The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1909-02-05

ing stoned to death: Paul when he
was being led out to execution the
martyrs of the early church who died
later age who gave up their lives in
the Smithfeld fires and persisted in
the torture chambers OF the Spanish
Inquisition? l asked then the ques-
ton: Why does God care for us and
love us? And l confined myself to
| discussion of the truth that He loves
rs, not because of anything that is
| in US, but because of that which is in
Him. ask YOU now to further
consideration of the question, Why
| does God care for us? Heavens gates
arc flung aiar the shepherds listened
! to the ESCAPED doxologies of the Bet
ter world the Prince of Life had sped
to the r. scue of ruined race. From
the infinite height to lowest depth
from Throne to manRer: from royal
ty to plebianism from home to cold.
pitiless exile! A life of sorrow, of
disappointment. of grief the path He
trod s.rewn with briers: path of
pain and tears: path marked by
blood it was uphill all the way and
it terminated in a Cross. Why that
infinite descent: that life of grief !;
that path of thorny pain, ending in
blood? Why? Because ''The 1edemp
ton of the soul is precious!' - Why
that life of tears, terminating in the
tragedy of Calvary? Because. eye are
redeemed, not with corruptible things
such as silver and gold. tut with the
precious blood of Christ, as of lam b
without blemish and without spot. {"
Note the souls redemption price. 1t
il precious in Gou's sight Again.
God cares for US because He wants to
see Himself imaged in us. When.
three weeks ago. saying. in answer to
he question. Why does God care for
us? That it is because of what He
Himself is and not because of what
we are, l made use Of an illustration
of woman who was going home from
the communion table. She was think
irg audibly-talking to herself. 81
wonder why it is" she said, "I've
never heard it to my satisfaction l
wish somebody could tell me. ""Could
tell you what" sbe heard voice be
hind her say. Looking around she
saw the minister and his wife ap-
preaching "Could tell me, ''she said.
"why it was the Savior aied for us.
You will say it WAS because He loved
US. But why was that love? He GER
tainly did mt need us. and in our sim
full state there was nothing to attract
His love. "'I may suppose, Mrs. N. ="
said the minister, "that it would be
no loss to you to lose your deformed
little babe. You have a bus band and
other children: you do not need the
babe and of what use is it?" "Oh!"
said the woman, ~ couldn't part with
my child. l do need him. l need
his love. I feel sometimes that I
would rather die than fail of receiving
it," "Well" said the minister, "does
God love his children less than sin
full earthly parents do?" 1 then said
that mother loved that defo"med babe
not because there was anything Low
able in the babe. but because of the
great love that she had in herself
not because of what the babe was. but
because of what she was And so God
loves the sinner, not because of what
is in the elmer, but because of wha.
is in Hlmself-not becaue of ~bat
the sinner is, hut because of what He
is.
A day or two after l received, and
very thankfully, kindly criticism to
the effect that those statements were
somewhat ove drawn-that there is
something lovable in cGild. apart
from the love of the mother : and that
there is something lovable in SIN
ner. apart from ;od's love. some
thing to attract His love. l agree
that there is something lovable in a
child of some growth; but l was talk
ing about babe; and. now, going
back to beginnings. l say there is
nothing lovable in babe "a. b ,urs
old, for instance. It has no intelli-
gence: it has no perception of the
things about it: it has no appreciation
of the things that are done for it !:
and when the mother loves it, 1t Is
simply because of the great love that
she has in herself and not because of
anything that is in the babe. There
is nothing actually-as u present. ex-
istept fact. t. at is lovable in the
babe: but potentially, there is,-la
tently. embryonically there IS some.
thing in the babe that can grow and
be developed into something lovely
and lovable. Going back to the be-
ginninRs, as an actual present, ex-
istent fact. what IS there in sinner
untouched by Divine Grace that can