others ? Let us teach them to love everybody as them- selves, and do to others as they would have others do to them.
But how shall we obtain this love towards God ? It is no natural feeling. We are born in sin, and, as sinners, are afraid of God. How then can we love Him ? We can never really love Him till we are at peace with Him through Christ. When we feel our sins forgiven, and ourselves reconciled to our holy Maker, then, and not till then, we shall love Him and have the spirit of adoption. Faith in Christ is the true spring of love to God. They love most who feel most forsjiven. " We love him because he first loved us.'' (1 John iv. 19.)
And how shall we obtain this love towards our neigh- bor ? This is also no natural feeling. We are born selfish, hateful, and hating one another. (Titus iii. 3.) We shall never love our fellow man aright till our hearts are changed by the Holy Ghost. We must be born again. We must put ofi" the old man, and put on the new, and receive the mind that was in Christ Jesus. Then, and not till then, our cold hearts will know true God-like love towards all. " The fruit of the Spirit is love." (Galat. v. 22.)
Let these things sink down into our hearts. There is much vague talk in these latter days about love and charity. Men profess to admire them and desire to see them increased, and yet hate the principles which alone can produce them. Let us stand fast in the old paths. We cannot have fruits and flowers without roots. We cannot have love to God and man without faith in Christ, and without regeneration. The way to spread true love
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in the world, is to teach the atonement of Christ, and the work of the Holy Ghost.
The concluding portion of the passage, contains a question put to the Pharisees by our Lord. After answering with perfect wisdom the inquiries of His ad- versaries. He at last asks them, "What think ye of Christ ? Whose Son is He ?" They reply at once, "the son of David/' He then asks them to explain, why David in the book of Psalms calls Him Lord. (Psalm ex. 1.) " If David then calls him Lord, how is he his son ?" At once His enemies were put to silence. " No man was able to answer him a word." The Scribes and Pharisees no doubt were familiar with the Psalm He quoted, but they could not explain its apphcation. It could only be explained by conceding the pre-existence and divinity of the Messiah. This the Pharisees would not concede. Their only idea of Messiah was, that He was to be a man like one of themselves. Their ignorance of the Scriptures, of which they pretended to know more than others, and their low, carnal view of the true nature of Christ, were thus exposed at one and the same time. Well may Matthew say, by the Holy Ghost, "From that day forth durst no man ask him any more questions \"
Let us not leave these verses w^ithout making a practical use of our Lord's solemn question, " What think ye of Christ ?'' What do we think of His person, and His offices ? What do we think of His life, and what of His death for us on the cross ? What do we think of His resurrection, ascension, and intercession at the right hand of God ? Have we tasted that He is gracious ? Have
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