The Farmville herald. (Farmville, Va.) 1957-current, 1963-11-15
WritingO nHearts
Lesson for November II, 1868

Lesson for November II, 1868
What was the greatest single
influence in your life? Change
that word was" to "is" ard
leave out the word Single" il
you like. It still is a question
to think about. Most people, il
they answer that question. would
say truthfully that some parti-
cular person, perhaps now dead,
was the strongest single influ-
ence Or they might mention sew
eral names. But they probably
would be names. not things.
Everyone Of us may be at the
other end. too. How many lives
have known your influence in
some way? How many lives
would have been different If it
had not been for you? These
are SOLDERING thoughts.
The fact is, we all are engag-
ed. often without trying or think
ing particularly about it, in writ
ing something. good or bad. on
the hearts of all we meet. Think
ing about us is tfor the people
we have known) like getting q
letter. bitter or gay. serious or
silly as the case may be. Some
body else's handwriting is on ev-
cry heart.
Though us the fragrance
The Christian above all has a
responsibility that what he
writes on others hearts shall be
recognizably Christian. But what
is Christian? Paul mentions
in the passage chosen for this
week three points by which q
Christian person. and Christian
influence, can be identified. Paul
did not mind mixing his meta
phors. and neither should we.
There is a gloriously many-col-
ored beauty about the Christian
character, like an old-fashioned
garden. First Of all. a Christian
is one through whom the "frag-
rance Of the knowledge" Of
Christ spreads everywhere. In
palmer English, a Christian is
one who does not leave others
indifferent to Christ, but whose
life makes others want to know
the secret of the fragrance"
tPaul's word) of Christ. Second,
a Christian is sincere. he is
what he claims to be. Third. a
Christian is a man Of conf
dence not In himself but in God.
A letter from Christ
Paul was not an Overmodest
man. If credit was due him, he
took it. Yet he never claims too
much. Paul knew very well that
he was perhaps the one most in
fluential Christian in that part
Of the Roman empire. He knew
he would be remembered all
their life long by those converts
of his in Corinth and other cit
les. Yet he does not claim credit
for the handwriting on the hearts
of those he had won for Christ.
Indeible was the writing; but is
was not his own. You Che said to
his friends are a letter from
Christ. written not with ink.
with the SPIRIT of the living God.
You do not have to be a theo-
Logan to see what Paul is driv-
ing at. Every Christian is part
OF the communication between
God and the world. Every Chris
tan. SO far as he is Christian
'and no one 100 percent, ex-
presses and makes clear God S
will and word for the situations
in which he lives. Then is every
Christian a sort of little Pope,
infalhbly able to dictate God S
last word in every situation and
problem OF life?
Delivered by us
Not by any means. Not even
the Pope in Rome makes claims
so sweeping as all that. We
have to face the fact that men
who are perhaps equally Christ
lanS-by-intention do not always
agree. perhaps almost never.
Paul says elsew where that
we have this treasure (and he
meant the message Of Cod in
earthenware vessels. And about
the handwriting Of the Spirit on
the hearts of the Corinthians
nc says it was delivered by u.s.
and Paul does not claim that
he could never be mistaken. The
Corinthians, moreover. were
themselves farther from perfec-
ton than Saint Paul was. The