Page:Spiritual Reflections for Every Day in the Year - Vol 3.pdf/61

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impressions of spiritual truth, and makes a fair display of the knowledges thereof; but it requires the heat of spiritual love, ere he can press the rich grapes in the wine-press of spiritual discrimination, and be able to separate the pure from the impure. But the olive yields the rich oil of heavenly goodness, when the fervid heats of the Sun of righteousness have converted the fruit into one luxurious degree of mellowness, illustrative of celestial love, heavenly gratitude, and confiding obedience. Lastly, the qualities and characters of different men may be referred to those of different minerals. One man may be denominated a man of gold, another of silver, another of brass, another of lead, another of iron, another of tin, and so on:—Thus one is a man of celestial goodness or gold, another of spiritual truth or silver; one man combines the union of natural goodness with truth, and is a man of brass, another possesses the truth only in great force and potency, and is a man of iron. Many men attempt the process of gilding and polishing, presenting an aspect outwardly very different from that which they present inwardly. Some men shine with the resplendent lustre of borrowed silver and gold, whose, inward parts are mere tin or brass. Thus it is that man has two distinct faces: by one he looks at the Lord, and is viewed by the Lord—by the other, he looks at man, and is viewed by man. The first is his real, the second his apparent face; for every one is such as he is in the sight of God, and every one appears such as he is in the sight of men. The perfect human mind possesses all the qualities of the metals alluded to above, but gold should, at all times, be the presiding one. Then, again, we should consider what is the