The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1889-03-13
S Il r MO N
Preached by the Rev. M. D. Hoge, D. D.
at the Second Presbyterian Church
Sunday Morning, March Sd.
PART SECOND.

TExT-Eph. iv 20 and 80: Be ye angry
and sin not let not the sun go down upon your
wrath" Be ye kind one to another; tender
hearted forgiving one another even as God for
Christs sake hath forgiven you"
There is a close and intimate connec-
tion between these verses, though sepa.
rated by few intervening passages. We
must understand the uses and abuses of
anger before we can have a proper con-
ception of what is included in forgiveness
We must be duly impressed by the i'm
placable character of cherished anger be-
fore we can appreciate the magnanimity
and the charity of one who can from his
heart forgive his enemies.
The apostles discussion of the theme
had been for the most part negative
Christians were not to be reveDgeiul, not
to be dishonest, not to indulge in corrupt
communication, not to grieve the Holy
Spirit. Now the apostle proceeds to
make positive command and to enforce
it by a very tender consideration. He
says: "Be ye kind one to another, tender
hearted, forgiving one another even as
God for Christs sake hath forgiven you. "
Kindness is not one of the heroic vir-
tues. 1t does not rank with faith or
hope, but it is the daughter of charity.
Well does Faber say : 1.-THE grass of the
feldsis better than the cedars Of Lebanon.
1t feeds more, it rests the eye better. 1t
is a thymy, daisy-eyed carpet, making
the earth fair and sweet and home.like
Kindness is the turf Of the spiritual world
whereon the sheep of Christ feed quietly
beneath the shepherd eye"
Tho fapIor baartoJ oro h. ooro~oc
sionate, full of pity and sympathy. The
world is full of the sons and daughters Of
sorrow, but sympathy says to the sufferer
as the converted heather woman said to
the missionary wife sitting on the floor
with her pupils around after day of
heat and exhausting toll, clean on me. a"
The words were simple and few, but the
weary woman accepted the offer while
the grateful convert sat at her back Civ
ing her needed support, and thus cheered
and invigorated by gentleness SO con.
siderate and unexpected, with new
strength IN her heart she resumed her
teaching till the close Of the day ended
her toll.
"Forgiving one another, even as God
for Christs sake hath forgiven you.
Here we have both the pattern and the
motive of forgiveness. In the Lord g
prayer give and forgive are coupled
togther in one petition, Give us our daily
bread and forgive US our debts" Give
is the cry Of the body needing food; for
give is the cry of the soul needing pardon,
and when pardon comes then the for
given are the iorgiving The divine pat
tern Of forgiveness is our blessed Lord.
1t was in the supreme moment OF His
suferings that His enemies said "He
saved others, himself he cannot save
save tbyself and come down from the
CROSS No, He could not come down,
because he could save others by hanging
there. 1t was when they were taunting
him for this voluntary self-saorifce, upon
which the salvation Of the world depend
ed, that He cried: Father, forgive them,
for thev know not what they do.
As He has gwen us the pattern, so
also ii has furnished us with the motive
of forgiveness: As God for Cbrists sake
hath forgiven you" God forgave and
Christ iorgave, since in the interchange
of divine attributes both are one in the
beetowment Of pardon.
We may well note that upon no other
duty did Christ dwell 80 fully; upon no
other did be insist go urgently, with such
emphasis, and with such impressive il-
lustraton Peter, by intercourse with
his Lord had caught something Of