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her sublime privilege, this her heaven-born inspiration,
and for this the blue banner of our beloved
Presbyterianism has always stood, thank God.
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r>ecause Fresbyterianism always places man where
he belongs. Ever since the fall, humanity has been in
rebellion against the Gospel's estimate of his real condition
and worth. Cain killed Abel in protest against
the demand of God that he should be worshipped as
lie prescribed and " ? *
..wl at-Luiumg 10 tnc whim of the
individual. Among the multitude of "isms" that are
abroad in the land in this our day, some true at least
in part, many, a glaring travesty upon the very name
of truth, we find the thousands flocking to those standards
which tend the most to exalt man and proclaim
him independent of the power of God in the great
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nuin kji ins saivanon. The popularity of Arminianism
today may be explained by the fact that it has practically
eliminated God as a necessary factor in the saving
of the soul and simply retains him as the Being
who is able and willing to save, but can't until man
> condescends to let him. Presbyterianism has but one
message for man and that, "You are a sinner, dead
in trespasses and in sin. You can not keep the law
of God if you wanted to, and in your carnal state, you
will never want to. The only hand that can lift you
to the light is the hand of God in Christ and in this
gracious work he acts as a Sovereign who save* he.
cause he wills and not because he is forced so to do.
When you believe in him and are saved there is never
any ground for your boasting, for your very faith is
his gift and your good works are by his eternal foreordination.
In this life, as well as that which is to
come, you can never be anything that is worth being
unless God so makes you, nor have anything that is
worth possessing unless God gives it to you." Empty
handed and insolvent humanity stands in the presence
of the Sovereign, saving God to receive his bounty and
rejoice only in his grace. Pride is and must be humbled.
Boasting is forever excluded. Humanity raises
but one cry to God.
"A guilty, weak a id helpless worm,
On thy kind arm 1 fall;
Be thou my stre gth and righteousness,
My Savior and my all."
Hut .after all, an immortal, rational, responsible being
is man, who shall one day stand in the presence of the
God who made him and give an account of the deeds
done in the body. If he finds himself a helpless sinner,
the blame for such a condition rests upon him alone
and not in any wise upon God. If he seeks to plead
his weakness, he but finds that this is but one of his
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?...*> a..vi mdi me iauit is still only with himself. Between
this responsible sinner and the God who can be
satisfied with nothing less than absolute perfection
there stands a Saviour. "Thanks be unto God for his
unspeakable Gift."
In short, I am a Presbyterian, because it holds up
to me a whole Bible, a sovereign God, an all-powerful
Saviour for a helnless sinner t* - J ?
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truest sentiments of my soul's faith as to the
teaching of the Word of God and the eternal purpose
that meets its fulfilment in my own salvation as well
as the salvation of all other sinners such as I am. It
points me to an arm too strong to be bound by feeble
OF THE SOUTH December 29, 1909.
humanity, one who speaks and it i<t Hon#.
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and it stands fast. I have heard many discourses
that were most bitter in their denunciation of
the doctrines which we, as Presbyterians, hold most
dear, but never, in all of my life, have I ever heard
a prayer that was not fragrant with the perfume of
rresbyterianism. Men may dissemble before their fellows
and even in the position of a spiritual guide give
forth that which is not true, but few are the men who,
when they bow before their God, do not throw aside
their disguises in which they, for a time have been
masaueradinor ntifl oil*-.... *1.- ' *
4 e> ....^ n,.uw me auui 10 speaK lorth its
real yearnings and send heavenward the real inspiration
of its hopes. It is then that all mankind stand
before God as Presbyterians.
THE SABBATH.
I sometimes wonder if we have not forgotten the
meaning of the command to remember the Sabbath
day to keep it holy. Does the command mean, that we
are required to keep the dav or onlv a narr ;
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that may be a small part. Our catechism says: "The
Sabbath is to be sanctified by a holy serving all that
day, even from such worldly employments and recreations,
as are lawful on other days, and spending the
whole time in the public and private exercise of God's
worship, except so much as may be taken up in works
of necessity and mercy."
If I understand this teaching, and as I believe it
to be the requirement of God's word, I very much fear
we have wandered from the good old paths of our
fathers in the observance of the Lord's day.
The public worship of God is, or should be, an important
part of the service of worshin of ti^ T ? '--1
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to the belief that we make mistake from the fact that so
small a part of the day is spent in the service of God's
house. One reason for my belief is the complaint
made of long sermons.
Why did the apostle in writing to the Hebrews say
"Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together as
the manner of some is, but exhorting one another, and
much the more as ye see the day approaching." Why
do we go to church? Is not the house of God set
apart that there the people of God may meet to worship
him? Are we to go there simply to be entertained
and that for a short time."
I am very much of the opinion that the most nnnn.
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lar preacher is not the one who preaches the plain,
good old-fashioned gospel, it matters not in what "an
attractive style, but the one who preaches the shortest
sermons. A sermon from fifteen to twenty minutes is
fine, thirty minutes will "sorter" do, over that it is
unendurable.
It seems to me that if we could only be persuaded
that the purpose of gathering in the house of God is
to worship, to spend some time there realizing that we
arc worshipping God,.trying to hold communion wjth
him, that we may train clearer view? n<-w 1
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more of the love of Christ in the heart, pain strength
for our duties, and be fitted for the joys and glories of
our Sabbath home. The preacher is the leader, explaining
and unfolding the teaching of the word ancf
directing the thought to God and Christ, that we may
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