He kept his soul unspotted
As he went upon his way,
And he tried to do some service
For God’s people day by day;
He had time to cheer the doubter
Who complained that hope was dead;
He had time to help the cripple
When the way was rough ahead;
He had time to guard the orphan, and one day, well satisfied
With the talents God had given him, he closed his eyes
And died.
The problem of Christian living is not to miss the struggle, suffering, or hardship, but to pass through life without being hurt by any of its experiences. One of the requirements of pure religion is “to keep one’s self unspotted from the world.” This does not mean that we are to keep ourselves out of the world’s life, to flee away and hide in refuges and retreats, where the evil of the world will not touch us, but to stay where our duty is, to meet life as it comes to us, to face the battles with sin, the struggles and temptations which belong to our peculiar place, and yet not be hurt, not contract any stain, not carry away wounds and scars.
In everything in life Jesus Christ is our highest example. He solved this problem of living for us. He met hard and painful experiences, but never was harmed by any of them. He endured temptation, being tempted in all points like as we are, yet always without sin. He passed through the sorest testings that any one ever endured, but kept himself unspotted. He met enmity, growing out of envy, pride, selfishness; men hated him, conspired against him, watched him, persecuted him, and sought to kill him.
Page 1