New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1872-03-03
Sermon by Rev. NIyrOn w. Reed. of the
Prytnnia street Church, Sunday, Feb


| Sermon by Rev. Myron w. Reed. Of the
| Prytania street Church, Sunday, Feb.
ruary 25. 1872.
| Jesus said un.o him. If thou canst believe al
| things are possible to him that believeth. And
strairhtway the father OF the child cried out, and
! said with tears Lord, I believe; help Thou mine
| unbelief-Mark TX, % and "a
| Christ never did a miracle for its own
| sake. He was no travelling wonder worker
giving exhibitions of power. He was not
| satisfied with the amusement OF men. dc
| did miracles that men might believe on
| Him, or because men believed on Him. The
| belief was the thing. 1t is the worthy cause
or the worthy effect of the mighty works
! The world is TO be saved by its convictions
How does it affect you to listen to the
doubts of another! You have enough
doubts of your own. What you want is a
| belief.
Every child has gift of enthusiasm, but
| the wears wear ii away. He listens to the
| cynical remarks of those that are wiser and
| sadder than he is. and loses his tone in
| theirs He gathers the doubts of the neigh
borhood into his little breast, and
they make an infidel Of him, cool
the heat that was in his heart
make him ashamed to say the prayer bis
mother taught him: make frigid little
fool of him. He would prefer being shot
4
! sneer at Fulton or Columbus, Paul or
Christ. They could not be disheartened;
but most men can, and most men
are. All that is fine in us seems
t. be at the mercy of scott.
| Ulysses has to tie himself to a mast in Or
| der to keep his purpose and go on his jour
| new. If he should land and listen to the
clarmers they would persuade him that his
purpose was folly. This unbelef is the
| fall of man "Ye shall not surely die,
says the serpent. and the wicked doubt OF
Gods word does the business of ruin for
the first man and the latest.
Let doubt come in, and where is your
energy! Can you sail with mutinous
crew toward a shore you have not seen.
unless you believe in that shore Can an
infdel plant an acorn or pillow field or
strive to enter into the straight gate.
The world was dying ut doubt when
Christ came into it. The doctrine Of the
Saddncee was become the pitiful thing not
to believe in the resurrection or in anything
else. Having given up eternity, he did
not believe much in time. The significance
OF lie had died out within him, and the
prophecy OF the soul was hushed as the
speech Of silly child
Not believing in anything of value in
himself, what could he believe in his neigh
Dor? u
The power of Christ is in his aft lhg
something. He taught not as a Scribe,
asking if this or that ON probable and
balancing arguments, but with quiet, sell
assured assertion.
He stood III a world of fugitive pbiloSo-
plies, chasing one another, going out like
IL fashion, and said, My sayings shall not
pass away
He said such things as blessed are they
that mourn" without any preface, and CIV
iyu hat h;.
The Sermon on the Mount is one atfirma-
ton after another. No perhaps or ''if' to
weaken or to make the mind Of the listener
cautious.
Christ is builder. The temple of truth
is built OF assertions. While other teachers
are ridicnling one another, while the Sad
ducee is making a cartoon of the Pharisee,
who devours widows houses and prays at
the corner Of the street: while men are
pointing ont the defects in their neighbOrs'
houses and seeking to fluid other men
as meanly sheltered as they are themselves,
Christ builds. Other foundations can NO
man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus
Christ
Upon that the Disciples go on to build.
Paul does not rail at the poverty and pow
erlessness OF the gods of Athens, but de-
clares the true God. They have doubts
enough in Corinth, so he packs his letter to
that city with convictions. Any man can
Guench the dying belief that is begging to
smoke, but what the word needs is flame.
The cmbers need raking together and blow
ing upon. Nothing is possible to hun who
doubts The double minded Reuben is I'M
stable as water; he shall not excel.
Hamlet makes himself sick with discus
sion and vain questioning of plain duty.
He envelopes it in a cloud of doubt, and
then, because he can not see it distinctly,
delays action, and thinks Of suicide. ''All
things are possible to him that believeth,' =
SAYS Christ. Faith is The word OF the New
Testament. Everything hangs npon it
health to the sick, fOrg iveness OF sins, the
life that now Is, and tue resurrection from
the dead.
All the heroes of the world, in thought or
action, are heroes OF belief. They mad an
immense faith. Wagner was conteut to
write the music Of the future kepler
thought that if God had waited patiently
| SIX thousand years for Kepler to observe
and declare his truth, Kepler could wait
| tor the world to accept it. Some belief has
the assurance of knowledge. Mahomet, and
| Cromwell, and Charles MI had conviction
| that sent them direct to their result. Their
bow turned not back; the arrow was not
| shot at venture. When men could not
see what they aimed at, they could not
| show it to them. They believed that it was
there.
Why, then, should any man be an intidel
| Why should he cnteeble himself? Why
| should he break the connection between
his head and his hand, and being disobe-
| dent to the heavenly vision, wander in
| darkness forever.
Suppose Paul. going into Damascus,
| should cit down there, and reason away the
! miracle OF his conyersOn-call it sunstroke.
| begin to question whether he heard a voice.
| say nothing about what he would fail TO
| reach in eternity, but let his belief in the
| divine word go ont of him, and where is st.
Paul! Where is that wonderful life on the
earth Can that he fancy which will lift
a man into true immortality? Did you ever
! hear of so benetcent, SO gracious Il deirl>iOn,
| "A lie? By their fruits We shall know them.
| This belief makes men of whom the world is
! not worthy. 1t is the foundation of all cour-
age. all success Does the world delight to
| honora faithless. cowardly soul Any cos
| viction that is dearer to a man than his life
| lifts the man above death. The people, in
| spite Of themselves, honor him. They may
| detcst what he believes: they are drawn to
him because he believes.
The company Of Virginia infantry that
had marched to guard the prison of John
brewn ask leave to pay their respects to
the prisoner. There is no fascination about
the man who has To handle and weigh AL
idea before he can have 1aith in it. When
Christ Is accepted, and man lives by faith
we see what 1T does for him now in this life
Belief has demonstrated it's power over and
oyer again. Contrast any pilgrim with any