Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1885-08-21

the world without the habit of, or anv
mental reference to, aggressive work.
Christian work.
In this we depart from the intent and
practice of Christ and His apostles
They lay stress upon conduct and never
speak of love to God and man as pres.
ent or possible unless manifest in deeds
We define love as a certain kind of feel.
ing; Christ defines it as a certain Kind
of doing-as obedience to His com.
nandments: "He that hath Nv com.
mandments and keepeth them, he it ia
that loveth Me-" Similarly He speaks
of love to man as doing somewhat for
His benefit. In His exposition of tho
commands: "Thou shalt love thy neigh.
Dor as myself" it was the good Samari-
tan who rescued the robbed and wound
ed jew that loved him as himself. Verv
instructive on this point is Christ's terse
and thrice repeated response to peni-
tent and reclaimed Peters passionate
avowal of love for Him: Feed Nv
sheep" with the Immediately followed
prophecy of: Il do not doubt your
avowal, though you made the same to
Me before you denied Me; but true love
is not merely a transient affection, how
ever fervent it may be; it is service,
lifelong and self-sacriticing. I know
you will love Me to the last, and will
suffer yourself to be girded (bound)
and led to crucitixion rather than deny
Me again"
That Christian love is a profound af-
lection or sentiment of the soul is evil
dent from St. Paul's declaration that
1.-THE end of the commandment is love
out of a pure heart, and of a good con-
science and of faith unfeigned;;" but
that it is also an active principle which
never exists separate from obedience is
equally evident from the whole tenor of
the New Testament. We would do well
to adopt the apostolic conception, which
always emphasizes the expression of
love in obedience, work. doing, as in
~dispensable to it and ~inseparable to it
and %inseparable from it. 1t is surely
not wise to indulge ourselves and en-
courage others in modes of thought and
speech which carry the impression that
religion consists mainly in happy feel
ing, and that we may love God and man
while doing nothing for either.
Salvation is by faith-a faith that al
ways works by love. .'Faith without
works is dead, being alone" 1t is a
mental assent to the Gospel which does
not produce a working love, and is
therefore unfruitful, dead. The whole
of true religion, 'the end of the com
mandment,'' is an obedient, ever-active
love for God and man. 1t is the "pure
religion and undefiled before God the
Father" which ''visits the fatherless
and the widows in their ~atfliction, and
keeps himself unspotted from the
world" The other kind seeks to Sc
cure and maintain the spotlessness by
not visiting, by seclusion from the
world; tries to kindle and feed the
flame of love by shutting itself up to
devotional books and exercises. 1t is
an effort to love God without loving
man OF serving either. We need just
now a revival of the religion which
visits; which makes not feeling but
duty paramount, and fultills the law by
working, by going into the slums of the
city and novels Of the poor. inspired by
Christ's restraining love, and winning
them to Him and His church. Only
thus will the problem of reaching the
Masses and saving the world be
solved. Only thus can we have or
maintain that love which is the end of
the commandment and the fulfilling of
the lawn W. Christian Advocate.