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THE PULPIT.
AN ELOQUENT SUNDAY SERMON BY
REV. CHARLES D. TREXLER.
Theme: The Christian Stadium.
Brooklyn, N. Y.—The Rev. Charles
D. Trexler, pastor of the English Lu
theran Church of tjie Good Shepherd.
Bay Ridge, preached Sunday morning
on “The Christian Stadium.” The
text was I. Corinthians, 9:24: “So
run that ye may obtain.” Mr. Trex
ler said:
The life of a Christian is portrayed
by many magnificent metaphors. He
is represented as a mariner crossing
the sea of life, subject to storms and
tempests that frequently cause the
shipwreck of faith and the collapse of
a good conscience. Again, he is a
warrior, putting on the armor of God,
fighting not against flesh and blood,
but against principalities, against
powers, against the rulers of dark
ness of this world, against spiritual
wickedness in high places. The epis
tle appointed for this day character
izes his life under the figures of a
runner and a combatant. “I there
fore so run,” says Saint Paul, “as not
uncertainly; so fight I, as not heating
the air; hut I buffet my body and
bring it into bondage; lest by any
means after that I have preached to
others, I myself should be rejected.”
The former of these figures is es
pecially helpful to the Christian to
day, even as it was suggestive to the
Corinthians in the days of the apos
tle. To them it was replete with
meaning. Every two years the Isth
mian festival was held within full
view of the city. Each citizen of Cor
inth attended the games connected
with the festival. They had seen the
stadium with its seats crowded with
eager and excited spectators. They
knew the rigid requirements made of
the runners before they were allowed
to enter the race. They had wit
nessed the runners straining every
muscle, and running with patience the
race, each one striving to be the first
to reach the goal. They had cheered
the victor as the crown of pine leaves,
the reward of his efforts, was placed
upon his head. All these points Saint
Paul seizes that he may enforce the
lessons of the Christian life and en
courage men to put forth as great an
effort to win an incorruptible crown.
The runner has endured a season of
severe training; he has strained every
muscle to achieve success, and what
has he received? A twist of pine
leaves that will wither and fade in a
few days. So run that ye may obtain
a crown of righteousness which fad
eth not away.
But before a man was allowed to
compete he had to meet the require
ments of the race. At the opening of
the Isthmian festival each athlete
who desired to enter as a candidate
for the crown was called into the
arena. The crier, having commanded
silence, laid his hand upon the head
of each in succession and demanded
of all the assembly, “Is there any one
here who can accuse this man of be
ing a slave or guilty of any moral
wrongs of life?” If any stain was
found, he was excluded, but if his
character was clear, he was led to the
Altar of Jupiter, there to make a sol
emn oath that he would conform to
all the regulations of the race.
A similar demand is made of him
who wishes to enter the Christian
Stadium. Through the fall of Adam
.the whole human race has come un
der bondage. Man in his natural
state is a slave of sin. He cannot
compete for the crown; he is not a
free man. Here is the graciousness
of the gospel. Jesus Christ has insti
tuted a sacrament, the sacrament of
holy baptism, through which we are
made heirs with Him and sons of
God Who dare question the privil
ege of any man to enter the race when
he has received this sacrament, for
he is now, not a servant, but the son
of God and an heir of eternal life.
After the eligibility of the candi
date has been proven he must make
his vows to observe the rules of the
race. These vows are made by the
Christian through his sponsors in holy
baptism. They are renewed at his
confirmation. But preceding the con
firmation there is a season of spirit
ual training. The Scriptures are
studied, spiritual faculties are de
veloped, and knowing the demands of
the races and the resources there are
to meet them, the Christian is pre
pared to make the last requirement
-—stripping for the race. This part
of the preparation is graphically de
scribed by the apostle when he says,
“Let us lay aside every weight and
.the sin which doth so easily beset us
and run with patience the race that
is set before us.” An athlete could
not consider the possibility of success
who should enter the race wrapped in
his tunic. Nor can the Christian, hin
dered by weights and sin, successfully
compete for the crown. There are
many weights that hinder, obstacles
that in themselves are not wrong, but
which impede the progress of the
runner. Perhaps you strive to
achieve success as a scholar or an ora
, tor; perhaps you wish to see your
name written among the famous; it
may be that you desire to become a
great financier or a statesman, or a
leader in some other walk of life.
In none of these ambitions would I
discourage you for a moment. To ac
quire greatness, to amass riches, to
achieve fame —none of these is sinful,
but each may be a weight that will
hinder you in the heavenly race. Nev
er become so imbued with the spirit
of that you forget to seek
first the kingdom of God and His
righteousness. The order becomes re
versed; ambition first, then the king
dom of God. Under these conditions
ambition becomes a weight and a sin.
One of the greatest difficulties of
the present century is the fact that
men place entirely too much empha
sis upon the sordid successes of this
life. If there is anything that will
bring our country to ruin and de
struction more rapidly than another,
it is that a majority of men are sel
fishly striving to further their own
purposes as far as worldly gain is
concerned, and after all, having been
successful in the various fields of ac
tivity, where do they stand? They
have merely taken upon themselves
a greater weight, burdened them
selves more grievously and have not
reached the goal. The words spoken
twenty centuries ago have not be
come antiquated, they will stand:
“For what shall it profit a man if he
gain the whole world and lose his
own soul?” Wherefore lay aside
every weight—and sin. For a man
to strip himself of sin is not a great
task. The penalty of sin has been
paid and he needs only to repent of
past offenses and look to a Saviour
who’ is ready to forgive, and he will
he pardoned of all his iniquities.
Thus having met all the require
ments, the Christian is prepared for
the race, in which the exertion was
so violent and yet so short as the
Greek race. This is a fitting emblem
of the Christian life; it begins with
the Cross and ends with the Crown.
It may cover a period of many years,
but viewed in the light of eternity
the course is very short.
In the Greek race only one of the
competitors could win the prize; in
the Christian race all may receive the
crown of life. This makes the exhor
tation of the text still more emphatic,
"So run that ye may obtain.”
A great deal depends upon the be
ginning. Notice the runners at the
games. The signal to start has been
given—they are off with a dash. If
there is one who has failed to make a
good start his chances to win are few.
3o with the Christian. Not all, but a
great deal depends upon a good be
ginning—a beginning with determin
ation and decision. Keep the object
of the race before you and allow
nothing to hinder you in the course.
We need more men to-day who,
like the Reformer of the Church,
stand firm upon their convictions.
Had he not decided with so much de
termination that the church needed
cleansing, had he not stood so firmly
at Worms before the papal prelates
and declared, “Here I stand, I cannot
do otherwise, God help me,” his mis
sion might have failed and his effort
spent in vain. Set about any task lan
guidly, half heartedly and failure is
inevitable. When General Grant de
termined that the course he was
about to pursue w-as the proper one,
and said, “I shall fight it out along
these lines if it takes all summer,”
his battles were half won. So is the
life of a Christian. Confess Christ,
not half heartedly, not weakly, but
with determination that come what
will you will always be a faithful fol
lower. This is essential; make a
good start, and having started, con
centrate all effort. “This one thing
I do,” says Saint Paul. “I press to
ward the mark.” Concentration, like
decision, is essential to success. The
difference between the amateur and
the artist is that the one pursues his
art only occasionally and subordinate
ly, the other continuously and prima
rily. There are too many amateurs
among Christians, too many who are
religious only spasmodically. Make
your Christian life your highest aim.
It does not demand that you remove
yourself to a monastery or a cloister
or wander alone in the wilderness. It
does not need to interfere with the
legitimate aims of life, but in them all
we may be striving for the one end —;
to mold our lives that we may please
Him. Concentrate your effort: it is
very essential that you should run
with all your speed. How ridiculous
a sluggard would have appeared
lounging about the ancient Stadium,
professing to be a runner, but never
progressing beyond the' starting point.
Why shall he enter the race if he does
not determine to run and run hard?
The secret lies in filling our lives
with good acts that we have no room
for evil. “Walk in the spirit and ye
shall not fulfill the lusts of the flesh.”
Ours is a positive life, a life of creat
ing new desires rather than the
crushing of old ones. It must be a
life of progress.
It is also essential that one keep to
the course. To leave it may demand
a return to the starting point. The
prodigal son had traveled far from
home, but he had left the course and
had to plod wearily back to his fath
er’s home step by step. It is not diffi
cult to know the course. The first
Victor has gone before us and we
need only follow Him. The Word
enlightens the way for us. The chief
requirement is that we obey it.
Again, having begun the race, it is
essential that you persevere to the
end. The competitors in the Olym
pian games had only short distances
to run, consequently they put all their
effort in one short spurt. Our life is
not so as viewed from the finite stand
point. We cannot put all our effort
into a few moments and then, weary
and enfeebled, be forced to relinquish
the race. Let us run with patience
the race and not start at such a pace
that we will be exhausted before we
have finished the course. There are
some Christians who, in their first
enthusiasm, spend all their effort and
then become disheartened. Realize
that the race of a Christian requires
one continuous effort, and strive ac
cordingly. Persevere to the end.
Then what is the result of all this ef
fort?
The reward —It has its recompense
upon earth. “Godliness is profitable
unto all things, having promise of
the life that now is and of the life to
come.” The man who lives the life
of the Christian athlete profits physi
cally, for it inculcates temperance,
self-respect, industry and cleanliness.
30 years
EX PRRIENCE
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Women as Well as ben are Mads Miserable
by Kidney and Bladder Trouble.
Kidney trouble preys upon the mind,
discourages and lessens ambition; beauty,
vigor and cheerful-
Sness soon disappear
when the kidneys are
out of order or dis-
Kidney trouble has
become so prevalent
that it is not uncom
mon for a child to be
born afflicted with
weak kidneys. If the
child urinates too often, if the urine scalds
the flesh, or if, when the child reaches an
age when it should be able to control the
passage, it is yet afflicted with bed-wet
ting, depend upon it, the cause of the diffi
culty is kidney trouble, and the first
step should be "towards the treatment of
these important organs. This unpleasant
trouble is due to a diseased condition of
the kidneys and bladder and not to a
habit as most people suppose.
Women as well as men are made miser
able with kidney and bladder trouble,
and both need the same great remedy.
The mild and the immediate effect of
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cent and one-dollar
size bottles. You may
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including many of the thousands of testi
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It helps him mentally. All other
things being equal, the man who fol
lows the rules of the Christian will
be capable of the highest mental re
sults. His mind has not become
clouded with sin. But above all this,
it is profitable now in a spiritual
sphere. It gives to him a quietness
of conscience, a sense of security un
der the fatherly protection of God,
the assurance of pardon for sins and
the joy and helpfulness of prayer.
This is but the earnest of a greater
and grander prize.
In the Stadium the prize, like all
earthly honors, was perishable. But
the faithful Christian wins an incor
ruptible crown. A proud moment it
was when the successful racer had
the chaplet placed upon his brow
amid the applause and admiration of
the multitude. A grander moment
for the Christian conqueror when,
amid the shouts of rejoicing myriads,
the pierced hands of the Saviour
place upon his head the crown of
glory, and he hears the words, “Well
done, thou good and faithful servant,
enter thou into the joy of thy re
ward.”
No man can believe in the Father
hoed of God and doubt immortality.
LABOR WORLD.
Cigarmakers paid almost 5200,000
in sick benefits last year.
Clergy joined labor unions in the
fight against seven days’ work, in
New York City.
The striking carmen of Philadel
phia received $750 from Millville (N.
J.) labor unions.
The strongest centralized union in
Italy is that of the railway men, with
44,961 members.
The Plumbers’ International has
increased its membership from 4 000
to 16,000 in ten years.
The Iron Molders’ International
Union paid out in sick benefits sl2 2,-
472 in the last fiscal year.
Many unions have declared in favor
of the formation of an allied printing
trades section cf the American Fed
era of Labor.
A special convention of the Elec
trical Workers’ International Union,
regulars and seceders, is to be held
in Binghamton, N. Y.
The Pennsylvania Railroad Com
pany’s revised rules for employes
prohibits the use of tobacco in any
form on passenger trains.
Members of the Boston Cigarmak
ers’ Union will net gain admittance
to the next meeting of the union un
less they wear hats bearing the union
label.
Frank H. McCarthy, New England
organizer for the American Federa
tion of Labor, aided in organizing a
new Waltham (Mass.) central labor
union.
Secretary Nagel, of the Department
of Commerce and Labor, has an
nounced that he will consider the sug
gestion for creation of a bureau of in
vestigation of the condition of work
ingmen and wmrking women in the
United States.
Suffered Misery
“I suffered miserably,” writes Mr3. Mattie L. Bishop, of
Waverly, V&. y often I would have to go to bed until it
wore off. Everything I ate made me miserable and I could not
even wash the dishes after a meal. My husband begged me to
try CARDUI, but I had tried so many medicines I didn’t want
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Try CARDUI—it can’t harm you—it will surely help you.
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CUTS Instead ol pushes away the stalks not
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(J More than 120 thousand in use last year; twice
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When you buy hoes this spring call lor the
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Some people go the gloomy ways
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Sometimes a man feels awful lone
some at the mere thought of climb
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The gentlewoman is the one who
is gracious to those who don't even
know tiie rudiments of good manners.
There are lots of valentines going
around with hearts on their sleeves
these days.