The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1874-06-06

The True Way Ia Represent Gods Char
acter.

4
acter.
Plymouth church PRAYER meeting was as wei
| attended as usual last evening. Mrs. Harriet
l Beecher stowe was present, and her strong like
ness to her reverend brother OF Plymouth church
attracted the attention OF even those who did not
know her. After the usual services Mr.. Beecher
said III don't know at 1t Is possible In low state
OF human nature to present the divine character
so as that 1t Will seem lovely to men. remember
in reading while boy the experiences OF emf
nent Christians after state OF doub that God
blazed out before them In q transcendent love
then they were enraptured, and supposed that
that was the only method through which men loved
and found the Lord-namely, through foregoing
experience. When l consider the theory OF PHI
losophy, OF creation, and providence and salvation
confess don't wonder men
FIGHT AGAINST GOD.
Men, after they have wrought themselves into a
state OF moral excitement and think that they
have found God, find it is not the God they have
looked for. 1t Is conceded that you shall love that
which is lovely, not that which is not lovely, and
the law OF admiration and love is established as
much as the law OF gravitation, and every repre-
sentation OF God must conform to 1t. The charac-
ter OF God in Jesus Christ should take precedence
of every other thought IN life no other thought
should be tull as the character or the Lord pre-
sented Jesus Christ. ana hold 1t to be the duty
OF every person. that love shall be elevated
above the judicial and legislative functions.
Wherever the Master was on earth He was besuti-
iul, not IN person, mean; but lie made Himself
understood by good, pad and indifferent, and all
men were drawn to Him. The impression OF good
ness was universal. 1t Is not enough to preach
Christ orthodoMca!ly lor He is ntrnsicaliy lovely
He made that impression on earth, and 1t Is not
enough TO feel IL, but we must Impress 1t ON
others. The worst OF all conceivable methods OF
looking at Christ Is the analytical one the rag
mentary one. There are occasions and need or
discussing and Analysing the attributes OF the
BUT THAT Is ANATOMY.
suppose were TO set up Tor portrait painter,
and then another eye and then nose, and then
mouth, and then hair, with one or two magnhed,
SO that YOU mlght see the structure and then say
put them together and 1t Will make beautiful pie
ture. Who could do 1t Who could put such
CHASTITY work together SO there Is prevalent tnat
me tnod OF discussion by which one attribute Is de-
scrlbed and another is described. and then say
that, all summed up, Is God; ana then. too, to
look at Him through tue judicial function. There
Is a sphere Tor anatomy and dissection, but what
garang the character OF God as person so that
there shall be o clear impression OF personality,
ana Nave SO no seud ,Sem to the New
Testament I say, ''Here are Jour lives; read
them as you would any other biography, not by
crumbs III fragments forgetting one oy the time
you read another; but take whole lie at time;
read 1t till you get iul representation OF living,
moving, perfected character" Another thing,
when men speak OF Christ among themselves they
most always speak of some act OF grace, forgetting
the love. and speaking OF the Official character.
tell what his pursuit IS, but he has produced an
impression Of goodness and greatness and gener
osity on you, and without Knowing anything
further you have an exalted opinion OF him.
think in the conversation o. men on the sub
ject OF the Lord Jesus Christ there is poor meagre
representation OF His character. We talk
TRASH THEOLOGY,
not living power. Then there Is a third element
comes 1n-namely, what Christ Is to US, and this
Is an important element 1t forms large part OF
the revelation OF the New Testament, Such was
the shape Of personal experience There is
question as to whether Paul wrote the Book OF
Hebrews. / might as well say made the stars.
Paul showed himself through all his writings.
ground. No one is offended with the egotlsm, be-
cause Paul is speaking Of Christ through his eX-
perlence. Now, persons living IN daily trust and
sympathy, whose lmaglnations are coiored, whose
conscience has been toned and enriched, such as
speaking Of Christ can scarcely fail in present.
ing Christ in a rich aspect. SO 1t comes that men
power sometimes than comes from the pulpit.
have received from such sources more than from
any other. Christ Is to DE the chief among 10000
! the one
ALTOGETHER LONELY,
and we are to feel that Christ Is near and our ref
uge In time OF trouble / am astonsned at men
when see the way they act. You take a candle
and light 1t In dark night and place IL below the
lighthouse and neither milerS nor moths nor birds
Will touch it. They all fly to the upper light, and
I the mariners all see tue lighthouse and not the
small candle Men IN trouble will go to other men,
or their wives or sisters, or to the minister. a
minister is Ike candle. How seldom Is Christ
presented in such way that men turn to Him in
stinctlvely in trouble 1t Is important that Christ
should be represented that men shall come in
trouble direct to the throne Of grace not through
the mediation OF a minister.
After the meeting the Examining Committee met
to examine candidates for admission to the church
and to grant letter OF dismissal.