The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1893-10-08
that soweth to the Spirit, shall Of the
Spite reap life ararl aa finer 81 49, Z 49,

that soweth TO the Spirit, shall OF tba
spirit reap life everlasting
What 10 meant by so wing to the Snirit
here in plain? "Let us not be- wearv y,
well doing" says the apostle directly
after, FOR in due season we shall roam
II we faint not" Well-doinR- mot
faith, but works OF goodness--were Sne
sowing that he spoke of.
There is proclaimed here the reward.
aoleness of works. So in many other
passages: Astounding in the work of
the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that
your labor is not in vain in the Lord"
laying up good foundation for
the time to come" was the reason
alleged for charging rich men TO
o1e willing to give; and so all through.
mere Is an irreversible principle. The
amount OF harvest is proportioned to
Ine seed sown exactly. There are de-
grees OF glory. The man who gives out
Oh MS aoundance has one blessing. She
VINO glVes the mite, all she had, even
all her living, has another quite differ-
ens. The rectitnde of this principle
and what it is will be- palmer from the
following considerations:
FIRST. The harvest is eternal life,
But eternal life here does not simply
mean life that lasts forever. That is
the destiny OF the soul-all souls, bad
as well as good. But the bad do not
enter into this eternal life" 1t is not
simply the duration, but the quality of
the life which constitutes it's character
of eternal. spirit NAV live forever
yet not enter into tho divine beneyo.
lence or desire for perfectness, in those
hve minutes he has entered into the
HE which is eternai-never fiuctuates,
but is the same unslterahle forever in
the life Of God. This is the reward.
Second. The reward is not arbitrary.
but natural. Gods rewards and Gods
punlshments are all natural. Distin-
gulsh between arbitrary and natural
Death 10 an arbitrary punishment for
forgery; 1t might be changed for trans.
portation 1t is not naturally con-
neceed. IL depends upon the will of the
lawmakers. But trem bling nerves arc
the direct and natural results of insem-
perance. They are, in the order of
nature, the results of wrong doing
Inc man reap5 what he has sown.
Similarly in rewards. Ii God gave
riches IN return for humbleness that
would be an arbitrary connection He
ala give SUCH reward to Solomon.
But when lie gives lifo eternal, mean
ing by life eternal not dur.tion OF
existence, but heavenly quality of ex-
lstence, as explained already, it is
all natural. The seed sown in the
ground contains in itself the future har-
vest. The harvest is but the develop
ment OF the germ of life in the seed A
holy act strengthens the inward holt
ness IL is seed Of life growing into
more life. Whatsoever q man soweth
that shall he reap" He that sows
much thereby becomes moro conformed
to God than he was before in heart and
spirit. That is his reward and harvest
And, Just as among the apostles there
was one whose spirit, attuned to love,
made him emphatically the disciple
whom Jesus loved. So shall there be
some who, by previous discipline of the
Holy Ghost, shall have more of His
mind and understand more of his love
and drink deeper OF his Joy than others
they that have sowed bountifully.
Every act done in Christ receives it's
exact and appropriate reward. They
that are meek shall inherit tho earth
They that are pure shall see God. They
that suffer shall reign with Him. They
that turn many to righteousness shall
shine as the stars forever. They that
receive righteous man in tina name. OF
a righteous man-that is, because ne is
a righteous man-shall receive right
| eous mans reward. Even the cup of
cold water, given in the mama of Christ,
| shall not lose % reward
1t will he, therefore, seen at once that
reward is not tho result OF merit 1t is
In the order of grace, the natural conse-
quence of well-doing. 1t is life becom-
ing more life. 1t is the soul developing
itself 1t is the Holy Spirit OF God in
man making itself more felt, anu ming
ling moro and more with his soul, felt
more consciously with an over increas-
ing heaven. You reap what you SOW
not something else, but that An act of
love makes the soul more loving. A
deed of humbleness deepens humble
ness. The thing reaped is the worry
thing sowD, multiplied a hundred fold.
You have sown q seed of life, you reap
life everlasting. r ~ G..