The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1875-06-28
BACCALAUREAYD SERMONS.
Rev. DR.. McCosA on The Royal
Law Of Love"
President Porter, Of Yale, on Chris
tianity and Its Life
EXhOrtaliOn Of President CateIl to the Sin.
dents Of Lafayette College,
COLLEGE OF NEW JERSEY.


THE BAooALAUREATE SERMON BY THE REV. pR.
McosH-''THE ROYAL LAW OF LOVE"
the following is the baccaaureate sermon
preached yesterday before the College ofEew Jer-
sey by President McCosn on '.The Royal Law or
Love-" Great interest had been excited in antici-
patton OF the discourse, as 1t had been believed
DR. McCosh would handle Mr. Beecher roughly.
These anticipatons. however, as Will be seen,
were entirely disappointed
SERMON.
Love is the fulfilling Of the law.-Romans, xiii, 10
II fuln the royal law according 10 the scripture,
thou shalt love thy neiahbor as myself % do we'll
In these passages there is a reference to three
things-to love, TO law and king. 1 see before
me arch set up on earth and spanning the
heavens: the side Is law, the other side Is
love, and the keystone binding and browning the
whole is God. Our theme Is the royal Law or love.
Let us contemplate love and law first separately
and then in their combination In God.
/. LOVE.
IL may manifest itself in two forms. which
should be carefully distinguished.
The love OF complacency.-W delight In the OBJ
ject person beloved. 1t Is thus that The mother
clasps her infant TO her bosom thus thar the Sis
ter interests herself IN every movement OF her lit
tie brother and proud OF his eats; thus that the
father, saying little, but feeling much, follows the
bright of his In the competitions OF the
college and the stID more trying rivalries or the
world; thus that the student seeks the society OF
his classmates, is grteved when he has to separate
IRON them ana casts . fond look toward their
coming career; thus that throughout our lives
our hearts. If we have hearts, cling round the
tried friends or our youth thus that the vile would
leave this world with her last look her husband
thus that the father would depart with his sons
and his daughters around his couch. There Is
'last look which love COMMONWEALTH given, for
instance, wnen the ship moves away with tho
dear friend in 1t when the soul leaves the earth
TO wing its way to heaven. Love looks ont for the
persons beloved. Tue mother soon discovers her
son In that crowd; the blacksmith
Hears his daughters voice
singing IN the village choir.
The believer viii steal away IN fancy from the busy
scenes OF life to meet with his Saviour, and am
persuaded that when he reaches heaven lie will
recognize, without requiring TO be told the One
whom he has SO loved. In higher sphere and in
an older age, even from the beginning, the love OF
God, OF God who Is love, was exercised In the TEL
lowship OF Father, Son and Holy Ghost; for the
eternal Logos says, Il was daily his delight re-
ioicng always before him. ana my delights were
with the OF men prov. viii, 80. 81. IL mas
always appeared to me to be very beautiful ex-
preston OF that love that is given by the Prophet
Zephaniah Qn., 10-''He will rejoice over thee
with Joy; he Will rest IN his love- he will Joy over
thee with singing" "Lkewlse | say unto you
there Is JOY IN the presence OF the angels OF God
over one sinner that repenteth.n There were
music and dancing IN the house OF the father
when the prodlgal returned. But Zephanlan, BY
a holder representation than could have been en-
ployed bY any but Hebrew prophet, speaks or
our Heavenly Father as rejoicing over the return
or slnner-sI will JOY over you with singingn
The Love OF Benevolence.-T This is q higher form
OF love. In this we not only delight IN the con
temptation and society Of the persons beloved;
we wish well TO them. we wish them al that Is
good. Therefore all things whatsoever ye would
that men should 40 TO You, DO We even SO 10 them;
for this Is the law and the prophets" We Hlll
oblige them II we can; we VIII serve them II IN
our power we VIII watch for opportunities Of
promoting their welfare; we Will make sacrifices
Tor their good. This love is ready to now forth
toward relatives and friends, toward neighbors
and companions toward all with when we come
In contact; 1t win 20 out toward the whole
family OF mankind. We are ready 10 increase
their happiness and In the highest exercises OF
love raise them in the scale OF being, and 70 OK
alt them morally ana spiritually. The love or God
thus mAnifests Itself In multiplying happiness, in
spreading holiness. lie Is not only Light but the
Fountain or Lights; and the light that Is in Him,
like that OF the sun, shines on ALI around. God -
known by His works. he made us ana not We
for US, and Is ready to guide and 10 comfort as.
Higher than all, ''God so loved the world, that be
gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever be-
heveth In him should not perish. but nave ever
lasting llfe.r Abraham saw all this In the mount
which ne called Jehovahreh, a. II Is sald to this
day, Elm the mount ofthe Lord II shall be SEEM
lie had been commanded 10 oner his In sacri-
fee; he had travelled with him three whole days,
exposed 70 such questions "Benold the fire AMI
the wood. but where is the lamb for barnt Offer
ingfn lie had bound him on the altar, and taken
UP the kufe 10 say hm; but now, TO his mex
pressible relief, he heard the voice. NOW know
that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not with
held thy san, thine only son. from me. And ADra-
nam lifted up his ewes, ana looked, ana behold, be
hind him ram caught in thlcket by his horns;
and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered
up for Durntofferng in the stead OF his son.
Abraham must then have congratulated, ana we,
MIN by paying visit 70 that Mount on tne LORD
conceive now great the love OF God who spared
Isaac, but spared rot HIS own son, bus gave hln
lreelJ 10 the death IN our room and stead. Here
IN indeed Is love, not that We loved God, but that
ne loved us, and sent his Son 10 he the pro-
Iitatlon ior our sins" This second IS
the higher aspect OF love. The otner
belongs in man 20 q lower department. or his
nature. II is an exercise merely OF emotional al
tachment ana may contain no thing vlrtuCua or
noly-it may be mercy like the attachment Of q
uog TO Its master. Inc love OF benevolenee s OF a
higher sort We wish 10 do good: we strive 10 40
good to those whom We love. The one Il nae a
genial heat In n closed apartment; the other IL
Ike a nre Tadiating on all around. The one Is
laKe rejecting heaven on It's bosom; the other -
a fountain yelling up ana carrying with n re
Ireshing influence. 'If brother or sister be naked
and destitute OF daily iO0d and ore OF you say unto
them, DepsrJ In peace be We warmed, notwitn-
standing ye give them not those things which
are needful 20 the body what doth II pront ~ ~
As pnIs love OF benevolence that Is 1.-The fulnng OF
tno law.r Ii nows out in a great number and va
ylety or form9=tn compassion, IN pity, Ia tender
ness in long suffering IN patience. The nigh
priest IN old time wore q hreastplate with twelve
precious stones; but every true Christian Ia
priest and carries on his breast more DINA
mental tablet thus inscribed :-"Charlty suner-
eth long ana is kind; charity enyetn not; charity
vaunteth not itEelf, IS not puned mp, doth not
BEHAVE itself unseemly, seeketn not her own,
II not easily provoked thlnketh no evil; reioicetn
not Ia inIquity, but reJoicetn N tne truth bear.
eth all Things Delieveth all thlnss Hopeth al
things, enauretn all thinRs.n
III. LAW.
Law was In the nature Of COD from all eternity,
and Is the Inslrument Of His government; II was
inscribed on the nature OF man when he was ere