Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1909-06-26

A-f-cot1N IN TIE Romans fo.>-t4 Mem
DRY verses. s. 10
GOLDEN TEXT -,,r'i1f ,.a ,., Gid. r.-.-f
Jesus Christ. Romans Isla
I'M. ia 81 'rooahH written early iu tle
FLACE.-The epistIe was written at
'orlnth. during PauIs second vtsit there.
Suggestion and Practical Thouoht.
Subject; Temperance Involved in
the Law OF Love"
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS wrote the Epis-
tie to the Romans? Il is one OF the
undoubted letters OF Paul. the most
Pauline Of all the writings which bear
PauIs name, fundamental among our
materials for a Pauline theology. 80
Hastings Bible Dictionarv.
The Allinclusive Debt OF T.6vo.-Vs
$40. How does Paul rank the duty Of
loring2 He places &C. before all other
duties. Re has been urging from.
IS: = the scrupulous payment of ain
debts, and repeats the command.
owe no man any thing" OF course
this does not forbid borrowing. but re
quires the payment OF all debts when
they are due. There is. however. one
debt so vast that &c never can Doe paid
In full: Ito love one another" Love
sums up the whole law and perfect
love would make a perfect man. No is
obvious that II we love our neighbor
we shall not Kill him. or steal from
MIN. or bear false witness against
him. or covet his good things. or work
iI Co our neighbor in any other way.
The Temperance Applcation.-It
would be hard 90 name an "iU 20 a
neighbor" that t. not fosteref bv i'm
temperance. We suffer more wear by
year from intemperance than from
war. pestuence and famine combined
those three great scourEcs OF the hui
man family.
A Warning from Approaching Death.
VS.. II. u. with What argument aid
Paul urge the law of love- That the
end OF the world was az hand. the close
OF the present order of things. And
that there IS good reason gor YOU 20
DO, namely. keep the Law OF love. be-
cause you know the critical time" fla
which YOU live. This is a reference 60
the Parousia. or second coming OF
Christ which Paul and the other aDos-
Ties seem 20 have believed TO be close
at hand.
w AAtAN NNl4A.ANr IlNM NaN A@AAI Draw NFNfn
the nsarness OF Christs comingg That
g was high time 20 awake out OF
sleep: for their salvation was nearer
than when they believe" (aor.st tense
came 90 believe. became Christians
The words are as an alarm. or
morning watchben. awakening
Christian to his days work."-Arch-
bishop Leighton
What are the temperance appllca.
tions Of this thought? Intemperance
dulls the physical sense. biears the
eyes, renders the touch less sensitive.
the hearing less acute. the brain less
active. II durs the moral nature
Drinking men soon lose the nice sense
OF right and wrong. Conscience be
comes sluggish The will becomes
habby. Wake up, Wake up" let
every Christian cry TO the lntemper-
ate
Pure Life and How 20 Live tt
vs.. IS. u How does Paul sum IN
these rules OF life? LET US walk
(that Is. liye) honestly as in the day.
when men can see us. The reference
IS 10 the exterlors OF life. but Paul
was the last man 10 forget that "out OF
the heart are the issues OF life" He
is still speaking in parable. and to the
end OF the chapter he uses outer raj
ment as a symbol OF inner character.
In order TO live becomlngIv what
must Ne avoid2 "Rioting (R V. rev
elling') and drunkenness. chambering
unlawful intercourse) and wanton.
ness, strife and envying (R V zeal
Ousy'D
That is negative; positively, ia or.
der TO live becomingly. what must we
do? Put on (as a garment. continu-
ing the metaphor) the Lord Jesus
Christ. and make not provision for the
flesh. 20 fulfil the lusts thereof" Flesh
ia the moral sense the depraved ma
ture."-Prof NJ. r. Vincent We are
TO plan for physical needs. but not for
sensual Qualifications
What are the modern temperance
applications of this rule OF life? There
would be no saloons il men put on
the Lord Jesus Christ" Who can
can imagine him as entering those
dens of iniquity. unless 10 rescue his
brothers from the snare2 Every
saloon is a provision for the flesh"
melting 10 ali abominable passions
ouarreling. profanity. brutality. muir.
ders. Indecent speech. plots. licentious.
ness
Gov. Hanly of Indiana. writing in
The Christian Endeayor World of De.
cember 20, 1907. says: That alcohol
ism shortens life. and that abstainers
have a distinctly greater longevity
than non-abstainers is convincingly
demonstrated by actuarial experience.
The testimony OF certain English life
insurance companies. based upon
many years Of experience. establishes
the fact that the longevity of abstain.
ers As =; least % per cent. greater
than that Of non-abstainers..
six per cent OF all accidents. 25
per cent. OF al suicides. 20 per cent.
of all crimes involving physical vlo-
lence, and 80 per cent. OF all those in
which lust IS the dominant factor can
be traced 10 the excessive use OF IN.
toxicsnts. The lord chief justice OF