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faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; to another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: but all these worketh that one and the self-same Spirit, dividing to every man severally as He will.” a "There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars for one star differeth from another star in glory."

b

"All glorified spirits will not have the same degree of glory. Two things will necessarily cause great difference: 1. The quantum of mind; and 2. The quantum of grace. (1.) It is idle to suppose that God has made all human souls with the same capacities; He has not. There is an infinite diversity: he who has the greatest mind can know most, do most, suffer most, and enjoy most. (2.) The quantum of grace will be another cause of diversity and glory. He who received most of Christ here, b 1 Cor. xv. 40, 41.

a 1 Cor. xii. 1-11.

and was most devoted to his service, shall have the greatest approach to Him in his own kingdom. But all equally holy and equally faithful souls shall not have equal degrees of glory, for the glory will be according to the capacity of the mind, as well as the degree of grace and improvement. The greater the capacity, provided it be properly influenced by the grace of Christ, the greater will be the enjoyment. That there will be great diversity in the states of glorified saints, is the apostle's doctrine; and he illustrates it by the different degrees of splendour between the sun, moon, planets, and stars. This needs little application. There are some of the heavenly bodies that give heat, light, and splendour, as the SUN, and all of the utmost service to the world; some that give light, and comparative splendour, without heat, as the MOON, and yet are of very great use to mankind; others, again, which give a steady but not a splendid light, as the PLANETS, and are serviceable in their particular spheres; and, lastly, others which twinkle in their respective systems, as the STARS of different magnitudes.'

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Here, then, is the conclusion which we must

a Dr. Adam Clarke on 1 Cor. xv.

draw from these reflections.

Man merits neither

esteem nor reward on account of the excellency of his intellectual or moral qualities; nor, if his depravity were inherited solely from Adam, would he be deserving of censure or of punishment by reason of the evil nature of his heart. But since all his good qualities have been given by a Higher Power, and all his sin is within him, coeval with his eternal existence, the voice of approbation is silenced, and justice pronounces condemnation. Most of us, too, indulge that tendency to sin which is innate, and thus inclination becomes habitual; while all neglect properly to improve those gifts of grace which ought to yield fruit in due season, but which, through our negligence, becomes as that seed which "fell upon a rock, and as soon as it was sprung up it withered away, because it lacked moisture." a

"For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants and delivered unto them his goods. And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his

a Luke, viii. 6.

journey. Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents. And likewise he that had received two. But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money. After a long time, the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them. And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more. His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them. His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not

strawed; and I was afraid, and went and hid
thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that
is thine. His lord answered and said unto him,
Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest
that I
reap where I sowed not, and gather where
I have not strawed; thou oughtest therefore to
have put my money to the exchangers, and
then at my coming I should have received mine
own with usury. Take, therefore, the talent
from him, and give it unto him which hath ten
talents. For unto every one that hath shall be
given, and he shall have abundance; but from
him that hath not shall be taken away even that
which he hath. And cast ye the unprofitable
servant into outer darkness: there shall be
weeping and gnashing of teeth." a

We are therefore taught to believe that our happiness will be in unison, not with the amount of our gifts, but with their beneficial application; and it may be that our punishment will be proportioned, not to the number or depth of our sins, but to the ease with which we have yielded to temptation, or the determination with which it has been overcome. "He who is heartily

a Matt. xxv. 14-30.

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