The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-07-17

and the service which he has sought to
render us.
Another thing which serves to re-
veal the love of God, is the life of
Christ. No creature can be above the
Creator. 1t is impossible for any being
to surpass God in goodness and love.
The best there is in humanity only in
dicates what is better in God. The
purity and love of the mother, tie
divinest things on earth, simply put US
in the way of apprehending how pure
and loving God is. But as 1 say, Christ
reveals the love of God. In the life
he lived, he indicated how God must
love humanity. The life of Christ was
a purely sacrificial one. Man was sin
full, we might say lost in sin. He had
little appreciation of what was truest
and noblest in himself, and yet Jesus
determined to live for him. He deter
mined to live for what was highest in
humanity, and thereby reveal man to
himself-give him something of an in
sight into what his nature was like.
Jesus saw the worth of man, even when
man himself did not see it. He loved
man before man loved himself. In the
midst Of mans moral and spiritual
darkness, when he was most in need of
just such being as he was, he gave
himself to his service. He gave him
self up to his service, not because man
asked it, but because he saw man was
in need of him. We have had great
men-those who have devoted their
lives dislnterestedly to the service of
humanity-who have sought to bring
about some great moral reform, and
who have succeeded in their endeavors.
We honor such as these. 1t is an en-
couragement for us to think of them.
Their example is an inspiration to us.
But morally and spiritually, no one has
done so much for humanity as Jesus.
No one has protested so firmly against
every manner of sin, and has lived such
an exalted and heroic a life as himself.
We cannot forget him. He was true
to the best interests-the we'll being of
humanity-when no one else had the
wisdom and the courage to be so. He
was alone among men. He never de-
parted in his love for men. He was
patient, faithful and forgiving, even
until the end. In spite of all that men
did against him, he always loved them.
This is the great reason why we rever-
ence his name so much to-day. 1t is
because he was always so true to us,
because he bore with us in our weak
ness and sins, and sought to bring us to
knowledge of the true life before we
had any apprehension or appreciation
of that life. But, as l have intimated,
this only serves to reveal how great the
love of God is for US. No one has the
disposition and power to do for us SO
much as he has. Thus do we maintain
as the central doctrine of our faith, the
love of God. He rules through love
just as a parent or Christ rules. Can
there be anything immoral in this
teaching? On the other hand, do we
not know as a fact that the highest
kind of morality springs only FROM this
kind of teaching2 If men come to I'M
derstand once how loving God is-how
holy and how much disposed to have
them do right-they cannot do wrong
for just as the mothers love keeps her
children from doing wrong, so will the
love of God keep his children from it.
Another objection made to Univers-
alism is that urged against the doc
trine of the final salvation of all men.
1t has been thought that no doctrine
could be more immoral than this. 1t
has been said again and again by GER
tain opposers of our faith, that if they
believed this doctrine, they would do
all manner of evil. But it has been
found to be the fact that there is moth
ing specially immoral in this doctrine.
Indeed, its practical results have been
to strengthen, rather than to weaken
men morally. The believers in the
final salvation of all men are among the
truest people who have ever lived.
While we admit that there are excep-
lions to the statement, still we think it
is true that where there are Univers-
alists, they are found to be among the
best people in the communities where
they live. They are honest, frugal, ard
enterprising, and are anxious to do
what they Can for the moral and spir-
itual improvement Of the race. 1t is
easily to be seen why this is so. For
though Universalists believe that all
will finally be saved, they realize that
this can be brought about only by the
mightiest effort. They acknowledge
the presence of sin. They see what a
strong hold it has upon humanity.
Still they believe that, however dead
ened and obscured it may be, that there
is a spark of divinity in every man, and
that it is possible in one way or another
to kindle this spark anew, and thus to
reclaim the erring one TO truth and
and heaven. The doc
trine of universal salvation is the ex-
preston of our Astounding and eternal