formed, and unable to
answer elementary questions; and on his third refusal she answered,
"Weel, weel, sir, I may na', an' I dinna, ken sae muckle as mony; but
when ye preach a sermon aboot my Lord and Saviour, I fin' my heart
going out to Him, like lintseed out of a bag." Any one who has
observed the process will know how lifelike the illustration was, and
will not wonder that Mr. Gibb admitted her, and that she lived to be
one of the fairest members of his church.

_It is a universal question._--Its universality suggests that in Christ
there is something universally lovable, and that every one has the
power of loving Him, if only the rubbish is removed which chokes the
springs of affection. There are different shades in love--the love of
gratitude, where the rescued spirit sings the praise of Him who took it
from the terrible pit and miry clay; the love of complacency, with
which the holy soul admires Him who is fairer than the sons of men, and
dwells with rapture on His majestic beauty and endearing goodness; the
love of friendship, in which by constant intercourse a deep attachment
arises between the confiding soul and the all-sufficient Saviour. And
there are as many methods of manifestation of love as there are
different temperaments. With some, it is silent; with others, it
speaks. With some, it sits listening at Christ's feet; with others, it
hurries too and fro to serve. With some, it is exuberant and
enthusiastic; with others, it is still and deep. But whatever be the
shade or the evidence, in each Christian heart there must be love to
Christ, and the heart must be willing to give up its throne to the
reign of Jesus as its Lord.

_Often it carries a special emphasis._--Peter had grievously sinned.
Jesus could not pass it by in utter silence. For His disciples' sake
and His own, it was necessary to allude to, and to probe it. But each
was performed as gently as possible. Thrice he had been warned, thrice
he had denied, and now thrice shall he be asked if he really loves.
And in asking him if he loved Him more than the rest, our Lord surely
reminded him of his boast that if all the rest forsook Him, he never
would. Christ delicately reminded him that his actions had not been
consistent with his professions, at the same time giving him an
opportunity of wiping out the record of failure by a new avowal of
attachment. Thus He deals with us still. He does not drag our secret
sins to light before our b