a good thing4 ,there is in these days much base coin current1 called zeal1 which bears not the image and superscription of ,jesus4 ,there is zeal for church-membership and party2 zeal for creeds and dogmas2 zeal for figments and non-essentials4 ,from such turn aside4 ,your ,lord stamped with ,his example and approval no such counterfeits4 ,his zeal was ever brought to bear on two objects1 and two objects alone--the glory of ,god and the good of man4 ,be it so with you4 ,enter1 first of all 7as ,he did the earthly temple71 the sanctuary of your own heart1 with the scourge of small cords4 ,drive out every unhallowed intruder there4 ,do not suffer yourself to be deceived4 ,others may call such jealous searchings of spirit sanctimoniousness and enthusiasm4 ,but remember1 to be almost saved1 is to be altogether lost6--to be zealous about every thing but the one thing needful1 is an insult to ,god and your everlasting interests6 ,have a zeal for others4 ,dying myriads are around you4 ,as a member of the ,christian priesthood1 it becomes you to rush in with your censer and incense between the living and the dead1 that the plague may be stayed6 ,be it yours to say1 ,blessed ,jesus6 ,i am ,thine6--,thine only6--,thine wholly6--,thine for ever6 ,i am willing to follow ,thee1 and 7if need be7 to suffer for ,thee4 ,i am ready at ,thy bidding to leave the homestead in the valley1 and to face the cutting blasts of the mountain4 ,take me--use me for ,thy glory4 ',lord6 what wilt ,thou have me to do8' ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,twenty-third ,day4 ,,benevolence4 ,who went about doing good4--,acts1 x4 #ch4 ,christ's great end1 says ,richard ,baxter1 was to save men from their sins2 but ,he delighted to save them from their sorrows4 ,his heart bled for human misery4 ,benevolence brought ,him from heaven2 benevolence followed ,his steps wherever ,he went on earth4 ,the journeys of the ,divine ,philanthropist were marked by tears of thankfulness1 and breathings of grateful love4 ,the helpless1 the blind1 the lame1 the desolate1 rejoiced at the sound of ,his footfall4 ,truly might it be said of ,him1 ,when the ear heard me1 then it blessed me2 and when the eye saw me1 it gave witness to me4 7,job1 xxix4 #aa47 ,all suffering hearts were a magnet to ,jesus4 ,it was not more ,his prerogative than ,his happiness to turn tears into smiles4 ,one of the few pleasures which on earth gladdened the spirit of the ,man of sorrows was the pleasure of doing good--soothing grief1 and alleviating misery4 ,next to the joy of the widow of ,nain when her son was restored1 was the joy in the bosom of the ,divine ,restorer6 ,he often went out of ,his way to be kind4 ,a journey was not grudged1 even if one aching spirit were to be soothed4 7,mark1 v4 #a2 ,john1 iv4 #d1 #e47 ,nor were his kindnesses dispensed through the intervention of others4 ,they were all personal acts4 ,his own hand healed4 ,his own voice spake4 ,his own footsteps lingered on the threshold of bereavement1 or at the precincts of the tomb4 ,ah6 had the princes of this world known the loving-tenderness and unselfishness of that heart1 they would not have crucified the ,lord of ,glory6 ,reader6 do you know any thing of such active benevolence8 ,have you never felt the luxury of doing good8 ,have you never felt1 that in making others happy1 you make your self so8 that1 by a great law of your being1 enunciated by the ,divine ,patron and ,pattern of ,benevolence1 it is more blessed to give than to receive8 ,has ,god enriched you with this world's goods8 ,seek to view yourself as a consecrated medium for dispensing them to others4 ,beware alike of penurious hoarding and selfish extravagance4 ,how sad the case of those whose lot ,god has made thus to abound with temporal mercies1 who have gone to the grave unconscious of diminishing one drop of human misery1 or making one of the world's myriad aching hearts happier6 ,how the example of ,jesus rebukes the cold and calculating kindnesses--the mite-like offerings of many even of ,his own people6 whose libation is not like ,his1 from the brim of an overflowing cup1 but from the bottom--from the dregs6 ,you may have little to give4 ,your sphere and means may be alike limited4 ,but remember ,god can be as much glorified by the trifle saved from the earnings of poverty1 as by the splendid benefaction from the lap of plenty ,the ,lord loveth a cheerful giver4 ,the nobler part of ,christian benevolence is not vast largesses1 munificent pecuniary sacrifices4 ,he went about doing good4 ,the merciful visit--the friendly word--the look of sympathy--the cup of cold water1 the little unostentatious service--the giving without thought or hope of recompense--the kindly considering of the poor--anticipating their wants--studying their comforts2 these are what ,god values and loves4 ,they are loans to ,himself--tributary streams to the river of ,his pleasure2 they will be acknowledged at last as such--,ye did it unto ,me4 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,twenty-fourth ,day4 ,,firmness ,,in ,,temptation4 ,jesus saith unto him1 ,get thee hence1 ,satan4--,matt4 iv4 #aj4 ,there is an awful intensity of meaning in the words1 as applied to ,jesus1 ,he suffered1 being tempted6 ,though incapable of sin1 there was1 in the refined sensibilities of ,his holy nature1 that which made temptation unspeakably fearful4 ,what must it have been to confront the ,arch-traitor8--to stand face to face with the foe of ,his throne1 and ,his universe8 ,but the prince of this world came1 and found nothing in ,him4 ,billow after billow of ,satanic violence spent their fury1 in vain1 on the ,living ,rock6 ,reader6 you have still the same malignant enemy to contend with2 assailing you in a thousand insidious forms2 marvelously adapting his assaults to your circumstances1 your temperament1 your mental bias1 your master-passion6 ,there is no place where ,satan's seat is not2 the whole world lieth in the ,wicked one4 7#a ,john1 v4 #ai47 ,he has his whispers for the ear of childhood2 hoary age is not inaccessible to his wiles4 ,all this will ,i give thee--is still his bribe to deny ,jesus and to mind earthly things4 ,he will meet you in the crowd2 he will follow you to the solitude2 his is a sleepless vigilance6 ,are you bold in repelling him as your ,master was8 ,are you ready with the retort to every foul suggestion1 ,get thee hence1 ,satan8 ,cultivate a tender sensitiveness about sin4 ,the finest barometers are the most sensitive4 ,whatever be your besetting frailty--whatever bitter or baleful passion you are conscious aspires to the mastery--watch it1 crucify it1 nail it to your ,lord's cross4 ,you may despise the day of small things--the ,great ,adversary does not4 ,he knows the power of littles2 that little by little consumes and eats out the vigor of the soul4 ,and once the retrograde movement in the spiritual life begins1 who can predict where it may end8 the going on from weakness to weakness1 instead of from strength to strength4 ,make no compromises2 never join in the ungodly amusement1 or venture on the questionable path1 with the plea1 ,it does me no harm4 ,the ,israelites1 on entering ,canaan1 instead of obeying the ,divine injunction of extirpating their enemies1 made a hollow truce with them4 ,what was the result8 ,years upon years of tedious warfare4 ,they were scourges in their sides1 and thorns in their eyes6 ,it is quaintly but truthfully said by an old writer1 ,the candle will never burn clear1 while there is a thief in it4 ,sin indulged1 in the conscience1 is like ,jonah in the ship1 which causeth such a tempest1 that the conscience is like a troubled sea1 whose waters cannot rest4--7,thomas ,brooks47 ,keep1 then1 thy heart with all diligence1 or1 7as it is in the forcible original ,hebrew17 keep thy heart above all keeping1 for out of it are the issues of life4 7,prov4 iv4 #bc47 ,let this ever be your preservative against temptation1 ,how would ,jesus have acted here8 would ,he not have recoiled1 like the sensitive plant1 from the remotest contact with sin8 ,can ,i think of dishonoring ,him by tampering with ,his enemy2 incurring from ,his own lips the bitter reflection of injured love1 ',i am wounded in the house of my friends'8 ,he tells us the secret of our preservation and safety1 ,simon6 ,simon6 ,satan hath desired to have thee1 that he might sift thee as wheat2 but ,i have prayed for thee that thy faith fail not6 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,twenty-fifth ,day4 ,,receiving ,,sinners4 ,this man receiveth sinners4--,luke1 xv4 #b4 ,the ironical taunt of proud and censorious ,pharisees formed the glory of ,him who came1 not to call the righteous1 but sinners1 to repentance4 ,publicans and outcasts2 those covered with a deeper than any bodily leprosy--laid bare their wounds to the ,great ,physician2 and as conscious guilt and timid penitence crept abashed and imploring to ,his feet1 they found nothing but a forgiving and a gracious welcome6 ,his ways were not as man's ways6 ,the watchmen1 in the ,canticles1 smote the disconsolate one seeking her lost ,lord2 they tore off her veil1 mocking with chilling unkindness her anguished tears4 ,not so the ,chief ,shepherd and ,bishop of souls4 ,this man receiveth sinners6 ,see ,nicodemus1 stealing under the shadows of night to elude observation--type of the thousand thousand who in every age have gone trembling in their night of sin and sorrow to this ,heavenly ,friend6 ,does ,jesus punish his timidity by shutting ,his door against him1 spurning him from ,his presence8 ,he will not break the bruised reed1 ,he will not quench the smoking flax6 ,and ,he is still the same6 ,he who arrested a persecutor in his blasphemies1 and tuned the lips of an expiring felon with faith and love1 is at this hour standing1 with all the garnered treasures of ,redemption in ,his hand1 proclaiming1 ,him that cometh unto ,me1 ,i will in no wise cast out6 ,are we from this to think lightly of sin8 or1 by example and conduct1 to palliate and overlook its enormity8 ,not so2 sin1 as sin1 can never be sufficiently stamped with the brand of reprobation4 ,but we must seek carefully to distinguish between the offence and the offender4 ,nothing should be done on our part1 by word or deed1 to mock the penitential sighings of a guilty spirit1 or send the trembling outcast away1 with the despairing feeling of ,no hope4 ,this man receiveth sinners1 and shall not we8 ,does ,he suffer the veriest dregs of human depravity to crouch unbidden at ,his feet1 and to gaze on ,his forgiving countenance with the uplifted eye of hope1 and shall we dare to deal out harsh1 and severe1 and crushing verdicts on an offending 7it may be a deeply offending7 brother8 ,shall we pronounce crimson and scarlet sins and sinners beyond the pale of mercy1 when ,jesus does not8 ,nay1 rather1 when wretchedness1 and depravity1 and backsliding cross our path1 let it not be with the bitter taunt or the ironical retort that we bid them away4 ,let us bear1 endure1 remonstrate1 deal tenderly4 ,jesus did so1 ,jesus does so6 ,ah6 ,if we had within us ,his unconquerable love of souls2 ,his yearning desire for the everlasting happiness of sinners1 we should be more frequently in earnest expostulation and affectionate appeal with those who have hitherto got no other than harsh thoughts and repulsive words4 ,if this mind really were in us1 which was also in ,him1 we should more frequently ask ourselves1 ,have ,i done all ,i might have done to pluck this brand from the burning6 ,have ,i remembered what grace has wrought1 what grace can do8 ,brethren1 if any of you do err from the truth1 and one convert him1 let him know1 that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death1 and shall hide a multitude of sins6 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,twenty-sixth ,day4 ,,guilelessness4 ,neither was guile found in ,his mouth4--#a ,pet4 ii4 #bb4 ,how rare1 and all the more beautiful because of its rarity1 is a purely guileless spirit6 ,a crystalline medium through which the transparent light of ,heaven comes and goes2 open1 candid1 just1 honorable1 sincere2 scorning every unfair dealing1 every hollow pretension1 every narrow prejudice4 ,wherever such characters exist1 they are like apples of gold in pictures of silver4 ,such1 in all the loveliness of sinless perfection1 was the ,son of ,god6 ,his guilelessness shining the more conspicuously amid the artful and malignant subtlety alike of men and devils4 ,passing by manifold instances in the course of ,his ministry1 look at its manifestation as the hour of ,his death approached4 ,when1 on the night of his apprehension1 ,he confronts the assassin band1 in meek majesty ,he puts the question1 ,whom seek ye8 ,they say to ,him1 ,jesus of ,nazareth4 ,in guileless innocence1 ,he replies1 ,i am ,he6 ,art thou the ,king of the ,jews8 asks ,pilate1 a few hours after4 ,an evasive answer might again have purchased immunity from suffering and indignity1 but once more the lips which scorned the semblance of evasion reply1 ,thou sayest6 ,how ,he loved the same spirit in ,his people6 ,behold1 said ,he1 of ,nathanael1 an ,israelite indeed1 in whom is no guile6 ,that upright man had1 we may suppose1 been day after day kneeling in prayer under his fig-tree1 with an open and candid spirit-- ,musing on the law he taught1 ,and waiting for the ,lord he loved4 ,see how the ,saviour honored him2 setting ,his own ,divine seal on the loveliness of this same spirit6 ,take one other example1 when the startling1 saddening announcement is made to the disciples1 ,one of you shall betray me2 they do not accuse one another2 they attempt to throw no suspicion on ,judas2 each in trembling apprehension suspects only his own treacherous heart1 ,lord1 is it ,i8 ,how much of a different mind is there abroad6 ,in the school of the world 7this painted world71 how much is there of what is called policy1 double-dealing6--accomplishing its ends by tortuous means2 outward1 artificial polish1 often only a cloak for baseness and selfishness6--in the daily interchange of business1 one seeking to over-reach the other by wily arts2 sacrificing principle for temporal advantage4 ,there is nothing so derogatory to religion as aught allied to such a spirit among ,christ's people--any such blot on the living epistles4 ,ye are the light of the world4 ,that world is a quick observer4 ,it is sharp to detect inconsistencies--slow to forget them4 ,the true ,christian has been likened to an anagram--you ought to be able to read him up and down1 every way6 ,be all reality1 no counterfeit4 ,do not pass for current coin what is base alloy4 ,let transparent honor and sincerity regulate all your dealings2 despise all meanness2 avoid the sinister motive1 the underhand dealing2 aim at that unswerving love of truth that would scorn to stoop to base compliances and unworthy equivocations2 live more under the power of the purifying and ennobling influences of the gospel4 ,take its golden rule as the matchless directory for the daily transactions of life--,whatsoever ye would that men should do to you1 do ye even so to them4 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,twenty-seventh ,day4 ,,activity ,,in ,,duty4 ,i must work the works of ,him that sent me1 while it is day2 the night cometh1 when no man can work4--,john1 ix4 #d4 ,how constant and unremitting was ,jesus in the service of ,his ,heavenly ,father6 ,he rose a great while before day2 and1 when ,his secret communion was over1 ,his public work began4 ,it mattered not to ,him where ,he was3 whether on the bosom of the deep1 or a mountain slope--in the desert1 or at a well-side--the gracious words ever proceeded out of ,his mouth4 ,we find1 on one touching occasion1 exhausted nature sinking1 after a day of unremitting duty2 in crossing1 in a vessel1 the ,lake of ,tiberias--,he fell asleep6 7,matt4 viii47 ,he redeemed every precious moment4 ,his words to the ,pharisee seem a formula for all1 ,simon1 ,i have somewhat to say unto thee6 ,oh1 how our most unceasing activities pale into nothing before such an example as this6 ,would that we could remember that each of us has some great mission to perform for ,god1 that religion is not a thing of dreamy sentimentalism1 but of energetic practical action2 moreover1 that no trade1 no profession1 no position1 however high or however humble in the scale of society1 can disqualify for this life of ,christian activity and usefulness6 ,who were the writers in the ,bible8 ,we have among them a ,king--a ,lawgiver--a ,herdsman--a ,publican--a ,physician6 ,nor is it to high spheres1 or to great services only1 that ,god looks4 ,the widow's mite and ,mary's alabaster box of ointment are recorded as examples for imitation by the ,holy ,ghost1 while many more munificent deeds are passed by unrecorded4 ,we believe that ,god says1 regarding the attempt of many a humble ,christian to serve ,him by active duty1 ,i saw that effort1 that feeble effort to serve and glorify ,me2 it was the very feebleness of it ,i loved6 ,did it never strike you1 notwithstanding the dignity of ,christ1 and the activity of ,christ1 how little success comparatively ,he met with in ,his public work8 ,we read of no numerous conversions2 no ,pentecostal revivals in the course of ,his ministry4 ,may not this well encourage in the absence of great outward results8 ,he sets up no higher standard than this--,she hath done what she could4 ,an artist may be great in painting a peasant as well as a king--it is the way he does it4 ,yes1 and if laid aside from the activities of the ,christian life1 we can equally glorify ,god by passive endurance4 ,who am ,i1 said ,luther1 when he witnessed the patience of a great sufferer2 who am ,i8 a wordy preacher in comparison with this great doer4 ,reader6 forget not the motive of our motto verse1 ,the night cometh6 ,soon our tale shall be told2 our little day is flitting fast1 the shadows of night are falling4 ,our span length of time1 as ,rutherford says1 will come to an inch4 ,what if the eleventh hour should strike after having been all the day idle8 ,a long lifetime of opportunities suffered to pass unemployed and unimproved1 and absolutely nothing done for ,god6 ,a judgment-day come--our golden moments squandered--our talents untraded on--our work undone--met at the bar of ,heaven with the withering repulse1 ,inasmuch as ye did it not4 ,the time we have lost1 says ,richard ,baxter1 can not be recalled2 should we not then redeem and improve the little that remains8 ,if a traveler sleep or trifle most of the day1 he must travel so much the faster in the evening1 or fall short of his journey's end4 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,twenty-eighth ,day4 ,,committing ,,our ,,way ,,to ,,god4 ,but committed himself to ,him that judgeth righteously4-- #a ,peter1 ii4 #bc4 ,with what perfect and entire confidingness did ,jesus commit ,himself to his ,heavenly ,father's guidance6 ,he loved to call ,him1 ,my ,father6 ,there was music in that name1 which enabled ,him to face the most trying hour1 and to drink the most bitter cup4 ,the scoffing taunt arose at the scene of crucifixion3 ,he trusted in ,god that ,he would deliver ,him1 let ,him deliver ,him6 ,it failed to shake1 for one moment1 ,his unswerving confidence1 even when the sensible tokens of the ,divine presence were withdrawn2 the realized consciousness of ,god's abiding love sustained ,him still3 ,my ,god6 my ,god6 ,how many a perplexity should we save ourselves by thus implicitly committing ourselves1 as ,he did1 to ,god6 ,in seasons of darkness and trouble--when our way is shut up with thorns1 to lift the confiding eye of faith to ,him1 and say1 ,i am oppressed1 undertake for me6 ,how blessed to feel that ,he directs all that befalls us2 that no contingencies can frustrate ,his plans2 that the way he leads us is not only a right way1 but1 with all its briers and thorns--its tears and trials--it is the right way6 ,the result of such an habitual staying ourselves on the ,lord will be a deep1 abiding peace2 any ripple will only be on the surface--no more4 ,it is the bosom of the ocean alone which the storm ruffles2 all beneath is a serene1 settled calm4 ,so ,thou wilt keep him1 oh ,god1 in perfect peace1 whose mind is stayed on ,thee6 ,the ,lord is my shepherd1 ,i shall not want4 ,i shall be content alike with what ,he appoints or withholds4 ,i can not wrong that love with one shadow of suspicion6 ,i have ,his own plighted promise of unchanging faithfulness1 that all things work together for good to them that love ,him6 ,often there are earthly sorrows hard to bear2--the unkind accusation1 when it was least merited or expected2 the estrangement of tried and trusted friends1 the failure of cherished hopes1 favorite schemes broken up1 plans of usefulness demolished1 the gourd breeding its own worm and withering4 ,commit thy cause and thy way to ,god6 ,we little know what tenderness there is in the blast of the rough wind2 what needs be are folded under the wings of the storm6 ,all is well1 because all is from ,him4 ,events are ,god's1 says ,rutherford2 let ,him sit at ,his own helm1 that moderateth all4 ,christian6 look back on your checkered path4 ,how wondrously has ,he threaded you through the mazy way--disappointing your fears1 realizing your hopes6 ,are evils looming through the mists of the future8 ,do not anticipate the trials of to-morrow1 to aggravate those of to-day4 ,leave the morrow with ,him1 who has promised1 by casting all your care on ,him1 to care for you4 ,no affliction will be sent greater than you can bear4 ,his voice will be heard stealing from the bosom of the threatening cloud1 ,be still1 and know that ,i am ,god6 ,my ,father6 ,with such a word1 you can stretch out your neck for any yoke2 as with ,israel of old1 ,he will make those very waves that may now be so threatening1 a fenced wall on every side6 ,rest in the ,lord1 and wait patiently for ,him4 ,in all thy ways acknowledge ,him1 and ,he shall direct thy paths6 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,twenty-ninth ,day4 ,,love ,,of ,,unity4 ,that they all may be one4--,john1 xvii4 #ba4 ,surely there is nothing for which ,christian churches have such cause to hang their harps on the willows1 as the extent to which the ,shibboleth of party is heard in the camp of the faithful--sectarianism rearing its untempered walls within the ,temple gates6 ,how different the mind of ,jesus6 ,sent to the lost sheep of the house of ,israel1 ,he was never found disowning other sheep not of that fold4 ,them also will ,i bring1 was an assertion continually illustrated by ,his deeds4 ,take one example3 ,the woman of ,samaria revealed what1 alas6 is too common in the world--a total absence of all real religion1 along with an ardent zeal for her sect4 ,she was living in open sin2 yet she was all alive to the nice distinction between a ,jew and a ,samaritan--between ,mount ,gerizim and ,mount ,zion3 ,how is it that thou1 being a ,jew1 askest drink of me1 who am a woman of ,samaria8 ,did ,jesus sanction or reciprocate her sectarianism8--did ,he leave her bigotry unrebuked8 ,hear ,his reply--,if thou knewest the gift of ,god1 and who it is that saith to thee1 ,give me to drink2 thou wouldst have asked of ,him1 and ,he would have given thee6 ,he would have allowed no such narrow-minded exclusiveness to have interfered with the interchange of kindly civilities with a stranger4 ,nay1 ,he would have given thee1 better than all1 the living water which springeth up to everlasting life6 ,how sad1 that when the enemy is coming in like a flood--the ranks of ,popery and infidelity linked in fatal and formidable confederacy--that the soldiers of ,christ are forced to meet the assault with standards soiled and mutilated by internal feuds6 ,uniformity there may not be1 but unity1 in the true sense of the word1 there ought to be4 ,we may be clad in different livery1 but let us stand side by side1 and rank by rank1 fighting the battles of our ,lord4 ,we may be different branches of the seven golden candlesticks1 varying and diversified in outward form and workmanship2 but let us combine in showing forth the praises of ,him who recognizes1 as the one true churchmanship1 fidelity in shining for ,his glory as lights in the world4 ,how can we read the #acth chapter of #ast ,corinthians1 and then think of our divisions8 ,how miserable1 says ,edward ,bickersteth1 would an hospital be1 if each patient were to be so offended with his neighbor's disease1 as to differ with him on account of it1 instead of trying to alleviate it6 ,ah6 if we had more real communion with our ,saviour1 should we not have more real communion with one another8 ,if ,christians would dip their arrows more in the balm of ,gilead1 would there not be fewer wounds in the body of ,christ8 ,how that word 'toleration' is used amongst us1 said one who drank deeper than most1 of his ,master's spirit--how we tolerate one another--,dissenters tolerate ,churchmen1 and ,churchmen tolerate ,dissenters6 ,oh6 hateful word6 ,,tolerate one for whom ,jesus died6 ,tolerate one whom ,he bears upon ,his heart6 ,tolerate a temple of the living ,god6 ,oh6 there ought to be that in the word which should make us feel ashamed before ,god6 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,thirtieth ,day4 ,,not ,,of ,,the ,,world4 ,i am not of the world4--,john1 xvii4 #ad4 ,in one sense it was not so4 ,jesus did not seek to maintain ,his holiness intact and unspotted by avoiding contact with the world4 ,he mingled familiarly in its busy crowds4 ,he frowned on none of its innocent enjoyments2 ,he fostered1 by ,his example1 no love of seclusion2 ,he gave no warrant or encouragement to mortified pride1 or disappointed hopes1 to rush from its duties2 yet1 with all this1 what a halo of heavenliness encircled ,his pathway through it6 ,i am from above1 was breathed in ,his every look1 and word1 and action1 from the time when ,he lay in the slumbers of guileless infancy in ,his ,bethlehem cradle1 until ,he said1 ,i leave the world1 and go to my ,father6 ,he had moved uncontaminated through its varied scenes1 like the sunbeam1 which1 whatever it touches1 remains as unsullied1 as when it issues from its great fountain4 ,but though ,himself in ,his sinless nature unconquerable by temptation--immutably secure from the world's malignant influences1 it is all worthy of note1 as an example to us1 that ,he never unnecessarily braved these4 ,he knew the seducing spell that same world would exercise on ,his people1 of whom1 with touching sympathy1 ,he says1 ,these are in the world6 ,he knew the many who would be involved and ensnared in its subtle worship1 who1 minding earthly things1 would seek to slake their thirst at polluted streams6 ,reader6 the great problem you have to solve1 ,jesus has solved for you--to be in the world1 and yet not of it4 ,to abandon it1 would be a dereliction of duty4 ,it would be servants deserting their work2 soldiers flying from the battle-field4 ,live in it1 that while you live1 the world1 may feel the better for you4 ,die1 that when you die1 the world1 the ,church1 may feel your loss1 and cherish your example6 ,on its cares and duties1 its trusts and responsibilities1 its employments and enjoyments1 inscribe the motto1 ,the world passeth away6 ,beware of every thing in it that would tend to deaden spirituality of heart2 unfitting the mind for serious thought1 lowering the standard of ,christian duty1 and inducing a perilous conformity to its false manners1 habits1 tastes1 and principles4 ,as the best antidote to the love of the world1 let the inner vacuum of the heart be filled with the love of ,god4 ,seek to feel the nobility of your regenerated nature2 that you have a nobler heritage to care for than the transitory glories which encircle an indivisible point1 a fugitive atom4 ,how can ,i mix with the potsherds of the earth8 ,once1 ,i lay among the pots2 now1 ,i am like a dove1 whose wings are covered with silver1 and her feathers with yellow gold6 ,stranger--pilgrim--sojourner my citizenship is in heaven6 ,why covet tinsel honors and glories8 ,why be solicitous about the smiles of that which knew not 7nay1 which frowned on7 its ,lord8 ,paul calls it1 says an old writer1 schema 7a mathematical figure71 which is a mere notion1 and nothing in substance4--7,thomas ,brooks47 ,live above its corroding cares and anxieties2 remembering the description ,jesus gives of ,his own true people2 ,they are not of the world1 even as ,i am not of the world6 ,,arm ,,yourselves ,,likewise ,,with ,,the ,,same ,,mind4 ,thirty-first ,day4 ,,calmness ,,in ,,death4 ,father1 into ,thy hands ,i commend ,my spirit4--,luke1 xxiii4 #df4 ,in the death of ,jesus1 there were elements of fearfulness1 which the believer can know nothing of4 ,it was with ,him the execution of a penal sentence4 ,the sins of an elect world were bearing him down6 ,the very voice of ,his ,god was giving the tremendous summons1 ,awake1 ,o sword1 against my shepherd6 ,yet ,his was a death of peace1 nay1 of triumph6 ,ere ,he closed ,his eyes1 light broke through the curtains of thick darkness4 ,in the calm composure of filial confidence ,he breathed away ,his soul--,father1 into ,thy hands ,i commend ,my spirit6 ,what was the secret of such tranquillity8 ,this is ,his own key to it--,i have glorified ,thee on the earth2 ,i have finished the work which ,thou gavest me to do4 ,reader6 will it be so with you at a dying hour8 will your work be done8 ,have you already fled to ,jesus8 ,are you reposing in ,him as your only ,saviour1 and following ,him as your only pattern8 ,then--let death overtake you when it may--you will have nothing to do but to die6 ,the grave will be irradiated with ,his presence and smile4 ,he will be standing there as ,he did by ,his own tomb of old1 pointing to yours1 tenanted with angel forms1 nay1 ,himself as the ,precursor1 showing you the path of life6 ,there can be no true peace till the fear of death be conquered by the sense of sin forgiven1 through the blood of the ,cross4 ,not till then1 as one has it1 will you be able to be a quiet spectator of the open grave at the bottom of the hill which you are soon to descend4 ,the sting of death is sin1 but thanks be to ,god who giveth us the victory through the ,lord ,jesus ,christ6 ,seek now to live in the enjoyment of greater filial nearness to your covenant ,god2 and thus1 when the hour of departure does come1 you will be able1 without irreverence1 to take the very words of your dying ,lord1 and make them your own--,,father6 into ,thy hands ,i commend my spirit4 ,,father6 ,it is going ,,home6 the heart of the child leaping at the thought of the paternal roof1 and the paternal welcome6 ,son1 thou art ever with me1 and all that ,i have is thine6 ,it is said of ,archbishop ,leighton1 that he was always happiest when1 from the shaking of the prison-doors1 he was led to hope that some of those brisk blasts would throw them open1 and give him the release he coveted4 ,christian6 can you dread that which your ,saviour has already vanquished8 ,death6 ,it is as the angel to ,peter1 breaking the dungeon-doors1 and leading to open day2 it is going to the world of your birthright1 and leaving the one of your exile2 it is the soldier at night-fall1 lying down in his tent in peace1 waiting the morning to receive his laurels4 ,oh6 to be ever living in a state of holy preparation6 the mental eye gazing on the vista-view of an opening ,heaven6 feeling that every moment is bringing us nearer and nearer that happy ,home6 soon to be within reach of the ,heavenly threshold1 in sight of the ,throne6 soon to be bending in adoring rapture with the ,church triumphant--bathing in floods of infinite glory--,,like ,,him1--seeing ,,him as ,he is1 and that for ,ever and ,ever6 ,,and ,,every ,,man ,,that ,,hath ,,this ,,hope ,,in ,,him ,,purifieth ,,himself1 ,,even ,,as ,,he ,,is ,,pure6 ,leaving us ,,an ,,example that we should follow ,,his ,,steps4 #a ,peter1 ii4 #ba4