the interest of a few at the expense of many, the blood of Abel cries out for judgment, and God is not deaf. In every great struggle for human rights, nothing quite so clearly reveals the type of manhood as the side which one takes. If he sides with the strong against the weak he sides against God. Second, let us never give a man up however desperate his case. Let one's estimate of man's dignity grow with his own growth. We can not remind ourselves too often of that large room for charity due to souls under infinitely varied and trying conditions. It is the misfortune of many to have spent most of their life in contact with narrow, weak and mean types of men. The answer they give to the question, “What do you think of man," is quite different from that of those who have all their days lived among large-hearted and generous spirits. It is not within the power of man, to entirely transcend his surroundings. He is the child of his age, his nation, his climate, his educational advantages. But within quite large limits, his freedom to choose, and control is a guarded gift of God. Within these confines, "where there is a will there is a way." With such there are no evil stars. No defeat overtakes them, but it is turned into victory. It is said that George Washington lost more battles than he won, but his genius lay in organizing success out of defeat. When his foes thought that they were managing him, he was managing them. He was a fighter from his ancestors. The very stars in our flag are taken from the common origin of the rowel pointed spurs in a family coat-of-arms, but they shine with a worth that makes us proud of our country and our race. The trouble with the world is not that it fights, but that it fights on the wrong side, at the wrong time, for wrong ends and with the wrong spirit. The Lord declared that he came not to send peace but a sword, and advised the disciples to carry a sword. "He that hath no sword let him sell his garment and buy one." And he said unto them, enough to know when

"And they said Lord behold here are two swords. It is enough." Yes, one for each hand and sense to sheath them and when to strike.

Lastly, the dignity of man is vindicated in the Son of man. He revealed humanity at its best. No doubt God is the only being capable of anticipating man's true nature. His rebukes are real, terrible because merciful. There are no threats. The greater the nature, the greater the shadows of its falls and peril. With such a constitution, with God clothing us, his children, with a majestic nature, holding before us all conceivable inducement to live worthily of our high calling, how is it possible for us to delay, to temporize, to sell our birthright. Oh, let us come up to ourselves and to the joy and welcome of our Father's House.

XIII.

THE GOSPEL.

"The universal benevolence of God as our Father; the universal capacity for religion in mankind as his children; the identification of religion with morality; the identification of moral goodness with the Divine nature; the supreme importance of charity, purity, truth and humanity; the necessity and possibility of continued progress both in the individual and in the race; the reversal of the superficial judgment of the world; the identification of things secular and things sacred; the divinity of sorrow and suffering; the spiritual character of true religion, both in worship and doctrine,-these are the ten chief inward principles which lie behind all the facts, institutions and history of Christianity."-Dean Stanley.

A Greylock Pulpit.

THE GOSPEL.

For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.-Rom. 1:16.

The conditions of Paul's time were opposite to our own in the matter of feeling ashamed to be known as a follower of Jesus Christ. In the time of the apostle, the cross, the central fact of the Gospel, was the popular symbol of shame. To-day hundreds of thousands of dollars are invested in jeweled crosses soon to be sold as ornaments and worn on the breast of beauty.

The Gospel had both the advantage and disadvantage of being new. Just what was new in the good news? Some have said that Jesus taught nothing new. It has been asserted that He made no effort to teach new truth. There is a sense in which this can be admitted. Moral and spiritual truth can always be represented by a generic term, like righteousness or benevolence. The scope of such an idea will vary with the personality in whom it resides. The unique life of Christ gave expansion to old terms, and the life is so large and so full of ferment that the best new bottles can not hold it. Some bottle must nevertheless be used. The word love has been pitched upon as most usable. Some one turns to the old Hebrew economy and discovers that love was a term employed before the Christian era. Our logician comes ambling back with the conclusion that Christ had no originality. After one has ceased to expect instruction in natural science, after one finds that the alleged Messiah is consistent with the uniformity of nature in insisting that we shall delve for our facts and gratify our own curiosity, we are prepared to note that His mission was to give practical scope to spiritual truth. His object was, to give men a practical motor to turn the wheels of life. He increased spiritual knowledge in the world. Incidentally, this carried with it all knowledge. All that Christianity has inspired and produced is a part of Christianity, and stands to the credit of Christ. Looking, however, at His life and teachings, His exalted nature is seen in the fact that His aim was not to increase man's knowledge either of this world or the world to come, but to bestow power by which men would become inspired to use the knowledge which they already had. This, too, was a guiding principle with the apostle Paul. In

writing to the Romans, Paul does not attempt the herculean task of giving them a theology, an epitome of truth; he has the more practical aim of an evangelist. He addresses himself to a special case, "to the Jew first, and also to the Greek," to a Christian church at Rome with a mixture of Jews, Greeks and native Romans. He did not attempt to tell them all he knew about Christianity in one letter. His object was to present so much of the truth as was adapted to the people addressed. There were several things assumed. One of these was, that ideal character is the end of all life. There was no argument there. This is the goal of all who have not forsworn reason itself. Paul said to these people, who of all others in ancient history developed conscience and wrought righteousness, our past schemes to build character, have been comparative failures. They have done too little for the Jew and can not be recommended to the Greek. The Jewish institutions, ordinances and ritual have been no match for animalhood.

"What the Law, (the whole Jewish economy) could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh," God sent His own Son to do.

He is not sent to do anything for us that we can do for ourselves. History had demonstrated the inadequacy of all previous methods to promote spiritual development. This many sensitive and devout natures were quick to concede. If others required further proof it could be found.

The character of Jesus Christ is delighted in by those who fall short of according Him the place of Divinity. Poetry is drawn upon to yield Him all but worship. Pathetic fiction weeps under cold stars of sentiment, yielding faith in an almost perfect life. What takes place? Our problem of righteousness has increased. It was difficult before. The life which the skeptical world concedes to Jesus, has raised our standard without increasing our ability. The gap between the ideal and the real was wide before Christ. It is as much wider since Christ, as the brilliancy of His success is greater than that of the prophets before Him. The more that Renan, Strauss, Russeau, or Mrs. Humphrey Ward can say for His matchless character, the more hopeless becomes man's single-handed struggle to attain it. Imagine a person compelled to ride a steed which he is unable to govern. The spirit truly is willing but the flesh is weak," said Christ. Said Paul, "I know that in me, that is in my flesh, dwelleth no good thing; for to will is present with me, but how to perform that which is good, I find not. For the good that I would, I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do."

What are we going to do? Make sure of this, salvation is ahead not behind. Shall we give up the problem? That is the cowardly thing. The worldly spirit says. "let be, things will come out well in time. Cease to disturb yourself, all this will be outgrown." Not so. growth will but confirm the strength of an evil course. Growth is a benefit only when the direction is good. Mere growth is nothing, aside from the direction of growth. If there can be no addition without good, if there can be no evil without subtraction, if there can be no salvation without salvability, if there can be no salvability without righteousness, if our righteousness, relative to human and historical standards, leaves us in despair, then what? We come to necessity for the power of God in the soul of man.