, 1876-12-04
Prot. Swings Sermon at the Gen.
tral Churches" Man as
Builder"
Ordination of Isaac G. Falls as a
Missionary to tho 1Icathen.
The Rev. E. N. Barrett Installed Pas
tor Of tho Westminster Presby-
terian Church.



rEr., rs.
The survey Of man rs destroyer, which con-
sumcl the last Sunday morning. was d painful
tnsk compared with the consideration OF MINI as
a Builder. Man rs destroyer opposes God, op-
poses all the kind feelings and better judgment
Of tho human race; but man ns a builder Is man
in harmony with nil the universe. To view him
In that light will be like listening to u song-to
tho very music Of the Rphcrcs. To be upon
Coils side Is SO great joy of the soul and 80
wise condition of rcason, that one, upon men.
tfonfng the fdca, feels that he has pnescd up
from tnalaria into tho pure air Of mountains.
Tho possibility Of mans harmony with God
Christ condcnscs into tho magnificent stnte-
H,cnt Just read: "Yo which lave followed
Nc In the regeneration shall sit upon twelve
thrones"
OF all moral builders, Christ is chief. OF tho
temple OF ,nan lie IL Master-builder, mud all
who folluw Him will SIT upon the highest throne
Of power.
In thinking upon o,lr theme, lot us first lnarl
how nature infallli,ly points out the truo path
for nan. Everywhere naturc is = most patient
builder. It tolls forever, and forever garncrs
up its daily results. A distinguished writer
says that the shoyclt,l Of earth which man In Il
moment tosscs about in lis garden nature was
thousand years III making. Tint soil, perhaps,
waa gathered iii by gravitatson acting upon tho
ehapclcss ether; then came solid earth, then
Ore, then rains, then frosts, the rains aeal, and
sun and frosts md storms, urd At last, at tho
end Of thousands OF years, mai Is admitted In
At Eden ail rca,ly for his plow or spude.
When the leaves fall In autumn, nature caves
them and wraps them around the carth.-robcs
Of new richness. There IL ncw aud largc crop
Of vcrdure and blossom, In each December slak-
!ng OF the dead lcnyes, Nature moves before lis
III builder. Having ,nnlle worlds, IL builds ltp
t[c "details OF each planet, As tile painter, having
natked out his plan. sits down to work up eacsi
blocked out u universe, the Infinite power tllcil
bends over each foot of land md sen and passes
on from the si1np!eto the complex, until n btade
has turned into the full tar until the acorn has
become an onk, until the rude mammoth md
all the great coarse Inonsscrs have given placc to
that lofty an(mat called man. Even tho little
coral insect catches the widespread inspiration
Of making something and rcars its structure In
mtl-ocean.
Into such a sccnc man should come as q crca-
tor Vi tho ncw and shc good, Or he has no var
rant for coniing.. The excuse for his presence
must no found In the presumption TINT the
world Is to grow In his hailis. lie iB to put his
shoulder to tho great wheel, and unless Ut his
tough the cur uorcs forward all inch, Or at least
shakes l'ttlc, he cannot produce amy certificate
of right in thu world. When some yendcr 6f
he must sustain hts own life the phtlanthropIst
replied that iIe could not SEQ thu necessity of
such result. From the structure and tlnlly
habits II nature evidently tho human race and
Of existence to be in thc impulse man gives to
universe whose motto is "Dnward." As God
ltntclf Is Avast Creator, 40 nature, His embod-
mcnt, snlways STRUGGLING forwarltoward Ereat-
must perceive the great luw mud cast
himself fully upon 1t, not as q slave bends to
toll, hut TN l1cro f.,ounts tue ch2Etot Of dca.
tiny. II o,le will recall for moment ws1at q
der awhile over the '.unlen.ItY ot the universe,
lsc will soon feel what builder tho Father R,ust
have designed nan to be, aud will cry ont In
rcstlcss lOngings, "Lorl, what wollltlst Thou
have mo tS dot' Th!s Inquiry raised BY the
low, ia thu largest question that eau bo sprung
TIE nuGut[uns of science, whence caHlp the ~
rlations Ut spcc!est what Ia the distance Of q
hxeA stNrl Therc tho scerct Of tho tttics1 what
Greater power than steamf what can be better
than tho railway carl arc poor childish wonder
fn!ss compared with the prayer OF a good heart,
"Lor,l, What shall dot'I Iiitel brains called
upuu to die too soon have turned oycr sadly
upon tllc!r last plllaw because they nust leave
tic world without having first pleased It. They
hare not feared hull. hut they have regretted that
they lived In this bright world 90 Mauy years
without harlng seen It's great nee! Of frleutis,
oaks which inale tnll ,.ss ii each. SUMMER
tilne, all tic lilies whlct, Chriat saw which made
full tise Ut tho sunlight nI>ovs mud the waters
hcHcath, all the great works. of tho human rice
Us It tolls patiently along the, centuries, seem
~ thorns Will, the unaya!ltng wis, for more nf
tite tllat there might 10 more Of dee!ta. Forth
irom from amid ali qqca1lons leaps the qneatlpn,
WHIT tIa. ausa ao l1Fdt-'hO }oude'' thunder
From tho hints given In insensato nature turn
tn that more impressive scenc, hutnau life, and
lcho!d how tiud's creative art appears. Man ha1
~ ~ sooner struck tho carth tlau, lko Ills M3kcr,
empty, he began to all It. Hence utl aluns this
winding pathway his works stand tho I'm
petisl!ablc witncss that man Is destroyer
only IN fcx insane alours--w!tnesses that III
al ls great days nnd years lie Ia builder.
Wlat were thu pyramids, what tue temples Of
Ill architects, ceInpatcd with that mighty work
of n'an called langnagel AZ tho earth has
wrapped aronul itsef ucw layers Of grusses,
making fof itself new soil for tho future, so
man has year by ycar fur ages Hung bis thought
ald feelings a1id Whole mind and sou! iato one
holy Urn. and tl.rre they. remain forever, In
that nIau shoull b, builder. pause by this ono
form vi ruau]t chilled ta.u3ua5s allI all doubt Il
paas away, That man a!,n,!ld speak, and that
his aprcvll sloull be written down and thus
u'ous the seven wonders ol the world. llcre
We arc III tho nlllttsGnth Christian century,
With gifted s2ifits spending to U. from tlio
days wleu llou.er walked a!oug tho
s!tccts Of matchmaking to Us 1rou
tic room There Tho book Ut Job WAS
cuulpMc1l; speaking II us from thn pen
lteHtial chamber Of David; from Tic law ollie
Of Cicero, from tlle closet Of Plato; from the
.irca'ny haunt Of yirg:a It Is quite probable
that modern spirltua!iatu crrb wien 1t hears the
tapping Of fingers Ct tho rustlu Of Unseen apl
un!e!t garments; but, he this as 1t muyt the
t;rrat gate Ut literature htands open day and
night all through tlle centuries, and through IL
cyle to Id atl the blessed children VI tho paat.
by thesn uplri.s hyng On bright wings from tlo-
l'1cs'sday lo ths lays Of Sl,alts,,earc and MI.
ton th. wor'l IL daily and nightly luyadc.l aud
swectly ,ovcrr,ln. So a.ra!'gc ! thing Is Ian.
E"ase t!at II sseln. to drag tho pass a'oug,
.oa 4eat. ot Victory; Though tau grave cams
lo'lE :ssso and clainlc.l the bil!es Of the giftci
Ut !" tilMg Intu Language We behold their souls
,ts,s :,s, We ssc ,a',;e's sSy nlts ro:satc by an
trnis,:ts "t hls c*'uairy. Hero We SEQ CnsAr
lals. s:!in by those who aoyeu hin! We SEE hls
s1'r"WsH! ia:o and htar hl,n SAY, "Anl thou
also, Btetas!''
Lus'.fi'ls thus 1t language, what q builder is
Il k...f ni.