Go to now, ye rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you. Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten.
Your gold and your silver are rusted; and their rust shall be for a testimony against you, and shall eat your flesh as fire. Ye have laid up your treasure in the last days. Behold, the hire of the {434} labourers who mowed your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth out: and the cries of them that reaped have entered into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. Ye have lived delicately on the earth, and taken your pleasure; ye have nourished your hearts in a day of slaughter. Ye have condemned, ye have killed the righteous one; he doth not resist you.
Go to now, ye that say, "To-day or to-morrow we will go into this city, and spend a year there, and trade, and get gain:" whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. What is your life? For ye are a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For ye ought to say, "If the Lord will, we shall both live, and do this or that." But now ye glory in your vauntings: all such glorying is evil.
To him therefore that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.
Be patient therefore, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient over it, until it receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord is at hand.
Is any among you suffering? let him pray. Is any cheerful? let him sing praise.
The supplication of a righteous man availeth much in its working.
My brethren, if any among you do err from the truth, and one convert him; let him know, that he which converteth a sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall cover a mult.i.tude of sins.
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THE GOSPEL OF LOVE AND OF SONSHIP
Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called children of G.o.d: and such we are. For this cause the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now are we children of G.o.d, and it is not yet made manifest what we shall be. We know that, if he shall be manifested, we shall be like him; for we shall see him even as he is. And everyone that hath this hope set on him purifieth himself, even as he is pure. Everyone that doeth sin doeth also lawlessness: and sin is lawlessness. And ye know that he was manifested to take away sins; and in him is no sin. Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither knoweth him.
And this is the message which we have heard from him, and announce unto you, that G.o.d is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in the darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: but if we walk in the light; as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. {436} If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
Beloved, no new commandment write I unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning: the old commandment is the word which ye heard. Again, a new commandment write I unto you, which thing is true in him and in you; because the darkness is pa.s.sing away, and the true light already shineth. He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in the darkness even until now. He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him. But he that hateth his brother is in the darkness, and walketh in the darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because the darkness hath blinded his eyes.
Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of G.o.d; and every one that loveth is begotten of G.o.d, and knoweth G.o.d. He that loveth not knoweth not G.o.d; for G.o.d is love. Herein was the love of G.o.d manifested in us, that G.o.d hath sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved G.o.d, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if G.o.d so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No man hath beheld G.o.d at any time: if we love one another, G.o.d abideth in us, and his love is perfected in us: hereby know we that we abide in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit. And we have beheld and bear witness that the Father hath sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world. Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of G.o.d, G.o.d abideth in {437} him, and he in G.o.d. And we know and have believed the love which G.o.d hath in us. G.o.d is love; and he that abideth in love abideth in G.o.d, and G.o.d abideth in him. Herein is love made perfect with us, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as he is, even so are we in this world. There is no fear in love: but perfect love casteth out fear, because fear hath punishment; and he that feareth is not made perfect in love. We love, because he first loved us. If a man say, I love G.o.d, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, cannot love G.o.d whom he hath not seen.
And this commandment have we from him, that he who loveth G.o.d love his brother also.
Marvel not, brethren, if the world hateth you. We know that we have pa.s.sed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not abideth in death.
Hereby we know that we love the children of G.o.d, when we love G.o.d, and do his commandments. For this is the love of G.o.d, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.
--_From the Epistles of John_.
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THE CHRISTIAN ATHLETE
What then is my reward? That, when I preach the gospel, I may make the gospel without charge, so as not to use to the full my right in the gospel. For though I was free from all men, I brought myself under bondage to all, that I might gain the more. And to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain Jews; to them that are under the law, as under the law, not being myself under the law, that I might gain them that are under the law; to them that are without law, as without law, not being without law to G.o.d, but under law to Christ, that I might gain them that are without law. To the weak I became weak, that I might gain the weak: I am become all things to all men, that I may by all means save some. And I do all things for the gospel"s sake, that I may be a joint partaker thereof. Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? Even so run, that ye may attain. And every man that striveth in the games is temperate in all things. Now they do it to receive a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, as not uncertainly; so fight I, as not beating the air: but I buffet my body, and bring it into bondage: lest by any means, after that I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.
--_I Corinthians 9:24-27_.
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Therefore let us also, seeing we are compa.s.sed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising shame, and hath sat down at the right hand of the throne of G.o.d.
--_Hebrews 12:1, 2_.
With freedom did Christ set us free: stand fast therefore, and be not entangled again in a yoke of bondage. Ye were running well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth? This persuasion came not of him that calleth you. A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.
--_Galatians 5:1, 7-9_.
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THE CHRISTIAN TEMPLE
According to the grace of G.o.d which was given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder I laid a foundation; and another buildeth thereon. But let each man take heed how he buildeth thereon. For other foundation can no man lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. But if any man buildeth on the foundation gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay, stubble; each man"s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it is revealed in fire; and the fire itself shall prove each man"s work of what sort it is. If any man"s work shall abide which he built thereon, he shall receive a reward. If any man"s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as through fire.
--_I Corinthians 3:10-15_.
So then ye are no more strangers and sojourners, but ye are fellow-citizens with the saints, and of the household of G.o.d, being built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the chief corner stone; in whom each several building, fitly framed together, groweth into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom ye also are builded together for a habitation of G.o.d in the Spirit.
--_Ephesians 2:19-22_.
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[Ill.u.s.tration]
A GENERAL VIEW OF THE ACROPOLIS, ATHENS.
From a picture belonging to Smith College and used by the kind permission of the Department of Greek Literature.
This hill, covered with a fortress and temple, was the most p.r.o.nounced object in ancient as in modern Athens. This is one of the beautiful temples which Paul saw, from which he drew many ill.u.s.trations.
[End ill.u.s.tration]
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For we are G.o.d"s fellow-workers: ye are G.o.d"s husbandry, G.o.d"s building.
--_I Corinthians 3:9_.
Know ye not that ye are a temple of G.o.d, and that the Spirit of G.o.d dwelleth in you? If any man destroyeth the temple of G.o.d, him shall G.o.d destroy; for the temple of G.o.d is holy, which temple ye are.
--_I Corinthians 3:16, 17_.
For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, that ye may be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inward man; that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; to the end that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be strong to apprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which pa.s.seth knowledge, that ye may be filled unto all the fulness of G.o.d.
--_Ephesians 3:14-19_.
Now to him that is able to stablish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery which hath been kept in silence through times eternal, but now is manifested, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal G.o.d, is made known unto all the nations unto obedience of faith; to the only wise G.o.d, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory for ever. Amen.
--_Romans 16:25-27_.
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