SUNDAY READING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXVIII, Issue 8670, 12 September 1891, Page 4 (Supplement)

SUNDAY READING.

WEAK FAITH SEEKING HELP. [BY NEWMAN* HALL, LI, E.J In* a former paper faith was represented struggling with doubt, as an entrenched camp assailed from the outside. The present subject is faith lamenting its weakness and seeking help, as a camp not attacked by foes, but with'provisions 'snort and garrison sick. It is not troubled by sceptical doubts, but laments that convictions are not deeper, resolutions firmer, beliefs more efficient. It appeals to the great object of faith—*' Lord, I believe ; help Thou my unbelief." 1 "I believe in Christ; but do not deeply feel my need of Him or His power as applied to me, or his personal love to myself, and I fear there is something peculiar "in my ease to deprive me of the blessing others enjoy. I believe in the duty and efficacy of prayer, but I often fail to realise the actual presence of the God I address; wandering thoughts carry me far away. Prayer is often merely duty without delight, and I have no assurance of any answer. I believe in Cod as Father who has promised that His cnildreu shall lack no good, but the promise recedes into dim background in the presence of pain, losses, vexations, bereavement. I believe in the claims of Christ on my constant obedience, but the interests of this life often absorb my attention. I believe in the coming of Christ and future bliss, but things s.eeu and temporal, both pains and pleasures, | often eclipse the things eternal. Lord, I believe in these truths, duties, and privi- j leges, and wish to live in accordance with such faith, but my sight often fails, my hand often droops. Like a. sailor who sometimes catches sight of the harbour far off, and rejoices in hope of home, but often by interposing mists loses all view of it, and by squalls and waves fears he may fail to reach it, so my view of heavenly things is often obscured, and I fear I may never reach my port. Gracious Saviour, calm the : waves, dispel the mist, clear my mental vision, strengthen my spiritual nature, help Thy poor weak disciple, who still clings to Thee, his only hope; Lord, I believe; help Thou mine unbelief." Fo: encouragement let us contrast (he infinite nature of what we believe with our finite capacity ot believing. God, salvation, eternity are the objects about which are exercised the feebleness of human thought, emotion, will. How vastly inferior to those mighty truths must be our weak response! —as the pace of an ant climbing the Alps ! Thus the strongest believers may pray, " Help my unbelief!" It is consolation that the weakness is lamented. We are not as the unconverted, as we once were, dormant and indifferent. Bishop Hall says, "We cannot so lament our want of faith if we had 110 faith._ The Spirit helps our infirmities not only in the ioys of assurance, but in groanings which cannot be uttered." Strength of grace is seen in holy joys, but the truth of grace is heard in sighs and prayers"Help my unbelief !" Lack of faith is often confounded with lack of assurance. Faith may be praying strongly to Christ, though our ears may be heavy, and His reply not be heard. We may be resolutely taking the physician's remedies while doubting our final recovery. A rocking-stone moves to and fro, but comes back to its centre of gravity— though oscillating. We sometimes fear wo rely on mere theories and dreams, yet our foot rests 011 firm ground. " The steps of ffiftith fall on the seeming -void, and find the rock beneath." _ , m Faith, though weak, is still faith. lhe bud lias not perished, because not yet developed. The sprouting corn has promise of harvest, though not yet in car. The child is J alive, though young. Weak faith holds a |

strong Christ; y Ga , f "r»n? ChiJ holds the weak believer\ CW the bruised wed - * oes riot l, r .'«; His arms. »] fr-i/i" 1 " l„ Wl.il. MktoK-'S? W"' «> 'S. l " strengthen it, let us u <- ( > tl. ° f fai "> to dams. ])„ y. e need to J! mean* heavenly things? Then W „ ' ; 'tar] v things which are unseen and X, "f >?' 1 the fixedly, earnestly, internt-1 v. 1I 0r ? they force theinseives on our -m till \k? K r for tllcm > look -it 'h. J , n • l >ut Word of God, by' the ** & communion with the bVj " ra ' :e ' h template,, by earnest praye,- " »' con. to health of bodv, s «, W, ' * As ln regard faith by wholesome food, tlx- tVml f ""' by pure air. avoiding the noiin, '1 '- infected atmosphere of the fT f'! 118 &1 "l' and worldly ; by suitable*3; fri ,V?K' obedience to God's commandu i ' Jlll r«i eflorts to benefit our 3* 1 Above all let us " pr without "" t ' li ! lre ß. remembering the promise "A Ce ««n K » will your Heavenly Father v m , u • !l «nr,. v Wo know that this isgood Av£4s" Mf'Wconstantly, earnestly'; " Lor ]j LH '"?'* help my unbelief.". ' * Relieve;

A TALK TO I'ARKXts. [BY lIICV. TJiKonouj; i.. crvir,.' r>n, "His mother made him a little coatMi ' ' |f_ It is a little text. We can't aU,,. on great things. Life is made tilings. J Jiis is restive tn 1■ ! 1 "Ufa their children. The least of t'n>Vl'' entS an '' nearest the sun; the little chibi I '^. tl^ ,t warmest place m the parent's heart " S ,Jl£ Hannah consecrated her bo v to *'>*, t ministry of the temple at three or ■' Rilci ' e ' l of age. : She made him a little - Wl -' brought, it to him vear by vc-r \v ' a "' l tell what kind of a little dres, ii,;,, c '!"' 5 she did not overload her child -, v ; t il ,i • '"'t' Pings of a doll; she did not X, many parents do, with the tlnimb'^'i' "• fashion, "" J ■-'-itrts of • Clothing is used figuratively in «,„■ Christianity is a v^ture-a vi ii.l |,tnre - not disfigured with the lilthv T r a i l ' ;l - v ,7" righteousness. "Put ye on {!„. "f,\. JV d! " Christ." Habit implies the dWnsir ,H the mind, the whole tendency "to l '?, 1 of evil, and we supply both to onr riS ° r \\u make coats for them that will , J'?'" nfc. Our children will put on our I" 'h r° r spite of us; our character streams im V through the eye and the car. for'-ood m f'" evil, by unconscious influence o„ ,1 •' plastic minds we make ' v I** are most lasting No photo,.-J* ? is so sensitive. Tears on the iiiotlu-t" • ' will cause the features of the little' cl.il i'r gather 111 sympathetic wrinkle* 0,, V" simulation will make them trickv < your child a dollar to buy eonfecti,^ ami'"! dune for the cause of Christ, ami von t i that child that these things St' 1 £> more valuable. Send you,- boy to , S and you send a detective to tell what so cV a home you have. The hospitable''.,,,™ puts wine ion his table; the son >J rll , , love it. How does he like the c-'t." T> day house is thought not so had. llowfe! he ike the habit.' Ihe lather bo-ins tie •Sabbath by reading the ■■ newspaper* 'IV commonest talk in one fainilv is money- i , another fashion. How will these Habit, stand the judgment seat? They will k. worn by our children long after the dust shad be 011 our hps. Little coats are not little things. Little decides the destiuy of the soul. A new -ar meat is made up of a thousand threads, and character determines destiny. ' _ Life has infinitely important pivots \ little switch on the railroad, turned in'(iv seconds, may have the most momentous results. We arc great sinners in little tiling Irritations in word or look, frivolous tafk' doing things that ought never to have be.'a done, make up a terrible aggregate of sin The little things in life make up its bca'utv ol its deformity. The aggregate of snowflakes stops the train. The aggregate of little sins stops the chariot of God. The sum total of good deeds make a good life. Sweet, kind words make up the joy of life from lips or pen. We can all give these drops of honey, which men will value more than money. Far-reaching is the influence of little acts. Little thought Hannah what she was (loin, when she made the little coat. Samuel wore it till, amid the lamentations of Israel, he was laid to his fathers. Tfmothy's far outlasted his mother's time.

You may not he able to leave your children a great inheritance, or give them an expensive source of culture; but, day by day, by constant effort, you may he weaving coats for them which shall grow brighter tu all eternity.

A CENTRAL TRUTH.

[r,v rr.rxcirAi, ijaxdlev c. <;. moui.e.] _ Around the groat fact of union with Christ lies grouped the whole circle of the truths of grace. It is for this, we may reverently say. that the Holy Trinity itself was made known to man. For this the blessed Incarnation was wrought and revealed. For this we are allowed to hear of an eternal election, and of a holy calling, ami of ail Euclesiu, a company " called out" from the fallen race to God in Christ; of the cross, the blood, the propitiation; of the work of the Holy Spirit in the human soul; of repentance; of faith and its sacramental seals; of rettiission, peace, righteousness, acceptance, justification.

Yes, let us be perfectly clear 011 this point. From the point of view of spiritual life none of these tilings is the centre, ultimately. One or smother of them may rightly (ill the foreground sometimes, or often; but the foreground is not necessarily the centre, the life ami heart, the " motive," of the picture. For the spiritual life, that tan be nothing else and nothing less than union with the Lord, vital union.' impartation of the life which is in Christ. Jesus, who is the Root of the branches and the Head of the limbs. True, the very saeredness and glory of the thing should teach us caution in stating it. Let us shun the false reverence of a cloud of unmeaning words about it. Let us be clear what it cannot mean. Not absorption of personality; not abeyance of responsibility; not confusion of flock and .Shepherd, mi'ijects and King, bride and Husband. ?»ot such an inner state of things as that what in me loves God shall be something other than my ego. No; but yet is it such a truth as that " he who is joined, unto t.ie Lord is one spirit." As truly as man and wife (two persons) are yet one flesh, so truly the believer and his Lord (two persons) are one spirit. As truly as the foot or finger nan no true existence apart from the head, nor the twig apart from the root, so truly has the Christian, as regards whatever is truly life for eternity, no true existence apart iron) the vital union with Jesus Christ. So let every doctrine of grace fall into lti place and scale in reference to this, in connection with this. Ido not forget that even tins, like the sun of our solar system, revolves around a yet greater centre—the glory 0 God, the only sullieient Final Cause 0 things. But lam speaking within the orb of the system of grace and as regards 01 spiritual life. And the central trntii ot t m system is the mystical union. Wit.mitn. system the Final Cause of all other truths tiiis truth. They are revealed in order t man's spirit, man's being, may hud cntra upon union with Christ; may be drawn driven to secure it; may be sustained » secured in it; may bring forth the tnut' it in that life whose true formula is: treatise I live, ye shall live also."

HE COULD NOT BE HID. It never can be kept quiet long when Jes"gets into any • house. H>' cannot be n • The neighbours will soon find out that is thfte. The people cannot keep the see • They will let it out in many ways. • will show it in their faces. Those who ' Christ in their homes do not look like people. There is a radiance or sunn ~ j about them when they come out that, t an unworldly source of joy. 1 hero is - * thing about their spirits, too, that let. the secret; they cannot help talking > , their Guest. Fragrant flowers can concealed, and there is a fragrance • IC (.. Jesus that always reveals Dis I;' 5 « Love itself is invisible, but «' llL '' c . ... e . dwells it produces such effects that • sence soon becomes known. „„l,n'ul. It makes people gentle, kindly, thou? ht««. unselfish, and fills them with new 0 * . | do good and to serve and bless otheis. * wherever Christ is love is 111 all ,ts . n # sive, transforming influence, an ." , roes home where Christ abides "there an <• • j" j„. forth a fragrant influence and a lo\m„, . ful ministry.