Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-01-04

men full of eager aspirations bent on
| heart purity, given to efforts for the good
of others. ready even to suffer the loss
OF all things for truth and righteousness
sake. The line is stretched so far down
that even the lowest may enter: vet il
runs up SO high that those have no place
in II. who are satisfied with mere average
morality, who count it enough to be free
from vices that degrade the man and
innocent of crimes that offend the state.
Most respectable citizens of an earthly
commonwealth such honest men may be:
but no kingdom of heaven is open to such
as they. The foundations of common
morality are of course assumed as is
made specially evident In the next divis-
ion of the great. discourse: but it would
have been quite misleading had the her
aid of heavens kingdom said. Blessed are
the honest, or Blessed is the man who
tells no lies. The common virtues are
quite Indispensable; but there must be
something beyond these-first. a sense of
need of something far higher and better
then hungering and thirsting after it.
and as necessary consequence some at
tainment of 1t in order to gain citizen
ship in the kingdom of heaven and en-
joyment of its blessedneSs The last
beatitude breaks forth into a song of joy
No light-hearted joy. as of those who
shut their eyes to the dark things of life
but JOY in facing the very worst the world
can do: Blessed are We when men shall
revile you. and persechte you and shall
say all manner of evil against you false
ly, for my sake. Rejoice. and be exceed
ing glad Oh. wonderful alchemy of
heaven. which can change earth's dust
and ashes into purest gold. Think, too.
what riches and royalty of spirit in. place
of the poverty with which the series be-
gan. / nese eight beatitudes are the da-
tonic scale of heavens music. Its key
note Is blessing; its upper octave, JOY
Those who heard it first with auickened
souls could, no longer doubt that the king
dom of heaven was at hand: indeed, was
there on the mountain that day"
Applied Truth.
A few days ago news was received
that Mr.. Waling of indianapolis. with
his wife and sister-in-law, and Mr..
Kellogg Durland had been arrested in st.
Petersburg and put into prison when
they finally succeeded in getting word to
the American embassy and were released
The Russian government in apologizinc
for the arrest of the Americans said il
was because of their apparent friendlness
with the Firms that led to- a suspicion
that they were favorable to and assisting
the Russian revolutioniStS.
Sometimes the people of God by making
intimate friends of the enemies of God
get into trouble and are suspected of
helping along the enemies side. When a
Christian makes his constant companion
SHIPS Will people WHO are not CnrlStla MS.
and spends his entire time with them in
worldly amusements, he will not be likely
to be looked upon as a loyal subject of
Jesus Christ, and when the time OF judg-
ment comes will it be unjust if he is
counted amoung those of the world rather
than those of Christ? The joy of one who
lives in known union with his Christ is
like unto the peace of the man who walks
through a hostile country knowing that
its officers cannot possibly suspect him
of treason to that country.
A twelve-year-old girl in state institu-
ton once gave this fitting illustration
She said that she saw a rotten apple lying
on window seat between two good APP
Piles, and very soon the good apples be-
came rotten also. So. she thought good
boys and girls ought not to have much
to do with bad ones or they would soon be-
come bad also
A young man once stated that he played
for a week or two at the seashore as a
boy with two boys who continually used
profane language. Suddenly one night as
he was going to sleep he realized that the
name of God was going over and over
in his brain as he had heard the play
mates use it in their play. He was
frightened at the thought that he was
becoming accustomed to profanity in his
thoughts, and resolved to give up his
friendship for the two boys who used it,
There is no music box so freighted
with melodious harmones as is the heart
of the Christian full of the promises of
the spirit of the gospel A cluster of
pearls.
a few years ago there was a terrible
storm off the coast of Fife and Scotland
All the boats but one had got in from
the herring fishing, and she struck on
rock just as she was entering the harbor
There were six men board clingng to
her keel amid the terrible roar of wind
and waves that threatened every mo.