The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1871-04-10

APRIL 10 l87I.- TRIPLE
Tho Power Of Uhris's Life and Love.
There never lived on earth parsonage who
has attracted such universal attention and adj
miration as He whose ignominious death and
glorious resurrection the Christian Church
celebrated yesterday. Other great teachers
Of religion and morals lived before His day and
had their followers, but one after another
they have faded or are fading away from the
faith and conscience of mankind. In regard
to many Of them there was an inconsistency
between their personal lives and their public
teachings, and as the world grows In intelli-
gence this fact must be damaging II not damn
ing to the cause with which 1t lie connected.
But the most malicious sceptic who has ever
sought to weaken or to throw down the founda-
tons Of our faith has never attempted to gain
say the perfect purity Of the Saviour's life.
he may bubble over certain sayings Of Jesus,
and may deny the supernatural In His mira
Giles; he may despise the whole Christian
scheme and mock at the doctrine of vicarious
atonement, but he must ever stand silent
before life which has no stain upon it
before man who, though tempted in all
points like as We are, was yet without sin.
II was by the power Of His life, and not
by the eloquenoe OF His preaching, that Jesus
of Nazareth won the multitude to himself in
the days of His flesh. 1t was by the power of
His life that His disciples after Him were able
to preach His word with effect aud to win con-
verts by thousands to his standard. And it is
by the power of His life TINT the Church in all
ages has perpetuated itself and commanded
the respect, if not the admiration, of the world.
The power of an upright, stainless life is
incalculable. It cannot be resisted; and,
whether men will hear the Gospel or whether
they will forbear, they must acknowledge the
truth written in the life and words and actions
of every man who processes to and does faith
fully follow the Lord Jesus Christ 1t has
come to be q truism in this our own age that
the world will no longer judge us by our
creeds, but by our acts; and the sublimest
creed that ever was written or uttered was
that by the Saviour when he babe us '.Do unto
others as we would have others do unto us. !"
We do not wonder that this should be called
'sthe Golden Rule" 1t works nothing but
good, and the man who squares his life by 1t
will find peace and pleasure here, and joy
unspeakable and full of glory hereafter.
But there was in the Lord Jesus Christs life
the manifestation of another power equally
grand and sublime-the power Of divine love.
He came not only to fulfil the law and the
prophets, but to manifest Gods love to a sim
full world. 1t was impossible before the CON-
ing of Christ for mankind to have any other
conception of the Creator than that which they
had-namely, God of fierce countenance,
taking vengeance upon his adversaries and
recompensing his enemies. The Jewish law
and the prophecies breathe very little else than
threatenings and slaughter against sinful
nations and individuals: but the Christian
law and the Gospel teaching are full Of the
spirit of love and peace and long suffering.
God Is no longer hater of the human race,
but an intense lover of it. He so loved the
world as TO give His only begotten Son-the
express image Of His person-to die for sinful
humanity that we might have different and
truer conception of the Great Father. Now
men can feel relation to and sympathy
with the Almighty which they could never
have felt without such q manifestation
of God in the flesh as the world has had. 1t is
fitting, therefore, that at this season of the
year the power of the Saviours sublime life
and Of the Fathers unutterable love should be
brought wildly before our minds by the ordi-
nances of the Church as the latter is by the
developments of nature.
But such life and such love were too su-
perhuman to be fully appreciated by men whose
fondest schemes and most cherished hopes
were brought into striking contrast with them
day by day. And hence the world could not
long suffer the Son of God or the Son of Mary
to live and to preach as He had done. ''And
all who Will live cody in Christ Jesus
shall suffer persecution" A little persecution
now and again would be great invigorator
and purifier of the Church. 1t is dying Of
responsibility and fashion. Itno longer makes
its people 80 peculiar people, royal priest
hood, holy nation" but allows such a same
ness to exist between them and the world that
they might almost at any time, now, be mis-
taken each for the other. The great deside-
ratum of the Church to-day is holiness Of life
and fervent love for Christ and for the seve-
raj members Of His body. And for this let all
good men pray and labor and second the
efforts Of the HERALD to bring about these
glorious results.
The Hish COmmission-Thc Basis Of Set
element Agreed Upon.
The Joint High Commission, according to
what Is called good authority outside of the
memhora themsalvaa havo a0rood unon a