New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1874-05-25
THE RIRIE AN ETERNAL TIME-PIECE.

no,ber Iecture of his course on the Evidences OF
Christianity" at Association Hail. last evening HIS text
was: al receive not testimony from man. me Father
himself which hath sent me- hath borne witness OF me.
Search Scriptures for they are they tnal esty VI
me."-John 5: 81, 81, 80.
The scrinrres he began are not Of man, but OF God
The testimony OF the Scriptures is not the testimony OF
man. but Of God These declarations OF our LORD Jesus
Christ are proof positive and irresistible OF the DIVINE
authority and independence or the Word OF tou. IL
stands by ITSELF asking and receiving no mans sahcon
or support but Gods only. Man can no more be VIII
ne.s that God pake this Word OF Cod that this word is
Gods word than he can tina: God created the sum- or
that this sun is Gods Aud what one man cannot
do ten thousand men cannot do, In whatever form
or with whatever assumption OF authority
they might be combined together. No Church, nor all
the churches earth, give Gods Word Its author
ity or prove its infabIty but tn Word itself judges
the Church. tries Church. the Church. just as
the testimony Of cannot make the sun shine nor
give uhOrty ~ the light But the sun Itself uscioses
men, and they one another only by that ngh anu
could read one another's evidence only by that light
The word itself the witness for God. and hath the
witness Of God ITSELF and the Holy Spirit, declared to
be attendant on the word wherever 10 is received into
an honest heart heart trusting in God and desiring to
obey Hin the witness in the heart OF the DeleVcr
revealing 10 soul the internal evidence OF the word
Of God and causing the soul to behold It, and receive
IT. as II m TRUTH not the word of but the word Of
men to hear his voice, as the burning bush made
Moses turn aside to that great sight; and when
they begin to attend and hear. the inward
witness of the Spirit goes with the out
ward uterance. which itself becomes an inward
breathing of the way the TRUTH the life. carrying the
same conviction of spiritual the consciousness of
voluntary motion does OF physical existence and reality.
Four great aud comprehensive atirmations are before
First: 10 testimony Is received by the Lord Jesus
concerning HIS divine nature and authority from man.
Second God the Father mas gwen testimony; as only
He could do. Tmrd; Iaat testimony Is III tne scrip
lures, which are themselves Cots word Fourth; TO
them Christ refers ali men as an absolutely inaliiple
authority. which believing and o3eyng, they shall re-
ceive life everlasting.
and sefeXstent. self-contaned demonstration OF the
word OF God apart from human testimony
III found watch by the wayside, or under the
crags of some de- olate mountain, in BY the
seashOre, in excavated subterranean sepulcher
there wa ever any record in the world thar had come
TO yonr knowledge, and If after much study by many
minds upon had found out its and meaning,
would you have any doubt that IT was made for that
use. or That one mind designedf Ana II you FOUND the
OF the maker inscribed upon it, should you have
any doubt that he made It'll Would You need vouch-
absolute of testimony elsewhere in regard TO
the watch prevent you from believing that II was
watch. that made 10 keep time, and that IL was
made by the person declared TO oe It's artifcerl
On examination you would find tDat 1t was not all
made al once that It was male in parts and put to-
eether ana that some wheels we're made TO strike into
other wheels, ana set them a-going You would find
iSvolSed. and aSeur1teiy caicui"ed adjustment Of
mechanical powers. You would ind prophetic assur
and designs In part OF the watch fulfilled In
another part. You would find that ii could be taken
asunder aud each part laid by itself Aud you would
fnd some parts MAZE ont of materials which you had
believe discovered and brought into use
much earlier than the materials employed in other
parts: agd you would ind some parts thlt seemed
Older Their construction than other parts. But would
any OF these facts prevent you nom believing that all
the watch came from one maker from one desSn COM
preh ndi1g and giving unity 10 al
that might appear not absolutely essential
things that might be taken away from it, without pre-
a. Whole chapters in the FIRST Book OF Chronicles or even
hc whole Book OF Z.phaniab, the Book OF Cantces,
might be dropped cut OF the Bible as some might thnk
without apparent injury. aud without diminishing its
usefulness And you would also lind portions of the
watch. OF which, at nT5t YOU would not be able TO dis
the portions, ndeed that you would be ready
10 down mistakes or the Ignorance OF some one
who did not know business. III the regulator you
might discover proofs Of imperiection and an intmd.
tiOn that the 10 De conf led 10 the of
persons who must daily wind up and guard against its
gaining OF losing time
Bat would these discoveries or rather this want OF
perfect Intelligence your part lead you 10 the con-
Cuson that those portions were made by the maker
OF the watchi or that It's maker knew not his own
work You would fnd some portions without the name
Of the maker ON them, or any ndicatOnin themselves
that they from his hand Just you may find
chapters Bible without any such Indication
whole Book of Esther without mention of the name Of
God; bat would That even suggest the Imagination that
be did not make them or did not mean them, or that
some else added them without his intentonsi Is
there single wheel in the works, or pin IN the ma
chnery not there by plan aud purpose OF the makerf
He may not have made the watch-case with his own
made under his direction by bis WILL as to be tt and
proper covering and protection for the watch though
not essential portion OF IL.
Fualy, there might be parts OF the watch in regard
to which might have, or might nd some testimony
elsewhere I'D some part OF history IN some art or SCI
ence In the historical record OF some age, by writer
regarded competent witness; some testimony
showing that those parts had existed though aording
reference 10 the whole watch, and giving n0sndica
watch Thus there may be Quotations in very ancient
pagan writers from particular booksn tue Ola or New
Testament without any reference 10 the whole volume
of divine inspiration. Could you take those particular
parts of watch aside AID feel that you had better
of the watch than regard TO the whole watch Would
you for moment imagine that the proof OF the whole
maker depended in the slightest degree upon that hui
mau testimony as TO the former existence Of certain
watch, and every part Of IT, were 6otted out II no be-
ing aud no age could be found with any record or yes
degree shake your confidence that the watch
is e ae masters sn ee.g and drecron however
many hands may have been employed in perfecting
gether IN one designed whole You would lind that the
watch keeps time you would feel perfectly convinced
and the minutes marked on the dalin IL and you would
have no doubt In regard 10 1t: purpose ITS value its
tion. You would gard any man fool who should
tell Try persuade you that 1t sprang forth n
Of the evolution OF forces, by the cohesion of
natural nat selection with tendency to yoration
Itself who the author was, nor the least trace OF any
having IN the world, yet you would have no
more doubt as 10 HIS being the author than You would
nave rs 10 the existence OF the watch itse You would
have no reason for doubling, nothing 10 suggest a
doubt nothing IN the watch nothing out OF It. Ii lisa
unity OF art ana skill. design ana wisdom, unaccouut
able and ineOiDpreheDsible al suppostion
than that OF one and the purpose ana Authority
in all the parts and authorship OF Its being.
Now suppose that some one should tell You that after
ali IL grew itself that II had creator at least
never particular species OF tinlekeeper that 1t
never was constructed by special authority and action
OF an intelligent designing mind but evolved
from preceding construction not perfect aud that
from still preceding machine stIl less accurate and
that from one quite clumsy In the comparison, aud that
al fe Il uQQn
10 get loose. Thus you would have the great great
OF watches and the great grandfather and
Inc grand the father and the son, and then
tho audson and IN regular evolution OF force
with differentiation by directive agency Vi natural
,Vt h.va laafly