man, and if you are flinging away money or anything else because of
your Christianity, you will get it back.' No; you will not, in a good
many cases. Sometimes you will, and sometimes you will not. It does
not matter whether you do or do not.

But the sense in which the triumphant answer of the prophet is true is
a far higher one. 'The Lord is able to give thee much more than
this,'--what is 'more'? a thousand talents? No; the 'much more' that
Christianity has educated us to understand is meant in the depths of
such a promise as this is, first of all, character. Every man that
sacrifices anything to convictions of duty gains more than he loses
thereby, because he gains an inward nobleness and strength, to say
nothing of the genial warmth of an approving conscience. And whilst
that is true in all regions of life, it is most especially true in
regard to sacrifices made from Christian principle. No matter how
disastrous may be the results externally, the inward results of
faithfulness are so much greater and sweeter and nobler than all the
external evil consequences that may follow, that it is 'good policy'
for a man to beggar himself for Christ's sake, for the sake of the
durable riches--which our Lord Himself explains to be synonymous with
righteousness--which will come thereby. He that wins strength and
Christ-likeness of character by sacrificing for Christ has won far
more than he can ever lose.

He wins not only character, but a fuller capacity for a fuller
possession of Jesus Christ Himself, and that is infinitely more than
anything that any man has ever sacrificed for the sake of that dear
Lord. Do you remember when it was that there was granted to the
Apostle John the vision of the throned Christ, and that he felt laid
upon him the touch of the vivifying Hand from Heaven? It was 'when I