The New York herald., 1871-05-15
THE PULPIT IN ULSTER COUNTY.


Noble PnssiOa-Sermon by Rev. Y. Gro
nell, Jr.
KINGSTON May IA, 1871.
One OF the ablest and most eloquent discourses
that have been delivered In this city preached
by Rev. H. Grenell. Jr., pastor OF the FIRST Baptist
church. from Acts xvii. 16-"Whe Paul waited
for them at Athens his spirit stirred in him when
he saw the city wholly given to idoatry.n In OPEN
ing the reverend gentleman remarked that Moses,
descending Sinai, seeing the people singing about
the golden cali, was filed with anger, and flung the
tablets of stone from him violently that they were
broken Elijah, beholding the
MUMMEEIEs OF THE PRIESTS OF BAAL
about their altar on the slopes OF Carmel, grew so
indignant as TO forget his customary prudence and
taunted them in the most exasperating manner.
Paul III Athens waiting for his friends, seeing on
every hand pagan temples. images and affairs and
the general adhesion To idolatry. felt his spirit
stirred within him, broke the silence to which he
had constrained himself ana alone lifted up his
voice against ideas and practices almost as vener
able and as deeply rooted as Judaism. The siml-
lanty OF emotion in these widely separated In.
stances OF
MOSES, ELIJAH AND PAUL
is striking. Each stood alone, opposed to thousands.
yet what fidelity to the truth whatlionhearted bold
ness what splendid yehemencel what noble pas
SION This passion In Moses voiced itself In direct
Genunciaticn In Elijah it spoke IN sneers. In
Isaiah 1t turned To rldicule as when he pictured a
man cutting log In twain and taking half to magea
fire to cook hs dinner, while the remainder was FASH
ioned into god ana worsnpped. In Paul it rose
to the dgnifed and glowing utterances on
Mars Hill. such feeling as this marks
A STRONG NATURE.
A positive character alone has intense emotions.
Sluggish and superficial men are never reused TO
such pitch OF passion at the sight OF wrong. The
selfish and calculating man never exposes himself
10 danger order TO defend something ne believes.
or denounce something he regards as miscnlevous.
The worlds best mell-men VINO nave
HAMMERED HUMANITY INTO SHAPE
have been men VINO could iorget themselves In tho
ardor OF their defence OF the truth-men who some
times felt their spirits flame up IN very passion OF
enthusiasm for the right, or In blaze Of indlgna-
lion against the wrong Luther went to Worms
though prisoaer, nung the image OF the Virgin
into the river when 1t was pointed out for HIM TO
worship; Defoe, Bunyan--such men as these-have
risen like beacon lights TO pierce the darkness
OF centuries, because their love OF God and the truth
was passion as wei as ,ap principle i % we want want
an absorbing devotion to what Is good and
such moving conceptions or the snfuness OF sin.
beneficial or hurtul in community so long as his
own comfort Is not made or marred by It, but IL
viruousy indignant against sin tnat unfavOrably
affects his own prosperity. He smiles at the SIM
plicty OF q nelghbor who is swindled, but when ne
himself is dupcd lie cries out,
'sEE WHAT A GREAT WRONG Is DONE /
Shall such sin go unpunshed?n He discovers at
once great regard FOR honesty and vioeut hatred
OF knavery u is not his moral sense That speaks,
but his selfishncss. Here Is another who lives on
little higher planc, whose wrath Is klndled against
wrong done to his fellow creatures because or
his sympathy for them, but feels regard iOr
abstract righteousness what Is good, what IL
divine. High above all this the noble passion OF
the apostle it was not o sense Of personal lnlury
that prompted his speech. IL was no merely human
sympathy that stirred his spirit, though ne was hos
insensible that dolatry DESTROYS It's adnerenS AS
surely the taper fame dev0urs the moth u lures:
lie was Jealous for God Tne Atnenians ignored
the presence and providence OF the true God. Iney
accorded divine attributes TO senseiess stOne, 10
imaginary dcitics. TO dead heroes. Tney poured out
the wealth OF human devotion upon the creations OF
art and the dreams or fancy. The most magnillcent
products OF wealth, skill and taste were made the
ornaments OF Idol shrines. Paul, seeing his God
thus disnonored and robbed, felt the double indig-
nation of n Jew and o Christian flame up within
him, and, face TO face with the
srLENDoRs OF THE ACRopOIIs,
he cries out against the m0natrUus SIN. God Is still
being dishonOred. This example shames an In
,liDercnce to prevalent and offensive sins. In this
community how much wrong Is done what vices
abound what naQrant violations or divine law
Oppression, profanity, drunkenness, SANDER, Sab
bath-breaking; seeing and hearing these we should
burn with that sort oil resentment that springs
from love. Redeemed as we have been from The
servIude In which others lie, we owe II to our
Rcdcemcr TO warn others and seek their rescue. We
need the spirit Of the aposte-nay more, the spirit
OF Jesus--a spirit OF devotion to God and truth,
spirit OF ceaseless untrng opposlion W sln VI au
Kinds. wherever seen