The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1902-12-24
The Fest Gifts.

There has been an attempt Of late to
prove that love is not the supreme pas.
sion; that hatred, avaricc, envy, covetous.
ness, pride, revenge, fear or veneration
may become just As great as love. Some
have even striven to demonstrate this by
writing novel with the love lett out, en-.
deavoring to make it as interesting to the
reader as the story OF love. For, they say,
love has too long occupied the best ground
of the novelist.
But while some OF these master attempts
have been read with interest, they have
not been lauded to the skies, and the
stories for its rest, its comfort or its ex.
element. And, after all, what desoiate
desert it is for a setting Of any life story,
q place without love!
Strange that there should ever be any
such discussion. The Bible has never left
any doubt about the matter. Writer after
writer speaks out plainly, above oil
things" Christ when He came put love
even above the law, which at that time
stood sternly frowning above all else. To
quote from Henry Drummond's Greatest
Thing in the World" "In those days men
were working their passage IN heaven by
keeping the Ten Commandments, and the
hundred and ten other commandments
which they had manufactured out OF them.
Christ said. l will show you more sim.
pie way. II you do one thing, you will do
these hundred and ten things, without ever
viii unconsciously fulfil the whole law.b
But though this has been known for
hundreds OF years, the chnrch-some mem.
bers Of it, continue to forget it. They
still long, as they did then, for the more
excellent gifts" they want to preach. they
want TO teach, thev desire to be wise, and
to be great accordingly, just as they did
in those days when Paul was writing to
the Corinthians. Here is a man who
might be OF service to the Lord, and cor.
ner wherein he might fit. but he desires
most ardently to be the Superintendent OF
the Sunday-school. and because he does
not seem to be the one for that place he
sulks at home and refuses to teach that
Sunday.school class. His own little son
is influenced by this and stays at home,
about the pride OF those who do not count
him as good rs themselves or see that he
is just the one for the superintendency.
And he forsets that he must first bring to
life the love in his heart that God put
there toward Himself aud his fellow man.
For il. indeed, he loved God he would be
so glad to do anything for Him that he
would not have time to see whether him.
self were being honored or not. and thus
would be well on the way toward being the
kind of person O good Sunday.school Su.
perintendent could be made Of. Here again
is another Christian, we will say Chris
tian Endeavorer, who is offended because
he was not made president ut the last
election, or because he was not selected
to lead meeting at which strangers from
M. 90 ho h.
cause he was not made the chairman OF
that prominent committee. counting his
own gifts as unworthily employed in any
but most important Office: Such men so
about like tombstones whereon is en-
graved that all may read: Herein lieth
dead the thirteenth chapter of First Co
rinthiaIs."
"The greatest thing" it is said, "a man
can do for his heavenly Father is to be
kind to some Of His other children"
II this be truc-and who can doubt it?-
then the poorest OF Gods children, the
humble worker in the kitchen, the un-
learned laborer at his task. the most un-
noticed member OF an unimportant COM
mittee, has in hs power as great gift to
exercise for his God as the wise professor
or the great learned orator. 1t has been
said that q missionary can begin to exer-
else this gift Of love the moment his feet
touch the foreign shore, but the gift of
tongues requires long study now, and even
with the knowledge of the language OF q
strange country a missionary might as well
stay at home. even with all his eloquence
IL he carries not with him love.
This chapter is not careful analysis OF
love. BY looking into the fine qualities
We may discover If we have really chosen
to have impaired to us the best gift
Grace Livingston Hill, in the Mail and
Express.