sistent with the profession of Christianity, and to find
the minimum of effort, of love, of service, of gifts which may free
us from obligation.

And what does that mean? It means that we are slaves. It means that
if we durst we would give nothing, and do nothing. And what does that
mean? It means that we do not care for the Lord, and have no joy in
our work. And what does that mean? It means that our work deserves no
praise, and will get no reward. If we love Christ we shall be
anxious, if it were possible, to do more than He commands us, in
token of our loyalty to the King, and of our delight in the service.
Of course, in the highest view, nothing can be more than necessary.
Of course He has the right to all our work; but yet there are heights
of Christian consecration and self-sacrifice which a man will not be
blamed if he has not climbed, and will be praised if he has. What we
want, if I might venture to say so, is extravagance of service. Judas
may say, 'To what purpose is this waste?' but Jesus will say, He
'hath wrought a good work on Me,' and the fragrance of the ointment
will smell sweet through the centuries.

So, dear brethren, the upshot of the whole thing is, Do not let us do
our Christian work reluctantly, else it is only slave's work, and
there is no blessing in it, and no reward will come to us from it. Do
not let us ask, 'How little may I do?' but 'How much can I do?' Thus,
asking, we shall not offer as burnt offering to the Lord that which
doth cost us nothing. On His part He has given the commandment as a
sign of His love. The stewardship is a token that He trusts us, the
duty is an honour, the burden is a grace. On our parts let us seek
for the joy of service which is not contented with the bare amount of
the tribute that is demanded, but gives something over, if it were
possible, because of our love to Him. They who thus give to Jesus
Christ their all of love and effort and service will receive it all
back a hundredfold, for the Master is not going to be in debt to any
of His servants, and He says to them all, 'I will repay it, howbeit I
say not unto thee how thou owest unto Me even thine own self
besides.'

A SERVANT OF MEN

'For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself
servant unto all, that I might gain the more. 20. And unto
the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain the Jews; to
them that are under the law, as under the law, that I might
gain them that