Matthew 5

Matthew 5:7

The Merciful Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.— Matthew 5:7. If you went to the city of Florence in Italy, you would see there the beautiful marble Cathedral which stands in a great square. If you had gone there some six hundred years ago you might have seen, lounging in its shadow, during the heat of the day, a number of porters. In those days cabs and carriages were not used. Instead, ladies were carried about in litters by these porters as our own ancestors were carried in sedan chairs; and the men waited near the Cathedral to be hired as cabmen wait on a stand. They were often idle for hours, and while they hung about talking to each other they frequently used oaths and bad language. It troubled one man very much to hear this, and he set himself to put a stop to it.

He persuaded the others to agree to pay a fine every time they used an oath. In this way a little money was collected, and then the man, whose name was Pietro Borsi, proposed that they should buy litters with it, and that on these litters the porters should carry to the hospital sick persons, or people wounded in the fights which often took place in the streets.

Each man was to take his turn.From this small beginning there grew a famous society. It was recognized that it was a good and pious thing—worthy of anyone—to care for the sick and helpless. The society gradually came to include not only porters, but men of all classes—tradesmen, professional men, and noblemen, and it was considered an honor to belong to it. It was called the Brotherhood of Mercy.We are familiar with the name Sisters of Mercy given to an order of women in the Roman Catholic Church, but the Brothers of Mercy are not so well known. The Brotherhood is still in existence, and for six hundred years the Brothers have done their daily deeds of kindness. Every day they meet at a small church in the Cathedral square for prayer.

They put on an odd black dress which envelops them completely. Their heads are covered with black hoods and their faces with black masks so that no one knows who does the good deed, and no Brother in particular gets the credit of it.At church they are told what they must do.

Some take up their litters and go to carry a man to the hospital. Others may be sent to nurse a sick man in his own home, or to attend to some dying person. Sometimes there is a sudden need of help. Then a bell is rung in the street, and any Brother who hears it, be he workman or nobleman, must leave whatever he is doing and hasten to do the deed of mercy. He must take no reward but a cup of cold water.That seems a very fine thing to do, and it is an honor indeed to belong to such an Order. But without going as far as Italy, or wearing a robe, or bearing a name, we may all be Brothers and Sisters of Mercy There is still plenty of room for followers of Pietro Borsi, for those who will do deeds of kindness and love, without show, and without seeking for reward.1.

There is one way open to everybody, rich or poor—the way of mercy to animals. The dumb creatures depend upon us for their happiness, and we are responsible for the way in which we use them.

One little boy told his mother that he had joined a society for chasing cats, but his membership was immediately ended. Another boy belonged to a society which “did not kill toads.” These are odd societies. But it is not necessary to belong to a society in order to be kind to the animals with which we come in contact, in order to try to persuade others to be kind to them.A little Edinburgh boy saw a carter ill-using his horse. He was a very little boy, and he was afraid to speak to the man, “But,” he said, “I had to stop him, so I just said, ‘ Man, don’t be a cad to your horse! ’”And here is another story of how a small boy was kind to animals. It is told us by a Scottish poet, George MacDonald.In Regent’s Park, one cloudless day, An overdriven sheep, Come a hard, long, and dusty way, Throbbing with thirst and hotness lay, A panting woollen heap. But help is nearer than we know For ills of every name: Ragged enough to scare the crow, But with a heart to pity woe, A quick-eyed urchin came. Little he knew of field or fold, Yet knew what ailed; his cap Was ready cup for water cold; Though creased, and stained, and very old, ’Twas not much torn, good hap! Shaping the rim and crown he went, Till crown from rim was deep: The water gushed from pore and rent, Before he came one-half was spent— The other saved the sheep. O little goat, born, bred in ill, Unwashed, half-fed, unshorn, Thou to the sheep from breezy hill Wast bishop, pastor, what you will, In London dry and lorn!2. And there is another way in which we can all show mercy. We can be kind and helpful to those around us who are in trouble or need. There are few people so poor that they cannot be kind to someone still poorer.To a school in the East of London five hundred poor and hungry children came for basins of soup. Just as the soup was going to be served a gentleman mounted the platform and announced, “Boys, we haven’t enough soup to go round. What shall we do?” Promptly the answer came—“Give it to the girls!”So the girls were served, and still there was some soup left.

Again the gentleman spoke—“Boys, we have still some soup, but not enough for all. What shall we do?” Like a flash the answer came back— “Give it to the thin uns!” So the “thin uns” were fed and the strong ones went hungry away.3.

But when we speak of mercy, we most often think of it as a quality shown to those who have done wrong. It has often happened that the best way of preventing wrong-doing has been to show mercy to the guilty one.During the Crimean War the late Admiral Lord Clarence Paget was in command of one of the British ships in the Baltic. One day a sailor called Dudley was brought before him for some offence. The man was a sort of “black sheep.” He was always getting into mischief of some kind, and everybody seemed to think there was no good in him.Now the Admiral intended to order Dudley to be flogged, but he had noticed, during the examination, that the sailor seemed to consider that every man’s hand was against him; so at the last moment he changed his mind and resolved to try what kindness would do. Accordingly he forgave the criminal and ordered the officers and men to treat him as if he had never been guilty of any offence whatsoever.Some weeks later cholera broke out in the fleet, and the surgeon reported to the Admiral that Dudley had been his right-hand man, attending to the dying day and night, and never sparing himself, Paget was so touched that he resolved to have the sailor called up on deck and publicly thanked. But that night Dudley caught infection and died.

So this man whom everybody had thought good for nothing gave his life in trying to save others.But why should we be merciful?We should be merciful because we ourselves need mercy from God.There was once a governor of Georgia who found that his servant had stolen some of his wine. He was very angry, and said he would have the man flogged.

His minister begged him to pardon the thief this once, but he said, “It is of no use talking. I never forgive.” “Then,” said the minister, “I hope you know you will not be forgiven, so I hope you have never sinned”Again, we should be merciful, because when we are unmerciful and unforgiving we are doing an injury to ourselves. We are making our hearts hard and unlovely, and we are shutting ourselves out from the face of Christ.When Leonardi da Vinci was engaged upon his great painting of the Last Supper, he indulged his hatred of a man who had injured him by copying his face for the face of Judas. Then he tried to paint the face of the Savior, but all in vain. Again and again he tried, but the result was always the same. He could not depict the face of Jesus.

At last he took his brush and painted out the likeness of his enemy. And in its place he put another face.

The next day he was able to paint the likeness of Jesus according to his ideal.So, boys and girls, we should be merciful because we need mercy, we should be merciful because we hurt ourselves when we are unforgiving, but most of all we should be merciful because Jesus Christ is merciful and loving to all; and if we would grow into His likeness, then we must keep warm within us a heart of mercy and love.

Matthew 5:9

The Peacemakers Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called sons of God.—Matthew 5:9. Many kings have had some special name attached to them because of their greatness or on account of some quality for which they were famous. We have Alfred the Great and Frederick the Great, William the Conqueror and William the Silent, Ethelred the Unready, Bichard the Lion-hearted, and so on. Edward 7: bore a finer name than any of these. He was called Edward the Peacemaker, and he was given that name because he was very wise and tactful in smoothing quarrels and preventing wars.An old writer has said that there are three things people may be—peacebreakers or peacekeepers or peacemakers. I wonder to which of these three classes you and I belong. Let us look at each of them for a minute or two.1.

Well, first there are the peacebreakers. There are some people who go about the world looking for slights; they are ready to pick a quarrel with anyone who thwarts them.

Oliver Cromwell once said of John Lilburne that he was so quarrelsome that, if he could find nobody else to quarrel with, John would quarrel with Lilburne and Lilburne with John. And there are a good many “John Lilburnes” still.But you may be a peacebreaker though you are not really one of these extra specially quarrelsome people. It takes two to make a quarrel, and if you allow yourself to quarrel with anybody about anything, whether they be a “John Lilburne” or not, then you, too, are a peacebreaker.And the peacebreakers include not only those who break the peace with others, but, what is even worse, those who break the peace between others. The surest way to do that is to tell tales about people behind their backs and repeat unwise things that your friends have said about each other.A clever Frenchman once said, “If all men knew what each said of the other, there would not be four friends in this world.” Perhaps the Frenchman was looking too much on the black side of things, but often people say things about their friends in haste which they regret at leisure, and if you go and repeat these nasty remarks then you are a peacebreaker of the most contemptible sort.2. Then there are the peacekeepers.There are two ways of keeping the peace—the wrong way and the right way. Sometimes it is wrong to keep the peace.

Britain might have kept the peace with Germany by not entering the European War, but by so doing she would have wronged her national conscience and sullied for ever her national honor.Some people are very pleasant to live with. They do not quarrel or fight.

They do not interfere. They would do anything for a quiet life. But sometimes to make peace one must break the peace. It is easier, when two of your friends have quarrelled, to stand aside and let them alone than to try to make them friends again. If you see something unjust done it is easier to say, “It’s none of my business,” than to try to put it right. But to stand aside while wrong is done because you are a lover of peace is not to be a peacekeeper. It is to be a coward.But there is a right way of keeping the peace too. There was once a business man who went to London and made a large fortune in that city.

He was never known to lose his temper, and some acquaintances laid a wager that they would make him do so. They went to his warehouse and asked to see some cloth. They made him take down piece after piece until the whole counter was littered. Then one of them produced a five-shilling coin and asked for five shillings’ worth of a certain material.The merchant took the crown, laid it on the cloth, cut neatly round it, and handed the tiny bit of material to the purchaser. So he kept the peace by keeping his temper, and he really came off the winner in the end.3. Best of all there are the peacemakers.

And not one of us is too young to be that.There is a beautiful story of an incident that happened in the American War between the North and the South.On one occasion two squadrons of cavalry—one belonging to the North, the other to the South—sighted each other across an open piece of country. At once the bugles rang out and the opposing forces dashed to the charge.

When they were about a hundred yards apart a little child ran out from a clump of trees and came between the horsemen. Instantly the bugles sounded “Halt!” One officer from each squadron dismounted and went to the child to comfort him. They talked to each other in quite a friendly fashion, and then one of the officers picked up the boy and carried him on his shoulder back to his own regiment. Afterwards the bugles sounded the “Retreat” and the squadrons separated. As one of their number said, “We just didn’t feel like fighting then.”That is what peacemaking means. It just means “coming between,” and a little child can do it.There is another fine story about how a little child got in between.

She was a very poor little girl and she lived in the slums of a great city. Her mother was a cripple and her father was a drunkard, and she had a very sad home indeed.One summer some friends who saw that she was badly in need of fresh air made arrangements for her to go away for a fortnight to the country.

But when they came to find her she refused to leave home. Yet she seemed to want to go and they could not understand her refusal. At last, after much persuasion, she gave the reason. What do you think she said? “You see,it’s like this. Father drinks, and when he comes home awful mad, he pitches into mother and I gets in between So she gave up the flowers and the birds and the sweet country air because there would be nobody to “get in between.”Boys and girls, it sometimes costs to be a peacemaker, to “get in between,” but it is angel’s work. And for the peacemakers there is a splendid promise— “they shall be called sons of God.” Jesus was called the Prince of Peace.

When He came to earth the angels sang, “Peace on earth, goodwill towards men.” He was the great Peacemaker. He is our Peace, and one of the most Christ like bits of work on earth is to make peace.

Matthew 5:13

A Pinch Of Salt Ye are the salt of the earth.—Matthew 5:13. Have salt in yourselves.—Mark 9:50. If someone were to tell you that you might have either sugar or salt but not both, which would you choose? Perhaps most of you, without stopping to consider, would reply that you would rather have no salt than no sugar. But would you really?No sugar would mean no sweets, no jam, and rather a tasteless pudding. Yes, but you could always have butter on your bread, and you might eat fruit with your pudding, and perhaps, if you didn’t have sweets for a very long time, you could manage to get along without them.But try to imagine how odd meat, or fish, or porridge, or potatoes would be without salt! An Irish boy was once asked what salt was, and he replied, “Salt is the thing that makes taters taste bad if you don’t put it on them.” Don’t you think that was a good answer? Salt is added to eatables to flavor them, and not only to flavor them, but to bring out the flavor.

For a pinch of salt is added even to sweet things like puddings and pastry to make them taste nicer.Not only is salt necessary to make our food palatable, it is also required to make it wholesome. In order to be healthy, animals and human beings alike require to eat a certain amount of salt every day.

Can you guess how much salt each human being in Great Britain consumes in one year? Sixty-two pounds! Some may eat a little more, some a little less, but that is the average. We need salt to keep our blood in a healthy condition and to help us to digest our food. In fact, we could not live without it. A traveler who crossed South America relates how his horses and cattle died because he had not sufficient salt to give them. They died—starved for want of salt even while they were nibbling the green grass.There is yet another common use of salt. It is employed for preserving things.

Meat or fish which is not wanted for use at once may be salted, and so kept good and wholesome. In the days of our grandfathers people had not sufficient feeding stuffs for their cattle during the winter, so they killed a great many animals in the autumn and salted the flesh, and they lived on salted meat all winter. Old people can tell you of the great salting time at the beginning of winter in preparation for the months when they had no other food.When Jesus was on earth He lived in a small unimportant corner of the world. All around was a great empire of heathen people—very powerful, and very wicked. He gathered round Him a few poor common people — fishermen, and tradesmen, and farmers—who believed in His words, and tried to do what He told them. To them He said one day that they were “the salt of the earth.” What did He mean?Before Jesus came, the rule of the world was—let every man live for himself, and let the weak go to the wall.

But Jesus brought into the world the spirit of love and self-sacrifice, the spirit which respects the rights of others, which has pity on the poor and helpless, which takes care of little children. That was the marvelous thing that Jesus did.

He lived and died in that spirit, and He taught it to His disciples. That was what was going to make them “the salt of the earth.” Like salt, they were to make the world a sweeter place to live in. Like salt, they were to make it more wholesome. Like salt, they were to preserve it from ruin and decay.It is because the disciples were faithful to the spirit and the teaching of Jesus that the world is a better place for you and me today.And, boys and girls, we too can be “the salt of the earth” if we “have salt” in ourselves, and that just means, if we ask Jesus to fill us with His spirit of love and self-sacrifice. For the world still needs this salt, and we can be the bearers of it.Once a little girl went into a chemist’s shop and asked “glory divine.” The chemist was puzzled, and inquired what her mother wanted it for. “To throw round the room and in the back yard,” said the little one. Then the chemist understood.

He said, “Oh, I expect it’s chloride of lime (a kind of disinfectant) you want.” And the child nodded her head.But, boys and girls, that little girl was nearer the truth than she knew. What is needed, not only “round the room and in the back yard,” but all over the world, is “glory divine”; and that is just another name for the glorious loving self-sacrificing spirit of Jesus.Will you ask Jesus to fill you with this spirit?

Will you help to spread it abroad?

Matthew 5:15

How To Be A Lamp A lamp.—Matthew 5:15. Would you like to know how to be a lamp? Boys and girls can all be lamps. They can’t be electric arc lights or incandescent burners—they must leave that to the grown-ups—but they can all be lamps.Jesus once told His followers to be lamps, and to let their light shine out into the dark world around them. If you have what is called the Authorized Version of the Bible, and if you turn to Matthew 5:15, you will find that the word is “candle.” This is really a slight mistake in translation, and the Revised Version has called it by its right name—a lamp.Have you ever seen one of those odd Eastern lamps to which Christ referred? Some of them are just like shallow earthenware saucers pinched in one place to form a sort of peak. The saucer is filled with oil and the wick is inserted at the pinched end.

Other lamps are like two saucers fastened together, the top one being turned upside down. Towards one side the lamp is narrower, and in the narrow part a small hole is made to contain the wick.

Another hole is made in the center of the lamp to let in the oil. Some of these lamps are quite plain, others are beautifully ornamented, others bear inscriptions.Now, how can boys and girls be lamps? Just by being happy. You have all heard of Robert Louis Stevenson—the boy who, like Peter Pan, “never grew up” because he always kept the heart of a child. He was as full of fun and frolic when he was a man as when he was a child, and he kept happy even when he was very, very ill. Some of you have read his stories—Kidnapped and Treasure Island—and some even of the tiniest can understand his poems, for he wrote a whole book of poetry specially for children.Well, Stevenson says in one of his books that “a happy man or woman is a better thing to find than a five-pound note; their entrance into a room is as though another candle had been lighted.” He tells a story about a ragged, barefoot boy, who went running down the street chasing a marble.

He looked so happy that he put everyone he passed into a good humor. He chased away such black thoughts from one man that he stopped the boy and gave him some money with the remark: “You see what sometimes comes of looking pleased.”1.

I want you to remember in the first place that God wants you to he happy. Some people seem to have an odd idea that it is wrong to be happy. They pull a long face and look solemn, but I don’t think the world is very much the better of them. God made the kittens to catch their tails, and the puppies to worry things, and the little lambs to gambol in the fields, and He made the children full of fun and frolic too. Just be as merry as you can, only don’t buy your happiness at the expense of other people.2. The world would be a great deal poorer without the laughter of little children, and that brings me to the second point—in being happy we make other people happy.

There is an old Eastern story about a king who owned a very precious gem called a beryl-stone. This stone was most beautifully cut and polished; but the wonderful thing about it was that when it was set upon the Royal Standard, it shone like the sun and gave light for miles around.

By its rays the king’s army could march for miles during the dark hours, and the people could work at night just as if it were day. You see what a lot of good the stone did just by shining; and so we can do a tremendous lot of good just by being happy.I should like to tell you what a sunbeam did by shining. One morning in February, a little sunbeam was sent by its mother to pay a visit to the earth. The Sun was just rising over the eastern sea when it set out. “Good-bye, little one,” said she; “be happy, work well, and come back to me in the evening.” “All right, Mother,” cried the sunbeam, and away it went, skipping and dancing over the waters. The ocean laughed beneath its glance, and a lazy boy who was just yawning his way out of bed said, “Oh my, what a ripping day! I must buck up, and get out to the garden before school.”That gave the sunbeam an idea, for it had overheard the word “garden.” It peeped into the garden, and saw a poor little frozen snowdrop struggling into life.

It kissed the snowdrop and the flower blossomed beneath the touch of its warm lips. Then it played among the branches of a tree where a shivering thrush was standing on one leg. “Too-ee-too, too-ee-too,” sang the thrush. “Why, I do believe spring has come!

Perhaps I’ll find a worm this morning. It seems warmer than usual.” So he shook his feathers, and off he flew to look for his breakfast. And a weary invalid, who for many dark days had hovered between life and death, smiled, and all unwittingly repeated the words of the thrush—“I do believe spring has come!” Then he added, “I think I should like to get better.”The sunbeam danced along till it came to a great city. It peeped in at an office window where a man sat worried with the cares of business. It smiled in his face and smoothed out the wrinkles. Then it visited a room where a weary woman worked for husband and children, and her work seemed lighter for the glint of sunshine.

It looked in upon two people who were just starting a quarrel. And they laughed and said, “One can’t be cross on a day like this.”Next it visited a slum.

It glanced upon the cobwebs in the corner of a room, and a woman exclaimed, “I really think I must have a bit of a clean-up here.It’s wonderful how the sunshine shows up things!” And the sunbeam chuckled with glee as it went on its way.So it travelled until evening. It was very tired, but it had just one more task. It lit up a mountain- peak where the snows lay, and the mountain-top turned to rosy pink. And a man who was dying without hope and without faith, lifted up his eyes unto the hills, and found rest for his soul.Then, with a sigh, the sunbeam fell asleep in the arms of the mother Sun. And the Sun was well- pleased with her child, for she knew that it had discovered one of life’s greatest secrets — that in making others happy is to be found the deepest and most lasting joy.3. Lastly, the lest way to he happy ourselves and to make others happy is to have our hearts filled with the love of God.

There was once a king whose great desire was to make his people happy. So he asked two of his wise men how it was to be done, and he gave them two months to think out the problem.

At the end of the time they appeared before him. One carried a parchment on which were written two hundred rules; the other brought—nothing. The king grew very tired before the two hundred rules were all read. Then he turned to the other man. “What is thine answer?” he asked. And the man replied in two words—“Love God.” “What,” said the king, “I asked thee how I should make my people happy and thou tellest me to love God.” “True,” replied the wise man, “but thou canst not love God without loving thy people also.”God is the source of all happiness, just as the Sun is the source of all light. The oil in the lamp gives out only as much light as it took in long ago from the Sun; so we must always return to God to have our lamps refilled.The late Queen of Rumania had a motto which consisted of only two words. Here it is, and I think we might take it as our motto too—Give Joy.

Matthew 5:41

The Second Mile And whosoever shall compel thee to go one mile, go with him twain.—Matthew 5:41. Rather more than five hundred years before the birth of Christ, about the time that the Israelites were in captivity in Babylon, there lived in Persia a king called Cyrus. In those days there were no post-offices such as we have, and no postmen. But King Cyrus invented a means of getting his messages carried throughout the land.On all the chief highways he established, at convenient intervals, stations with relays of horses and men. When he wished to send a letter or decree he dispatched it by courier to the first station on each of the highways. From there another courier carried it to the second station, and there a third courier was found to take it to the third station, and so on until the king’s message was known throughout the land.But sometimes these couriers required help, and they were allowed to press into their service any man, or horse, or boat, or vehicle that they came across. Nobody could refuse because they dared not disobey the commands of the king or any of his representatives, but often there must have been much grumbling about this inconvenient law.At the time of Christ the Romans were conquerors of Palestine, and they had brought with them into Palestine this custom which they had copied from the Persians.

But they had altered and extended it. When the Roman soldiers were travelling through the land they could oblige any man or beast to accompany them a certain distance to carry their baggage.

Now the Jews hated this custom. They obeyed it because they were under Roman rule, but they secretly rebelled against it.This is the custom to which Jesus refers when He talks about the second mile. He says, “If anybody presses you into their service for one mile, be ready to go two with them.” And by that He just means to tell His disciples that should always be willing to do a little more than they are asked, a little more than had to, that they are not to do any service with a bad attitude.Now there are certain things in life that we are all driven to do—things that are not pleasant to do. We have to worry away at the multiplication table, and Latin grammar, and French verbs, and dates in history. We have to get up in the morning and go to bed at night. We have to wash our hands and face and take off our muddy boots.

We have to obey rules and laws at home and at school, and sometimes these rules are very annoying. The big people have to obey laws too, and some of them are not very pleasant either; but if you want to get along at all comfortably in this world you have to obey rules.There are two ways of doing what you have to do.

You may do just as little as you can, or you may do as much as you can. For instance, father asks you to weed a garden bed one afternoon and he promises you money for doing it. Well, there are two ways you can do it. Here is the first way. You pull out all the weeds and leave them lying on the path; then you come in and demand your money. That is going the first mile. But here is the second way. You pull out the weeds and clear them away.

Then you think the border looks rather rough, so you find the rake and smooth it. Then you notice that some of the plants need supporting, so you get some sticks and gardener’s grass and tie them up. And then you think the walk looks a bit untidy, so you rake it too. That is going the second mile. You are doing more than you are asked to do because you are interested in your work.When you do more than you are asked, when you do things willingly and ungrudgingly, when you go out of your way to oblige somebody or be kind to somebody, then you are going the second mile. And I want to give you two reasons why we should serve in this way.1. The first reason is because it is the happiest service.It makes things happier for yourself. If you set about any task thinking, “What a bother this is!

How soon can I get done with it, and how little can I do to get it finished?” then you certainly won’t enjoy it. But if you put your heart and soul into your work and try to do it as well as you possibly can, you will get quite a lot of pleasure out of it.And it makes things happier for other people. When some boys and girls are asked to do a thing they don’t like, they pull such a long face, and they move so slowly, and they look altogether so “grudgy” and “grumpy” that the people who asked them to do the service feel as if they would rather do it themselves a thousand times over. But there are other boys and girls who, when they are asked to do a favor, look as if they liked doing it. Their feet carry them so fast that they are back in no time, and their faces shine like morning sunlight. They give you a cozy sort of feeling round your heart.2.

The other reason why we should go the second mile is that it is the best way of serving. Real service begins when we stop counting the cost.

If we are always counting and calculating and measuring we shall never serve well because we shall always be trying to see just how little we can do and how much we can get in return.Once upon a time there was a great king who wished to choose a good and wise man to rule over a distant province of his kingdom, so he sent for one of his councilors named Heth Arman. When the councilor arrived the king said, “Come with me into my gardens.” Now the king had three gardens. They were all alike in shape and size. The same flowers bloomed in all three, and in the midst of each stood a beautiful marble fountain.When Heth Arman had seen all of them the king said to him, “Now tell me what you thought of my gardens.” “Well, your majesty,” replied the councilor, “if I may speak what is in my mind, I was disappointed with the first garden. It was not kept as a garden should be kept. The paths were trodden down, there were weeds among the sickly flowers, and the marble of the fountain was soiled and stained.”“And what of the second garden?” asked the king. “That,” replied the councilor, “was a well-kept garden.

The paths were tidy, the borders were in good order, the flowers were large and fine, and the fountain was clean and clear.”“And the third garden?” asked the king. “Ah! your majesty,” replied Heth Arman, “words fail me to describe it. The beauty of it filled me with joy.

The air was sweet with the fragrance of flowers, and the songs of the birds mingled with the music of the water as it fell sparkling into the pure marble basin. It was a perfect garden.”“Yes,” said the king, “you have judged well, and now I will tell you why the gardens are so different. The first is kept by my slaves, who serve because they must and for fear of punishment. The second is attended to by my paid servants, who serve for hope of reward. They put into the garden only as much as they expect to take out of it. But the third garden is kept by those who love me, and they are never content with less than the best. And now,” continued the king, “I am going to send you into a far country to rule over some of my people. Serve not for fear of punishment, or for hope of reward.

Love the people, and love me, and all will be well.”Do you see the meaning of the story, boys and girls? The best service is the service of love, the service that does not count the cost. Duty carries us only to the end of the first mile, but love carries us into the second mile—the mile of joy and liberty.And it is the same with God’s laws as with the laws of men. Long, long ago God saw that men must have laws to guide them and restrain them, so He gave them the Ten Commandments. And men kept them more or less badly. Then Jesus came. He did not do away with those laws of God, but He filled them with a new meaning and gave men a new reason for keeping them. And it is just like that with us.

We keep God’s laws more or less badly, and often they irk us—until Jesus comes. And then when we let Him into our lives, He changes everything. What before seemed irksome becomes a joy. We serve because we love, and in that service is perfect freedom.