The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1900-09-27

nave the disposition of Jesus Christ
Implanted in our disposition, and we
must have it done or we will never
see heaven. If any man has not the
disposition of Jesus Christ, he is none
of his
A Spirit of Gentleness.
In the first place the spirit Of Christ
was spirit of gentleness. Sometimes
he made wrathful utterances against
Pharisees and hypocrites, but the most
of his words were kind and gentle
and loving and inoffensive and at
tractive. When we consider the fact
that he was omnipotent and could
have torn to pieces his assailants, the
#sReer is greater We often beairthes
persecution anu abuse ehs( Eorld
because we cannot help it. Christ en-
dured it when he could have helped it.
Little children who always shy off at
rough man rushed into his presence
and clambered on him until the peo-
pie begged the mothers to take them
away. Invalids sore with wounds that
they could not bear to have any one
come near them begged Christ just to
put his hand upon the wound and
soothe it. This mother with the sick
est child was willing to put the little
one in Christ's arms. Self righteous
people rushed into his presence with
woman of debased character and
said, Now, annihilste her, blast her,
kill her." Jesus looked at her and saw
she was sorry and repentant, and he
looked at them, and he saw they were
proud and arrogant and malignant,
and he said. Let him that is without
sin cast the first stone at her." A
blind man sat by the wayside making
a great to do about his lack of vision.
They told him to hush up and not
bother the Master. Christ stopped to
him and said, What wilt thou that I
do unto thee?" Gentleness Of voice,
gentleness Of manner, gentleness of
life.
The Hand OF Sympathy.
My sister had her arm out Of joint
and we were in the country, and the
neighbors came in, and they were all
sympathetic, and they laid hold of the
arm and pulled and pulled nightly
until the anguish was intolerable; but
the arm did not go to its place. Then
the old country doctor was sent for,
and he came in and with one touch
It was all right. He knew just where
to put his finger and just how to touch
the bone. We go out to Christian work
with too rough a hand and too unsym-
pathetic a manner, and we fail in our
work, while some Christian, in the
gentleness Of Christ, comes along, puts
his hand of sympathy on the sore spot
the torn ligaments are healed and
Z the disturbed bones are rejoined. Oh,
for this gentleness OF Christ.
The dew of one summer night will
accomplish more good than fifty
Caribbean whirlwinds. How import
ant 1t is that in going forth to serve
Christ we have something of his gem
tleness! Is that the way we bear our
selves when we are assaulted? The
rule is an eye. for an eye, a tooth for
a tooth, retort for retort. sarcasm for
sarcasm. Give. him as much as he
sends! After awhile you look up into
the face Of Christ, and you see his gen
tleness, and you say, well. now, |
must do differently" Then your proud
heart says: Now, you have your enc
my In a corner. You will never gel
him in corner again. Chastise him
and then let him co. So we postpone
the gentleness OF Christ. Did you ever
know any difficulty to be healed by
acerbity or hypercriticism? About
! forty-five years ago the Presbyterian
church was split into the new school
and the old school. The chasm got
wider and wider The most outrage
GUS personalities were INDUCED in.
Good men on one side mathematical
good men on the other side. Wider
and wider the chasm got, until after a
while some good people tried another
tack, and they began to explain away
>he difficulties. and Soon all the differ
Dss were healed, and at Pittsburg