labours. How, then, can He reward it? You do not reward your gardener for the exquisite tint of a rose, or for the purity and fragrance of the lily. You may reward him for the diligent, watchful care he has shown over your plants and flowers, in a word, for faithful discharge of his duties; but the tint of the rose or the purity and sweetness of the lily are God's handiwork, not his, and you cannot reward your gardener for their presence. As little shall we be rewarded for the success of our work for the Master. The one quality He will reward is fidelity. Matt. XXV. 21 makes this very clear. The man to whom the words there recorded were addressed had been entrusted with five talents. He had gained beside them five talents more. "Well done, successful servant!" would cry out the success-loving, success-worshipping, nineteenth century. But about the success there is not one word on the Master's lips. The one quality he takes note of and rewards is the faithfulness of the service. "Well done, good and faithful servant, thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things."

Now, this quality which the Master rewards, every man may bring to His service if he will. We cannot bring success when we will, and in what measure we will-this is not wholly in our hands, but in the Master's; but faithfulness, "the humble grace that marches on in sunshine and in storm," in good and evil report, amid failure or success, "when no banner is waving and no music cheers the weary feet "the one quality God is likely to crown with success if He crown any; the only quality which God will reward in our service; that, all of us may attain.

(2) And if a man be faithful in service, what is his reward? The answer to the question lies in the words just now quoted from Matthew's Gospel. They are words telling the faithful servant what his reward is. And what, according to them, is that reward? It is the privilege of being permitted to serve his Master still, only in a larger sphere, and with larger opportunities. Observe he had served, he shall rule; he had served faithfully in a few things, he shall rule in many things. Higher service is allotted to him, a higher sphere of labour is afforded him; and that is his reward.

This, I make bold to say, is not the commonly held notion of reward. We have come to look upon a reward as something distinct from the deed rewarded, as some external wage, or good or advantage or happiness, added on to our action. But it is not so. Reward, like punishment, is only "the other half" of our action: something flowing out of it and resulting from it; the action bearing fruit. It is no more distinct from it than the fruit is distinct from the tree; no more something external added on to it

than wheat is something external added on to the stalk that bears it. More than that, it is as essentially determined by the action as what the fruit shall be is determined by what the tree is, or as what the wheat shall be is determined by the seed sown. And, for this reason, the reward is always appropriate to the action rewarded. If you sow wheat, you do not expect to reap barley. If you plant an apple tree, you do not expect to gather pears. And yet if some people sow spiritual things they expect to reap material things. They are honest, high-minded, honourable in business, and are surprised that their business is not prosperous and profitable, especially when a near tradesman, who is unscrupulous, tricky, and dishonest, is nevertheless prosperous. In short, from such spiritual things as integrity and high-mindedness they expect to reap such material things as increase of business and profit and possessions. These are not God's rewards for nobleness and rectitude of nature; and to expect them is foolish and against the law of the harvest. Men do not gather grapes from fig-trees, or figs from vines. From a vine, grapes; from a fig-tree, figs; from wheat, wheat. That is the law of nature's harvest. And from spiritual things, spiritual things; from wisdom, capacity for greater wisdom; from understanding, greater power to understand; from righteous-doing, greater power to do righteously; from loving, greater power to love; that also is the law of the harvest in spiritual things. "Whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reap "—not something different.

But if one law of the harvest is that a man shall reap what he has sown, another law is that he shall reap more than he has sown. The man who goes forth weeping, bearing precious seed, comes back with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him. "And some seed fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold."

It is in accordance with these two laws of the harvest that the faithful servant reaps, as his reward for service, not some distinct and different blessing, some external or fortuitously-added advantage, but greater power to serve, and larger opportunities of service. He had served faithfully, his reward is to serve still; that is in accordance with the first law of the harvest, that a man shall reap what he has sown. He had served faithfully in a few things; his reward is to serve in a higher way. "I will make thee ruler over many things." In this respect his reward follows the second law of the harvest, viz., that a man shall not only reap what he has sown, but more than he has sown.

And, indeed, it would be strange if the reward were otherwise The reward of a soldier going through his military exercises is not

the becoming a literary man, or a painter, or a schoolmaster, but the becoming a better soldier. To make a literary man, or a painter, or a schoolmaster, an altogether different kind of training is necessary. And yet some of us have thought that faithful service of God is preparing us for something utterly distinct from service. It is not; nor can it be. Learning to-day to serve in a few things, we are but preparing to serve to-morrow in many things. This is so by virtue of the law that everything strengthens with use. Doing a thing once, better fits us for doing, not something else, but that same thing, a second time. And so service fits for service, for other, and higher, and nobler forms of it. That is its reward. "Thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will made thee ruler over many things." No reward could be more appropriate or natural.

(3) The principle of reward laid down by the Saviour in the words just quoted is one which, whether intentionally or unintentionally, we repeatedly follow in conducting our affairs. Many examples might be given, but one or two will suffice for our purpose. A master, say, has in his workshop a workman who is faithful, conscientious, diligent, efficient. By and by the position of foreman of the particular department where that workman toils becomes vacant. The master takes his faithful workman anl puts him in the vacant post. What has he done but followed the principle of reward we have just been speaking of? The workman has served faithfully; he shall serve his master still by ruling. He has served faithfully in a few things, he shall rule in many things. In a word, his reward for faithful service is to be permitted to serve still, only in a higher way, and in a larger sphere. Or, to cull an illustration from a department of what we call spiritual work : here is a young man who is efficient as teacher of one of the junior classes in the Sunday-school. He scrupulously and exactly discharges the duties of his office. When there is need for a teacher in a higher class he is asked to take the position. Now, in this ease, too, the principle of reward followed is that embodied in the words of the Saviour to the faithful servant, for what is his reward but to have given to him other and larger opportunities to serve ?

(4) And the true servant of Christ will desire no other nor higher reward than this, that the Master gives to all His faithful servants. When the true soldier has faithfully served his country he will crave no greater reward than to be permitted still to serve her in a higher way. It were no reward to him if, whilst his country needed him, and his arm was strong to serve her, he was bidden to take his ease, and live the peaceable civilian's life. That were not to reward, but to degrade him. So of the servant of the Lord Jesus.

If he must have a reward, he will ask that it may be this: to be permitted still to enter into the joy of his Lord, by being still permitted to serve Him. The reward could be heightened only by opportunities for larger, higher service; for, entering into these, he will thereby enter into the larger, higher joy of His Love.

(5) This reward of faithful service is being given now. In a broad and solemn sense, every day is a Judgment-day, for every day we are, in some measure, receiving "according to that we have done, whether it be good or bad." Every day the Master cometh and calleth His servants to give account of their stewardship; and every day He is rewarding or punishing them. Neither the reward nor the punishment is all future. The pain and loss which follow non-use or mis-use of our heaven-entrusted talents are experienced now. Not using, we are every day losing power to use. Mis-using, we are every day becoming less potent to use aright. On the other hand, serving faithfully, we are every day receiving the benison of faithfulness-the larger opportunity to serve, and increased power with the increased opportunity. Serving in a " few things" to-day, our reward is to be able to serve in "many things" to-morrow.

(6) Not less true is it, however, that this rewarding which goes on every day shall, in its fullest and most perfect sense, be done at the Judgment-day. And the principle of the reward then will be the same as now. He who is every day rewarding His faithful servants by giving them larger opportunities and larger power to serve, shall reward them on the same principle at the end of all their days, when He comes to review their life's service. He shall say to them then, as He says to them now, "Thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things."

What scope, or what larger opportunities for service the course of things after the judgment will afford, we do not know. As little do we know what kind of service the Master will require of His servants in that other life. On such matters nothing is revealed, and it were vain to speculate upon them. Only this is clear: There will be service in that other and grander life. For of them that have washed their robes and come out of the great tribulation, it is said that "they do serve Him day and night in His temple" (Rev. vii. 15). And in speaking of the land where there is "no more curse," John of the Apocalypse further says: "And His servants shall serve Him" (Rev. xxii. 3). The how and the why are not explained; the kind and the measure of the service are not specified. All is vague, hazy, mysterious, save this: there shall be service for God's servants in the great hereafter.

And this much, too, is clear: neither now nor in the end can we be lifted up to higher forms of service, and acquire the power to

efficiently serve in higher ways, without faithfulness in the service to which He has called us here and now. Only to him who has been faithful can that large and glorious reward be given, here or hereafter, "Thou hast been faithful over few things, I will make thee ruler over many things." He, and he only, shall enter into the joy of his Lord-the joy of service. Liverpool.

HENRY SMITH (A).

THE cloud in the wilderness was called a pillar on account of its form, and was emblematical of the Divine presence. It went before the children of Israel, and served them as a guide, During the first and second stages of their journey, they had Moses for their leader; and well qualified was he for acting in such capacity, for he was intimately acquainted with the country. But they had now reached the wilderness, in which there were no roads, no tracks, nor any waymarks, and of which they had no maps to direct them. Must they then remain stationary, or return to the country from which they had set out? No; the cloud now served purpose of a guide, by its movements it gave the signal to Israel when they were to march and when to encamp.

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The cloud was also a shelter from the fiery and burning rays of sun. Among the many features which characterised the wilderness, one was its almost insufferable heat. So excessive was it at times, that travellers were subjected to the greatest privations and sufferings, not a few even losing life itself. But from all such injurious and fatal consequences the Israelites were shielded; for the cloud assumed for them a thick and gloomy appearance, through which the scorching rays of the sun could not penetrate.

What, however, was to become of God's favoured people during night? Were they to be shrouded in midnight darkness? This is what they might naturally have expected; and had it been the case, the greatest disorder must have ensued in the camp, and their march have been impeded. About six hundred thousand men, besides children, set out from Egypt. A mixed multitude also