The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1879-04-16

hallucination here. Wise men of old fell
this truth so strongly, that they said, lux
ury is crime, and must be crushed. They
tried to do it by Sumptusry laws These
were practical failure. Now men seem to
think that because the old remedy would not
work, therefore the old, deadly disease is 90
disease The touch of Queen Victoria g
hand will not cure "king's evil, as was once
supposed. Therefore scrOfaIa is not dis
ease : Only an entirely harmless and anus
ing freak of physiology That is the logic
1t is otjsctsd, that the rule Of stewardship
assert cannot be we'll grounded, because it
invsdes that liberty of discretion which the
Bible gives each Christian in things morally
Indifferent. This allusion to the "sumptu-
ary Law" gives the answer. What liberty OF
discretion does the Bible give to the indiVid-
ual ? Libertxto do, wrOngI No. Liberty
to serve God any less efficiently than the
man himself sees he is able to do? The man
who dsres to claim that as liberty, has con-
tradicted our Lords express law !: "Love the
Lord thy God with all thy heart, and all thy
strength" etc. The only liberty here, that
1 know of, is this: A right Of exemption
from penalty in any human hand, civil or
ecclesiastical, for the individuals exercise of
his discretion in acts morally not sin per Sc.
The Church Session may not judge for him
in the form of Judicial penalty. he is free
from that. And even that is limited by this
principle; that he use not his liberty un-
charitsbly. But l do not dream of advocst'
ing any ecclesiastical sumptuary law--I do
not dream of empowering the elders to in
fict church censure on either "feathers or
Flanders lace" All that church rulers can
do here is to teach and instruct. Each Chris
tian must be left, so long as he abstainS from
things per Sc criminal, and 80 long ss he does
not "use his liberty as cloak of malicious
ness" to the guidance of his own conscience,
in the fear of that hesrt-searching, sovereign
Judge, to whom he must give his laat account.
But surely this does not imply, that the
Christian is therefore authorized to deal with
the matters of bis stewardship WITHOUT any
rule of his ewnS Because God has not au-
thorized the Church Session to restrain him;
shall he therefore say, he is not bound to re-
strain himself? Aud he mere steward of
auother's property? That position is too
plainly wrong. If man is man Of prin-
ciple, he endeavors to act on principle. But
when one seeks conscientiOusly for the priu-
ciple on which he should use and disburse
his Lords money, he cannot fioda consistent
one lower than this; He is bound to use
each portion in that way, in which, so far as
his judgment can teach him. he can most
gorify aud please his Master. If, seeing
TWO ways, one more gratifying to self, the
other more honorable to God and truly be.
nefcent to man, he puts Gods money in the
former to please himself, he is not faithful
steward.
For wish the reader to look at this kind
of religion, which purposes to serve God
indeed, but to love and serve him less than
ws are able What does it mean2 If our
Saviour requires US to love him with all our
powers, such purpose of life is deliberate
sin of omission. And what revelation does
it make of the true nature of the motive which
really prompts the partial service that is rem.
dered If q man hated sin, he would hate
all sin. If he really did one thing for the
true love of Christ, the same love would
prompt him to do two things for Christ
Hence, the Christian, whose piety consists
in q distinct purpose to serve Christ some
what, but not to serve Him in everything, is
really serving self, and guilty conscience,
aud selfish fear; and not Christ at all. How
can the Christian with his Catechism in his
hand dispute this That teaches, that true
repentance turns from sin with "FULL Pur.
pose of and endeavor after new obedience" {"
Or rather, how can the Christian with the
Bible in his hand doubt it? Hear our Lord
Matt. v: So, "Be ye therefore perfect, even
as your Father 10 heaven is perfect" John
XIV: IA, "Ye are my friends if ye do What.
sosuer l command you" Hear David, PS.
Xvi: 18, "If regard iuiquity in my heart,
the Lord will not hear me-" Luke xiv: 33,
"Whosoever he be of you that forssketh not
all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple" "
1t ia obvious that this principle, which
must regulate the Christians stewardship, is
but one instance under the general principle
which governs his whole life. The true child
of God is one who, in every thing eudeavors
to "follow the Lord fully" have but made
one application of the general rule.
But does any child of God follow the Lord
fully, in snythingf Alas, no. Do We then
set up an impossible standard? No. How
is this 7 The answer is, that the staudard oI
the Christians sincere aim is always higher
than his actual attainment in this life. This
is very simple distinction; aud yet it ii
often overlooked; sometimes by those Oi
tender conscience, who, seeing that the stand
ard of their aim must be nothing lower thar
loving aud serving God with all their hear
and strength, and yet seeing that they mus
always come short of this in fact, write bit
ter things against themselves and almOs
Judge themselves reprObate. More often th
distinction is oonfounded by the men of har
dened conscience; who, because they know
that all Christian service is, in fact, partial