Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1907-01-10

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ing a work to do He did it with q will.
Conscious of the odds against Him,
He had no fear.
even by His friends, trusting only in
ever on for human liberty. Bearing
evil world, He was yet courageous:
He had always heart. The Christ was
sound to the core.
The Christ was a man Of deter
minat1on. He was man of resolu-
tfon. Having determined His sphere
and His call in life, He was resolved
to fll 1t. To be determined is to be
ready to go to all lengths--that is to
say, to see the thing through to the
finish. The Christ was-true to His re-
solves, even untoan ignominious end.
Having marked a clear line of duty,
He walked without .swerying. Hear
ing the call Of the dying world, He
saw aid conquered Calvary.
TIE Christ was sturdy man. He
haG power OF resistance, and He
coald not less we'll force the fight.
Born with antipathy to evil, He stood
against sin firmly. Seeing the inhu-
manity OF mankind to man, He forced
the issue, and He fayed, with burn
ing words, the evil of His day. Strong
as the oak He stood against the
storm. Keen as the tempered blade
He smote His adversaries. Were
they wary He was more. Were they
subtle He was shrewder. Did they
lay snare, He did but tangle all of
them in the meshes OF their selected
net. When they were most cautious
than did the Christ confound them.
They smote Him and He did not flee.
They showed him Caesars image, but
He was not caught. They predicated
marriage in the heavenly country and
He pointed their mistake. They asked
sign and got not one.
But sturdy and stalwart and strong
OF purpose and of will. as the Master
was, He was yet the soul of sympa-
thy. Hating in1quity and scoring evil.
He had yet healing hand for men.
Disdaining sin, His, heart held pity
for the sinner. Crucified by wicked
ness, He could yet pray mercy for His
prosecutors. His was the sympathy
that cured. His was the tenderness
that touched. Filled with divine COM
passion, He knew the sufferings Of
human souls, and He preferred heal
ing and a rich release. -
Men, like nails, lose their useful
ness when they lose their direction
and begin to bend" runs piece of
sterling wisdom. The Saviour had
His bearings, and He kept the goal
in sight. For Him the straight way
was the surest, and He walked the
middle of the path OF duty. The
offer of a whole worlds wealth could
not swerve Him from His course.
Get thee behind Me, devil" was the
motto of His life as He dealt with
sin. His fidelity should be the fash
ion of our faith. His directness
should insure our zeal. His sympathy
should sustain our love toward men
and for God. His stalwart energy
| and sturdiness of soul should be our
pattern. Our lives should radiate
His light. Our spirits should suffuse
| His love.
What Titan and Corot and Turner
did for art; what Bach and Beethoven
and Mendelssohn did for music: what
Tennyson and all the lyric host have
| done for the conservation and the
| culture Of the minds of men, that
and Infinitely more, can Jesus do to-
ward the saving Of soul. Sturdy
and stalwart and strong He stands
! to-day the Saviour of the race, the
incarnation of the Word His ac
tions are an open book, and he who
runs may read. His words are might,
unto life that is eternal. and he wh1
hears and heeds may live. The imi
tation of His character is the calling
OF the Christian. The Representing
of His strength, His power, purit,
and love, is the sign of Christly grace
Have you much or none?