doing as he would be done by himself. Thus should Christians live
with each other, as members of one body, according to the apostle,
and as having in Christ all things common and alike.

"Be ye angry and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath."

22. Half the sins which the world has learned of its lord and master,
the devil, consist in lying and deceiving, and that in the name and
appearance of truth. No one wants to be called a liar, and even the
devil covers his lies with the name of truth. The other half, which
is easier to recognize, consists in wrath and its fruits. And this
class is usually the result of the other. The world, for its own
advantage, lies and deceives; and when it sees mankind acting in
opposition to its wishes, or beholds its lies exposed and its schemes
thwarted, it begins to rage in wrath against God, endeavoring to
avenge itself and inflict harm, but fraudulently disguising its
wicked motive under the plea of having good and abundant reasons for
its action.

23. Therefore Paul admonishes the Christians as new creatures, to
guard against this vice of wrath, adducing the fourth verse of the
fourth Psalm: "Stand in awe and sin not." The repetition of this
passage sounds, in Paul's rendering, as if permission to be angry
were given; he says: "Be ye angry, and sin not." But Paul is taking
into consideration the way of the world. Men are tempted and moved to
anger. There are no clean records. Under sudden provocation the heart
swells with ire, while the devil busily fans the flame; for he is
ever alert to stamp upon us his seal and image and make us like unto
him, either through error and false doctrine, or through wrath and
murder in conflict with love and patience. These two forms of evil
you will encounter, especially if you make an effort to be a godly
Christian, to defend the truth and to live uprightly in the sight of
all. You will meet with all manner of malice aforethought and deceit,
and with faithlessness and malignity on the part of those you have
benefited; again, with unmasked violence and injustice on the part of
those who should protect you and see to your interests. This will
hurt and move you to wrath. Yea, in your own house and among your
dear Christian brethren you will often meet with that which vexes
you; again, a word of yours may hurt their feelings. And it will not
be otherwise. This life of ours is so constituted that such
conditions must be. Flesh and blood can