The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1875-06-28
SUNDAY SERVICES.
NEW JERUSALEM CHURCH.


Yesterday was observed as Childrens' Day at
this church. The floral decorations were pro-
fuse and very appropriate. The services in the
morning were very interesting Four children
were baptized, after which the pastor, Rev. w.
B. Hayden, delivered an excellent address to
the young people, upon. the Importance of early
religion. He based his remarks upon Psalm
xxxiv;2: Come, We children, hearken unto
me; will teach you the fear of the Lord"
The following is an abstract of the address:
The preacher remarked in commencing that
the scripture has precious words for all people,
but especially for the young, the class he pro-
posed to address. 1t would be an easy task for
me to tell you to-day of my personal regard for
you, but it is more appropriate tn at 1 speak to
you about the interest and the love which an
other One feels for you all,-striving to. lead
you to Him, the Lord God our Saviour, Jesus
Christ. God is love, and they who live from
Him must live from love. The bible is filled
with expressions of His love towards us, and
the whole work of salvation is a perfect en-
bodiment of that love.
All this tender regard which the Lord feels
for you little children is not for your bodily life
or worldly prosperity, though even these are
very dear to Him, but it is for the salvation of
your souls, for your eternal and everlasting life.
His great fear is that you may become eDsnar-
ed in some of the pleasures of the world and
lose the way that leads to your eternal home.
Hence the Lord, out of pure love and mercy,
has provided preparatory fold for you on
earth. This fold is the church of our Lord Je-
sus Christine church Of the living God In
this fold you will be comparatively safe. In it
there are thrown around you certain walls and
defences, while you are supplied with helps
and supports. Here you can be furnished with
Instruction, and be brought directly within the
sphere of all the influences for good.
The holy rite OF baptism is placed here, as
the first step in our progress. 1t is the first
thing to be done. 1t has been commanded by
the Lord, and is repeatedly instituted in His
word.
Its effect reaches not only the visible world,
but the invisible world, and brings the recipi-
ent into communion not merely with the
church on earth, but with the church in heav-
en-.
As soon as infants are baptized angels are
appointed over them by the Lord to take care
of them; by whom they are kept in state of
receiving true and living faith in the Lord.
These guardian angels never leave the child
until 1T is grown up, when further guardian
ship is provided by the Lord
You young friends who have received the
ordinance of baptism are within the fold of the
New Jerusalem and not out of it, 1t is a rare
privilege to belong to this fold; privilege and
blessing, the full impart of which you cannot
Degin to realize at this time. Children who
have been baptized in certain sense belong to
the church and receive the tender care OF the
same. And now, young friends, it becomes
highly important for you to attend to the duties
the great privileges imply; it belongs to you to
come forward as soon as you are old enough to
understand it, and accept all these good things
for yourselves You are now within the fold of
the Good Shepherd, and it is time for you 10
decide TO stay in, You will find more help and
comfort in this than in any place. You require
as we all do, deliverance from sin, aud this is
not easy to accomplish, but religion will help
you to do this.
The speaker next referred to this bein the
time for celebrating events which oocu rred
one hundred years ago. He spoke of the virtu-
GUS character OF our forefathers the nobility Of
their action, etc., etc. And yet we have a
cause even nobler than that, right at home.
The enterprise | am inviting you to espouse as
your own-a life OF religious service aud devo-
ton; life lived for God, for salvation, for the
good of others and for the extension of the
church in the world
warfare where in the battles you
will be called upon to fight will serve to eman-
cipate the soul from the bondage OF sin, and
whose victorious winning for you spiritual
freedom of Gods accepted children, will crown
you at length with the unspeakable blessings
of eternal life
In the evening the Sabbath School concert
took place. The exercises opened with few
appropriate remarks by the pastor. The exer-
cises by the children were very interesting.