The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1921-12-08

christian ana tnat they would pre-
vent if at all possible. For two years
they succeeded. In that time the
philippians had sent Epaphroditus
with supplies and have had that
CHEEKY letter in response. Tychious
had come from Asia and was return
ing with the letter to Ephesus and
Collosse and Onesimus carries the
personal note in the same company
to Philemon from whom he had fled
some time before. Hate has given the
world great prize since God used it
to bring such rich spiritual bread
from the hand of the hated. 1t is
the story of Joseph repeated.
THE TEST OF LIFE.
The figures step out of the picture
and are seen to live. And each life
must be tested in Gods fires before
it can be classed as Christian. To
Paul the Roman there had in some
fashion come the slave fugitive. Now
Paul never attacked the institution
of slavery which was part of the EN-
pire's life, but he saw not a piece of
property but man for whom Christ
had died and he preached Jesus unto
him until he became Gods freedman.
Do we as cheerily face the negro, the
Jew, the alien with the Gospel that
Paul lived and Christ died to bring?
Paul stood his test. But there was
another. He was in prison, aged,
weak, needing many things person
ally that his chain refused his get
ting, and here was a slave escaped
from a friend hundreds of miles
I away who would gladly have served
Paul himself-why not keep him and
send note telling Philemon what
| had happened? Because the great
! Christian was both honest and high
spirited. He would not use what was
another's unless that other said the
word. Well done, PAUL.
Onesimus had a severer test. He
had robbed his master to get funds
to escape even though he had worked
for it and had not received it. He
was free. Because he was a Christian
| should he go back and submit to die,
perhaps under torture, in order that
he might wipe his record clean? The
slave law was hopelessly bad, but
ought he obey it as a Christian that
he might please Him who had sub
mltted to every law of the state?
That he might be worthy follower
( of his Lord he again put himself into
bondage as a thing merely that he
might rise into the glorious manhood
of clean Christian. He stood his
test. Al honor to the lowly great
man.
Philemon was not to escape. He
had been wronged and robbed and
perhaps some cherished plans had
been miscarried because of the action
Of his slave. Should he overlook it
all and give him such a place as he
had never held in the household in
all the earlier days? Would it be
fair to the others? Ought a patrician
to do any such thing? Paul assumes
that he will greet him as brother
beloved and treat him accordingly and
we can allow Pauls judgment to as
sure us that Philemon stood his test
as splendidly as did the others in
volved. But there is no such thing as
simple life as we front its problems,
but situations that draw blood if we
would honor our Lord. Praise God
for the numberless ones, rich and
poor alike, who are as true today as
were these in the long yesterday.
THE ROUTING OF WRONG
Slavery is no longer a question,
but Christ nor Paul condemned it,
| abominable as was its practice before
their very faces. They both support
ed the state that sanctioned it and
| based so much of its life upon it..
Neither of them were revolutionaries
in the sense in which we use the
term. Paul may have accepted the
institution as part of the times, for
! it was universal, but it is true that
reverence for law and order was part
| of tn eteaching of the early church.
But at tn esame time they were in
jecting principles that inevitably
would bring the overthrow of the
existing order, yet it was never by
force, but by the invoking of new
spirit into its life. Here was slave
who was recognized as a man instead
of piece of property and if he were
to be treated as a man then certainly
| the institution that made him thing
was doomed. Brotherhood cannot
abide such distinctions, for my broth
er has the same right that is my own.
! 1t was that sense of mans real
worth as seen in the self-giving of
the Son of Man that is the very heart
of all progress that has found voice
in the world today. Class brother
hood can never be Christian, no mat
| f..u. II. 1 IL