remuneration, their worth in GoJ's sight is nothing or next to nothing. If they are do_n~ to h0~our an~ to please Jesus Christ., 01 prompted by pure benevolence, or in the spmt of :filrnl obedience, they have a real worth and are the objects of Divine approval. But the teaching of our text is that actions are worthy- III. MEASURED BY THEIR UNSELFISHNESS. If at heart they are selfish then in the judgment of God they are without virtue; in proportion to their generosity aud that is to say, t-0 their costliness, they are beautiful, and even noble. 1. The gift of :noney. The widow's mite was more in the sight of God than the rich men's gold; and it was so because they gave of their abundance a sum the loss of which they would not feel-a sum that entailed no reduction of their comfort and constituted no sacrifice at all· but she gave all that she bad-a sum she would miss much, a truly generous sac;ifice. How often we applaud the donation of some hundreds of pounds, when the ten sbillincrs contributed by some struggling worker has a higher place in the heavenly ledger I l!. The gift of time. The man whose easy circumstances allow him to give much time to religion or philanthropy may be less worthy and may be making e. really smaller contribution than he who, pressed bard by pecuniary obligations and having a heavy burden of family responsibility to carry, yet squeezes a few hours from toilful days to lend a helping hand to the cause of Christ and of man. The horm subscecivm are of more account than many leisure days. 3. .Active service in the field of Christian labour. Some men ar<J so constituted that they can render service in the pulpit, on the plat- form, in the class-room, almost without cost; they can speak without previous prepara- tion e.nd without subsequent exhaustion. But others can only serve at much cost to themselves; their strength is taxed to be ready for the hour of opportunity, they expend themselves freely in the act of utterance or in the outpouring of sympathy, and they know what the miseries of prostration mean. A slight service, as reckoned by the time-table or the census, on the pa.rt of these latter may be more than equal to very prominent and much-appreciated work rendered by the former. 4. The sacrifice of life. It might seem that those who gave their life for their Lord or for their kind were all offering a. gift of the same value. But not so. Life has very different values at different stages. It is comparatively little for the man who has spent his days and his powers to surrender the short and uninteresting remainder; it is much for the young man who has all the pleasures and prizes of life within his reach to part with the bright, inviting future in order to serve his fellows; the deed is nobler, for the sacrifice is greater. (1) Let us take care that we do not judge by the appearance only, or we shall be unjust. (2) Let us be sure that every true a.et of worthy service is appreciated and will be owned of Christ.-C. Vers. 5, 6.-Tlie destructi'ble and the indestructi'ble. We have our Lord's own authority for comparing the temple with a human being (John ii. 19). He, how- ever, compared it with his body; we may without any impropriety make the compari- son with a human spirit-with the man himself. We look at it in regard to its destructibleness. L 'l'RE BUILDING ITSELF, AND OUR BEING ITSELF, The temple was the pride and the delight of every Jew. Among other things that gratified him, he rejoiced in its strength; he felt that it was secure. Generations of men would come and go, but that buHdincr would remain. Built of the most durable materials, it would defy the action of tb; elements; placed in the strong city and guarded with such rampart~, t~e enemy would assail it in vain. Where it then stood, there after many centuries 1t would be found. But the Jew was wrong; already those elements were at work which would bring on the fatal conflict, and that generation was not to pass (ver. 33) until that glorious fabric should be cast down and "not one stone left upon another." A very slight thing in comparison with such a great and imposing structure seems e. human beincr0 How easily destroyed I "crushed before the moth;" "destroyed between the mornina and the evenina." Yet is there within the compass of the smallest and feeblest ma; that which is ~ore lasting than the temple, that which will survive the strongest structure that art or nature ever reared. Not that the human soul is abso- lutely indestructible: "He can create and he [can] destroy it." But it is created and inknded for immortality. And if only it be on the side of truth and in the service of God-in Chri8t Jesus, it is destined for immortality; it will survive the strongest on. xxI. 1-38.J TEE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. LUKE. 189
temples and the most impregnable castles; no wrath of man, :io lapse and wear of time, no shock of material forces, can destroy it; it is indestructible. II. ITS STIIENGTH AND BEAUTY, AND OUR OWN. The temple was "adorned with goodly stones and gifts." But strong as these massive stones were, and carefn lly as those gifts were guarded, the day ea.me, and came in the experience of that very generation, when not one stone was left upon another, and nothing of the exquisite offerings was preserved; everything perished in the :fire or was ploughed up by the ruth- less share. Now, there is one thing which no :fire can consume and no violence shatter -a spiritually strong and spiritually beautiful clviracter; a. holy and lovely character rooted in Christ and sustained by his indwelling Spirit. Buildings massive and solid, fortunes large and brilliant, kingdoms fortified by great armies and costly navies,-these may be broken to pieces and perish. But the character of a. Christian man, who is simply loyal to his Master, cannot be broken. Character that is not rooted in faith and that is not sustained by devotion may fall and be broken, and great and sad is the fall ofit. But(l)let a man build on the foundation which is laid for it,even Jesus Christ; (2) let him abide in Christ by a. living faith; (3) let him seek the continual sustenance of the Spirit of God ;-and no opposing or wasting forces will touch him to harm him. The strength and beauty of his character will remain, will become stronger and fairer with the passing years, will be the object of commendation when the eye of the great Judge shall rest upon them at la.st.-C.