Newspaper Page Text
THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN AND NEWS.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER tl % MOT.
What Shall Be My Relationship to the Gospel?
By REV. RICHARD ORME FLINN,
PASTOR NORTH AVENUE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
Text—Boro. 1:1.
The other day a. we were reading
Homan, two lines In hla Initial utter-
,nce arrested our attention, ('Paul
i • • a servant of Jesus Christ •
• • separated unto the gospel.” This
I, * frank confession of one man's un-
derotandlng of his place and purpose
in life. Prince Albert, the consort of
flueen Victoria, used to assert that
Jiccess in life depended upon a man’s
discovering God's plan, finding hla place
,„d falling In line. If this Is true the
apostle was a successful man, for as
affirmation assures us he had dis-
,vcred God’s Intent, found his pines,
and was determined to fill It. How
ever others might esteem themselves,
and to whatsoever title or dignity they
might aspire, It was sufficient for him
to i,» known as a "servant of Jesus
Christ.” No mattor what career might
M cm alluring to others, there was but
cne that was alluring to him, and so
from all other possible effort he turned
aside that he might be separated unto
Hip gospel of Christ."
Which 8hall It Be?
we meditated upon this statement
the thought was suggested how differ'
cat Is the attitude of this man from
that of many, and further as we con-
ildered this, wo were startled, as we
substituted first one i and then another
trief word In its place, to perceive how
the change of a preposition in this sen.
mice accurately marked the difference
between the great classes of mankind
their relationship to the gospel of
Gcd. Let us read the sentence as we
change It, and as we read let us sub
stitute our own name for that of Paul.
1. ( ), a servant of Jesus Christ,
separated FROM the gospel of God.”
2. ( ) "a servant of Jesus Christ
Separated BY the gospel <»f God.”
3. ( ), “a servant of Jesus Christ,
separated UNTO the gospel of God.”
These Hues may be the epitome of
your own soul's history and of mine, a
■ biography of the three great
chapters In our career even a* they
arc of the apostle'.. But though they
may be thus they are not so for all,
for (he earthly history of some lives,
alas! must close wltlv the first chap
ter. “Separated from the gospel" le
all that may be written, and for these
ti er, ties out beyond a hopeless eteral-
tv. Others have two chapter., for th.y
who were separated from the gospel
have been separated by the gospel, and
for these there Is future hope. But
the (treat life Is a life like Paul's, with
the three chapters written out, wherein
we read that one who has been sepa
rated front the gospel, being separated
by the gospel, with the ardor of a|
deathless devotion, Is separated unto
the gospel. For such there is glory In
time and throughout eternity.
Let us pause a moment to consider
the significance of these chapters three.
1. Separated from the Gospel.
Whnt does this mean? When we
have calculated what God Intends the
\-ospel to mean to all and what it does
mean to those who nccept It, we can
begin to estimate the loss of those who
are separated from It. The gospel |3
the only adequate answer to the ques-
tlons which the tired-hearted world
has ever been asking—the only re
sponse to the deep outcrytngs of the
soul. As men have seen their fellows
fall beside them and look back through
history at the desolation which time
hath wrought, the questlrn has been
borno Ireslstibly upon them "If a man
die shall ha live ngaln?" And ae they
have cried out for answer they have
been met with silence, or speculation.
But what says the gospel? Through It
He Who brought life and Immortality
to light, answers with assurance "Yes,
we shall live again,” and furthermore.
He tells us where, and how. and why,
and what that life shell be, but he who
Is separated from the gospel Is left
still groping for; or trembling because
of, the answer concerning a future life.
There Is another soul question—It Is
about sin and Its consequence. "What
shall I do to be saved?" The answers
of nil other religions of the world,
where an answer Is attempted, save the
answer of the gospel of God, nre Inef
fective, but Christ stands before us
presenting a simple nnd an adequate
means of escape for the soul from sin
or from the suffering which It entails.
Then there Is the eoul's cry concern
ing life's provldentlsl mysteries. Why-
are these? What do they mean? And
Christ replies: "What I do ye know
not now, but ye shall know hereafter."
and so He aesuree us of Ood’s love
and His power to make all these things
work together for good, and bids us
trust and wait. The gospel, I say. Is
the only answer to these and other
great cries of the stricken breast. If
we bo separated from the gospel what
then? We are separated from the only
consolation tired hearts can know, sep
arated unto Intellectual bewilderment,
unto moral Impotence, unto uncertainty
and hopelessness of the future.
But let us ask further, If we are sep
arated from the gospel, why? Is It be
cause God would have It so? Nay, when
this gospel was first announced by an
gelic chorus on that eventful morn,
the angel's messngo to the Bethlehem
shepherd. wa«: “Good tidings of great
joy Shalt be to all ptople." It Is God's
Intent that no man shall be separated
from the gospel. But some are separat
ed from the gospel; It may be that you
are one of these. Do we ask. then,
why? There Is but’otie answer for
there Is but on. thing that can sepa
rate a man from knowing the power of
the gospel when once It has been pro
claimed to him, npd that Is—sin.
Iralnh affirmed this millenniums ago.
"Your Iniquities have separated be
tween you and your God, and your sins
have hid His face from you." Sin Is
the only thing that can turn a man
away from the gospel of Christ and
rob him of Its privileges, of Its prom
ises. and Its hopes. The form of sin
that separates you may be different
from the form that separates another,
for some are separated even ns the
pharisees and lawyers were, by thu sin
of pride, so that they rejected the coun
sels of God ngnlnst themselves; and
some, life Deman, who loved the pres
ent world, nre separated by pleasure:
and some. Ilka the men of Gndarn, who
drove Christ out of their rnnsts when
Ills healing of the demoniac man In
terfered with their swine business, are
separated by considerations of profit.
But whatever the form of It may be,
that which separates la sin, and—let
Ur be very honest with ourselves here—
as we are taught In Ezekiel 14:7, we
must mnke a eholcej between sin und
the gospel, for the two can not be held
at once. If wo hold to sin It separates
us from the gospel, and separates us
'•»» the life and glory which the gos-
1*1 Is Intended to cohvey. "Every one
which separaleth himself from me and
setteth up his Idols In his heart and
putteth the stumbling block of his In
iquity before his faro • • • I, the
Lord, will unswer him by myself, and
will set my face against that man, and
will make him a sign and a proverb,
nnd I will cut Him oil from the midst
of iny people."
It Is possible for men to apparently
hold to the gospel, end outwardly ob
serve the forms of religion, and to pray
In the eanctuary nnd consult with
God's counsellors ns though they long
ed to enter Into communication with
heaven, nnd yet be absolutely severed
from the gospel because of secret sin,
of Idols enthroned In their hearts. Oh.
my friends, If we he separated, let ue
understand where Ilea.the blame. See
ing that God's face must be against
that man who hold, to sin, let us let
sin go whntcver be the pain or cost.
Separated by «h. Gospel.
Tho gospel Is the means of the soul',
emancipation. Just as sin separates
us front the gospel so the gospel sepa
rates us from (In. The slave to Satan
HEV. RICHARD ORME FLINN.
may be freed by the gnspel and be
come, like Paul, the bond slave of
Jesus Christ. Faith In the gospel sep
aratee us from tho fear of sin's conse
quences. Faith In the gospel, which
leads to trust and obedience, delivers
us from the cursed terror of sin’s dom
inance. nnd ae we, by the gospel as
through a glass darkly, behold the face
of the Muster, wo nre quietly but
steadily changed from glory unto glory,
so that gradually the old nature, with
Its evil tendencies, Is subdued, and the
new nature In God's likeness Is estab
lished. Is there a soul struggling
against sin, hating the filth of the
world, seeking to disentangle Itself
from It and yet discouraged, defeated
and despairing, then hear me—your
experience may be the same as tho
apostle's, where In the seventh of Ro
mans he cries out, "Oh, wretched man
that I am, who shall deliver me from
the body of this death?" And an
swers triumphantly, ‘‘Thanks be unto
God, through Jesus Christ.” Yes, the
gospel has transformed others. It may
transform you, and If you believe and
obey It will.
Separation From Friends.
Sin Is not the only thing, however,
that the gospel separates us from, ft
sometimes separates us from compan
ionships which are very sweet. Some
times this separation Is voluntary. We
realise that Ih loyalty to Christ we
must choose and we "must forsake oth
ers that we may cleave to Him. Some
times the separation la Involuntary.
We are separated by others from their
society as we are told we may expect
to be In Luke 0:22. But let us re
member and not be affrighted at these
losses. If we are cast out by nny on
earth because of the gospel, we are
hut experiencing a little sooner what
must be Inevitable, for those who sep
arate themselves In time from/ us who
hold to the gospel because of their hos
tility to It. are such as will be sepa-
| rated In eternity from us by God for
| the very same reason. Rend Matthew
* S: 32. and see how the day Is coming
when He will separate between the
multitudes, nnd how It will be bv the
test of the gospel that the line of de
marcation shall be determined. For
then those who now voluntarily sepa
rate themselves from us,will then nec
essarily be separated from us eter
nally by God if wo be such ns, hold
to the gospel and they such os reject
It. And there Is another consoling
thought—If the gospel cause us to he
severed from friends now, yet It cuuscs
us to be separated unto a Friend now.
and unto a Friend who Is unfailing,
from Whom nothing can ever pnrt us.
for If the gospel separates unto God
there Is absolutely nothing that can
separate us from God. Rend those stir
ring affirmations In the close of the
eighth chapter of Romans, that we
may declare with Paul. "I am per
suaded that neither death, nor life, nor
nngels, nor principalities, nor powers,
nor things present, nor things to
come, nor height, nor depth, nor any
other creature can separate us from
the love of God. which Is In Christ
Jesus our Lord." Too often young
Christians hesitate before ncceptlhg
Christ because they fear they must
lose too much by such allegiance. They
dread the separation It will cause, but
they forget what the separation will
Insure, they forget friends It gains and
the royal society of crowned souls Into
whose fellowship such separation will
introduce them. Nay. let us fear not,
our loss shall be nothing to our gain.
Separated Unto the Qoepel.
When a man Is saved It Is In order
that he may serve. We are separated
by the gospel In order thnt we mny be
separated unto It. Alas, too many are
willing to stop at tho second chapter,
but God's Intent Is that every man who
receives the blessings of the gospel
shall pass them on. And there Is need
today that men should come 10 a real
ization of this and should devote them
selves to Its fulfillment. There are
those In this city who are separated
from the gospel, and who forever must
thus remain unless those to whom God
Is looking for their salvation separate
themselves unto the.gospel and begin
with all seriousness the blessed work
of reaching out after them. Why should
we let the servants of the devil be more
diligent In pulling )n0n and women
down than we, the servants of the
Lord, are In lifting them up? Why
should we 1st them prove that they are
more eager to get in touch with men
and with women In order to destroy
them than we are to reach them In
order that we may save? There are
those within our reach who never come
under the sound of the gospel, nnd who
never will unless we go after thtm;
whoso every contact with their com
panions means Infamy nnd a deeper
degradation of soul, and God loves
these nnd wants them to know It. Are
you going to tell them? If not, what
wilt you say to God when He asks you
about It? The fact that you are en
tangled and are too busy will not be a
sufficient excuse to satisfy God—we
hove no right to be too busy. This Is
Just the point—If we are Christ's serv
ants We need to he separated from
whatsoever prevents us from being
separated unto this, His chief service.
"He that wlnneth souls Is wise,” not
he that saveth dollars.
Millions Bayond.
Thsre are multitudes beyond our city
nnd our stage and our native shores
who are not only separated from the
gospel, because they have not had It
adequately presented or alluringly Il
lustrated, but because they have never
heard It nnd know nothing of It. There
are millions of human beings who nre
living nnd who are dying us thpugh
Jesus Christ had never lived and died
and risen, and so far as they arc con
cerned the Infinite sacrifice of tho Sa
viour Is unavailing. These need the
gospel for this life nnd they need tho
gospel for tho life to come. Will you
not glvo them n chnnre? Our civiliza
tion has bean conditioned nnd has been
determined hy the gospel. It alone Is
the force that has been sufficient to
produce the twentieth century civiliza
tion, whose benefits we enjoy, but there
nre millions In this twentieth century
who do not enjoy these benefits because
they have not received the gospel; they
are living ns though Jesus Christ hud
never wrought or His disciples'written.
Who Is to blame—God? No. You nnd
I, If we will not separata ourselves
unto the work of the gospel. When
millions who are living In abject mis
ery, wlthodt light and hope, are being
swept like withered leaves before the
autumn gales from a life of terror Into
an eterntly of gloom, w ho Is to blame
■Mjod? No. You and I, If we will not
separate ourselves Unto the gospel.
My friends, there arc men enough
who know the message nnd they con
trol money enough to Insure the gos
pel’s speedy and world-wide proclama
tion If they would only separate them
selves and their substance unto Its
service. We could do It If we would.
God grant that we may catch up the
refrain of the great centennial meeting
of the missionary brotherhood and cry.
"We can do It and we will." But listen.
If we are to do It, there must be dot
only the enthusiasm of a choice, but
there must be an abandonment of soul,
of life, of means, of time nnd of Inter
est to the untiring effort of attainment.
We must make It the serious business
of our life. There must he with us os
In the esse of Paul such a burning
passion for souls as that we will let
nothing hinder hr from the work of
the gospel. When we know 1
"A land of sin and shame
And hearts that faint nnd tire.
And know a Name, a Name, a Name
can sat that land on fire,
sound Is a brand and whose let
ters flams
When we know a Name, a Name, s
Name,
That can sat that land on fire,"
then how dare tv# be silent? Nay, let
us speak until the world Is ablaze with
the knowledge nnd the love of Christ.
Oh, for the passion of a Henry Mnrtyn,
whose cry was, ns he spent himself by
arduous toll In Persia, "Not where I
am needed, hut where I nin needed
most." Oh, for the heart of a Count
Zlnzendorf. who declared, "My passion
Is for souls; my meat Is to do the will
of Him thnt sent me and to finish the
work.” Oh, for such an ardor os was
His when He declared, “My field Is the
world.” Oh. that like Paul, we might
decide that Ood, being our helper, wo
shall at any cost carry the gospel aa
far afield as we may and Into such
places ns others may not dare to ven
ture. As Mr. Mott has said, let us so
separate ourselves unto the gospel as
that we shall "keep our eyes on the ut
termost parts of th* earth and tie our
selves to the man nearest to us.“
Only, for souls let nur life work be;
only for souls until death shall set free.
Let us strive as those running after
earth's goals.
Only for souls, only for souls."
•W.
f to
SCIENCE VS. RELIGION
By RABBI JULIUS T. LOEB,
OF THE BETH-ISRAEL CONGREGATION
A Day of Atonement sermon deliv-
irsd before the Congregation Beth-
trael on Tuatday night.
It were Impossible for any human
language to adequately translate Into
vords the noble significance and lofty
ideal ol the Yom-KIppur: a day con-
werated In Israel to psychological de
velopment, or the probation of the hu-
' man soul, by virtue of repentance and
or reconciliation with God and man.
Not merely a fast day or day of afflic
tion: but principally a day of spiritual
edification, a "Sabbath of Sabbaths,"
which Is to give rest to our bodily func-
; ms; to lift us out of all the engross
ing materialism, and to open up our
reasoning faculties to the better appre
ciation of life's duties. Shut out en
tirely from the busy turmoil of the
material worid, from the cares and
drudgeries of dally life, with their cus
tomary allurements and stultifying In
fluence*, we are on this day Invested
with the pure and holy atmosphere of
ober thought and earnest medltntlon.
Ve are brought, as it were,, In touch
“Ith our better selves. In sacred com
munion with the Divine Presence
(text: Leviticus xvl, 80), "for on this
day shall He make atonement for you,
to cleanse you, thnt ye may be clean
from all your sins before the Lord."
(>n this blessed day ample means Is
forded us for the atonement of our
souls before the Lord.' On this day free
scope Is given to the monitor that
dwells within the Inmost recesses of
heart—the human conscience—to
assert Itself In our resolves for good.
lamp of the" Lord Is the sou! of
man," and by means of this lamp we
are enabled to throw light on our dally
conduct; to institute a search Into our
moral character, and If It be found
wanting In those qualities which should
make the perfect man and consistent
Israelite, we should at once set about
an Improvement /• our ways.
According to Jewish doctrine, each
one of the human race Is endowed with
a Godly spirit, which It Is his duty to
develop for his moral good: each one
has within himself a portion of the
divine.
In Image of God,
"For In the Image of God made He
matt,” was really spoken of the soul.
According to .Malmonides, the "Image
' God" Is reference to the substance
God, which Is tho divine spirit—not
the outward form.
We, the descendants of the patri
archs, are therefore bid to confess be
fore no priest, nor saint, nor deml-god,
»»ve only before the Lord of Hosts, and
lo Him alone our hearts should ascend
In prayer; In the fullest conviction that
all mortals are alike dependent upon
ihe mercy of God, as they are all alike
subjected to His eternal rule.
Out of fear or ostentation a man will
often promise boforo his fellow man
lhat which he Is either unable or un
willing to fulfill. But one could never
Promise it truthfully before God and
his own conscience without subse-
uuently making an effort to carry these
promises Into practice. Hence, our
rages of blessed memory have poeti
cally expressed It In tho words, "Truth
“ Ihe seal of God," for truth not only
inscribes, but seals the human resolve
for good.
Thin great day of ours Is, therefore,
known In the language of our sages as
the day on which our fate Is sealed; as
[his Is the last of the first ten days of
the year which we give to God and His
Jeered service, this is the crowning
Point of our season of repentance.
Season of Repentance.
But why Is our first portion of the
year a "season of repentance?" Be
cause the acknowledgment of our
sh/irt.comings and Imperfections at the
opening of a new period In our exist-
•nee, and the manifestation of our de
pendency upon the grace of an all-rul-
|ng nnd all-just Creator at the assump
tion of life’s duties, forms the basis of
•■I religion. And Yom-KIppur. the
“tost earnest and most sacred day In
our religion, la therefore characterized
“>’ the efficacy of repentance. >
I have often asked the question as
Is " h Jther or not repentance la a thing
mat becomes civilized beings; a* we
claim to he at this so-called enllght-
«ncd ace? And I answered; Repent
ance not only becomes civilized beings,
bttt It is the highest Ideal, the truest
means of civilization, arid he Is no
civilized being who feels not the sting
of remorse? who has not the capability
of correcting himself and of rising to a
higher plane, of living with every suc
ceeding year.
What is civilization, If not the per
fection of the human character, moral
ly, mentally and physically? And now
again, what la religion In Its substance?
Every effort,for good, everything that
makes for the betterment nnd Improve-
ment of human nature under the divine
law of unerring Justice, Spell these
correctly, and you find therein none
else but what we call "repentance.”
"Repentance Is the dlvinest thing
within man,” says Thomas Carlyle;
and why? Because repentance Is the
most significant mark of the higher na.
ture of man, which distinguishes him
above the beast of the earth. Man
alone of all created beings can
moved by repentance. The nntmal be
low knows It not. Hence It Is that
when you find a man slow to the awak
ening of conscience It means that this
man Is descending to the level of the
brute. But the keener the sensitiveness
of conscience the stronger tho man,
and the higher his standard of moral
ity.
Rabbi David Phlllpson very wisely
remarks with reference to this sub
ject: "Raise men,” he says, "by cdu
cation and trdlnlng to a proper ap
preciation of the efficacy of repentance,
und you will have accomplished what
neither bastinado, nor exile, nor fine,
nor prison cell have during these many
sad centuries achieved."
We can safely assert that out of one
hundred offenders against the laws of
a state, and of morality, there are
ninety-nine—or you might ns well take
In the other one hundredth part—who
committed their deeds without the full
knowledge of what they were doing.
Insanity In Sin.
Man will not commit an offense
unless he be moved by a spirit of In
sanity,” says the Talmud. The habit
ual sinner Just merely did not stop to
think It over, for lack of reasoning
his conscience was gradually lulled to
Bleep, and the result Is moral stagna'
tlon.
Hence It follows that what we all
need as human creatures for the forti
fication of our character and the per
fection of our soul Is to pause at fre
quent Intervals and think It oysr, to
throw the searchlight of Investigation
on our moral condition and endeavor
to fortify all the weak points therein;
that means—to repent and amend. In
such manor only can we hope to be/
come good men, loyal citizens and use.
ful members of society.
From whnt we have premised we
may easily comprehend that repent
ance—the embodiment of religion—Is
only the counterpart of civilization,
and one without tho other Is simply an
Impossibility.
Those Individuals who still keep up
their harangue—"down with religion!
Away with prayer, repentance, and so,
on”—they are away behind the times,
and are hopelessly below the standard
of civilization. For olcr.g with the
progress of the ages religion Is tower-
mg high, spreading Its benign wings
over all reasoning beings and con
stantly aiding In effecting the cultiva
tion of the human mind and character.
The salutary Influence of religion Is
going from strength to strength and
permeating all sections and spheres
amid the human family. There Is
scarcely a man prominent In human
affairs, or filling a high and responsi
ble position In the world, who Is not
animated by sentiments of religion.
The newer discoveries and scientific
researches have only opened up newer
avenues for religious thought.
Will Never Cease.
Religion l« not a technical contri
vance, nor a mere philosophy, which
soon should give way to any newer
mode of thinking; but It Is the ever
present attribute of him that Is created
n the Image of God, and, as was well
exorcised by one of our modem pnl-
lcs.iphcrs: "Religion will cease only
with man. not among men.
Whatever the outward form* or re
man with Ood, tho Divine Presence;
»he constant yearning of the human
soul after the Spirit of All.
The slogan "Science Versus Religion"
is a mere chimera. Science may well
form Its technical construction round
nature, origin and* growth; It may
either prove or disprove certain doc
trines or theories; it may put Into op
eration that all-pervading force Known
us electricity, end may show a thou
sand wonders within nature; yet sci
ence never will fathom tho mystery of
nature's first causer never will unravel
the enigma of life and death, and never
r.utroot from the human heart the be
lief In and knowledge of a Ood.
We hear of ao many men of learning
(•r gnged In psychical research, and In
the various other branches of science,
who ufter many years of study nnd sci
entific Investigation have pronounced
themselves confirmed believers In God.
Upon his discovery of n "plurality of
Inhabited worlds" a Camille Klamma-
rlon stops, gases In wonderment nt tho
vast pnnortima spread before his eyes,
the countless worlds set In array
throughout the boundless expanse of
tho universe; all governed nnd pre-
H-rved In a wonderfully harmonious or
der by a master hand that Is Invisible
nnd Intangible, yet existent In Its ef
fect. And learning of the many worlds
of existing being* which we dreamt not
in our philosophies, thia savant finally
learns also of the existence of a world
of Spirits.
8cienco and Religion.
Or when a man like the late John
Ruskln, who devotes himself to tht
philosophy of arts, and he finds that
what mankind hitherto believed to be
deprived of all life—that which wo still i
RABBI JULIU3 T. LOEB.
continue to call inanimate substance—
that, too, lives its life and dies Its
death. And Ruskln Is thus convinced
of the fact that what man does not
see, even If he have It before his eyes,
does not signify that it is not. And
could he then do It otherwise but form
Ids conclusion, that ns much as tho life
of the mineral kingdom below Is hld-
deg from our view, yet still It Is ex
istent, nnd its effect Is perfectly evi
dent; so there is a Spiritual kingdom
nbove, which wc can not grasp with
cur ordinary senses, and whoao exist
ence Is nevertheless a perfect reality.
The Marconi discovery of but n few
years duration has carried into prac
tice a matter which so-called scientists
had pronounced an utter impossibility;
namely, communication by the Intangi
ble.
To the unreasoning mtfnd all these
things are, perhaps, of little conse
quence. An additional planet discov
ered by the astronomer, another com
position of the various quartses found
by tho scientist, or the demonstration
of a marvelous communicative power
In the Invisible world, may not Interest
him that Is praoccuplod with selfish
thing*, but ipunt Interest every believer
In God who may feel the truth that
"the heavens relate 'the glory of God;'
and the expanso telleth of the work;*
of Hla hands." We who are enjoined
to think must learn therefrom the In
significance of our own wisdom and
the nothingness of our earthly strength,
In the preaence of Almighty Providence,
end of Nature, unconquerable and* in-,
searchable, which Is but a wonderful
emanation from Him alone. Qt» tills
most sacred day of ours, when we come
to atone for our souls before the Lord,
It Is especially our duty to feci that
we are In His Divine presence, that
tl Is day and every day we are In His
safe keeping, and that by Him wo are
animated and prompted to do good, In
manner as our wise teachers have
dictated to us; that Is, by means of
penitence, prayer and benevolence.
•Penitence" being the proper realisa
tion of the rules and duties of life
which wc may have overstepped. And
SUPREME POWER
Terse Comments on tho Uniform Prayor .looting Topic of the Young People’s
Societies—Christian Endeavor, Baptist Young People's Union, Epworth
League, Etc.—For. September 22, “God's Omnipotence," 1 Chron. 29: 9-13.
By WILLIAM T. ELLIS
Calmness comes from a contempla
tion of the almlxhtlnesa of Jehovah.
The Lord relgneth."
God’s In His heaven—all’s right with
the world.” 4
No other truth can Impart quietness
nnd confidence to a worker for human
ity's betterment Ilk. this one of the
omnipotence of the Infinite. In the
end. God will have His way. And Hie
way Is man's welfare. -
He who opposes the locomotive’s
progress may quail before Its power;
rot he who rides In the train may re
joice In that power
All of a Christian’s power Is Imparted
power.
tlon?" The answer of all these, except
the few Christians, was unequivocally
that Japan would never become a
Christian nation. Viewing the subject
upon a purely national basts, und after
considering the visible evidence, they
were Justified In tills conclusion,
tho other hand, a fuller Investigation of
the subject, especially In the light of
the strength and purpose of the Jnpa
nese Christians, tends to the conclusion
that Japan will become a Christian na.
tlon. The factor that the statesmen
nnd public men Ignore Is God. The
supernatural element Is first to be reck
oned with. Because God In His om
nipotence Is manifestly In tho Japanese
church. It will yet conquer Its heathen
environment.
One of the marvels of grace Is that
God’s omnipotence permltidtself to be
linked to man's Impotence.
"Hitch your wagon to a star," cried
Emerson. Better than that figurative
exhortation Is the plain advice to link
your life to the fife of God, becoming
a partaker of the divine energy. That
way lies conquest. They prevail who
are strengthened by the might of Om
nipotence. Barriers have been falling
for centuries before the Christian
Church, simply because the mysterious
°/hti^L t Vhrolf^h "f'hrtji which.' slew progress, or apparent defeat, of
5KJSL2HT cried thS ,*onlel the cause he serves. He hi tempted
etrengtherteth me, cried the people. o(ten to , U rrender all. Then It Is that
. .... . , . ... ., . _ !hc needs to plant hla feet firmly on the
A child goes driving with his father, > vul| abstract truths of God and justice.
‘The misery of life," says F. B. Mey.
"will not be to be In the hand of
God, but to be outside the hand of
God."
Every reformer has his daySof dis
couragement. He Is cast down at the
and pleads to hold the reins. He la per-1
mltted to do so—above where the fa-;
tiler's hand grips them. The real guld-
ance and control Is with the father. As I
little children we chafe and fret to be;
given free rein over the world within I
and without; but we are safe only w'henj an the omnipotence of the Infinite Is
"** — “ pledged to the support and ultimate
“For right Is right, since God Is God,
And right the day must win.
To doubt would be disloyalty.
To falter would be tin.”
we let the hand of Omnipotence control.
The power of the father Is the pro-
tcctlon and peace of the child.
A year ago In Japan I talked with
her statesmen, editors, soldier* and
..JKSraT ideal thereof Is everlaet- other public men upon the question,
!«ly the It U the alliance of "Will Japan become a Christian na-
victory of servants of truth. As Brown
ing puts It,
"I trust In God—the right shall bo right.
And other than the wrong, while He
endures."
force that ever dares to defy the om
nipotence of God. That Is the human
will, to which he has given the power
to resist His power. Only that sign nnd
seal of man's divinity—his freedom of
will to make choice between good and
evil—Is able to say to Jehovah, "I will
not.” The plants beneath our feet, the
wind that blow* In our faces, the star*
that ehlne above our heads, all these
nre Implicitly obedient to the Omnipo
tent Ruler. Man Is the only rebel.
And I smiled to think Ood's greatness
flowed around our Incompleteness,
Round our restlessness His rest.
—Elizabeth Barrett Browning.
SEVEN-SENTENCE SERMONS.
I find the great thing In this world Is
not so much where we stand, aa In
what direction we are going.—O. W.
Holmes.
Speak not but what may benefit oth
ers or yourself; avoid trifling conver
sation—Franklin.
Know then this truth, enough for men
to know,
Virtue alone Is happiness below.
—Pope.
It Is not what stays In our memories,
but what lias passed Into our charac
ter that Is tbe possession of our lives.—
Phillips Brooks.
The tendency to persevere, to persist
In spite of hindrances, discouragements,
and Impossibilities; It Is this that In
all things distinguishes the strong soul
from the weak.—Carlyle.
The key of yesterday
I threw away.
And now, too late.
Before tomorrow'* close-locked gate
Helpless I stand—In vein to pray!
In vain to sorrewl
Only the key of yesterday
Unlocks tomorrow!
—Anon.
There Is no place where so much hard
work can be put In with such small
visible results a* In the perfecting of
character; therefore, have patience,
In all the universe there Is only one my aoul.—Anon.
this to be urcompanled by our sincere
prayer before God thnt He may help
us In our endeavors for good, and with
the practleo of "benevolence." that Is.
"good will," toward all mankind. And
those Ideals arc Inculcated In the tex:
we have chosen for our consideration.
"For or. this day ho shall atone fot
you" by nieana of repentance; to cleansa
you by the pure and sincere outpouring
of your devoted hearts: that Is, prayer;
ond before tne Lord you ehnll be
cleansed from all your elns, Is dofined
by our sages of the Mlshnah.
Make Restitution.
Offenses of man against mnn Yom
Klppur will not atone for, unless one
would own up his guilt to Ills neigh
bor ond ninko restitution therefor.
Rabbi Elozor-Ben-Azarjah deducts
this from the third clause of the text.
"Of all your sins ye shall be cleansed
before the Lord.”
Before entering the presence of God
wc must remove from our hearts every
motive of Ill-feeling, envy, tnallec or
hatred toward each other and the world
at large. And In such manner only
can wc pope to be cleansed from guilt,
purified nnd reconciled with Ood and
man. »
This, our Yom-KIppur, stand* forth
In Its awful significance and solemnity
above all the days of the year, and Is so
rigidly emblematic of the school of en
durance 111 which Ihe Jewish people
have been trained nnd the affliction to
which they were subjected at all times.
We now live In an age of Investigation,
and I can picture to myself how many
of the outer world ask it In silence:
Now, what Is there In the Jew
ish Yom-KIppur? What profit Is
there In the fasting; Jn th* penitence
and the prayer? And why Is It really
so that If one wants to "get smart"
and help himself lo a good dinner on
Yom-KIppur, that the Injunction Is held
out against him, "An/k that soul shall
be cut off from amidst his people,"
To nccount for the Importance of
the YOm-KIppur, to Know what the
Yom-KIppur ho* done for us In times
post and present. It will suffice to say
that this day, this once a yenr calls
the roll of our people together and
places us all before Ood aa one united
Israel. This day has thus saved us
from moral degeneration under such
trying circumstances which would
crush any other element under their
weight. This day has taught us of
steadfastness and sturdiness of char
acter. And If the Jewish character Is
a mystery, the Yom-KIppur may offer
the key to this mystery.
Many, of course, look upon the Jew
with no end of amazement. "These
Jews certainly are a peculiar race,”
they say. Why are they so stiff
necked? Why can’t they give up the
fight against an overwhelming major
ity? Why are they so reduced, and yet
so conspicuous? Whr are they so few
and yet virtually filling the earth? So
degraded and yet so Influential? They
are likened unto the "dust of the
ground," and likewise unto the "stars
of heaven^'
The Jewish Nature.
Why can a Jew economise In the
smallest degree, and he can spend so
lavishly as to outstrip the multt-tnll-
llonalre? Why Is the Jew craving
for the favor of every nation, only to
become the benefactor of the nation
that favored him? Why Is the Jew so
poor, and yet so rich, so frugal and so
benevolent? Why Is It that he offers a
contrast to the worid, even in his natu
ral habits? Why can a Jew drink to
his heart's content, nnd yet he.i»—Is 1
rule, exempt from the cotnnf ague
gf excessive drink which shs, n Its
thousands?
For an answer to these questions
look to his religion, to this blessed
Klppur day and the other biblical ordi
nances. See him endure today's fast
cheerfully and call It a Yom-Tov, n
"feast day," a holy convocation among
the other set feasts of the year, where
on he Is bid to "rejoice before the
Lord,” by eating, drinking and sharing
the bounties of nature, together with
the poor ond the needy ones of the
land. Study the nature of the Jewish
sacred Institutions and you will find
their intent and purpose to uphold the
equilibrium of body and soul; to realise
the truth that "for everything there It a tight Amen.
season, and a time Is for every pursuit
under the heavens."
To know how to suit the time for
everything; to set bounds to all enrthly
things: to enjoy the blessings of llto
with proper moderation, and thus to
maintain the equanimity of substance
ami soul, .Is the secret of life, and the
fulfillment of life's duties.
We Jews are taught to lead a well-
balanced life, and to avoid extremes
In nny direction. Our religion Is a re
ligion of life, and save only for this
one day In the year, which It enforce*
most rigidly, and the few days of Jew
ish national mourning over the lose of
the temple, as Instituted by the sages,
the Jewish religion permits of no fast
ing and no self-mortlficatlon. It de
mands us to be men and women fully
alive to all responsibilities, as well aato
all sensibilities of life.
Asceticism, prohibition or teetotallsm
of any sort nre strange to the Jewish
spirit, nnd strictly prohibited by the
Jewish law. We find not In tho entire
history of Judaism a single ono of our
patriarchs, prophets, priests and snges,
who were sent to onllghton tbo world...
thnt they should have made a practice
of any of these things, ,
Prohlbitien Question.
On these grounds I have had occasion
some time ago to oppose a movement
for total abstinence In Washington, D.
C. Yet the overwhelming wave of pro.
hlbltlnn thnt recently swept over this
Georgian state, nnd by nn act of legls-
dature has wiped out the further traffic
of alcoholic hovemge from Its terri
tory, was Just following In the wake of ,
an ocean of excessive drinking. And
this Is a perfectly natural manifesta
tion, ns one extreme would always
bring on another. From whnt I have
learned subsequently It appears that
people here had carried the matter too
In their excesses, while the liquor deal-
'ers In this place simply Ignored all the
laws of morality and public decency
until the citizens could endure It no
longer, and the result followed In the
overthrowel of the entire branch of ‘
Industry. For thus It Is that one ex
treme will always be repaid by another
extreme—"measure against measure,”
Is the penalty meted out In the course
of nature.
I am glad of one thing, however, that
all Jewish cltlsen* here are elated over
the passage of tho prohibition bill,
W'hleh, they say, will wipe away dis
grace from the Jewish name on ac
count of the sins of a few. Even Jew*
engaged In this line of Industry have
expressed themselves before mo as be
ing exceedingly glad to get rid of the
thing that proved detrimental to the
Ihtereats of the community. The Jew
can easily adapt himself to circum
stances, and I am sure that those of
our people hitherto engaged In the
liquor trade will soon find employment
In other directions, end will never re
gret the change.
By the observance of the Tom-KIp-
pur and of other sacred Inetltutlons of
the ancient faith, the Jew hns learned
to get along without drinking whenever
this be necessary; to sacrifice his own
comfort and ease to the public cause,
and willingly to yield up even his means
of gaining a livelihood In order to ren
der himself at one with all the world.
As ordinary children of nmn. we Jews
have an equal claim with all the rest of
our fellow creatures on the blessings of
nature and nature’s God, and hence It
is our duty, under alt circumstances, to
contribute our share to the welfare and
prosperity of the place wherein our lot
Is east. But as Israelites It Is especial
ly Incumbent upon us to strive and la
bor. to long and pray for the realiza
tion of that end for which our religion,
for which In truth all religion, stands:
namely, a reconciliation with Ood and
man, the principal purpose for which
this most sacred day Is designed.
Let us then know how to value and
profit by this day of grace which God
ios so mercifully vouchsafed unto us,
and let this day beget In us the strength
of character and the radiance of the
higher life for wklch we are to strive
during all our days on earth. And may
God accept In mercy cur fasting and
prayer. May He bless and protect us
and pervade our souls with heavenly