The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1881-03-23

The Growth OF tho Christian Spirit
and the Development Of the Chris.
tian Character.
[ChriStian Lnion
- But the irnit Of the Spirit Is love, 10y. peacs long
gcntleness. gnolness, faith, mecknrss, TEN.
y rsnc ;~a.H!nat surh there 10 no law."-GAL ..:2s
In this passage the various fruits Of the Spirit that
are designate hive such u relation tn each other rs
well NC 81 the qualities which are mot here named. chat
all u those are required to be there. YOn might have
them oil tx, ept love, and II ynu have not love the 18th
o. Corinthians will Tell YOU til i they would be rs
souding brass or o tinkling ci m%bal-that they would
BE- WORSE than waste. You might have.l"vc; but what
would 1--we be vi: hout JOY? In certain passages at life
1t might lie . noble thing; but these are enduring
qualities that are rrta1t to b. had all the time We
are to
WEAR this sAcEEp aEcELicr rSDRoKEN
pcrprtualIy.' You might have love and jos; but you
must also have peace; for love aud Joy without peace
are like IL beautiful object without an atmnsffi ere: be-
cause peace Is that atmosphere IN which these quail.
ties stand mt the brightest with due proportion, and
In aerial. heavenly perspective. And So on with every
one OF these qualiiirs.
1t is not enough, therefore, that a person Of Chris.
tain lie should be able to say, Il un long. suffering,
bht I am rather bard; am uncharitable md am not
very j,yfnl, but | mn q g od Christan-I show so'n'
VI lHc bElsil THIS. n WuU lnuL elUIUy hnON5
some Of the Christian traits is like Il man with only a
part Of his limbs; n man with O foot gone, with q lrg
nmputated, with both ears Topped of, and With but one
~eye-whot sort Of a man Is that! A certain sort Of
symmetry 10 Indispensable to . man, whether 1t be OF
the soul inside, or Of the form Of the body ou'sde.
II, then, q man Is to be a Christian, II the divine
Spirit Is to shine down upon the g.rdrn OF o mahs
heart, these are the plants which are expected to spring
mp In that garden. Not that something else may not
spring up ALSO
ror THERE IA A Borrox HEAT IN yyyRY wax
rs well as q solar beat, and plants will come from the
under heat as from The upper hrat. New, rthPless. the
model, the ideal OF II Christian life, has ror its Members
these qualities, .s the outward and bodily lie has its
SaribuB members and Urynns. In another sense, these
qualities are laws. They ore fountains Of joy; they
nrc objects Of delight to the eye; hut they nre imper.
alive ns well. There is no %oblIgatio. upon me to pint
one thing In my flower gMden rather than another.
| may cho"se spring lows, and, being absent In SUM-
mrr, may love these much; or. returning In %atf:trnh,
| may run to asters ard other autuunal flowers; but
in this garden OF the soul you IRE not ut liberty to
choose,
THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
are not more obligatory than are these fruits or the
Stirit. The effects Of the working VI the Spirit Of
God upon the human soul arc enumernte.l; but that
which God works to produce II Is his will that W.
should produce; and our obligation to seek tu irudncs
them is Just 10 strong rs nnr obligation tn obey and
keep the Ten commandments. The Obligation. so
far rs human society is concerned, TO keep tho Ten
Commandments, lies In tho fncts ibut tho Ten CJn-
-t.- ..,. ..kI ~. k.ltt.. III. nN.o-
nian",ieh's I've '"set'i me o~.l.y .Hnel"hH' Ivy
~ '. uu,u "eoe 49, Us, u. snES ~ ~. ao a'
III I"..S ,r """ W ....e IA "L n :" 'e.
maintain the organization Of society.
THEY ARE TINE coxNAybs.
Not that they have not some other ~rslatIons, or that
they do not lead u other ones but ENTHUSIASTICALLY
Ihey are c"ninIanuuirn.s "I,ch hx?e hiuch ~ 90 MIN
y h'ah 40 " e.ca'ure "l nv nrsn w h"Niul hocietJ'
BY implication, however, they are commandments
which take charge Of men rs men as. menb-ts Oi n
h'gher eoc'e'y, III ihfis'o,e o'v, "l'ioMt e",' G'' alu
no man can cay whether ne VIII Ut WILL mol nave '"'',
orjoy, VI I'facr' oF iohS-sum'F'hs, VI eenl1n -, OF
n!tekneos.o or temperance. lhe'e are thlngs winch y0l
must have. They ARE Things you VIII bc worse Oh
i"r not having every day. u r,.
On the other h4hd, W.: are Always failing back on
nature. a man suj ~" Well, | anu I'ot m angel: You
cannot expect . man to 10 angelic IN this world
" mere q ma IS meyer meek no gehernhy answers %.
mheh Q me- 10 'psouIehI aN" Is "rre.nhg WIN ai'h"s.
every e3cluhg L eIhent, we say I" MN, IL oecomee
, " "" 10 . :, h -, NO .t ~ !, IT,, io .h"Iau1 ~, .h h. u Ge ertus4s 40
ne iaa "heh NE stoou IN tue snauo" o' nut aarkhe.s
which a. ~ ~ W a, y. oiin ~ ue a. W. :" ,u m,J' ~ ""en ~, ac
was ~ iui VI PtIe .nat ne nau "u'n 'osHe a"aJ
NV '''0 : NV .'~rNN'
-. " 'Uo
When o man, 10 oil inc 'uriholls OF lie Is ueR.
tilute VI peace, ana we gay 10 MN -feact,
NC eayS, ! uHen III a"stL W H'e PSIse ~ !.
my cMcuulshlcSS 60 nc u'lenue himself
aena.aiiy neu Ispe' Wv e1n.0 onsmr aMser ero,3 !,
.Sn'p' " n'ase tneoo q"an'.se 'mp.ia'',o up' ~ . .tnn
AHf! n.eut NJ III 40 ~ eiS "antn W ~
are ~ hey are those Qualities on which
Tue Cnrlstian ;ha!ucler must ue Dui1. Mi.nout snri1
tntre IS no cntist.un enn.us.st. !. %n",e n nl"s hsr u "
grown ana pInHin,ae ptl..eIio"o u a. 'rtf. ia'I w.
Vs. - IA nAS t. . 9, = -" n It ure l. ,r.n,s ,xl,irb .,n ,I.I,".a,.J Nv
neieo W ~ 'ne'e eis"en'' "n''A " "
tue Apos'ie'
THEY ARE TESTS As WELL
Wa know thu, TINT man Is n Christian who ha. these
oualilirs A prrut MANY men arr s,,uuusrd To- bc
CHRISTIANS becuus. they have ,uude q proiessiun OF re-
lirIun: and 1t Is .upI,osed that mukiny q profession Of
religion i'm. lies = cilanre; but 1t has given rise to the
urt,I,iur uluyerb that -l,rote. s,rs urr not observers"
10 have nude u profession, s,Ins to BE- the end Of the
prugrrss Of a great many pc0pl,; for they think tnat
The church is what a great railway Is. 4 man go' sto
c cnr nnrI f., /. lis rn.iu. il t' do tn. bourne wing while
he iidc.; and there are mu .tiludes OF people wiiuse
idea vi religion ID That they De t., get into q railway
ear II thew en-. and INTO a second class car II they
INST. uud ON To Il freight train ruther than nut 60 at
a !: and lhut when they have cuinnitt, d tn, if,elyrs to
the care Of tue conductor tli, ir work IL uv,r-Uuly
they must not Jump vti holn the train white 1t IL in
motion, and tnry must keep their licke:s In view.
They BUY,
81, u.pr uorr.,
r,.-.. .
ana mat 10 'ne.I uEhet' my e"om u ~ ~ "e"e''
or liii''lslert ahu Ilk about Nv hha 'eri ina. Tue cnarth
10 s,ineno~ VI otie, us""'ns 'ueu' W hea'.n' Nnal.
6s II IL, nhu lna> Ue IL 10 not lou never saw u long
railway TRAIN in when nNl mat were III II were equally
good or tAcelleht, IL carries III SOILS oi passengers
81 It Is with tie church. In II there ae Nigh, 'o",
middle, Mi kinnS.
II Is no. being " mrmeoer VI inc churcn tnHt lnai-
Gates that u n,an IS u ChIistian; It !, that lvre, JOY,
peace i"ug Suffering, Bol'tlelcss, spolhess. Lalin. meek
ness and temperance aoound IN hin. That Is the
evidence. Of oil those that are aVowctliy, Chr;suahs,
many are thought to 1e faithful christians because they
are such Jealous w"raers. 600 iorGid that SHOULD
Soy one Single worn 10 throw u snauo" upon acti'lty,
WHICH very oiten 70 tue very metnou VI iiofui ann
spiritual nc out laui e'y, inouSn = than 10 . .un
of zcal that he VIII go to the extent Oh hylhS iF Tie
cause IN which ne LuO[s, sIflUk us DOuy u U Z UuTUtu,