The citizen., 1911-06-08

TEN 1t hff Alit iith' W WV /
Matthew Q, le
One Of the greatest utterances OF
any age is the sermon on the mount.
I, was spoken to the disciples. There
is nothing In It directly addressed 10
the unsaved Christ is the hght OF
the world. We understand that, yet
He SAYS, we are the light OF the
world" There is really no discrep
ancy here for we say the lamp hghts
the room yet in reality 81 is the oil IN
the lamp that gives the light. There
Is in us no light by reason Of our be !
ing, but still we are the light OF tne
world Christ is the light and We re-
feet His light We shine insofar as
we act so lie can shine through US.
There are degrees in Christianity. one
light shines more brightly than an
other. according to the amount OF OIL
and general condition of the lamp. One
Christian shines more brightly than
another, according to the place he re-
serves for Christ in his life and the
| character of life he lives.
We have the positive injunction that
Christians are to do everything IN
their power to secure that their hgh'
shine AZ brightly as possible.
We are to do this by the position
we take up A lamp on the floor VIII
not give as much light as when sus-
pended from the ceiling. The Chris
tian position is the mos: exalted one
in the world. All civilization Is
caused by Christianity
All learning that has ever benefited
the race has been fostered by Chris
tianity.
The fact that we are Christians
should give us more pleasure than
anything We are not only individual
Christians. but we are members oi
society. and what affects society al
fects us and vice versa.
We shine by the character we form
Character is the most important thnt
! In the world We may have grea
: wealth. but II we have not wealth
OF character we are poor indeed. W.
. may have all the polish society cal
give us, but II we have not brillian
. character we shine very poorly. tn
. world is demanding character as neve
b before. To say nothing OF religion
Q the world at large demands that
d man be possessed OF good Characte
i II he should hold position IN thei
Q affections II is SO in business. an
b becoming more and more so in po
E. itics. Eloquence has charmed its mi
d lions. but there is no eloquence quit
II 80 powerful as a good mans life. Son
a. men are remembered because OF the
r eloauence, but II there IL also stror
70 manhood they are all the more II
- mortal.
= We increase the brilliance OF OF
lives by the effort we put forth for Il
40 conversion OF others. 'Tis here tn
many Christians exhibit practical Sc
n ishness or else they do not value the
religion very highly. If II is what '
at claim for IL then we should desire
for all people.
Id There is a negative side TO this que
ut ton. We should remove everythil
ay that tends either TO obscure or hi
our light. or which so affects Il as
rs make II suggestive Of ourselves rath
ew than OF God. II is usually the sm
:" things that hide most effectively.
he lighthouse keeper once lighted
q well-trimmed lamps. A few hou
later he was notified that his lis
nj was out. On examination IL was fou
that thousands OF tiny insects b
covered the lamp Surrounding sol
ed OF us there Is such cloud of sin
the light II there be any cannot shi
, a through.
put We should keep ourselves clean
is all practical Inconsistencies. Inc
sistency is impenetrable. We sho
sed avoid all self display Many peo
who profess to be Christians seem
MS think it is there first business to
ran people OF IT, II you are a Christ
no one knows II better than your ne
est neighbor. II is not your prero
ion tive TO glorify yourself, but God.
ed most attractive style In writing is Z
,ns simple style which leads one TO IN
the OF the subject matter rather than
style OF the author.
M, So the most beautiful and most
ar. fective Christian life Is that one VIII
u,n leads people TO think not so much
the person, but OF the Christ that
being lived.