The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1872-05-27
HENRY WARD BEECHER ON LIBERTY.
Bishop Bowman at the Brook
Ign Academy.
Bishop Wiley on the Power Of
the Gospel.
Father Sheridan ON the Foundation
Stone of Christianity.
Father Kean Mt st. Pat.
Tic1k's Cath clra1.
CHURCH OF THE MESSIAH.


CHURCH OF THE MESSIAH.
Tho Nature, Authority and Mission OF
Christ-A Complete Exposition OF the
Unitarian Belief-Sermon by Rev. DIR.
Stobbins, of Ithaca.
There was an unusually large attendance yester-
day morning at the Churca of the Messiah, corner
OF Park avenue and Thirty-fourth street. Rev. DR..
RUFUS P. Stebbins, OF Ithaca, N. Y, occupied the
pulpit. He chose for his text Matthew xvi. 1918
'When Jesus came into the coasts of Cesarea
Philippi he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do
men say that l, the Son OF Man, amS And they said
Some say that Thou art John the Baptist some
Elias and others Jeremias, or one or the PROPHETS
He said unto them But whom say ye that ams'
And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the
Christ, the Son Of the living God.' And
Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed
art thou, SIMON Barjona; for flesh and blood hath
not revealed it unto thee, but My Father which is
In heaven. = = And upon this rock will build
My Church. and the gates of hell shall not prevail
against it," So we believe. We accept oyfully the
confession OF Peter, which received the approval
and blessing Of the Saviour. We take but little in.
terest In the specuatons Of men respecting
CHRIsr's RANK IN THE UNIVERSE
We are more anxious of partaking of His spirit, OF
being enlightened by His truths, OF being raised
from the darkness OF sin and death into the light OF
holiness and the hope of life everlasting by His re-
generating power. Jesus is to us being to pe
loved, trusted, followed, obeyed joyfully; not per-
Son to be submitted to the cruclbles of subtitle
theological chemistry apd analysed according to
tne most approved methods Of our metaphysical
Of Christ and OF HIS relations to the
Father, although we do not exat them to
the first place In our articles OF belief. That He
held peculiar and intimate relations to Cod His
rather. almost
Savionrs teaching, IN almost every act OF His life.
He was the Son Of God In such sense as to disin.
gush Him from all other sons. In Him dwelt all
the funess OF the Godhead bodily He knew the
Father as no one else knew Him He was whou.
He was and all He was came from God. All His
power was from God; all HIS works ali His words
He laid down His life at His Father command Yet
He was not the Father, but the Son of the Father
full OF the grace and truth which the Father had
shed on Him abundantly. In this grace and truth
we delight; 1t is more to us than any
ANALYSIS OF CHRISr'S NATURE
Tor definition OF his exact internal relations to God
We cannot patiently witness the dissection OF
Christs nature and listen to the cold description Of
His spiritual organization. Are the immortal paint
lngs OF AllstOn or Berstadt to be enjoyed by
analysis OF their pigments Or are the tinted glo
ries OF a summers sunset to be enjoyed by an ex-
PLANTATION OF the Tranquility OF the different rays OF
light The ancestry, rank and nature Of Christ
not those subjects which interest US most deeply.
We are more anxious to learn what our Saviour has
taught of God, duty, destiny life, Immortality its
mode of attainment the evil OF sin, and how we
may escape its power; the excellence OF goodness
and how we may secure its treasures. These are
the subjects which most deeply interest US. Does
the history OF the messenger from war, or his It'd
ings from friends, interest us most How
would our souls burn with indignation were Gu
rious-minded, sefconsttuted committee to sur.
they first satisfactorily ascertained his age, rank,
ancestry, education and nationality Not in 81
lence will We permit Others to surround the
MESSENGER FROM THE FATHER.
They are impotent when they attempt it, The
light Of the sun 81 , oyereaps all
pour over the mountain tops and Hood the valleys.
The sound Of the Masters words will go forth to the
ends of the earth, ike the song of the stars. We
behold the heavenly messenger before us. Tell us,
oh, tell US, Divine Messenger OF the great power
which made and governs the world. Tell u.s. can
sin be forgiven; can the leprosy of wrong doing
be curedY Do the dead-our dead-lve Do they
What Se or sha we 0 the
clod and perish under 1t, and think and enjoy and
and love no more forever Speak oh; speak He
heavily laden and win give you rest am the
i've; and lie that hvetn and beiieveth
many mansions, where you shall behold My glory;
your your Heavenly Father Is more willing to give you
to Ss are to Se go0a
Father; sin can be forgiven; our holy ones are in
heaven; we shall follow them thther; Jesus is the
and hypostasies; away with controversies and
dogmatisms about Christ's rank and essence away
WIN unnteiiigioie terms, and complex natures and
Qualities which perpex reason and conound faith.
This Is our simple inteigibe, yet grand compre-
hensve, inspiring doctrine OF Christ. Before It
vanish all human theories speculations and afiirma
tons. We do not allow ourselves to be be.
wildered In the y
TANGLED MAzEs OF MANS DEVICES
II we have the spirit OF Christ we know that we
are His. Ii we follow His voice we know that we
are of His fold. II we accept His teachings we
know that we are His disciples After charging on
this point he proceeded to show that the Untarlans
do not deny Christ, as the reverend speaker said
they ignOranty, II not sanderously reported to
do. They believe, with Peter, that "Chfist is the
Son OF the living Cod" IL has an origin higher
than that OF synods or c0nv0cations or councils
God Is its author. 1t has an approval higher than
that Of presbyteries and c0nsistories. Stand back
popes, with your mtres; bishops with your cro
siers; councils, with your articles; presDyteres
stand back and give room for the divlnely inspired
aforementioned confession OF Peter-our confess
slon-a confession on which our Church Is built, on
winch our nope rests ana which VIII endure after
the mites OF popes, the crosers OF bishops, the ar
tces OF councils, the confessions OF presbyteries
and the creeds Of churches shall have persisted
rom human record and human memory His next
point was respecting the
AUTHORITY OF CHRIST
ne sara mat the unltarans believed that to Jesus
s the son OF Cod the spirit was given without
words, HIS promises Gods promises and His works
Sous works Their faith Ia Him was as full, as
nee, as undoubted as II the Father had In His own
person dwelt la that human form: had done those
{nlghty works; had spoken those fife giving words
TAU naa tne words which Jesus spake been uttered Inv
Sonca himself a from the open heavens their conf
adds more ene e truth wonld be no greater. Who
s nun moIe assumes Gods prerogatlve: who asks
more Detrays lack of confidence In the Saylour.s
ns 40 ~ haVng thus unloded the Unitarian be.
not =. ,e nature aud authority OF Christ he
course .,A. - S u''-
THE MISSION or CHRIST
.lhey peneved that God gave Christ 10 no n Ga
vlonr, ITO save that which was lost ~ that enW
Ia l,nu 60.