Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1914-08-12
GODS FIIHST Law
Great Commandment to His Chill
dren Is to Love Him, and Thy
Meighbor as Thyself.


smandment is, Thou shalt love the
Lord thy God with all thy heart and
with all thy soul, and with all thy
mind" And the second is like unto
ut Thou shalt love thy neighbor as
ithyself" The law Of love is as prac-
,ticable now as it ever was. The Ameri-
fcans OF today are not lower in the
scale Of life than were the Jews to
whom Christ spoke the law.
If there is any truth in evolution,
.men are better today than then. If
rlhere is any hope in civilization, meE
ARE better today In the republic than
they were then, under the Roman en-
ipire. The Jews Of today are equal to
THE Jews of Christ's day. and we are
mot willing to admit that the Jews OF
today are better than the American
scitizens Of today. II there is any pow
,er in the Christian religion. then the
christians Of today are equal to the
,Jews Of Christ's day. and he gave the
Law 10 hs countrymen- II Centuries
Hnean 6eseneracy: II the Christian re-
Mgion breeds men c& hess character
and cahber than Judaism breeds, then
we may shrink from a Law given In
Palestine centuries ago.
nesIna Win Loving God.
The question concsa ming the second
law crises because we break the first
law. The man who loves God supreme
ny will have little trouble in loving his
neighbor as himself. The man who Is
indifferent to God. or rebellious against
God, cannot love his neighbor. The
man who loves God supremely can.
God loves men. The men who love
God look upon men as he looks upon
them.
Not to love ones neighbor as ones
self simply proclaims that am so
much better than my neighbor that
am worthy of more love. care more
for my mirror than for my window.
] find virtues in myself that are miss
ing in my neighbor. In my judgment
he is my inferior and so unworthy OF
unequal love. Traits of character
that are worthy Of love in me are
worthy CT love in him, and if cannot
love them in him. it must be because
they are lacking in him.
Such an attitude of mind makes 1t
very hard fer my neighbor to love me.
Not loving him, l become unlovely.
A cross-eyed man is not pleasing, and
iself}ove is being spiritually cross-eyed.
Love calls for love, egotism calls for
contempt and you get what you call
for.
Test Shows the Real Man.
In the supreme moments Of life
men do love their peighbors better
than themselves. When the ocean
steamer Is sinking real man steps
aside for the weaker woman and child.
III we could live on the same high
level on the sea of time the question
of pracdc bnity would never arise
The soldier loves his country better
than be loves himself, and his country
lis simply the sum total OF his neigh
Ebors. The fireman loves the unknown
man or woman in peril better than he
aoyes himself. Men. like violins, need
ITO be strung up to get the music out
.of them. Men, like mines, need to be
mined to get the treasure out Of them.
Men, like diamonds, need to be pol
!tshed to get the beauty out Of them.
Left alone, the grape withers or rots;
crushed, it gives wine Men need to
be crushed to get the real juice out
But crushing would not free the juice
lif it were not there What a man
hs at his best that is he In reality.
Christ commanded US to love our
neighhors as ourselves He knew
men. Unless We are less men now
than those he faced it is practicable
pnow. Under pressure when a man Is
lat his best he does love his neigh
Dor better than himself Pressure
breaks the skin of egotism and frees
the juice of altruiSm, revealing the
Juice and seeds of the real man.