FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   75   76   77   78   79   80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   >>  
all personal merit--as he presses it on their attention that neither is he that planteth anything nor he that watereth, but God that giveth the increase, he is unconsciously exhibiting to us an example of that rare humility which is characteristic of all the greatest and most effective workers; whilst in the vivid and expressive metaphors of my text--ye are God's husbandry, God's building--he makes us to feel the value and the dignity of each human soul. It would be interesting to dwell on these calls to unity of life in Christ, and the close connection between such unity and the spirit of humility; in fact, we might say, the absolute necessity of the spirit of humility and self-forgetfulness in individuals if there is to be unity in the society. And we might apply the thoughts with much profit to our own social relations, for they are never out of date; but I desire to turn to- day to that which is suggested by these descriptive metaphors, the value and dignity of each human life. St. Paul pressed it on these Corinthians that their souls were nothing less than the seed-field of which God Himself was the Husbandman, or the temple built by His hand; and they could hardly have listened to such language without being stirred to take care how they sowed in that field, or without feeling the consequent value of their life in the sight of God. If they were thus the objects of the Divine care they could not be thought of as insignificant units in a crowded city; or as living an obscure life which was of no particular importance, as they might otherwise have been tempted to fancy, as we are still sometimes tempted to think about an individual life. This picture of each life amongst us in its relation to God, as His seed-field or His temple, is a continual reminder that where a human soul is concerned there is no such thing as insignificance or obscurity. As St. Paul thought of that little company--a company small and obscure to the outward eye--what he saw in them was the temple of the Holy Ghost, and the spiritual life that was breathing there was a Divine life; and this intense conviction of the value of each soul and each society and its consequent sanctity was a never-failing inspiration to him. Through it he saw in every one who listened to his words, as he went from city to city, a man created and endowed with a Divine mission and Divine capacity, if they could only be roused. It transformed every soul that
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   75   76   77   78   79   80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   >>  



Top keywords:
Divine
 

temple

 

humility

 
tempted
 

company

 

spirit

 

listened

 

consequent

 

thought

 

obscure


society

 
dignity
 

metaphors

 
insignificant
 
living
 

breathing

 

crowded

 

spiritual

 

created

 

failing


sanctity

 

conviction

 

inspiration

 

feeling

 

capacity

 
intense
 

objects

 

endowed

 

mission

 

transformed


concerned

 

continual

 
reminder
 

insignificance

 

outward

 

obscurity

 

relation

 

Through

 

roused

 

picture


individual
 
importance
 

descriptive

 

husbandry

 

building

 
whilst
 

expressive

 
connection
 
Christ
 

interesting