The Penn's Grove record., 1911-06-16

Mg.M sion which Is used In the
" Ek New Testament Scriptures
%N in several meanings, and
Sk,NV therefore needs to be in
~ terpreted with the utmost
care and discrimination.
Sometimes 1t denotes the whole
material universe as created by God,
the Maker of heaven and EARTH"
Sometimes it Is this world in which
God has placed man for a time, the
temporary scene of human existence,
mans abode, in which he sojourns for
a limited period. Sometimes 1t on
veys the idea, not a material creation
of Gods fashioning, but Of a spirit Of
worldliness in Gods reasoning crea-
lures which is a~ntagonistic to the will
OF God. Sometimes 1t Is the aggre-
gate of those possessed by this spirit
who. having been made by God, rebel
against his authority and refuse to
heed his commands. Sometimes it Is
the equivalent of what Is known to us
by the name Of Society, i. e. the en-
vironment of persons and things, in
the midst Of which each one lives his
life here, and which, while not evil In
themselves, must be used as st. Paul
writes in his letter to the Christians
at Corinth, with caution, not oyerus-
ing It," or using 1t to the full" as his
words really mean.
1t is with this last aspect of the
word we are specially concerned.
To the majority of persons Society
is a very complex thing. In 1t, as in
all else that has to do with persons
and things. there Is an intricate and
puzzling intermingling Of good and
evil which necessitate the utmost cau-
ton and discrimination in the using.
1t is of this social life, with all its
complications, Jesus is speaking In his
great microscopy prayer on the night
before he died: II pray not that thou
shouldest keep them from the evil"
Christ's Life a Social One.
When we-study the life of Christ as
it is put before us in the fourfold por-
traiture of the Gospel, we obtain a
fuller conception of what Society real
ly means than any more words and
theories can give US, and are better
able to understand the relation in
which the Christian man ought to
stand towards it. For the life of
Christ was pre-eminently a social life.
This is the characteristic which
stands out most clearly and definitely
If we compare his life with that of
his ~forerunner, John the Baptist.
Jesus himself draws the attention of
his disciples tosthe striking contrast
their lives presented to those before
whose eyes they were lived. John
came neither eating nor drinking and
they say he hath a devil. The Son of
Man came eating and drinking and
they say, Behold a g%luttonous man
and a wine-bibber, a friend of publi-
cans and sinners" The Baptist lived
the life Of an a~scetic, apart from his
fellows, not dwelling In the haunts
Of men, but a recluse in the wilder
ness. But the Son of Man who came
to a mankind mingled with men.
He lived the ordinary life of ordinary
men and women, going in and out
uLlOaS tAOm as OhO vi tAOuloClfO6s
Jesus and Society.
A modern writer admirably sums
up the life that Jesus lived in relation
to Society. $50 wide were his SYM
pathies that Pharisaic pride COM
planned. To this universal adaptive
ness he appealed as an evidence Of
the prophecy fulfilling of his coming.
Was he exclusive? Did ever man or
woman come near him and he turn
away? Did he not go among all ranks
and into every society? Did he not
go into the houses of great men ands
rulers, of Pharisees, of poor men, Of
publicans? Did he not frequent the
temple, the market-place, the syna-
gogue, the s%ea-shore, the haunts of
o~utcasts and harlots? Was he not
found at feasts and at burials? Wher-
ever men and women were to be
found, there was his place and there
Is ours"
Yes, each Christian has his ap-
pointed place to fill in Society. He
cannot live the life of a recluse with
out hurt to himself. The social life
rightly lived has a wholesome influ-
ence On the Christian himself. There
is nothing which does more to develop
character than intercourse with others.
1t brings out traits which would other
wise remain undiscovered and IN
used. 1t prevents the growth Of self
ishness and isolation which are so
great a hindrance to the development
healthy sympathies which are like the
sprouts Of a tree breaking forth under
the influences Of the warm SUI or
refreshing rain, or like the roots of
the plant, which must have room to
grow or they will become sickly and
stunted.
a.