The Washington herald., 1908-03-29
A SUNDAY TALK.

For l am persuaded that neither death. nor life.
nor angels, nor rrnciTalifts. powers nor tSinss
present. nor things 70 come. nor height. nor depth'
nor any other creature shall be able 10 separate MS
nom the love cf God which Is IN Christ Jesus cur
Lord-RomaHs viii $3.50.
1t was in such ringing words as those
recorded above that the Apostle Paul, in
his epistle to the Romans. declared the
strength and the glory OF his faith. II
was the eliminating point in an exhorta-
ton which had for its object the subStitu-
tion OF an era of faith and love for an
era Of force and might, and ST. Paul
iterated and reiterated his conviction that
the love Of God was so ail-powerful and
so permeated the whole earth that moth
ing earthly. no human action. no thought.
no rebellion. could separate human kind
from the love OF God.
That idea. that faith. has persisted
throughout the ages, and shall persist
through all the time TO come. There is
not man of us all but in his heart must
knOw-not believe. but know-that it is
this love Of God that makes possible
every sort of endeavor in the world For
the love OF God II is that puts hope into
a mans heart and soul. and. as ST Paul
says:
We are saved by hope but hope that is seen is not
hope: for what man seeth, why doth he yet hope
fort
The one thing that is certain is the
thing that ST. Paul insisted upon-the
love Of God. How il is TO work out; how
we are TO use that love. 10 turn it 10 ad-
vantage in the duties We have TO per-
form; how we are, in ourselves. to turn
il to the advantage. not Of ourselves
alone, but OF the whole human brother
hood. is one Of the great problems OF life.
For. if we cannot. by any power, be
separated from the love of God, yet there
Is one vice that will make that love. all
powerful as IL is. hard TO reach US. and
that Is selhshnessI The love OF God,
which has endured since the world began T:
which has overcome the worship of idols,
atheism; the worship OF self. has per
sisted primarily because it is Gods love.
and secondly, because all humanity has
sought and Christian humanity has
found, that higher strength on which il
could lean confidently when all else
failed
There is not man among US but az
some time has gloried in and prided
himself upon his strength. and no man
has done this but has known moments
when all his strength and boasted inde-
pendence seemed 10 fall away and leave
him beggared. indeed.
Indeed there is no way possible 10 live
life cleanly and honestly and with fine
endeavor without taking into account this
love OF God OF which the Apostle speaks.
To love God implies a desire 10 be worthy
OF His love, and this cannot be done by
prayer or fasting or observance OF cere-
mony. II implies a recognition Of the
fact that the earth on which we live and
the heaven toward which We strive are
alike Gods. and that II We would be
worthy Of Him we must do the work in
this world which he has appointed Us TO
do To one. ten talents: 10 another, a
hundred 70 a third, but one-but such
as are our gifts they are ours 10 use, TO
abuse, or to bury in idleness.
To work, then, Is the call, To strive
with mind and heart and spirit 10 fulfn
ourselves, and by our endeavor and the
result Of our endeavor 20 honor the Mas
ter who intrusted the talents 10 our care.
Nor need We be afraid of the conse-
quences. With those we have nothing 70
do. They are not in our hands 10 shape
or TO hinIr All that concerns US is 70
run the race that is set before US. clear
eyed, clean-hearted, bravely and earnest
ly. and leave the issue with the God who
made us. in whose eternal love St. Paul
had such bOUndless confidence
And II, through all our striving and
pain and sorrow, We are able az last to
accomplish some one little thing that is
good. let US realize always that the credit
is not ours. Recognizing that tt is
through the love OF God alone that we
have been permitted 10 work. let US with
Moore. say.