17. Wherever we turn our eyes we see, in all conditions of life, a
deluge of terrible examples of ingratitude for the precious Gospel.
We see how kings, princes and lords scratch and bite; how they envy
and hate one another, oppressing their own people and destroying
their own countries; how they tax themselves with not so much as a
single Christian thought about ameliorating the wretchedness of
Germany and securing for the oppressed Church somewhere a shelter of
defense against the murderous attacks of devil, Pope and Turks. The
noblemen rake and rend, robbing whomever they can, prince or
otherwise, and especially the poor Church; like actual devils, they
trample under foot pastors and preachers. Townsmen and farmers, too,
are extremely avaricious, extortionate and treacherous; they
fearlessly perpetrate every sort of insolence and wickedness, and
without shame and unpunished. The earth cries to heaven, unable
longer to tolerate its oppression.
18. But why multiply words? It is in vain so far as the world is
concerned; no admonition will avail. The world remains the devil's
own. We must remember we shall not by any means find with the world
that Christian heart pictured by the apostle; on the contrary we
shall find what might be represented by a picture of the very
opposite type--the most shameless ingratitude. But let the still
existing God-fearing Christians be careful to imitate in their
gratitude the spirit of the apostle's beautiful picture. Let them
give evidence of their willingness to hear the Word of God, of
pleasure and delight in it and grief where it is rejected. Let them
show by their lives a consciousness of the great blessing conferred
by those from whom they received the Gospel. As recipients of such
goodness, let their hearts and lips ever be ready with the happy
declaration: "God be praised!" For thereunto are we called. As before
said, praise should be the constant service and daily sacrifice of
Christians; and according to Paul's teaching here, the Christian's
works, his fruits of righteousness, should shine before men. Such
manifestation of gratitude assuredly must result when we comprehend
what God has given us.
19. Notwithstanding the world's refusal to be influenced by the
recognition of God's goodness, and in spite of the fact that we are
obliged daily to see, hear and suffer the world's increasing
ungratefulness the longer it stands, we must not allow ourselves to
be led into error; for we will be unable to change it. We must preach
against the evil of ingratitude wherever possible, severely censuring
it, and faithfully admonish all men to guard against it. At the same
time we have to remember the world will not submit. Although
compelled to live among the ungrateful, we are not for that reason to
fall into error nor to cease from doing good. Let our springs be
dispersed abroad, as Solomon says in Proverbs 5, 16. Let us
continually do good, not faltering when others receive our good as
evil. Just as God causes his sun to rise on the thankful and the
unthankful. Mt 5, 45.
20. But if your good works are wrought with the object of securing
the thanks and applause of the world, you will meet with a reception
quite the reverse. Your reward will justly be that of him who crushes
with his teeth the hollow nut only to defile his mouth. Now, if when
ingratitude is met with, you angrily wish to pull down mountains, and
resolve to give up doing good, you are no longer a Christian. You
injure yourself and accomplish nothing. Can you not be mindful of
your environment--that you are still in the world where vice and
ingratitude hold sway? that you are, as the phrase goes, with "those
who return evil for good"? He who would escape this fact must flee
the boundaries of the world. It requires no great wisdom to live only
among the godly and do good, but the keenest judgment is necessary to
live with the wicked and not do evil.
21. Christianity should be begun in youth, to give practice in the
endurance that will enable one to do good to all men while expecting
evil in return. Not that the Christian is to commend and approve evil
conduct; he is to censure and restrain wickedness to the limit of the
authority his position in life affords. It is the best testimony to
the real merit of a work when its beneficiaries are not only
ungrateful but return evil. For its results tend to restrain the doer
from a too high opinion of himself, and the character of the work is
too precious in God's sight for the world to be worthy of rewarding
it.