Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1868-03-05
THE REPUBLICAN.
RELIGIOUS MISCELLANY.

what men understand by the word
lore, You will find IL does not signify
at all that which IL came 20 signify in
Christ's life and experience For AL.
though as Christ has, as 1t were, re-
baptized the word, it is the mothers
love. the lovers love and the childs
love although il includes in it all
that which is domestic, pure and beau
tiful in the alliances aud affiliations
one with another-that il but one
thread. 1t is but one single element.
"As | love you" he said, "love one
another" Not as your mother loves,
love ye; not as you love your com
panions; not as the child loves the
father; not as one loves another
among you; but GAS | love you, love
one another" Love devoid of sell
tishness was not that; love that con.
sisted not in the thrill of asingle feel
ing. but of the action of the whole
being. in the movement of the whole
nature; love that carried with it all
intellect, all moral sense, all taste, all
goodness love that was disinteres-
ted love for anothers good more than
the rebound OF pleasuro-loving to
ones own damage; love freighted
with sorrow love that was not
blind, but that, with pure eyes, saw
the infrmity, the wickedness, the un-
loveliness of the object, and yet shined
on all this to make it beautiful, as the
sun shines on the homely earth, and
covers it with blossoms love that
made itself a universal instrument Of
benefit, giving forth all seed, reaping
no harvest, swathing men as with an
atmosphere, constant as the sun, gen
tie as the light, universal as God him
self; this love, higher than any that
has been practiced-love that had in
it the inspiration of the world to in
fuence better love love that had in
it the power of patience to wait till
this inspiration could arouse the
world, love that kindled, that guided,
and that cured love that could suffer
that men might not suffer, and wait
that men might grow, and hope that
the thing that was not might yet
come forth-that was that love Of
Christ-not the suitry fervor of trop-
ical passion. nor the measured equiva-
lents of common love, nor the elective
affinities of moral and tasteful love,
nor the extatic rapture Of love rejoie-
ing in the echoes which it has itself
created, and singing to the heart that
sings back to it; but the simple love
of Christ to sinful souls strong,
strange-stronger than any other,
stranger than any other; suffering,
gloriiying, recreating, saving love
This il was that was a new command
mentindeed-" "Thatye love one anoth-
er as / have loved you"-with high
er fight, a nobler meaning, a larger
endowment than any that was known
before. Surely, into that word love
never before had been put such mean
ings. Christ found it, as it were, a
poor and penurious village of novels /;
he left it a golden city full of golden
streets-full of shining qualities.
Christianity is the coronation in
this world of the love force 1t is the
end and aim of character, according
TO the Christian scheme. 1t is the
power which corrects all alterations (;
which equaizes all deficiencies which
halmonizes all incongruities which
inspires all inert and dormant parts I;
which gives liberty aud duty. 1t is
that which fills justice with the sweet
ness of q nursing mothers love. 1t
is, therefore, the test of religion in
the subject himself; aud it is the sign
or evidence to all others that man
is Christian, that the love.force pre-
dominates in him; not that he is
amiable-as many. by nature are; not
that he is charitably inclined, but
that tho whole spirit of each and
every one of his faculties, and the
whole procession of them the aims
in him self of character, and the ends
outside of character which he seeks
in this world, are, like Christ's, bene-
6oient. Love-not worship, nor obe-
dience, nor fear, nor duty-is religion,
since Christ's day Love is the only
religion since the day OF Christ.
Where it reigns, in the trains will
follow worship, obedience, awe and
duty, Getting love, whatever else is
needed and missed, is sure to come in
time.
Sir Matthew Hale SAYS; "Converse
not with liar, or swearer, or
man Of obscene or wanton language
for either it will corrupt you, or at
least it will hazard your reputation TO
be of the like making and if il doth
neither, yet it will fill your memory
with such discourses that it will be
troublesome to you in after time; and
the returns of the remembrance of
the passages of this nature, which you
have long since heard, will haunt when
your thoughts should be better en-
ployed."
0 ambitious man. thou that FUNNIEST
after something, and thou canst not
tell what it is that can crafty thine
immortal spirit, turn TO the cross, for
at the foot of il there springs a sacred
fount of soul-satisiying delight, and if
thou wilt but stoop and drink, thine
ambition shall be over, and thou shalt
want no more, that is satisfaction to
the deepest longings Of the heart, and
head, and conscience, in the fount
which springs from the wounds of
Jesus. Faith is the silver cup. Dip
il into the overaowing stream and
drink. o Holy Spirit, put the cup to
my poor brothers lips.