National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1874-12-28


HOME WITH THE BEASTS OF THE FIELD
THE POWER AND GLORY OF HIS SECOND
COMIEG-HIs FIRST MISSION MERCY-HIs
SECOND JUDGMENT.
Yesterday was a beautiful day, and all the
churches were crowded with Worshipers. The
services in the Catholic and Episcopal churches
were eminently characteristic Of the great festi-
val now being celebrated throughout ChriSten-
dom.
At the First Conversational church Rev. DIR.
Rankin preached the following sermon, appro-
pirate to the day:
DR.. RANKIN DISCOURSE.
Luke iii, "And she brought forth her irst-born
son, and wrapped him in neutrality-suspicious. and
laid him in mRnRer, because there was no room
for them in the inn"
Matt. xxvi:64, "Jesus saith unto the High
Priest: Thou hast said, Nevertheless say unto
you, hereafter shall ye see the Son Of Man, sit
ting on the right hand OF power and coming in the
Am Of Gods great things have two comings-a
coming in weakness and q coming in power, a
coming in the germ and coming in maturity-be-
ginnings that the human race desptse, endings
before whose face they fee away, and there is
found no place for them. The incarnation is no
exception 10 this principles rather it is the most
extraordinary Illustration Of it. If you ask me,
Who is this Son Of Man, who, standing in the
presence Of the High Priest, and within the very
shadow Of the cross on which he is to die, speaks
Of sitting at the right hand Of power and coming
in the clouds Of Heaven answer, He is the in
FAINT born Of that Judean virgin, wrapped by her
own hands in the scanty covering Of her poverty
and laid within the straw of that Bethlehem
mapEer This Is his first coming with the helpless
vail Of poor humanity, ministered to by the pale
hands OF a human mother, accepting the hOspi-
tality Of the beasts of the field. But
we do to-day, between the crOssHghts Of these
two cOmings, less than two thousand years from
the first and no man knows how near the second,
there are certain contrasts and comparisons
which naturally suggest themselves:
l. Notice the humility Of Christs first advent
compared with the dignity Of the second. Humil-
ity is a relative word. In etymslogy it means
neRrness to the ground A persons origin is more
or less humble, according as he rises above or
sinks below certain social standard. But for
the Son Of God to be born into humanity at all;
that is the wonder, that is the humiliation; That
one who was in the form of God, and who thought
il not robbery TO be equal with God, should make
himself Of no reputation, should take upon him
self the form Of a servant, and be made in the
likeness Ofmen! This is the mystery; this is the
wonder.
group Of mountains and look off upon them the
difference between their altitude sinks into insiE-
nifcance. They are all far beneath you, and
seem to blend ndistinguishablyw with the PROSTATE
surface Of the earth. They are all humble-near
the earth. We often look at the fact that the
Son Of God was born into one of the humber fam
lilies OF the Hebrew nation, that he was Nazs-
reGn, that his mother belonged to so humble q
class that she could not command introduction
into the inn, that he could be actually born
in a stable within the limits of Jewish city
and not one Of the citizens know 1t, as con-
tanning the very pith Of his humiliation. Could
he have been introduced into the higher orders
and ranks Of society; could his mother have had
the delicate and tender care which would have
been accorded to wealth, ana station and royalty;
could his birth have been greeted with Outbursts
Of music, with festivities, conceive that his
humiliation would not have been so great. 1t is
because we look upon the outward appearance,
and not upon the inward reality. So far as moral
character is cOncerned so far as loyalty TO truth,
SO far purity Of life are cOncerned-the things
which constitute true moral worth, true dignity
they are quite often to be found in the middle
class Of society i as among the higher classes
to-day, are best because OF their humble
origin; they have taken up their moral ideas of
in spiritual things, and five most for them, are
always in the humber walks of human life. 1t
is so in this country, at any rate.
II seems wonderful that the angels should go,
hrst Of all, to the Bethlehem shepherds, and
break to them the intelligence which was filling
heaven with Joy; which WAS making the morning
stars sing together as at creation; and yet doubt
less, they were the most appropriate recipients Of
this intelligence THE secret Of the Lord is
always with them that fear him." And in the
Jewish nation those that feared God at that
time were not to be found in the social, civil or
ecclesiastical high places; were not to be found
clothed in soft raiment in kings palaces, they
were TO be found among the humble. minded
shepherds of Bethlehem-men who thought on
the promises; who communed with God.
But, the difference between men is so slight,
when compared with the difference between man
and God, that the wonder Of the incarnation
consists not so much in the nation or family, or
social grade, in which the Lord of Glory
became fncsrnate, as in the bare fact itself. II
was in his coming into humanity that the humili-
alton Of Christs first coming consisted. Our ma
ture was finite. His own was infinite. We are
crushed before the moth. His beginnings were Of
old; even from everlasting our nature was sinful
His own was sPotless in it's purity. Our
whose heart is infinite love- If you want to
know what is the human nature, into which the
Lord Of Glory was born, read human history, as
the hand of man has written it; written 1t in the
overthrow Of the weak by me strong. Read hu-
man history, men are living 1t to-day; as 1t is
Of the earth, and see how man is oppressed and
abused by his fellOW-man; how he Is entangled
in the web Of superstition, woven by the hands Of
his ieliOw-man, who for money or power is lead
ing him blindfold into the ditch; how the voice of
his blood cries up from the earth that is 10th to
drink It, that Tevolts at it cries up iron the
earth to the God that made him for vengeance.
Now, this Divine One, knowing all this beforehand,
seeing it, through the sad vista of the past and
the coming ages; looking backward to the time
when in paradise Of innocent delights the frst
man, Adam, the son Of GOd-as one Evangelist
calls him-apOstatiZed from his Creator; and
looking forward TO the end of these earthly gen.
eratiOns: this Divine One, knowing the end from
the beginning, this Divine One became incarnatei
linked himself in nature, to the humanity, out of
which has sprung as native product, Cain,
JezebeI, HerOd, a SalOme, a Judas and Nero;
linked himself in nature, to the humanity, Of
which inspiration itself has said, "the way of
peace have they not known, and there is no fear
Of Ged before LhelF eyes. ne was porn INTO the
human family. He Identified himself with it;
took il for better, for worse.
Hew will It be at his second coming? VIII he
be any the less human? All! that humanity
which humbled him in that he wore it; that hu-
manity which logged his steps with calumny;
L
tributed his worl-s:of healing to BeelZebub, the
prince Of devils; that humanity which came out
against him with swords and staves which held
him under arrest and let Barrabas the robber 20
scot free; that humanity which tried him with
mock trial, and nailed him to the cross; that hu-
manity-our humanitv-WiIl come back to earth
glOrifed, clothed with heavenly beauty and
majesty; the human effulgent with the Divine;
God, manifest in the flesh! Think OF it. To-day,
lying in that manger, with the meek face Of that
mother, happy above all women. looking down
upon him, helpless sPeeehless, lying like little
Waif cast up upon the shore Of humanity that
knew him not; tomorrow wearing that same
humanity as glOry-Rs the victor wears the
Epoils that he has stripped from the doWn-trodden
fOe-eXalted because Of his humiliation, making
the incarnation his stepping-stOne to name that
is above every name.
2. Christ's first coming was one without earth
ly recognition. His second coming is to be the
great event of the future; the contamination Of
all earthly things is to challenge universal at
tentiOn.
Two things are very remarkable; almost mac
countably so: thaC there should be so general q
yearning Of humanity for some DeliVerer, as to
make an impression upon the human philosophy
and human history Of the period that even the
heather nations should seem to be waiting in ex-
pectaneY as watchers wait for the morning; that
the Hebrew literature should be so full and so
explicit in illusions to him. that the strangers Of
the Orient had only to inquire in order TO ind out
where his birthplace was TO be and yet that his
birth should be Just as much unknown and unnO-
ticed as that Of the humblest Hebrew child.
We may we'll ask, What was that Judean
world? what were those sage teachers Of the law,
those successors Of Moses and Aaron and Levi,
busy about, that they had then no thought Of the
advent Of that Seed Of the Woman who should
bTuise the serpents head; Of that Shiloh that
should come OF one anOipted Of the Lord TO
preach good tidings, to bind up the broken-heart-
ed, to proclaim liberty to the captives, anG the
opening Of the prison TO those that were
bound? Had they not read their own prophetic
books? Did the, not know that the desire of all
nations stood at their very door; that little, un-
conscious Bethlehem was already famous from
his birth
Think Of It. That event, the bare eommem-
GRAFTON Of which has Just gone like wave
Of golden light around the whole earth; that has
made the hundreds Of thousands Of children in
ChristendOm glad with Christmas gladness; that
has made their eyes sparkle and their voices
ring and their hearts beat for joy; that event,
whose commemoration nearly two thousand years
alter il TRANSFERRED has created such universal
congratulations all round the world, occurred in
little Bethlehem Of Judea without making one
ripple Of disturbance among her citizens. That
event. which had stirred the Celestial City to its
very centre; which had taught its citizens a new
song, song whose echoes never will die: which
had sent the angels Wnging their way down the
pathway OF light to this very earth, in little
Bethlehem had not created one thousandth
part Of the excitement which would have arisen
from the arrival Of some petty oficial Of the Ro-
man emperor. Amid the surrounding celestial
ehulgence Of that night the citizens Of Bethle-
hem slept as quietly and they aWoke as indilfer-
Ont as II nothing had been TRANSPORTING there
which could possibly affect human destiny; that
n nav &c