The New York herald., 1871-12-25
FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH.

Sermon by Rev. Fl. M. Gallagher on tho
Life Hereafter and the Birth of Christ.
There was o large congregation at the
Rev. Mr. GaJlagher's church, IN Nassau street.
yesterday morning. the reverend geutle.
man read the third & chapter or the First
Epistle OF John. ana after prayer and singing took
for his text the following:- what manner
Of leve the Father hath bestowed upon Ms. that we
should De' called the sons OF God; therefore yhe
world kneweth US not because 1t knew him
NOT Beloved, now are we the sons
OF God, and 1t doth not yet appear what we shall be;
but We know that when He shall appear we shall
be like Him; for We shall see HIM q He is''-John
ILL.,, /, 2 In reading the Scriptures, Mr.. Gallagher
sad we should ind that no writer had In the divine
work attempted to describe what the other world or
heaven was ike They nave told us that we should
md sin or suffering there, but they have told
M what We ssouid md. Instead Of describing the
life there they say there v no death,
and 30 with every divine writer, none
attempting to give MS . description OF
heaven, but leaving it 70 our Imagination. The
mind OF man was restless and the imagination WAS
OF course. busy ptcturtng the NE hereafter. 1t
the part Of the inspires writer's 70 leave every one
TO Imagine tr q they mighs In the celebration OF
25th Of December, but We did not know that the
25th was the day on which He came upon the earth
Yet It mAae no difference whether It was on the 26th
or any other date. In regard to purity and happl.
os'' NO NAN ON EAIrH aa hu-
knew what II was to be perfectly pure. There was
NO man holy or undefled; all we had was passing
gllmpses Of happiness Paul said at one time that
he felt as II he was lifted to the third heaven, and
happiness and, like Paul. feel lifted up. He had
s0metimes painted The future in his imagination.
He had Sometimes sat down with q pencil
nonse which he imagined that he might
some day build. In this plan he had marked 0ut
the posiuon Of ais library the hail. the dining room
the reception rooms aud all, but ne pected
deal Of pleasure from this little air castle. Then he
had drawn an angel, and had always made It with
woman's face and put wings upon 1t. The express
sion OF the cOuntenance he had always made hea-
vcnly: but there seemed, after ALL to be something
wanting. Could
Z .a q sla WE CAST OFF OUR SINS 1911
as we would cast OF an old suit OF clothess We
think any man had idea Of what It was be per-
fectly happy. He referred to hts limited knowledge
when o child, and how he could, now that he was
man, sec his weakness then. SO he imagined 1t
would be In heaven. We would be able to look
down upon our snort abiding Place In Brooklyn,
ana, like looking back upon our childhood
days, see how little we knew; now
pursued happiness as the child pursued the but.
terny, and how when we thought we had 1t In this
sometimes tnat he would like 70 look into the heart
or Jim Fisk and II he could NOT find that all his
gains were like the goden-wlnged butterfly caught
by the boy After the capture the golden hues fadeu
and the butterfly amounted to nothing as a1Ordng
Its captnrer happiness. Heaven was the only place
OF real happiness, and there we should shortly
awake In real rest. free from the SORROWS and cares