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Discourses on Common Topics of Christian Faith and Practice
Discourses on Common Topics of Christian Faith and Practice Author:James Waddel Alexander General Books publication date: 2009 Original publication date: 1858 Original Publisher: Charles Scribner Subjects: Presbyterian Church Sermons, American Sermons Religion / Sermons / Christian Religion / Christian Ministry / Preaching Religion / Christianity / Presbyterian Notes: This is a black and white OCR reprint of the or... more »iginal. It has no illustrations and there may be typos or missing text. When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com where you can select from more than a million books for free. Excerpt: DYING FOR FRIENDS John xv. 13, 14. " Greater lore hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, if yo do whatsoever I command you." Friendship is a sacred word, belonging as truly to Christianity as to morals. It is such a relation of man to man, that from mutual esteem, admiration and attachment, rather than from regard to interest, each contemplates the person of the other with complacency and benevolence, each desires the welfare of the other, and delights in his company ; and consequently each is ready to fulfil the wishes of the other and to make sacrifices for his pleasure. It is a flowing of soul to soul. It is -- so says the Roman adage -- to will and to refuse the same things. Wretched is he, who cannot go to experience for his definition; for " poor is the friendlessmaster of a world! ' We need not go to the Damon and Pythias of Gentile story, or even to the touching records of David and Jonathan in the Old Testament. The Gospel assures us, that in the circle around our Lord, there was one disciple whom Jesus loved. Friendship never rose to so sanctified an exaltation. We do well, therefore, against certain perverse philosophers, to include friendship among the Christian virtues, and to practise it in the daily intercourse of life. Even in common society, its triumphs are sometimes beautiful and ennobling, but it is nowhere so pure and unear...« less