December Twenty-eighth.
PEACE—THE RESULT OF OBEDIENCE TO THE GREAT COMMANDMENT.
"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength."—Mark xii. 30.
THE LORD must be loved supremely and exclusively. It is the nature of this love to extend and diffuse itself universally; that is, it displays itself by universal love to all, and hence it exemplifies its fervour to the brethren, fulfilling another commandment arising from the principal, "Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." Neighbourly love seems to be exemplified only in proportion as we love God. He who loves not God, in reality loves not his neighbour; he who loves God a little, loves his neighbour a little. He who loves God with all his heart, loves his neighbour as himself.
If we imagine a ring set with precious stones, and a large ruby in the centre of the circlet, the light falling upon the stones being received, in the greatest proportion by the centre one, the ruby would transmit its comparative warmth to all the others, and tinge the others with the red of its own fervency. So celestial love to the Lord, when it is the centre or governing affection of the soul, imparts to all the subordinate affections a portion of its own heavenly warmth or quality, infusing into them that love which generates true peace. From and out of this love germinates love to man, begetting, so to speak, benevolence, good, will, the love of truth, justice, integrity, and every virtue—all, however, it must be remembered, having
