The worship of the Pharisee was perfect, from the point of form. Everything was done according to rules and regulations. But it was soulless. Therefore, Jesus condemns it. But where He hears the prayer or sees the tears of repentant sinners, He stands still. There he stoops, and in their wailing and stammering worship He beholds a human soul that has suffered wrongs—one, perhaps, which is deeply tainted. But the soul is there, and it has worth to Him. He can heal all the wounds of the soul. And where the wounds of the soul are being healed, worship takes place. But, then, the human soul must take part.
——— ——— ———
This is true, also, in worldly things. Where your soul is demanded of you, you can give nothing else in barter for it.
You may give your wife food and shelter, dresses and footwear, but that is not enough. She has a right to your soul. Golden rings and splendid dresses cannot take its place. But if you do give her your soul—in smiling joy or in a burst of weeping—she will cling unto you with everlasting rejoicing in her heart. In this devotion she will recognize infinite worth.
Or your children! You may give them a good education, may even leave them a substantial legacy. But what God above all else demands of you, is that you give them your soul—a father's soul and a mother's soul, which they can learn to honor and to love. To give them a substantial legacy as an equivalent to this spiritual partnership is to give them stones where bread is wanted.
——— ——— ———
Remember, then, your soul's infinite worth—remember that wherever it be demanded of you, in your relations to God or men: You can give nothing in its place.
There is nothing in this world which is valuable enough to take the place of the human soul.