There are in nature neither rewards nor punishments — there are consequences. The life of Christ is worth its example, its moral force, its heroism of benevolence.

We must remember that in nature there are neither rewards nor punishments there are consequences. The life and death of Christ do not constitute an atonement. They are worth the example, the moral force, the heroism of benevolence, and in so far as the life of Christ produces emulation in the direction of goodness, it has been of value to mankind. | As published in Some Reasons Why (1895) | In nature, there are neither rewards nor punishments — there are consequences. | Letters and Essays, 3rd Series. Some Reasons Why, viii.