New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-06-07

to Titus, in the last Of the second chapte'
of his episfie, "For the grace OF God, which
bringeth salvation to all men. hath ap
peared, teaching us that denying -lngodli
present world" He says Christ ''gave
! himself for us that he might redeem US
from all iniquity." And, in the fourth
chapter of his epistle to the Ephesians, as
if speaking to the very point we are dis
cussing, l. e., the object of Christian preach
ing and ministry, he says, "And ne gave
some apostles, and some prophets, and
some evan cyclists, and some pastors and
teachers, for the perfecting of the saints,
| for the work of the ministry, for the edify'
ing Tor building up) Of the body OF Christ,
| till we all come, in the unity of the faith
and of the knowledge Of tho Son OF God,
| unto perfect man, unto the measure OF
| the stature of the fulness of Christ" Much
| more might be quoted from the New Tesla
| ment of the same import, showing that
| salvation is not from deserved and righte'
| Gus punishment, but from those moral and
| spirituaI states or conditions in which our
sins originate.
To be saved, then, according to our I'M
derstanding of these highest Christian au-
thorities, is to be made morally and spiritu-
ally whole; to be brought into the pos
session of the Christ life; to become
| perfect men, having "the measure OF
The stature of the fullness of Christ" And
does it not seem absurd for sane man with
this scriptural idea of salvation in. mind to
say that if this blesseduess will in the full
ness of time be shared by all, there is no
use in employing means that men may enter
into the enjoyment of it now? Let US sup
pose that some Ona believes that in far OFT
other world period of existence, all of the
race of man will have perfect knowledge of
everything taught in schools, who would
think Of asking what, then, If all are uiti-
mately to be thoroughly educated is the
need Of teaching Or suppose one should
say that in future time there will be no
sickness, all men will be well. wouldn't not
be absurd to ask of what use, then, are
medicines, and hospitals and physicians
The kingdom of heaven comes through
Christ into this world to subdue men to its
benign spiritual laws, and illumine the
earth with its supernal light, and bring
men the ''peaee which passeth understand
ing" Jesus said to the Nazarenes before they
drove him from their city and would have
cast him headlong from precipice, "This
day is this Scripture fulfilled in your ears
1.-THE spirit of the Lord is upon me, because
He hath Amounted me to preach glad It'd
ings to the poor; He hath sent me to heal
to the captives, and recovering of sight to
the blind; to set at liberty them that are
bruised; to preach the acceptable year of
the Lord" And We may reverently say
that the work which Jesus came to do is
ours also, according to the measure Of our
ability.
But the question is sometimes put in
another form, and made to relate to the
doctrine of the universal extent Of saliva
ton itself. 1t is asked: If it be true that
all are finally to be holy and happy, why |
preach it'll For, whether We know it or |
not, it will be as we'll with us all in the end. |
We answer:
l. Truth has intrinsic value. "Buy the |
truth and sell it not" Gays our text. 1t is |
the glory of science to buy it at any cost of |
life and treasure, even though it may have
but little apparent practical value. And
'ye shall know the truth, and the truth
shall make you Free" was no meaningless
utterance of Him who said, on the morning
of His crucifxtion, ''to this end was 1
born, and for this cause came into the
world. that should bear witness to the
truth" He prays that the apostles might
be sanctifed through the truth, and prom.
ses them the comforter, which He calls
'the spirit of truth" which should guide
them into all truth. We think, therefore,
that if this article of our faith be Christian
ruth it is a sufficient reason for proclaim
ng it, and especially as the spirit of no
other is SO perfect comforter. For.
|
Bible, as we are sure it is, when that much
abused book is rightly read and interpreted |
t should be preached, because it relieves |
The Christian religion OF responsibility for
The horrible dogma of endless hell tor
nents, and return that natural offspring of
leathenism to its own mother. This mon
trous exaggeration of the fact that God |
Furnishes sin, if ever instru-
servieeable in moulding human
minds, must be expelled from thought at |
certain stage in the growth of the soul, or
20 source of untold evil. Oar common |
luman nature progresses in goodness until
t knows itself to be better than any being |
Who could create, or allow to come into ex-
stence, immortal lives for such an unthink-
IDLY awful doom. 1t comes at some time
o have the courage to sit in judgment on
my theory or scheme that makes God less
rood and just than man. And religion |
hat attempts at once to carry the thought
hat God is Father of men, and infinite in | j
GOODNESS. power and wisdom, in cOnnec.
ion with view of human destiny that is
IN eternal contradiction of that thought,
must inevitably drop from the faith of those
Who attain enough of Christlike goodness
o know what goodness is, and learn to use
the reason God has given
hem. One may confess that, being finite, {
nd unable to see what means are neces-
airy in the production and perfection of I'M
yiuS, OoulKo sous, man can never De
Judge OF the divine methods. But lie is
ompetent to weigh and determine the
moral qualities of the ends proposed. He {
nay reasonably believe and put trust in
he goodness of God, though looking at the I
oultifOrm evils of thu world, acknowledge.
ng himself too ignorant and limited in his 6
aculties to judge whether this dark e1,
erience be necessary in the nature of
hings to the formation and development I
f ultimate, joyous and blessed manhood.
'ut he Can not, without stultifying
is reason and putting cut the light
f bis intellect, believe that a good
eing, having the power and wisdom .
0 prevent, would even permit, much less I
scheme of creation from which
vii would be developed as an end. End
ess evil, especially such forms of it as the
ondemned soul-according to the theology
to US from the dark ages-must
opeieesly endure, could be permitted only 1
y being who either has not the power or !
wisdom to prevent it, or else whose nature
J essential malignity. And if this black i
Ogma is not separabie from the Christian
eligion, christianity instead of being, as we {
onestly think it, the religion of mans |
ighest civilization, must fall back among I
be things which the race thought az a
hid and, becoming man, put away. But, |
h0ugh it may not be taken from the old
ystems of human theology without de-
troying them, We believe it forms no part
f the truth as it is in Christ. And if his {
ruth survives, we can well spare the theo- [
les born of half converted barbarian brains
q by-gone ages. One of the most prolific
auses of inddelity is removed, therefore,
y our recognition and proclamation of the
Octrine that God will have all men to be
aved and come unto the knowledge of the
ruth"
3. If true. we would preach it that man [
nay think of human destiny and at the ,