The Portland daily press., 1873-11-17
SUNDAY SERVICES.
PINE STREET MErHoDIsr CHURCH

that hypocrisy in the church has ever oeeh
broad target for the arrows of scepticism
Men are fond of moral archery, and no marx
is so tempting as church. Ihougn .ieie Is
hardly an institution in the land, put uisplays its
sbulls-eyes" of deceit and chlcanery, yet moth
ing makes men play more nervously with their
bow-strings, than peep at talterlng church.
They are so full of zeal that every arrow is
timed with righteous indignation. Christianity
needs buffalo hide to save it from its friends
But public opinion bares its brawny arm in
vain In the outside world it's keen-edged axe
has hacked at deceit, and its blows have told,
but in the church the command is distinct 'let
both grow" You see the care God has over
His church, lest the others be rooted up. He
takes care of his children and though the
Christian and the wording may sit in the one
pew, yet the service will be vastly different in
their respective hearts The hymn book may
be held with perfect grace, the lesson read with
scrupulous care, yet tits only body without
life. When the interest appears deepest men
and women are merely looking through the
preacher, and seeing rounds of pleasure
for the coming season; ships coming
across the Atlantic laden with merchant
iZe consigned to them. Bricks and NOR
tar, no matter how consecrated can never keep
out the world. Could we but get position this
morning, so that we could see the cloud of in
cense which is passing up to the throne of our
Heavenly Father, and could we but see the
strange commingling of sentiment which we call
worship-the strange grouping OF idea which we
call prayer, we would regard with far less pride
our vast throng of worshipers and think less OF
our numerous temples.
But ''let them grow" Though they take up
room in the field, yet they cannot hinder
growth. A strong plant will live independent
of weeds; a sickly one had better die. A
strong christian will live irrespective of by po-
critics; a sickly christian is nOnentity. Men
may lean over the fence, and set little value on
the lot, but the great Husbandman knows all
about that. No matter about the resemblance.
When the frultion comes of what Udlue is the
tare They may grow up in the very shad
ow OF the church and still remain only weeds.
No matter about their forms. Weeds sway in
the breezes, exult in the sunshine, inhale the
soft shower, and yet are only weeds withal. Re
semblance means nothing Two men built two
houses One fell; the other stood firm Foun-
dation here meant security. Men don't like to
build inside partitions. The crowbar and pickaxe
are not favorite tools with moral temple builders.
They prefer to rake the heart smooth enough to
begin, then they lay bricks with snowy out
side, scatter stucco work with unsparing hand;
soon we have the paint and the gliding resplen-
dent in the sun, and men passing by admire
the beauty and elegance of the work. But the
storm clouds are seen in the sky. The winds
leap out of the fist of Omnipotence. The an
CRY floods burst their sluice gates, and they
strike against that house; and that building
which was SO graceful in its symmetry and so
harmonious in its proportions falls before the
power of the storm, ard the ruin of an immor-
tai soul is complete.
the harvest. You have seen men noted for
their SINS, and yet the plaques seemed to pass
by their dwelling, while christians have fallen
in the bud. The farmer is walking down his
fields and his keen eye detects the presence of
the tare. He stoops to pluck it up but the tiny
growing. What is the difference between me
and the plants you are sparing," and the other
tares and wheat listen to the appeal; and though
the farmer knows that the seed is worthless
the sake of justice. Men need not dread the
records of Heaven; they have greater need to
fear their own fruit. The empty husks and
withered heads written across the life will SYM
bolize the sentence, depart from me into ev
erlastlng fire."
There is separation: the wheat will be
taken from the chaff. The garment which we
wear around our hearts may never be removed
in this life, and at the top of oar graves there
may rise the grateful memorial, filled with ex-
pressions of affection and regard. "Blessed
are the dead which die in the Lord" may be
written across the snowy tablet, and the whole
thing may be one huge lie standing over our
empty virtues and useless lives. What an un-
yelling of work will be at the harvest. We are
busy now Every day the tap of our chsel is
heard down in the secret places of our souls.
The map of being is unrolling, and the pencils
are busy. Some men only draw the outlines,
but their boldneSs and beauty merit them a
place Some sketch imperfectly; their hands
tremble and faith is palsied. Many brushes
are stepped in bereavement and sorrow. They
etch sadly and full of mourning Others
gather smiles and sunshine and paint them in
their lives, and they cheer the hearts of the
pilgrims passing.
The tares shall be cast in the FIRE and be
burned. What are we, tares or wheat? Fro
fession may do now, but twill fail at the bar
of God Our work will be tested by fire; if
wood or hay or stqbble, it will pass into ashes;
if gold, the test will be passed with safe
ty. We are growing ever Every day ye are com.
four months to the harvest The reapers are
busy. we can hear the cut of their sickles
around US. They may soon come to u.s. God
grant that when they dc they may 'bear home
their sheaves with rejoicing" and the angels
sing as we pass into the great graQary OF GOD, a
sweet harvest home
SECOND PARISH CHURCH.
DIR. CARRUTHERs preached to his people in
the First Baptist Church kindly lent to them
for morning service in their unwilling and pro-
tracted exclusion from their own sanctuary.
His text was Romans ", 10, eff when we
were enemies, we were reconciled to God
by the death of His Son, much more
being feconciled we shall be saved by hi
life" Referring to his last Sabbath morn
ing's sermon on decentralization to God,
the preacher spoke of this process as only pre-
paratory to another-as part of the grea
work-whose ultimate and glorious issues arr
to be unfolded in future world The fealty Of
Christ's people to him and his faithfulness t.
them are to be tried and tested by lifelong
experience. Till the last hour Of life, infu
ences will bear upon them adversely TO theiI
spiritual interests The world will seek to en-
tice them, Satan will desire to have them tina
he may sift them as wheat, and will be at no
loss for human tools TO carry into effect his mis-
chevous devices. Ungodly counselors, scepti-
cal and scornful directors, and practical gain
sayers, will put their faith and obedience to the
proof. At no point of their prospective pill
grimage will 1t be safe to slumber or loiter, Oh
lay aside any part of that armour of righteous
ness provided for them by the captain OF saliva
tion. Had the provisions of divine grace gon,
no farther than to bring us into enmity witt
God, we might we'll dread our Incompetence to
meet the responsibilities of Christian profes-
Sion Our ffpative strength" is wholly made
auate to its requirements, and the plan ant
purpose of salvation would have been .utterl.
| imperfect, had ne provision been made for the
| ever recurring exigencies of the Christian life
| 1t il life of faith, of hope, of holiness
! journey through wilderness-a warfare waget
with malignant and potent foes-a race TO
| which the soul must be hraced in all its facul
ties, and bent, in eager earnestness, towards The
| goal.
Christian experience verifies all this, and
| calls for resources superbuman and divine
| These resources are found in the original pur
| pose of divine merey=-in the ever unchangins
| love of Christ-in the promises which are yea
| and amen in HMM his unhinching faithful
ness-in his almighty power-in his all=suih
| Gent grace.
The preacher dwelt at some length on each O
these particulars and then urged upon his hear
ers these concluding considerations.
| l. In view of these resources and in prayer
full and practical dependence on them, Christ
yoke is easy and his burden light.
| g. The provision thus made for the compile
| ton of the work of grace furnishes the strong
est stimulus to persevering and progresslv
piety
3. The overture of reconciliation to God
when sincerely accepted, becomes thus tn
| earnest and foretaste of celestial blessedness
FIRST PARISH CHURCH.
Rev, C. " De Normandie Kingston, Mass:
supplied the desk yesterday at this church.
In the forenoon he drew his text from Lux
24:21, "We trusted that it had been he whicl
l oh ,,11 - porI