Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1879-03-18
i Sermon by mr.. Moody.
SUBJECT-CHRISTIAN PEACE.

. On the 7th OF March, in Baltimore
= Mr.. Moody delivered Q sermon, the sub
s ject of which was "Chriatian Peace,
: which was reported by the Baltimore
ADacric0e as follows:-
: This subject, said Mr.. Moody, cccupie:
e much of Scripture. In the sd chapter
e of Isaiah and the 7th verse we read -
I "How beautiful upon the mountains arr
g the feet Of Him that bringeth good IT,
2 dings that publisheth peace Then, a
3 gain, IN the End chapter OF Luke, 18th
Q verse, we find the angel OF the Lord ex
. claiming to the shepherds: "Glory IC
| God in the high est, and Oil earth, peace,
goodwill to men," Now, Chri55's mis-
sion to earth was to make peace. But
r many of you are saying, Well, how q
bout that sword? I'li venture to say q
good ira;,y of you are asking how J. sin
to reconcile that passage i'll Mattht W,
the 10Th chapter and 3lth verse. 1t is
"Think not that I come to send peace
on earth I come rot to send peace, but
a sword" 1t goes on "For L am come
to set man at variance against his faith
er, and the ghter in-law against her
mother. in-law, and q mans foes shall
be they of his own household" Now,
this seems like plain contradiction, but
it's like where you'll find good many
passages that are cOntradictory-the
are both true. I'll tell you how it seems
to mes When I begin to lead the Chris
tian life ] am very likely to encounter
an enemy in my own household. Then
the sword begins. Gods grace and hui
man nature are not akin. They can NO
raore he mixed than oil and wafer
Therefore, when the grace of God enters
your heart or mine the sword of dissen
ton and trouble may be expected. It
will very likely bring q conflict into the
household. The man in the flesh never
did like the man IN the spirit, and never
viii. That peace TO the Christian i'm
plies the sword of the world is not Gods
fault. It's the fault Of man. Christ
came and made peace. That was all
that He could do. Ifman rebels against
redemption he is the only one response
ble. AS long as man refuses to accent
Gods will there must be q conflict. AS
long as your children submit to your
parental government everything will go
they set their will in rebellion against
yours there is going to be trouble in the
household. We find this verv point
guarded. In the 10th chapter and 33rd
verse Of John we read -"rhese things I
have spoken unto you that in NE ye
might have peace in the world We shall
have tTibGlaticn, but be of good cheer;
! l have overcome the world" It saws
''in Me" ye may have peace. This is
the only way that peace in the world
can be attained, through Jesus Christ
The moment Jesus Christ dawns upon
you, in that moment you get this peace.
There may be some lady here who can
find peace before she leaves this church,
/ tt,of -
very moment she reaches home. This
is the sword. There have been many
who never knew what tTibulation was
until they knew Jesus Christ. As long
as there viii remain hearts unregenerat-
| ed there VIII be men st war with God.
JOY WITHOUT TRANQUILITY.
In the llth chapter Of Isaiah we read:
''The wolf also shall dwell wish the
lamb, and the leopard shall lie down
with the kid, and the calfand the young
lion, and fattliDg together--and a little
child shall lead them.' These are the
millennium days that are coming We
will have peace by aud-by, but are
strangers to it yet. All around us We
see men taking up arms against the God
OF Heaven and disputing His sovereign
ty. 1t will not be so hereafter. When
ever you find a person grumhling and
finding fault, you may know they have
not that peace which earthly matters
cannot disturb. a great many don't
want ministers to be preaching about
sin, because it may hurt somebody's feel,
ings. That is q false way to get peace
The only way to get This peace is to get
rid of sin.
Those Christians who are iw avs long
ing for the pleasures OF the world, wish
ing they could do this and shat, and go
| here and there like everybody else, they
cannot expect peace. They are like the
pTomiscuous multitude who entered the
Promised Land and kept wishing for
the fiesh-pOts of Egypt. Those who
keep wishing for the theatre, and parties
and balls, and all that, cannot have
peace. Some go into rounds Of pleasure
expecting peace. Men seek peace in
drink. In the twenty-ninth chapter and
nineteenth verse of Deuteronomy we
read: HE blessed himself in his heart,
saying. [ shall have peace Though / walk
in the imagination of Iuine heart and
aud drunkenness to thirst" How many
men are adding drunkenness to thirst?
know Of a Christian man in Chicago
| who actually went to New York ana
went the rounds of all its amusement
and gaiety Just in search OF peace. OF
course he didn't get it. It's d decree OF
Heaven that there is no peace for the
sinner.
THE TURMOIL OF THE WORLD.
There is 10 peace, says the Lord, for
the wicked. In the third chapter Ro
mans we read: "They are all gone out
Of the way their throat il an open sep
ulchre with their tongues they have
used deceit, and the way Of peace have
| they not known" In the fifty seventh
chapter of Isaiah, also, the wicked are
like troubled sea when it cannot rest"
Who ever saw he sea at rest? Wave
after wave comes and goes. and the tide
has no sooner done coming in than il
goes out again. So it is with the wick
Ell. NO peace, no c0ntentment, in this
world or the next. The angry waves of
sin and retrbution lash and foam and
| fret, and roll up in Ugly breakers: so it
losses the sinner : but the Christian, like
the rock, remains passive and immova-
bic. There is no peace outside of Jesus
! Christ. The world knows no peace
| Only Christ can stretch forth hand
and say TO the troubled waters. "Peace.
be still" SO, if you want peace, I'll tell
you where to get it. In the 22nd chan
| ter and 2lst verse of job: "Acouaint
now thyself with Him and be at peace.n
Ii you will find NE man or woman
VINO IS wen acquainted with Jesus Christ
will show you one who has peace con
tlnually. In the 10th Psalm and tse
10th verse We read: Great peace have
they which love Thy law ,ssand nothing
shall offend them" That is tie sign of
the peaceful Christian offends
MN. When q mali begins 10 see the
faults Of every Que else ii is pretty sure
sign that ne is on the downward path
himself The Bible is the only book
that tells vs. authOritatively about God.
! On now much we need more reading
OF 1t. In the 26th chapter of Isaiah it
says: Thou wilt keep him in perfect
peace whose nind is stayed on Thee"
it does not say whose mind is stayed on
himself. Ifa Bible could be found with
that rendering guess it would have "a
tremendous sale. | guess there would
pe q good many sold right here in Balti-
more Peace cannot be made by man,
because it has been already made by
GOD. You do NOT have to keep peace,
oecai'se peace keeps you.