The Pulpit Commentary — 2 Corinthians — Section 146

judgments and decisions are made, bis affections are ruled, and his conrluct is ordered by what may be gathered under the term "the fashion of this world." Sense-conr\i- tions determine his place. Sense-requirements command his allegiance. Sense-principle~ inspire .his doings and decide his relations. lie "walks'' with a. horizon no further off than yonder ridge of hills, and with no thought really bigger in his soul than "What shall we eat'? what shall we drink? and what shall we enjoy?" Saying this is the saddest revelation of man's essential wrongness before the God who "made him for himself." III. WALK BY FAITH AS DESCRIPTIVE OF TEE CHRISTIAN LIFE. We are not yet face to face with the eternal realities, but faith as the "substance of things hoped for" gives us a present actual possession of those eternal things, and makes them exert their power on our "walk." Faith in the unseen and eternal can (1) cheer; (2) raise the tone; (3) bring steadfastness into our walk and conversation. The realities are revealed. to faith; human sight can only see passing shadows of things.-R. T. Ver. 10.-" The judgment-seat of Ghrist." It is needlessly forcing language to regard this expression as referring to the general judgment of mankind. This letter is addressed to the saints, the Church at Corinth, and it may be specially instructive to keep within the limits of St. Paul's thought when he said, "For we "-that is, we Christians_-" must all appear before the judgment-seat of Christ." Such a judgment, or appraisementi of our conduct is involved in the very idea of our mastership to Christ. He will be sure one day to take account of his servants, and this Jesus himself taught ·11s in his parableli of the talents and pounds. Christians are as stewards, men entrusted for a time with their Master's goods. They are even to be thought of as " slaves," wholly the Master's possession; and he has full power to estimate their conduct, reward faithfulness, and punish neglect and disobedience. St. Paul even loves to think of himself as the bondslave of Jesus. And the apostles long to prove so faithful in all things that they may not be ashamed, or terrified, or loth to meet their Master a,t his coming. " The feeling of accountability may take two forms. In a free and generous spirit it may be simply a. sense of duty; in a slavish and cowardly spirit it will be a sense of· compulsion." To us it should be a joy and an inspiration that our own loved Master will appraise our lives; and that, if he is true to observe our faults, ne will be no less gracious to recognize what he may call our goodnesses and our obediences. The thought of his judgment can only be a terror to the rebellious, dis- obedient, ·and wilful among his servants. We notice three things. I. LOYALTY TO CHRIST IS OUR SPIBIT. "We call him Master and Lord, and we say well; for so he is.'' 'l'be rule of our life is the will of our glorified and ever-present Lord. We have voluntarily given ourselves to him. To him we owe our supreme allegiance. He is to us what his queen and country are to the general who leads forth his army. We must be ever true to him; and he, and he alone, is the Lord whose approval or condemnation of our work we should seek. Because I am loyal to Christ I will c:i.re about nobody's judgment of my life until I know his. II. SEBVIOE OF CHRIST IN RIGHTEOUSNESS IS OUR LIFE. '!'his is the very essence of .the matter. Christ is served by righteousness, and really by nothing else. Our place of service, our kind of service, our success in service, are quite the secondary things. The first thing is the rightness with which we do the service. Was the work good t-this it is that Christ asks. Herein Christ differs from all other masters. They can only judge the work; he judges the charactlfr which found expression through the work. It is that personal righteousness that Christ.will search for when he judges his servants. III. THE APPRAISEMENT OF CRRIST 18 OUR EXPECTATION AND OUR HOPE. .A day of finaljudgment is men's expectation, but not their hope. It is too often a terror to them, a thought put away in fear. Christ's judgment of his saints is our hope ; it is the first day of our glory. The thought of it may make us serious and watchful, but it never can make us sad. Christ will test and try our lives. Christ will weigh us in his balances. Christ will apportion our future place. Christ will chastise if there be found evil in us, and his chastiseWflnts shall be our joy; for we too want all the evil in us found out and put away. We even glory in'this coming appraisement by our Lord; for if, in subtle disauises, evil lurks in any of our secret places of heart a.nu life, Jesus will find it out, and will not leave ns until we stand in the likeness of his own spotle,s HZ THE SECOND EPISTLE TO THE CORINTHIANS, [mr, T. l-21,