I. As virtue is the reduction of supernatural principles to action, as it is the practical form that our service of God must take and the instrumental means of our salvation, its acquirement should be one of the great cares of our life. It is the height of folly to attend to trivial advantages, and neglect those that are solid and permanent ; to interest ourselves in the business of others and forget our own; to decorate the exterior of a house with profusion, and leave it uncomfortable and unhealthy within; to clothe ourselves in purple, while starving ourselves and shortening our lives. So it is with those who satisfy all the cravings of the body, who develop all the faculties of the intelligence, and neglect the nobler impulses to virtue which spring from grace. It is the supreme folly, to make every provision for the brief period of this life and none whatever for that existence which will last forever. There are many who have the fullest knowledge and every assistance, and yet do not bring forth fruits of virtue; they suffer the temporal disadvantages that belong to the followers of the Crucified, and yet enjoy none of their spiritual compensations. "What shall it profit, my brethren, if a man say he hath faith but hath not works? (Jas. ii. 14). Take care to crown the edifice of faith and grace by leading a life of virtue. Each day brings its openings for works of faith, of benevolence, of self-restraint. Do not neglect a single one.
II. The first and principal theatre for the exercise of virtue is within man's own soul. There it begins, thence it goes forth in overt action. There must be a root to the tree; it is hidden beneath the soil; from that invisible source proceed the trunk, the branches, the life, the fruit of the tree. The casual good deed which is not generated by principle, but by expediency or by a sudden whim, is not an act of virtue. It may deceive the eye of man, but not universally nor for any length of time. It is an isolated phenomenon, dead and unproductive, without ancestry or progeny ; it is not supported by the general tenor of life nor by its consistency with all other actions. Such virtue is a fraud, an unreality, it withers and fails under the first stress of trial; it is the virtue of the Pharisees, a mockery of God and man. The inner life of the soul is the true human life; the great majority of a man's operations are those of the mind, and their character gives the character to his outward actions. "All the glory of the king s daughter is from within" (Ps. xliv. 14). Endeavour always to be, and not merely to seem virtuous. Cultivate virtue not for its advantages, nor in such kinds as are pleasant and easy to your temperament, but in every one of its forms and for the eye of God alone in the secret of your soul.
III. Virtue must be more than interior. Beginning in the soul, it must, if real and vigorous, take form in external works. True virtue makes itself patent to all men; although we must not allow ourselves to contemplate this as an object in practising it. We must give good example by our actions, yet we must never do anything for the sake of the good example, but only for God. We have to glorify God publicly by our virtues, and refuse such glory as accrues to us thereby from men. Hence we have two commands: 'Take heed that you do not your justice before men to be seen by them" (Matt. vi. 1), and "So let your light shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven"
(Matt. v. 16). Our Lord gives us an example in His life. It is not enough to have the faith in our hearts unless we profess it openly when the need arises; nor to indulge feelings of deep devotion and thoughts of heroic effort which never come to anything. Many deceive themselves thus, and take great credit for their good intentions, which only belong to that class of desires which kill the slothful. Take care to be a man of deeds as well as a man of desires. Give effect to every virtuous impulse which rises within you.
Read from the Original Book.
