St. Paul speaks of one of his friends as “Apelles, the approved.” We do not know who Apelles was. He is not named elsewhere in the New Testament nor does he have any place in secular history. Yet the distinction which St. Paul gives him is suggestive. He had been put to the test in some way and had not failed. So he had won the title, “Apelles, the approved.”
Every Christian should want to have the approval of men. There are instances, no doubt, in which good men have to brave the opposition of others and go against their opinions. Yet a Christian should seek to make his life so beautiful, so consistent, so worthy, so like his Master’s, that everywhere he shall be well spoken of. The religion of Christ is beautiful. One of the few things said about the youth and early manhood of Jesus is that he “advanced in wisdom and stature and in favour with God and man.” It is not said only that he advanced in favour with God – that would not seem strange to us, since he was the Son of God – but that he advanced also in favour with men. As he grew older his life became more winning and attractive, his disposition sweeter, nobler, manlier. There was nothing austere in him, nothing disagreeable, and nothing that made his neighbours dislike him.
Some persons have the impression that religion is not winsome, that it makes one somehow uncongenial and less agreeable. But the very reverse of this is true. The nearer we approach to the perfection of Christ, the more will people love us and approve of our life. When the religion of any one makes his disliked, there is something wrong, not with the religion, but with the person’s interpretation of it. If we would win for ourselves the honourable designation, “The approved,” we must see to it that we make our life spotless in its beauty and our conduct true to the teachings of our Master.
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