December 21

Ecclesiastes v. — 10. He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance, with increase: this is also vanity.

11. When goods increase, they are increased that eat them; and what good is there to the owners thereof, saving the beholding of them with their eyes?

12. The sleep of a laboring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much; but the abundance of the rich will not suffer him to sleep.

13. There is a sore evil which I have seen under the sun; namely, riches kept for the owners thereof to their hurt.

14. But those riches perish by evil travail; and he begetteth a son, and there is nothing in his hand.

15. As he came forth of his mother's woul, naked shall he return to go as he came, and shall take nothing of his labor which he may carry away in his hand.

16. And this also is a sore evil, that in all points as he came, so shall he go; and what profit hath he that hath labored for the wind?

Mark viii. — 31. And he began to teach them that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests

and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.

32. And he spake that saying openly. And Peter took him, and began to rebuke him.

33. But when he had turned about, and looked on his disciples, he rebuked Peter, saying, Get thee behind me, Satan; for thou savorest not the things that be of God, but the things that be of men.

34. And, when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

35. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it.

36. For what shall it profit a man if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

37. Or what shall a man give in a change for his soul?

38. Whosoever, therefore, shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.

Jesus now for the first time began to unveil to his disciples the mystery of his suffering, and this with a precision, as to the manner and time of it, which must have deeply affected their hearts. Indeed, so surpassing and painful was the announcement of his crucifixion, that the promise of his rising again seems hardly to have been noticed. Now that the disciples had begun to proclaim him as the Christ, the Son of God, and the people were stirred to enthusiasm by his miracles, it was important to dispel their dreams of a temporal kingdom, and fix their thought upon the spiritual import of his mission. Instead of honors and rewards in his service, the disciples must make up their minds to self-denial and peril, and take up the cross. But what Jesus requires of us he himself has done for us; and, as he freely gave himself for our good,

every sacrifice which he demands of us is also for our good. The life of a man is in his personality, in the mental and moral conditions of his own soul. It could be no gain to throw these away even for the whole world in exchange. He who commits his soul to Christ in well-doing is absolutely safe. Earthly trials and losses will but render the Saviour more near and precious, and death will take him to be with his Lord. There is a warning, in the case of Peter, which must not be overlooked. "The same Peter, who but just now had made so noble and spiritual a confession, and received so high a blessing, now shows the weak and carnal side of his character, becomes a stumbling-block in the way of his Lord, and earns the very rebuff with which the Tempter before him had been dismissed."

APPROPRIATE HYMNS.]

Prayer.

[Nos. 97, 100, 103.

O God, from whom all blessings flow! we give thee thanks for thy care over us during the night, and for the light and comfort of this morning. We take the cup of salvation, and call upon thy name. We adore thee for health and reason, and the manifold bounties of thy providence. Give us that due sense of all thy mercies, that our hearts may be unfeignedly thankful; and that we may show forth thy praise, not only with our lips, but in our lives. We bring to thee this household and all who are allied to us by kindred or affection, and pray for thy good gifts from above according to thy wisdom and our necessities.

Holy Father, we commit ourselves to thy love and blessing for the day. We go forth to its duties in childlike dependence on thy strength and wisdom and grace. Preserve us from temptation

and sin, from danger and from death. Help us to walk as becometh saints, keeping our garments unsported from the world. Teach us to govern our tempers, to subdue our passions, to do whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are good, and whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, and whatsoever things are of good report. Pitifully behold us in our weakness and insufficiency, and grant unto us strength and fortitude and all heavenly influence. Suffer not our affections to be fixed on the things of earth and time: purify and lift them up to things unseen and eternal.

All this we ask in the name of Him who hath redeemed us with his most precious blood, — our only Mediator, Jesus Christ; to whom be glory in the Church throughout all ages. Amen.