Mexico weekly ledger., 1879-12-04

Rom. 6:l6. being made free from sin. ye
became the servants of righteousness.
The eloquent, genial, sensational
and irrepresslble DR.. Talmage in his
lecture at Lake Chautaugua, said:
Formerly, the greatest man in the
church was the man who could carry
about the greatest number of theolog-
ical scalps, who had slain the greatest
number Of antagonists. Now, ne who
displays a strongly controversial
spirit, would lose his own scalp"
This is just as it should be, for the
work assigned the churches is to
make war on sin. No attack or de
Tense can be justified now, except it
be an attack on sin, or defense of
the keystone of the whole christian
observation-disclosures! The apostle tells
us that, ''being made free from sin,
ye became the servants of righteous.
ness" To place before your minds
the two distinct forms of sin, we quote
approvingly from the eminent Mr.. Jay
of England. He says: classification
regards something done for us; sane
tillcaiion, something done in us. The
one is a change OF our state; the 9TH
er, change Of our nature. The one
gives us title for heaven the other,
I. meetness Tor heaven. Suppose you
had son; you forbade him to enter
place of contagion on pain Of losing
all YOU could leave him. He goes, and
is seized with the infection he is
guilty, for he has disobeyed your
command; but he is also diseased.
Do you not perceive that your for
giving him does not heal him? He
needs not only fathers pardon,
but a physicians aid" This sets
forth very clearly the two distinct
forms in which sin exists. First, in
that of actual voluntary transgression
which alone makes us guilty and
/ i'll need of pardon and second, in the
pollution Of our natures, original or
/ birth, ,sin-t.or which We are not respon-
nbc--no more to blame than We are
! for the color of our hair or the shade OF
our eyes. This latter, or birth sin,
needs not pardon, but cleansing. A
| failure to observe this distinction has
led to serious error. All agree now
to the necessity of this healing, but
dllcr rs to the mode and the time re-
quirei. Arguments drawn from anal
( ogy-where the supposed analogy Is
seen III the slow process of develop
ment in nature must ever fail. Now,
to say that God WAS six days making
the heaven and the earth six things
and then argue from that, that il
will require the whole natural lifetime
of a man to perfect in his heart the
love OF God,is exceedingly lame reas-
oning. For it ignores the fact that
the latter is by faith; and assumes, on
the other hand, that it requires God
as long TO complete one thing, as six
things. God said, Let there be
light, and at the omniiic command.
the dense and impenetrable barriers
of watery vapOrs which rested upon
and enshrouded the earth in the.
darkness, Instantly gave way. God
had uttered his voice. He saith,
Light be; and behold light is, nn-
der the whole heaven" 1t required
Christ just This long to heal the wo,
man; to give sight to the blind, or.
raise Lazarus from the dead Some
seem to have gotten the impression
that by ''pertect love" We mean per
lcction of degree. e, q point be-
yond which there is no growth. This
is no doubt with many an innocent
mistake. We hold that Il being oi
inferior capacities may be as free
from the taint Of sin as one Of more
exalted powers. Adam-unfallen-
was as holy as Gabriel; but he was
not 50 lofty in his powers of holiness
or so rich in his experience. The
soul itself grows in its capacity, and
its increased powers are filled as il
advances i'll holy experience. Now,
if there is sphere for improvement
when the soul is pardOncd if, in it.
struggles with admitted remaining
corruption, its young and tender
graces may expand and become rug.
gcd and strong, why, give it freedom
from sin ard its growth, like the plant
unhindercd by the weeds, set in fertile
soil, would be the more rapid? You
observe the difficulty here is making
"christian perfection the complete
sum of the growth or expansion OF
of the SOULS powers--a thing we nev.
er taught. Observe the following:
|. Being made free from sin, does
not teach perfection in knowledge.
2. Beng made free from sin, does
not teach physical perfection.
3. Being made free from SIN, does
not teach releasement from tempta-
ton.
4. Being made free from sin, does
not teach freedom from mistakes.
5. Being made free from sin, does
not teach impeccsbility or exemption
from liability to sin.
6. Being made free from SIN, does
not teach freedom from sorrow.
Z. 1t does teach the perfection of
love- Always loving but ever in
creasing in love. Hence, Methodism
by her standard authors has ever
taught that christian perfection is i'm
provable.
1st. Let us notice those whom Paul
declared to be free from sin. Who
were they? Ans. All of those who
had been crucified with Christ. Paul
states it thus: KNOWING this that
our old man is crucified with him that
the body of sin might be destroyed ;
that we henceforth should not serve
sin. For he that is dead is freed from
sin. What shall we say then? Shall
we continue in sin that grace may
abound? God forbid. How shall we
that are dead to sin, live any longer
therein!" Thus you see, Paul had to
contend for this doctrine of q sinless
life during his ministry. He told his
brethren that 1t was possible because
"we are not under the law but under
law" Of such he speaks (Rom. 6:
14): eye are not under the law, but
under grace. The plain fact is, be-
cause such ali one complies with "the
law of faith," God pardons him. But
DIR. Hodge further argues: "Con-
demnation is not the opposite OF