The New York herald., 1878-01-14
LOVE AN ELEMENT OF CHARACTER
Example of Christ and How He
May Be Reached.
SERMON FOR CHILDREN.
The Office Of Prayer and
the Word of God.
CHURCH OF THE DISCIPLES.
LOVE AS AN ELlMENr OF cHARAcrEE---sERMol

Love AS AN ELLMENr OF cHARAcTEE--sE.MoN
pY REV. DIR. HEPwoGTB.
DR.. Hepworth preached yesterday morning very
suggestive discourse ''Lovc as an Element OF
Charactcrn taking for MS text ST. John, ILL.,, 10
"For God so loved the world that no gave his only
begoten Son, that whosoeycr belicyeth IN him should
not perish, but have everlasting lic.' Or. Hcpworth
said These words represent the most startling state
ment In the worlds history. They astonish the In
tcect and they the heart the utterancc OF these
words constitute the real boundary line between
tho old world the new. Alter their uterance
entered upon new ana higher sphere oil
thought and action which changed all his ambitions
II was 50 to his motives as TO his relation to
things earth, and finally SO as to his mental and
spiritual outlook On the side OF this line We have
fear, which the measure OF suporstition on tho
other side OF the line we have trust aud conl-
dence, which is the measure .of love. ] think
you Will bear out, after thinking on the supJect
care these words have come to US III no
oncr way except in papabe and vocal ultcrance Oh
Gov. In other words, tie statement must have been
revealed to US or we never could have found 1t out
We have proof Of this belief IN human liie, and is
corroboraive testimony OF the statement that We nave
what called direct revelation from Gods own lips
and from Gods own heart without tue BOOK we may
discover something of the Deuy. IL is possible Tor us
uniold attributes The divine character,
but walking, necessarily, IN the mists OF g-
look Tor without the Book Is an imperfect
and one sided dea-not that God has not impressed
absolute perfect ruth upon everything He has
mace, but that our eyes are so Unframed ana our
minds uecouded that II IL au lnpossibiiily 10
reed those hcrosyphics and for tnose written char-
acters be clear lha, receive into our ninas
the truth they represent. The naSuraisI, phys
sees At once general panrn the Organization oi tae
unversc aud think brethren, that We snOuld arrive
square CONCLUSION. by this survey oil tho unverse,
iha happiness IS the general result OF the pau OF Goa
in nature But there is one thing that appals the
scarcber alter truth and makes him shrink within
himself with something like real dread and lear
GENERAL PROVIDENCE
We see general Providence that takes care OF
all | do tnnk tnat science has yet succeeded III
revealing Providence thai takes care OF each unit or
Atom. On the other hand II discovers u aw OF which
1t boasts that actually takes hold of my heart and
Win giant hnge's crushes me with the announce
the survival OF tic httest, but which IRON my
standpoint only expression OF cruelty. Is truo
that God Tor all but not Tor eachy would you
limit HIS power and HIS influence by saying tnat he
neither cares nor Is yet aoie 10 care ior every
single atom OF the universe however inhniiesinaliy
may beY Wuen We look from nature
up TO natures God We are partly bind
ioided. hud the power, but not my Father
Ind the wisdom that Is apparent IN tne darkest
corner oil the universe and III the summit OF the
mountain 1Ie but cannot discover whether He has
any trust III me; whether his providence is personal
my case not. But III the BiUle, Oh the other
hand, have the gospel OF adaptation. II Is the
gospel says that he sees every individual whom
lie nus inaue and lnat adapts every soul to
rencies oi his HE; that He never makes mista1e;
such thing Dlunucr or acclueut
from Inc first flash of history rignt 10 the present
moment. What splendid vicw oil God that rs. say
~ you without any fear OF contradlctlon that the
Goa the Bible Is more attractive 10 tue ninG,
more OF stimulus The heart, than any
conception when the world had produced from any
source whatever. IN this love oil God, which - ex-
pressly declared by the Scripture, found, 10 my
inInd, the crowning blessing oi human llie DIR. Hep.
worth here traced The animals that
velopcd social ceng, the aggregation OF families in
cIties, that brought The human family together,
sa:ds upon The shore which just toucn, but no
more; but there was no fusion. lie then traced the
love OF man iCr woman, III which there was tue nux
aud the reluX OF eelng; tn which the soul was over
mastered with that Mysterious power We call love.
Ths love like many other things; We knew noth-
Ing OF 1t except from It's results. lie then looked
the utility OF ths sentiment and
It's genera operation upon lie aud society. The uii-
ference between the nineteenth century anu the other
ages OF the world tnaL there IS more love IN IT, Tho
hrst Efforts OF love were to make men unseush. and
when took his eet from TIE quicksands o selfish
hc planted them the rock oil moral laws.
Wuen love 81 declared that sacrifices
made for another, then had got religion. "fhou
buat not," the stern command OF Coo, and
httod ior the nancy vi socicy, but Christ hQ BY HIS
lie and death shown newer and better revelation.
The great and solemn tact OF sei-surrcDdor was tho
deveioping element training US to true apprecla-
llun 0I n tor