ve, 'Holiness unto the Lord'. God's will, God's honour, God's
service--these are on the labels. And--

_The trivial round, the common task,
Will furnish all we ought to ask,
Room to deny ourselves--a road
To bring us daily nearer God._

Some have not got there yet. They have not made a dedication such as
Zechariah spoke of, one which governs the whole life, the big and the
little, the work and the worship, their associations and pleasures and
methods of business. There are things in their daily work and personal
habits, little indulgences or selfishnesses, to which that label,
'Holiness unto the Lord', cannot be attached.

Oh, I beseech you, make no distinctions. Let there be no reserves.
Body, soul, spirit, as we sometimes sing, lay upon the altar.
Consecrate yourselves to your Lord in simplicity and sincerity, with a
simple faith that God will baptize you, and give you His Holy Spirit to
maintain this consecration.

_What e'er pursuits my time employ,
One thought shall fill my soul with joy;
That silent, secret thought shall be
That all my hopes are fixed on Thee._

XVII

Spiritual Growth

'_Thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring whose waters
fail not._' (Isaiah lviii. 11.)

'_Grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ._' (2 Peter iii. 18.)

The truths of the Bible exist in counterpart, having at least two
aspects, each of which must be considered in relation to the other, if
their full meaning is to be understood. That is a very necessary
statement in regard to the aspect of truth which we emphasize under the
general heading of 'Spiritual Growth', or 'Growth in the Divine Life'.
On the one hand, we know that spiritual experience is marked by certain
crises which are in some cases like earthquakes or tidal waves; whilst,
on the other hand, the law of progression must be in constant
operation.

We speak of conversion as a crisis, because a man in a moment 'passes
from death unto life'; or, in the Saviour's words, is 'born again'.
Whatever happens before or after, there must be that definite change
before any man can enter the Kingdom of God. Then, happily, many have
experienced another crisis which we speak of as 'getting a clean
heart'. This happens when an enlightened soul fully and absolutely
consecrates itself to God, and, by faith, claims and realizes that 'the
Blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin'. A man