Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1904-02-04

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less we need faIth. The end OF It all would
be absolute independence of God. Surely,
this ia not Gods idea.
The true way of looking upon our rela.
ton to Christ is that His presence within
our heart by faith gives us energy to
achieve, not by enslaving, but by enfran'
chising the will, invigorating it, energizins
it, vitalizing it, until with Augustine we
can say: 1--WE will, but God works the
wiling, wiling; we work, but God works the
Philippians 9: 10, 10, has often been mis-.
understood. 1t says: work out your own
salvation with fear and trembling. For it
is God which worketh in you both, to will
and do of His good pleasure" TO work
OUT does not mean to work into outward
expression what God puts within us, but
as it literally means, TO achieve for sal.
walton is an achievement as well as being
at the same time a gift. Nor does it mean
that we are to work in Pauls absence.
The possibility of working out our saliva.
ton rests upon the fact that God is with.
in, so that we can will and do of His good
pleasure. Thus, will is not an instrument
which we can turn from side to side, and
which when necessary God can use: it is
ourselves acting. That which God does is
not our act unless God works through our
wills.
The possibilities of such an empowered
life are divine We need not be perfec-
tionists and still believe as we ought that
Christ's grace is sufficient for us. Many
pretend to believe it, and do not live it.
They worry, they fret, they give up. The
most OF us seem to think that the normal
Christian life is to rise aud fall like the
tides. Yet Paul says: There hath no
mon to man; but God is faithful, who will
not suffer you to be tempted above that
We are able; but will with the temptation
also make a way OF escape, that We may
be able to bear it."
Christ within also makes all living sa.
cred. We have made sad divisions among
objects We have divided space into holy
and unho,y., and declared tnat God could
be found only in certain places. which had
been consecrated. We have divided time
into holy and secular. declaring that we
would serve God on the Sabbath and con-
duct our business and amusements as we
pleased the rest OF the week. We have di.
vded money into two parts. We have SAID
that the giving OF the one-tenth, or one
twentieth ia, God, justified US in the clam
of unlimited freedom in the disposition
of the rest We have divided up persons,
and put ccrtaid class of people called
priests. minister's. missionaries, upon ped.
ostals. declaring that the standard of con.
duct for them differed from the standard
for others, and that their work was cspe'
cially religious.
All wrong. All space is holy, and the
green grass may be the chancel carpet and
The trees the massive pillars and the sky
the dome, if below there is heart pray
ing in spirit and Auth. All time Is sacred.
The Monday should be as much devoted Ia
Gods service as Sunday, and the Office and
the store should be as much shrincs of
devotion as the closet. All money il sa'
cred. and the money spent upon the nee.
esssries of lite, upon business and pleasure
should he speut WITH equal consciousness
"a upon the church. All Christians have
to obiectiy lls life. There is nothing we
need to-day qute as much rs the Chris.
tI1Hi2ltlon OF the secular life.
Then at last, the Christ within is the
source of final holiness. Christ at last
is to present Us holy and unb,amab,c, and
irreproyab,e in His sight.
S,n does two things for Us. separates
us from God and dlstarts our nature. Nhgn
we are forgiven we are restored TO the d.
iects of sin upon orr nature? See. the
scars upon the tree and what the lie Of
the tree does Tor it. listen to what Paul
SAYS; Il am perplcXcd until Christ ho
formed within YOU As Christ had His
Bethlehem, His Nazareth, His O}iyct, so
does lie again IN his lelAcllnation nave
Iii, Bethlehem. His Nazareth. His Oiivct.
Who knows why one plant grows into tue
Ccranium, and the other INTO the rose! The
type is something more than the ideal pre-
scented for the imitation Of the plant. 1t
Is an informing life.
think it was the last thing that Dr..
4. S. GuMbert wrote for the Examiner;
Among the Dutch the rose was sometimes
cultivated by planting an inferior rose
close to rose of superior variety. The
rose of inferior TNlity was carefully
watched and anthcrs removed to avoid
seli.pollenization: the object beng that
it should be polleni2cd by the superior
rose. Gradually the rose thus treated took
upon itself the characteristics Of the S,upe'
rior life OF its companion" So our lives
are polcnizcd as it were by Ills righteous
ness
Thus Christ within becomes to MS the
source OF divine companouship, Of poW"r
for achievement. of the oxidation o: con
duct, of final holiness. lie who WISHES
to plant hope within his own heart OF such
prospects. should begin and neyer cen5"
exercising faith in Him who loved Us and
gave Himself 10 die for Us.