FELLOWSHIP IN THE GOSPEL.

BY W. M. R.

This is a term employed by St. Paul to express an idea which occurs again and again in his Epistles. The meaning, that we are inclined to attach to it as it stands isolated before us, is the co-operation with him on the part of his fellow-laborers in the ministry for the spread of the glad tidings of salvation. But on looking again, we find the Apostle attributes this fellowship to the saints in general,-to the members of the congregations at Philippi, Corinth, and Thessalonica. As applied to those who compose the body of the Church, what does the term signify?

Some would have us believe that all the Apostle intends, is agreement with him in the faith of the Gospel. Others say that the particular idea is participation in the blessings of the Gospel, viz., reconciliation to God, and the hope of eternal blessedness. But those commentators, who pay most attention to the grammatical structure of St. Paul's sentences, tell us that what he means here is not a fellowship of rest in, but a fellowship of activity unto, or toward, the Gospel; not a quiescent participation in the benefits of salvation, but a purposed and effective co-operation with him in the defence, furtherance and establishment of the truth as it is in Jesus. This interpretation, which is based on the form of expression, is always found to correspond best with the cluster of ideas in which the thought occurs.

Now let us see how Christians, in general, may have fellowship with the ministry in the great and blessed work of the Gospel.

1. The form, which at once occurs to the mind of every one, is that of pecuniary support. The minister is set apart in a peculiar manner by the Church; he is expected by the Church to devote himself exclusively to the dispensation of the truth, and accordingly he must look to the Church for his maintenance. "Even so hath the Lord ordained, that they which preach the Gospel should live of the Gospel."

The question is sometimes asked: Why may not the minister maintain himself in some other way, and still discharge the duties of his office? To this two answers may be given, which occur at once to any thoughtful mind. The one is, that it is almost impossible for a minister to give that time and attention to any other business, which are essential to success in it, and yet adequately discharge the functions of his calling. The other is, that the numerous relations in which he stands to private and public life, give rise to a variety of details and applications, which can scarcely be properly executed by one who is not exclusively a minister of the Gospel. Another may be added, which, perhaps, is not so patent as those iust given, but carries with it equal force. The Church wants its ministry jn general to be advanced to the highest possible degree of perfection. This important element in the life of the Church must develop itself in due pro

portion with the rest. The ministry must increase in ability, in skill, in efficiency. It must be able to meet not only all that an advancing Church has a right to expect from it, but also what an age like ours requires, which is making such rapid strides in intellectual culture and general civilization. If ministers were left to seek a livelihood through some collateral avocation, the time would soon come when the Church would find itself without officers equal to the task involved in the office, and the Gospel would cease to be efficiently preached.

It is not without good reason, then, that to this form of assisting the ministry the term "supporting the Gospel" is so generally applied; nor is it much to be wondered at, that the expression is currently employed as though this method of supporting the Gospel were the only one deserving of the name. This, however, is an erroneous impression. There are other methods of equal importance, and we proceed to mention a second.

2. We exercise an active and effective fellowship with the minister of the Gospel, when we encourage him by our countenance and our words. Much of a pastor's efficiency depends upon what comes to him from the congregation in this form. He must see their joy at any success with which he is favored. He must feel their sympathy when he fails. He must have their counsel when questions of importance and responsibility arise. They must manifest an interest in the great work which has been committed to his hands. They must show an appreciation of the delicate and momentous relationship in which they as members stand to him as pastor; they must exhibit the feelings which are called for by the fact that they are workers together with him in the name of Christ, and for the advancement of His cause. Good words and cheering smiles, in this sphere, often carry more weight with them than gold. The Apostle Paul felt the value of this kind of support, when he said: "We beseech you, brethren, to know them which labor among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you, to esteem them very highly in love for their work's sake."

3. Fellowship in the Gospel is realized through actual co-operation with the minister, in his efforts to advance the interests of the Redeemer's kingdom. He must be supported in all the wholesome measures he may adopt for the welfare of the Church and congregation. He should be upheld by the membership in the discharge of all of his functions as minister. In matters of discipline, they can aid in the investigation of cases, and in the execution of decisions. In worship, they can participate with regularity and earnestness. In instruction, they can aid in the formation of catechetical classes, and in building up the Sunday-school. In the care of souls, they can work with him, for him, and in his stead.

Besides this co-operation with the minister in his official duties, interest and care must be exercised for the material prosperity of the congregation and Church. The pastor should be relieved entirely of solicitude in this regard. It is, alas, too often the case, that ministers are hampered by concerns that do not pertain to them. We can have fellowship in the Gospel, then, by taking all such responsibility on our own shoulders, and thus permitting the clergy to give their undivided attention to that to which they have been exclusively set apart.

Without co-operation of this kind, it is almost impossible for a minister to succeed. Assistance in this actual, energetic form, he must have; or all the means contributed for his maintenance, and kindness lavished upon

him, are to a great extent spent in vain. Ministers are often blamed, where congregations are at fault. Sometimes a spirit of factiousness, or a disposition of querulousness and fault-finding takes hold of a congregation. Who is to blame if the minister cannot drive this out? And so long as it remains, how is warmth and life to be infused? No one denies that much, very much, depends upon the energy and zeal of the pastor. But it dare not be forgotten, that to keep this in a blaze, there must be a lively undercurrent of atmosphere drawing in upon him from the life of the congregation. The old saying will ever hold good-"Like people, like priest."

4. We mention one more form of fellowship with the minister in the Gospel, viz., a consistent Christian deportment. In one place, at least, where the expression is used, this point is the most prominent one in the mind of the Apostle. In the 1st chapter, and verses 3, 4, and 5 of his Epistle to the Philippians, he tells them that he thanks God for their fellowship in the Gospel from the first day until now. In a following verse, he states that, in the defence and confirmation of the Gospel, they were partakers with him. That this participation consisted in a holy life and course of conduct, is intimated in the verses immediately ensuing. He proceeds to say: "I pray God that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and in all judgment, that ye may approve things that are excellent, that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God." In the second chapter, he tells them that, "in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, they shine as lights in the world, holding forth the word of life." Now, how did they do this? The context answers: By being "blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke." Their conversation was 66 as becometh the Gospel." Like the Christians at Corinth, they were "a living epistle, known and read of all men."

By an upright and faithful Christian walk, we set a seal upon the ministrations of the truth; we adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour, reprove the works of darkness, and bring the truth home to the minds and hearts of others. We can "let our light so shine, that others, seeing our good works, may glorify our Father which is in heaven." It has been truthfully said, that the life of a devout Christian is more effectual in the cause of our Redeemer, than many an able discourse; for it is not only a declaration of the word of life, it is also its defence and confirmation. By right practice, we may preach well.

What a blessed and glorious work it is to preach the Gospel! How many are there of my readers, who have not wished that it had been their lot to preach Jesus to a dying world? In view of what has been said in the body of this article, who is it that may not have part in the merit and honor of this heavenly calling? In the manner described, all may have fellowship in the work of the Gospel; and thus all have an opportunity of becoming participators in the reward of the Gospel. For "they that turn many to righteousness shall shine as the stars for ever and ever."

In conclusion, let it not be forgotten, that it is not at your option to exercise this fellowship in the Gospel. Not all Christians are called to be ministers; but all are called, in the manner described, to engage in the Gospel work. When by God's grace we are brought into His kingdom, it is not merely that we may enjoy its blessings. We are expected to labor

for its advancement. To each child of God comes the injunction, "Go, work in my vineyard." Accordingly, as all have part in the dignity and reward of fellowship of the Gospel, so all share in its responsibility. May the Lord open our eyes to see the magnitude of this, and enable us to meet it; so that when our summons comes to lay down our work, and turn our backs upon this sphere of labor and turmoil, we may be received with the welcome of the good and faithful servant into the abode of everlasting rest.

ON THE ATTAINMENT OF TRUE MANHOOD.

BY J. M. T.

There is nothing but what has been created for some purpose. The grain of sand that lies hid in the ocean cavern, and the dew-drop that diamond like sparkles in the morning sun, the stinging brier that wounds the fingers of the husbandman as he gathers his grain into sheaves, and the modest flower that wakens thoughts of beauty and of heaven in the thinking mind; the lowly vine that creeps on the earth, and the tall oak, under whose spreading branches the cattle seek shelter from the noon-day sun; the busy bee which gathers honey from the sweet-scented clover, and the merry bird that warbles its notes of love amid the leafy grove, the feeble coney which makes its house in the rocks, and the strong horse "whose neck is clothed with thunder and which saith among the trumpets Ha, ha;" man who, with heaven-directed mien moves lord of this lower creation, and the arch-angel who in adoration veils his face before the throne of Deity; all have been made for some specific object. Every created thing, whether minutest atom, or largest planet, every created being, whether meanest worm or loftiest seraph, has some end to subserve, some work to do, some mission to perform in the vast universe which God has called into existence. And the perfection of any thing and every thing that is, consists not in its becoming, or resolving itself into something in any wise different from what it was made to be, but in its fully answering the purpose of its creation. The thing than which none be more complete, is that which corresponds in every particular with its design; the man than whom none can be more truly noble, is he who most earnestly and faithfully strives to be just what God originally intended that he should be. The same is also the really strong; for perfection and true strength or power are closely allied. The absolutely perfect is necessarily the absolutely omnipotent. In proportion, therefore, as a man is true to himself and answers the object of his existence will he be really strong, powerful, influential-a true king among his fellow men.

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That any one, however, may be true to himself, and thus attain proper manhood, it is necessary that he "seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness." For the true end of man's being lies not in the world of nature and of sense. This is evident from the relation he sustains to it. In him the organism of this world completes itself. He is its crown and

glory, its head and consummation. In his body it reaches its highest forms of physical organization, and in his soul it is first brought out of darkness into marvellous light. But on this very account man cannot reach the true end of his being in the present order of things by which he is surrounded, but must seek it in some order beyond, which is supernatural; for the greater can never find its end in the less. Of this fact also the vagueness and endlessness of human aspirations are a proof. Give men all that this world could possibly yield them-its greatest pleasures, its largest possessions, its highest honors-and yet you will be unable to satisfy their wishes or desires. When Alexander had conquered the whole known world, it is said he sat down and wept because there were not other worlds to conquer. All this world did not satisfy him. It does not, and cannot, indeed, satisfy any man. Our souls demand something beyond what earth can give. Still another and a higher proof that man's true destination lies beyond the present world, we have in conscience and the sense of religion, which form a constituent part of man's nature. Both these attest in the strongest manner possible that man sustains relations to a higher world. Conscience throughout implies that there is a Superior Being, to whom we are responsible for all our acts, and who will call us to an account for all our doings, and reward us accordingly in some other state of existence than the present. The same is also implied in the sense of religion which all men, even the most degraded, possess. Every act of worship on the part of man pre-supposes that he is dependent on some one higher and infinitely more powerful than himself. Thus both the voice of nature and the testimony of the soul refer the end of our being to a higher order of existence than that of nature and of sense. Now this order of existence to which these darkly point, but which the Gospel clearly reveals, is the kingdom of God. In this kingdom alone can we reach the full completion of our being and "come in the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the fulness of Christ," which is the great object of our existen ce. Out of this kingdom our life must inevitably end in ruin. Hence David, having charged Solomon, saying: "Be thou strong therefore, and show thyself a man," immediately added in the way of amplification, "And keep the charge of the Lord thy God, to walk in His ways, to keep His commandments, and His testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, that thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest, and whithersoever thou turnest thyself;" and Solomon moreover, later, after having by sad experience proved the vanity of all earthly things, wrote: "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep his commandments; for this is the whole duty of man." Hence also it is of the utmost importance that we should make it the chief business of our life "to press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus," so that we may become true citizens of the kingdom of God, and real partakers of His righteousness. The purest wisdom consists in our so doing; and in this way alone can we make our lives what they were designed to be glorious and happy. The humblest Christian is ever a wiser, nobler, truer man than the most learned, powerful and exalted of earth's children, who does not belong to the kingdom of God.

But it is also necessary, in order that any one may attain true manhood, that he should seek to move in that sphere of life for which he is best