The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1866-04-14
Sunday Reading.
Beautiful for Christ's SAKE.

From No. 50 of HENRY WARD BERoHER's Lee
tyre Room Talks, published in the Neao York hide
pendeatl A ..r be- -.z.. I,,.rae
Now, YOU are bound to be beautiful for
Christ's sake. And the power of Christ in
your heart, ii it be allowed to be free and full.
will make you beautiful, just as love makes
anybody beautiful in this world, will make
your conduct beautiful, and will make your
life and experience attractive. For Christs
sake everything about us should be beautiful.
How seldom it is that we feel any obliga-
ton in this regardl How seldom do we at
tempt to make religion PRACTICAL How less
often do we succeed in doing it! And yet it
does not require very much to do it. You
may be SO faithful in your industry as to at
tract the attention OF men, and men may say
Ut you, 81 like to deal with that man; he is
upright and true" but if there is anything
about you that men admire, it ought to re-
dound to the glory of Christ, and you ought
to feel, "By the grace of God l am this that
am" Your kindness, your patience under
provocation, your utter refusal to avenge your
self in any wIse-that ought to be attributed
to the influence of Christ In some way it
ought to be made known that all that which is
beautiful, lovely, and attractive in your char
acter, is the result of Christ dwelling in you.
In short, if it be sincerity, if it be cheerful
ness, if it be gentleness, ii it be love, if it be
fidelity, whatever it is, men should know that
Christ is in you because his spirit is manifest
ed by your life. He makes you what you are,
and you are bound to bear this testimony. ~
know that there are many persons who
feel great delicacy on the subject of their re-
ligious feelings; nor would I rebuke it. 1
think there may be a sort of exhibitOriness
which is inconsistent with richness and depth
Of Christian feeling But, on the other hand,
do not believe that any man can be cheerful,
and hide it. do not believe that any man
hQ fPrlu hanav0pUt and hi6Q If T do
not believe that any man can be really con-
scientious, and not have it appear. do not
believe that any man can be active, and not
have 1t known. In other words, great salient
tendencies of Christian experience are to
show themselves and make themselves felt.
1t is not necessary that you should make them
a subject OF conversation; but it is needful, as
part of the fulfment of your covenant vows,
that you should, in your intercourse with
men, let them see that, in consequence of
your union with Christ, you have something
in you that is better than anything that you
had in you before, and better than ANYTHING
thatmost men have in them.
If your righteousness docs not exceed the
righteousness of the good moral folks about
you, why are you better than they? If you
have nothing that is better than your neigh
bor has, who is not Christian, why should've
try to be a Christian? Why should he come
to your ground, unless your ground is higher
than his2 -rT .a2 ;-1 s-iassN 7a79G
While, then, we talk about religion, while
we preach, while we visit, while we hold vari-
GUS meetings, while we employ the means
within our reach for the instruction of men,
as it is very proper for us to do, we ought not
to forget that, after all, the most attractive
and winning influence which We can bring to
bear upon men is the disposition made sweet
and beautiful by the indwelling of Christ Je-
sus. -i'' Q
Now, this duty of testifying for Christ every
body can perform. 1t does not require genius
or learning. The things that will make Chris
tianity most powerful in this world are things
that are accessible to persons of the most slen-
der opportunities and endowments. BE full
ofmoral and spiritual elements: and that will
make you influential upon your fellow-men.