golden rule of Jesus of Nazareth; if they could be made to feel that it is really more blessed to give than to receive; if they could be imbued with the spirit which is thoughtfully considerate for others, then, instead of making the world more wretched every hour they live, they would be transformed into useful members of society, each one of them contributing to the welfare of the rest.

Christ saw, what none had seen before Him, that men needed to be saved, not from divine vengeance, but from themselves from their lower, meaner selves. We noticed that the subjugation of the lower self to the higher, the development of the narrower self into the broader, is possible only for the man who is inspired and actuated by the spirit of love; and that the possession of such a spirit is made, in the New Testament, the criterion of genuine discipleship. "By this," said our Lord, "shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." Nay, more, Christ declared that our acceptance or rejection upon the great day of reckoning, would depend upon whether or not we had performed the self-sacrificing acts of kindliness by which a loving spirit is inevitably manifested. We further noticed that the greatest

aid in living a life of self-denial was personal devotion to Christ Himself,-devotion so intense, that the nature of the Master seemed to pass into and become the nature of the servant. Now this devotion, this absorption of the character of Christ, is not only the very essence of Christian worship, but it is also the earnest of immortality. "Whoso eateth my flesh," said our Lord, "and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day."

So when we thus take a comprehensive view of the matter, we discover that self-development by means of self-denial involves nothing short of everlasting salvation. There is absolute harmony between one's own highest good and the highest good of others.

"To thine own self be true, And it must follow, as the night the day, Thou canst not then be false to any man.'

There is absolute harmony between our proper work in this world and our proper preparation for the next. He became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey Him." "We debate," says the rector of a church in Boston, "whether self-culture or our brethren's service is the true purpose of life; we vacillate aimlessly between them. Now we shut ourselves up, and

meditate and try to grow. Now we rush forth and make the world ring with what we call our work. The two so often have no connection with each other. We are so apt to live two lives. Jesus knows but one. All culture of His soul is part of our salvation. All doing of His work is ripening of His nature. Jesus in the still night, far off upon the solitary hill-top; Jesus in the broad daylight, dragged by the hooting mob to Calvary,- both of them are Jesus saving the world. Christ escaped the perplexity of many of the questions with which our lives are troubled, as the eagle flying through the sky is not worried how to cross the rivers." The salvation of Christ is all-comprehensive in its scope, and therefore well worth the effort of working out. Saving ourselves is no selfish task, it is learning to be kind. On the one hand, no man can come to his best by selfishness; and on the other, no man can do much for his fellow-men who is not much himself. On the one hand, no man can make the best of his present without regarding it as preparatory to the future; and on the other, no man can properly fit himself for the next world. unless he does his duty here. To prepare for heaven is not merely to build up a noble

character, but to become a creator of happiness, an inspirer of nobility. It is to work for the good of humanity, for the good of the entire universe.

Our proper life-work can be accomplished by no one but ourselves. Unless we do it, it will remain eternally undone.

"Remember every soul He made

Is different, has some deed to do,
Some work to work; be undismayed
Though thine be humble: do it too."

If you do it, rest assured the good that results will be eternal. There is a conservation of energy in the moral, as in the physical, sphere. Not a single particle of matter is ever destroyed. It may pass into new shapes, it may combine with other elements, it may float away into vapour; but it will come back, possibly in the dewdrop or the rain, helping the leaf to grow and the fruit to swell. "So is it," says Leo Grindon, "with every generous self-denying effort. It may escape our observation and be utterly forgotten,-it may seem to have been altogether useless; but it has become part of the moral world, it has given it new enrichment and beauty, the whole universe partakes of its influence." It is possible for each of us so to live

as to leave this world better than we found it, and to enhance by our presence the happiness and glory of the next. This is the work which God has given us to do. Shall it be accomplished by us, or shall it not? It ought to be, -it can be.

"So nigh to grandeur is our dust,

So nigh is God to man,

When duty whispers low, 'Thou must!'
The soul replies, 'I can.