The Gate Beautiful

He Gate Beautiful in the temple cannot certainly be identified. We know it was very costly, made probably of Corinthian brass and in the highest style of art. Everything about the temple was beautiful, and this gate was probably one of the most splendid ornaments of the house. God loves beauty. If he did not, he would not have made this world so full of lovely things. Everywhere we go we see beauty. The blind, whose eyes are closed, are sore losers in their great deprivation. The Gate Beautiful has many interesting suggestions for our thought. It was the gate into the temple of God. Everything about God’s worship should be beautiful. God himself is beautiful. When Charles Kingsley was dying, his daughter saw his

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lips moving, and bending her ear close to him, heard him say, “How beautiful God is!” Some people think of God as terrible, as a being who is angry, vengeful, not a gentle friend, but a stem, severe judge. They think of him with fear. One who thinks of God in this way wrote, “I love Jesus Christ, but I cannot love God.” Jesus was beautiful — gentle, compassionate, loving, pitiful. The children loved him and nestled in his arms. None were afraid of him. But God is the same. Jesus said, “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father.” Jesus was the human expression of God. It is God’s beauty that we see in the face of Jesus Christ.

Since God is beautiful, we should make his house beautiful. When David had built for himself a palace of cedar, his heart smote him that while he had such a fine dwelling for himself, God was living in a weather-beaten tent. He resolved to build a glorious temple for God. An English writer says,” It is ever a fatal sign when men permit the house of [4]

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God to be meaner than their own.” We should make our churches beautiful in every line and feature. We should keep them clean, bright, attractive. It is dishonoring to God to let his house fall into decay, to allow it to have broken windows, stained walls, unswept floors, faded carpets, tawdry furniture. The Beautiful Gate should always open into a beautiful sanctuary. God will meet his people in a tent, in a hall, in a barn, in the rudest place, in the open field, if that is the best they can do; but we should always prepare for the meeting place with him the most beautiful temple we can provide.

The worship of God should be beautiful. In one of the Psalms the poet speaks of “the beauty of holiness.” When we enter at the Gate Beautiful into the Lord’s house, our behavior should be beautiful, and every part of the service we render should be in keeping with the sanctity of the place. We are in the presence of Almighty God. In Isaiah’s wonderful vision the prophet saw the seraphim, each with six wings. With two of their [5] wings they covered their faces — reverence; they were not worthy even to look upon the divine splendor. With two they covered their feet — humility; they would hide their unfitness in God’s presence. Then with two they did fly — service; going instantly wherever they were sent. We should be reverent and humble and obedient before God. We need often to remind ourselves of this duty of reverence for God’s house, “lest we forget.” We should have the same spirit in all religious meetings, as well as in formal church services. One of the Hebrew prophets has this word to which we should always listen when we enter any room where God is being worshiped: “The Lord is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him.” Every part of our worship should be rendered to God. Jenny Lind, when asked the secret of her wonderful power in song, swaying thousands, answered, “I sing to God.” When we sing in worship, we should sing to God. When prayer is offered, we should be sincere — we are talking to God. [6] “Worship the Lord in the beauty of hoHness.” “Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God.”

The Gate Beautiful, through which we enter into the temple, suggests that we should make our Christian lives beautiful. God is beautiful. Holiness is beautiful. It is not enough that we worship in a beautiful house, and that our worship shall be orderly, devout, reverent. Our character also must be beautiful. Some of the ancient Christian fathers taught that in his personal appearance Jesus was not lovely. They seem to have interpreted a word in Isaiah to mean this: ‘* His visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men.” They said that his face was repulsive. “Base of aspect,” said one. “His body devoid even of human loveliness,” said another. But this was not true. Jesus was beautiful. The heart makes the face, and his heart was full of all beautiful quahties. We are to be like Christ, not in our faces, but in our lives. He was gracious, and we are to be gracious. [7]

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He loved, and we are to love. St. Paul, in one of his great pictures of worthy Christian life, names “whatsoever things are lovely” as part of his description of a true life. Only lovely things should be in our life. The beauty of Christ should be upon us. One who bears Christ’s name and is not beautiful in his spirit, is dishonoring the Master.

In St. Paul’s great chapter about love, he mentions some qualities that are not part of love. Love is not provoked — bad temper is not beautiful. You do not admire a man who flies into a passion of anger at the slightest provocation. Love doth not behave itself unseemly — that is, not unbeautifully. Selfishness is not beautiful, greed is not, irritability is not, anger is not, dishonesty and falsehood are not. We admire the man or the woman who bears insults patiently, quietly, meekly, who, when reviled, reviles not again, who overcomes evil with good.

The Beatitudes show lines and traits of [8]

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beauty. The Beautiful Gate opens for us to-day to all beautiful things in life, in disposition, in conduct, in behavior, in character. George Macdonald says, “I should like to know a man who just minded his duty and troubled himself about nothing; who did his own work and did not interfere with God’s. How nobly he would work — working not for a reward, but because it was the will of God! How happily he would take his food and clothing, receiving them as gifts of God! What peace would be his! What a sober gaiety! How hearty and infectious his laughter! What a friend he would be! How sweet his sympathy! And his mind would be so clear he would understand everything. His eye being single, his whole body would be full of light. No fear of his ever doing a mean thing — he would die in a ditch, rather. It is fear of want that makes men do mean things.”

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