There is no liberty without toil. To enjoy the freedom of the sunshine,
the germinating seed must lift and throw aside the clod which outweighs
it a thousandfold. Before the blossom can unwrap its tinted petals in
the sunlight it must, with the warmth of its own healthy growth, melt
the wax that seals it in its winter sepulcher, and with its increasing
strength tear away the rough bud-scales and hurl them to the ground.
The oriole wings its way and fills the afternoon with song, only, after
earnest effort, it has liberated itself from the imprisoning shell.
Toil is the golden key which God gave the human race, that it might
find escape from the self-inflicted slavery of sin. “In the sweat
of thy face shalt thou eat bread” was not a curse pronounced by an
offended Deity, but Love’s whispered secret of escape from harm.
Standing amid the wreck of a sin-torn paradise, man looked through the
open archway of these six words--“In the sweat of thy face”--and saw
the possibilities of a world-wide Eden. Beholding the fruit begin to
fail, and the greensward become tangled with brush and bramble, Fear
said: “You shall die of hunger.” “In the sweat of thy face” revealed
broad acres filled with health-giving ripening grain and orchards laden
with luscious fruit. Beholding the lakes become stagnant, and the river
beds becoming dry and parched, Fear said: “You shall perish of thirst.”
“In the sweat of thy face” revealed vineyards adrip with purple wine,
and desert lands abloom with beauty because man would learn to train
the mountain streams to follow where he led. Yea, more, “In the sweat
of thy face” opened a pathway through which Hope ran to find salvation
from the deadly power of sin. Coming back, with face aglow, that bright
clad Angel bade man first to give his strength in building an altar on
which to offer heartfelt thanks to God, who had made the human hand
with which to toil and rebuild paradise.
Happy and fortunate is the man who learns to do his daily stint of work
with a cheerful heart. To him shall be the joy of understanding that
the ordinary duties of life are not burdens sent to crush him to earth,
but blessings through which he is to work out his own salvation.
Behold how man’s labors have redeemed the world from barrenness. Soft,
yielding swamps have become hard-paved streets of famous cities,
over which the unappreciative multitudes walk or ride in perfect
comfort. Where once the heated winds blew the drifting sands to-day the
gentle zephyrs fan the rich, green meadows. Where once the untrained,
tangled vines broke down the struggling tree upon which they clung,
the vineyards yield their purple clusters, and the orchards give
forth their wealth of sweet and luscious fruit. Where once the wild
weeds threw their choking pollen to the wind, the aster, rose, and
proud chrysanthemum wave upon graceful stems and toss their pretty
petals to and fro. Where once the savage stretched his tents of skins,
brown-stone mansions lift their open portals in invitation to the
weary sons of toil. By the sweat of man’s brow, by the toiling of the
multitudes, we are saved from desolation and made to dwell securely
among the gardens.
Toil saves from sickness. Without the putting forth of physical effort
all men are weaklings. To be a producer, to change the strength of
brain and muscle into that which is of value to his fellow man, is
not only necessary if he would play his part in the great social
institution of which he finds himself a part, but it is necessary
for his own mental, physical, and spiritual salvation. Grinding out
his days in unceasing industry, many a man curses his lot and wishes
earnestly for idleness, not knowing that toil is the making of a
man with strong muscles, firm flesh, large lung capacity, and good
digestion, for toil forces the blood in rapid circulation. Honest toil
is the best tonic. When asked what was the secret of his good health,
a great statesman responded, “Hard work.” Overfed, full of gout, and
ill humored, a certain man of ease requested a celebrated physician to
prescribe for him. “Live upon sixpence a day, and earn it,” was the
advice. Over one half of the invalids of the world could be almost
instantly cured, if they would concentrate their attention, and direct
all their strength, in carrying forward some worthy enterprise.
Caring for a garden is a good preventive for consumption. Labor means
exercise, exercise means health. Common toil is God’s prescription by
which we are to work out our salvation from many days of sickness and
depression.
Labor preserves us from needless sorrow. Imagine the condition of Adam
leaving Eden with all his faculties save that which would enable him to
concentrate his energies upon some worth-while task--with the power to
think and ponder over the hardships of his fallen situation; with the
marvelous power of memory to recall his faded days of gladness; with
the power of a good imagination, to paint fairer, brighter pictures
for the future, and yet without the power to organize these faculties
for action, thus having no force of character with which to achieve.
Such life would be worse than death, no matter what evils death might
bring. But through the gracious promise of the sweat-washed brow man
found surcease for sorrow in attempting to build a better garden for
himself and little ones. There is no happiness save that which results
in using one’s strength and talents in honest endeavor. Idleness breeds
discontent, worry, and fear. It adds a thousand pangs to every grief
and sorrow. The most unhappy and therefore the most unfortunate people
in the world are those who have the financial resources to sit in
idleness and nurse their grief. Better by far be the poor woman who
leaves her dead, and goes to scrub the floors of a public building, for
in her honest toil she finds a healing, comforting touch. Toil makes
one forget his grief, soothes him with a gentle hand, and permits the
grace of God to heal the wounded soul and broken heart.
Labor is a strong tower that shields one from the onslaughts of
temptation. It is the idle hand that Satan seeks. One half of our
incarcerated criminals owe their position to the fact that they
refused to accept the protecting power of toil to keep them in the
way of righteousness. Having nothing to do, they fell in with evil
companions. Having nothing to do, they partook of questionable
amusements. Having nothing to do, they followed the evil leading of
their passions. Having nothing to do, sin and disgrace made them easy
captives. One way of salvation is to escape from temptation, and one
of the best ways to escape temptation is to be so busily occupied with
clean, honest, manly endeavor, that the devil has no access to the mind
with either spoken word or secret thought. Work out your salvation from
temptation.
Labor may also contribute largely to the developing of Christian
character. There would be no backsliding in our churches if those who
profess the name of Christ would engage in his great enterprise of
saving and redeeming the world. The growing spirit of indifference,
that is paralyzing so many of our religious activities, could not be,
had men not become idlers in the Kingdom. Business men look upon the
church and say that it is weak because it has no program. This is
true. We lacked a program, not because we had no program, but because
we refused to follow the one that God gave us. The church is far from
being dead. Those who have kept true to their Divine Lord, and have
humbly, but earnestly worked his works, have been saved from all these
temptations to sin and worldliness, and their ardor to-day is brighter
than on the day they first gave their hearts to Christ.
Then let us get to work. Labor cannot save us from the penalty of sin.
Nothing save the grace of God can do that for us, but it can save us
from barren surroundings, from much of our sickness, from the deadening
influences of sorrow, from the power of many of our most dangerous
temptations, and aid us in spiritual development. Work with a good
will. Let no man laugh you out of its benefits. Say to the world,
“Yes, I am a laboring man.” Let no blush come to your cheek, unless it
be because you are not a better and more earnest workman. Labor with
the knowledge that while you are at your task you are ranked with the
mightiest and most illustrious characters of the world. Labor adds to
dignity. Hard, honest work gives self-respect. Toil saves one from the
life of a parasite, enabling him to pay his own way, at the same time
leaving the world brighter and richer because of his toil. The richest
jewel that ever adorned the brow of man is not in the King’s crown. It
is the beaded sweat that stands upon the tanned forehead of an honest
laborer. Wear it with the dignity with which a king wears his crown
of gold. In the light of God’s approving smile it will pale and make
insignificant the crown jewels of all the nations.