Vera. 1-3.-0harif.y puts the acceptableness on all gifts and works. The Revised Ver- sion renders" charity". as" love." E_xplain '' charitl'.;" d!stingnish from "~lmsgiving," and from the love t~at :~ connected with human relat10nsh1ps. If we could mtelligently .use the word "charity to express God's love for us, we should be able to use it intelli- gently of the love which we have, as Christians, for each other, and or the love that. must tone and temper the use or all Christian gifts. Charity is the considerateness and .care for others which finds expression in self-denial for their welfare. Charity is the spirit in a man which leads him to put others before self. Our Lord's life on the earth was a life of charity ; love for men, longing for their highest :rood, and readiness to suffer, if by suffering he could do them good, arc its characteristic features. His charity is commended to us. It has been said that the" English word 'charity' has never risen to the height of the apostle's argument." At best it does but signify a kindly interest in, and forbearance toward, others. It is far from suggedting the ardent, active, energetic principle which the apostle had in view. And though the English word "love" includes the affection which springs up between persons of different sexes, it is generally understood to denote only the higher and nobler forms or that affection, the lower being stigmatized under the name of" passion." Charity, then, is to be regarded as the tone and motive to which God looks; things, actions, are accepted by him, not for their own sakes, but for the sake of the spirit and character for which they find expression. The one acceptable feature to God, in all human action aud relationship, is churity, and this the apostle illustrates by his panegyric on love. I. MAN's ACCEPTANCE OF GIF'l'S AND WORKS ACCORDING 'l'O THEIR APPEARANCE. "Man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart." Only in a very imperfect way can we estimate ,the motives of others. Our attention is occupied by incidents, and we form our impressions from the things actually done. Consequently our estimates are always incomplete and often unworthy; we misconceive what is really great and what is really little, and give our acceptance and our praise to things which will not endure the Divine searching. Of men who stand high in the esteem of their fellow-men for their excellent talents and their good-looking works, it must in truth be said, "Thou art weighed in the balances, and found wanting." "Thy heart is not right in the sight of God." 11. Goo's ACCEPTANCE OF GIF'l'S AND WORKS ACCORDING TO THE SPIRIT AND TIIE MO'l'IVE WHICH UNDERLIE THE APPEARANCE. That motive God knows and judge~ perfectly. 'l'o him it is the real man. '!'he appearance, the action, never deceives him. Man's show of virtue is fitly estimated. Upon God's estimate there are "many first who shall be last, and many last who shall be first." To true hearts it should come as an abounding satisfaction that while our fellow-men may misconceive us, God never does. He "knoweth us altogether." And we can cunfidently appeal from the judgment of men to the judgment of God. Ill. THE CUnI~'l'IAN DUTY OF GAINING FOLL DELIVERANCE FRO~! 'l'HE MAN S'l'ANDARD OF Lll'E, AND UPLIFTING 'l"O 'l'HE DIVINE S'l'ANDARD. Growing likeness to God-which is the Christian sanctii'yiug-,-should involve our seeing things as God sees them, and judging and appraising them on God's principles and in God's ways. Illustrate this subject by the apostolic references to the girt of tongues; from the gift of prophecy; from the apparent fervour often seen on religious lives that are 1:ot deeply tone,l; from cases of mere generosity of natural disposition; and even from case~ of martyr-endnran ;e which may be mere bravado, and not, to the heart-searching Oue, humble, fervent loyal,y and love.-H. T.
Vers. 4-8.....:..The grace of charity. When we speak of charity (u-ycf'"l) it is in t!:ie eense attached to the word in the New Testament. vVe do not speak of promiscuous and impulsive almsgiving, in which there is o[ten but the veriest morsel of charity, and which, in our condition of society, is almost an unmitigated evil, tending as it does to the maintenance of an indigent aml pauperizcd class. We do not speak of that kind of natural affection (lpos) which binds men together with the tie~ of fomily and friendship. Charity, as a grace of the gospd, is altogether larger and more co_m- :prehensive than these things. It is first the love of the whole human rncc,_ as bemg the objects of the lo,·e of Lio<!, our common Father, and the redeemed ?f h_1s mercy. Then it is this spirit of love, el'er seeking for us, and ever fiuding expression 1u, act~ of 454 THE FIRST EPISTLE TO THE CORINTHIANS. [c!I. xm. 1-13,