DAILY READINGS IN LIFE OF CHRIST - J.R. Miller (1890)

July 30. He Could Not Be Hid

"And from thence he arose, and went into the borders of Tyre and Sidon, and entered into an house, and would have no man know it: but he could not be hid." Mark 7:24

The fame of Christ had gone out too widely over the whole country, for Him to travel anywhere without being recognized. No doubt there was something in His bearing that distinguished Him from other men and soon revealed Him. There must have been a rare sweetness in His face, and the outpouring of the great love from His heart. There was no halo over His head, as artists represent Him in their pictures; yet there must have been a glow of grace which attracted sad and hungry hearts to Him.

But really, Christ never can be hidden. He can be in no place in this world very long — and His presence not be recognized. You may hide fragrant flowers so that they cannot be seen — but soon the fragrance will reveal their hiding-place. Just so, the sweetness of the Savior's life and love — will always tell when He is near.

When He enters a human heart — He cannot be hidden; for soon His Spirit begins to breathe out in all the words, actions, and life of the new follower.

When He enters a home — He cannot long be hidden, for the home is changed. Worldliness, bitterness, and sin — give place to prayer and praise, to the spirit of love and gentleness, and to purity and holiness.

When He enters a community — He cannot remain concealed. The stories of missionary work illustrate this. Cannibal islands are changed into God-fearing, man-loving settlements.

Christ will always reveal His presence in this world.

The same is true also of all faithful discipleship. A Christian cannot be hidden. If the love of Christ is in his heart — people around him will very soon know it. They will see it in his bearing, in his disposition, in the way he honors God, in the way he treats his fellow-men.

When a man can hide his religion — he has not much of it to hide. True religion breathes out in fragrance, shines out in light.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

 THE FAMILY ALTAR

July 29.

"My soul is continually in my hand; yet do I not forget

Thy Law." Ps. 119:109.

There is an old proverb which says so truly : Money lost.

little lost; for you can easily gain money again. Honor lost,

much lost; for it is much harder to regain your good name.

But if the soul is lost, all is lost ; for you can never, never regain

it if it has once perished. "What is a man profited if he shall

gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?" Xow, in our text

the Psalmist tells us that he is in daily danger of losing his soul,

and therefore he is so careful not to forget the Law of his God.

Alas, how many are so concerned about their soul's salvation as

the Psalmist was? So many think that their souls must and will

be saved because they have committed no great crime in their

life and have tried to do the best they could. Well, Dives and

his five brethren were, no doubt, good, honorable people, as the

common run of the world is, and yet their souls suffer in hell.

They were concerned all their life only about their temporal well-

being, but neglected to care for their immortal souls. Hence they

neglected to hear the warning voice of their God speaking to them

through Moses and the Prophets. The greater and costlier the

treasure, the more it needs to be watched and guarded. The

greatest and most costly treasure we have is our immortal soul.

But how many subtle enemies it has in the old Evil Foe, in the

laughing, unbelieving, enticing world, in the evil corruptions of

our own heart! Verily, the man is a miracle of grace who can

save his soul alive out of the wicked Sodom and Gomorrah of

this world. As God's grace alone can save us and our precious,

immortal souls, let us never neglect His means of grace, His Word

and Sacraments, and let us continue in prayer and in a Chris-

tian life.