New-York tribune., 1880-03-01
THE SERMON.

OF the eye Children fascinated by pic'u'eS' "
word-ciurcs and men also for this Is ono o ~" '''"
respects in Nhch we can never quite se' "'' e
children and IL s vrrysad and dry sort OF an oio age
| that l. not sensitive to the beauty ana open J." Wv
appeal of - story. And so the Bible WINS us way VIZ"
rho children and holds ITS with adults IN cohsu'I
able degree because It is sOry-boOk II IuI u "
and blood aud interesting situations thAi u uocT ho '
the intellect greatly TO understand Ana 80 u "Pf"'
70 he very wise Providence that made the Bple u"
matte . ,,
There is another preliminary point that want S"u
sbonId uoree We need only b. satisfied Oh Tue
historic accuracy of the narrative nut We Wa"' Ao "
he salts fed that there Is ncthing III tLe Slor! Su'
tisly exceptional to what IL occurring now l"'ic
otion continnsl. getting hold Of mnds hat things
used to be essentially different from What 'h'! "'' "'"'
that events which took place thirty or forty centuries
,poesnccollv in Plcstnc-occurrcd under an Almost
totally distnc; regime from the one operatve III thc NJ
| tory that IL being wrought in cur own ohEituic "
generation aud thar historic principles ana INC h"'"''
sruuruce and consequence OF events nave nreh "'o'
by eir tran sference from sacred TO proiane SOIL A7
that philosophy OF history and of lie centuries p'i"
| Christ is not exactly as valid FOR you ana
fr me eighteen centuries after Christ and shat the acc
atatlons Scripture which passed al thef pa 'a"' "
the days OF Moses aud Solomon arc nos nj 10 serve
] now as a medium OF exchange between lntcllsc"
minds aud earnest hearts without being discounted 10
the cxten that this conception peryades the minus o'
mon to inst that extent the Old Testament ceases to be
practical reality and the vital fact in the WORLDS ne
and growth. If did not feel perfectly pcrsuade '@'
the story OF David aud Goliath IN IT. statement OF eNehs
not only hut in its explanation and philosophy OF
events Is and relevant to us today as the sermon
pcachod by Christ the Mount, would no more bihg
| il into CHRISTIAN pnlpt aud found sermon upon 1t
than would seek to cnliyen my hours OF loneliness by
/ popnIating my rooms with blcached bones eGcaVateu
| from the CataCOmbs.
Now with this conception Of the story We shall find II,
on examination. To be an neXhaustibc mine oi hcpu-
| ness 70 every man aud woman who sincerely Graves
| Lelp There Is not OF n but tnat at one
| time or another is placed precisely where David
was in from Of our Goliath and VITA no weapons WIN
/ which to confront the panopcd champion but hNc
stones and sling 70 TIE cry We raise to heaven we
want an answer come IN some shape beside abstract
priucipcs. when pray, Give us TIL. DAY our dlIy
hfrad - no Inn VIII answer but bread And wndt We
want az stand M IN prayer confronting our conan
Is q concrete, sousalisYng answer huu ln inS ,t'
! from the liz Of DAVID have that precisely This
young stripping out oi Jqdah s,i4dI % neiotS us ~ s"
tiou Of tine problem " ioW sHat win lle i"l.ii ~ o.
my resources accom- ish what God ias committed To
me 10 be done ~ Z Zans"TttDE , tu1v si "oti Gr.t
rather IN letting DAVID Hh5W.i lN' ,, li ~ ~
thc quality OF the purpose why wa- David ambitious
10 slay Goliath and rout his follow = Ihis v's h'
purpose, That all the cath NAV hH"" mn ~"
! God IN racl" IHcrc Ta7 nothing DdNii "ould nave
burning passion Of his soul To shed The uusancth.d
| blood OF ms opponent nni ms iuIlo-c ,., "a' "ot
LII this point you and / mus' Doe careful How
ever reasonable and ic gent purpose NAV De- t ms
not the promise % q slaughtered Goliath init unless 10
hem per.nadc the world tna there j. cod n Israel
You are merchant, which means tAat you arc seeking
10 accumulate property by means Of trade. ami YOU
ad0p;ed tat c.pl6,mtut because YOU Judged it tigt
and proper ono g." ad"gt You do.o.1 tbc ', y',, oi
accumulation ui wealth. OF course YOU d" th"t u YOU
are Christian merchant; there j. hoih'h- ""h I'D
| you There ls a criticism. olcutmr, mildoul-.,
made upon Christian proic-s ona' an business m. -
1ns,o's,1 Tl,n i,or ., errrtir' ti4t bu.,,-. H.
rHIIIg lfE ftlf f.taff "a q A
nu,,5 u' ,5hle 10 God by being aohc In way
tSlt'US ,Gli Show thi the prcacler's L,ar is ouy
half enlisted We somciin' de- sair . 'ii'r ~ lAr
ministry a- the bu. oirc. Every ontc is Joy i a.
the oncc unto witch tine Lord Has elect u, and very
thus ia that Office su tIdt is MT done "ttu a Ga"
acumru ana cucr-y with winch w." have h,'n 'no"wed.
ample ol David 300 thc r.eoui"uc.- add whole hearted
Of hi. attempt hef j., one sr' iIllh'i h "hl,h
We have 10 follow HIM whatever energy mas h' &C.
voted 10 our purpose II D, holy pnf!9se ony %, . c,
-cously leans for ard toward hn ehl iaarnHc"t ana
rc.plcudcnt Whatever editorial Tc flaj comr0- bar
gain sc may duvc discourse We may preach. The act
begins to be Christian one ahd 70 c"Aaih IN II lhr
uroti-c of Christian -ucccss wncn 10 tails into con
Thr second element Of -ucccss shag notice
ped IN The passage where David pu- bis hand into the
sIncs the Puaiue IN the forehead. DAVID had very
definite idea Of what lac ~a' ir"s TO do. Ili'
pDHi"' ppvH IN me world WIS represented. TO nm. by
| the army of the Pm.stiucs. ana the whole
army was represented by Goliath. He WAS therefore
Ipteinccniiv and deliberately striking at tlI- great
yoris +y by arriving stone into tOliAhs forehead.
Whsf we infer from tie story OF David B., 10 bc cr
Of the success proper for s I" labor after IN any
tcrs Of life men have pretty definite idea OF what 1t S
they want 10 do, ana Pe.tF denhie iu,a o me way
to do IT, in matters of Christian lie ana collective
Church fe, IL seems 10 me there ~ 5000 deal oi ihd
| ci-ion aud ambiguity. Nhth - m"N"h pnliu- pIlch
wall he doe- construct ~ collectively bui y picking
M separate bricks aud putting them together Now, 30
| The work 0i building up our own 'hI's'"h c'"'.'''7
| into "A higher mauhuOd tbric IA 30 dispensing win
much of this Same method OF procedure Ihce j. ih ny
nat needs TO he hut upun u ia Tor ne To hd oui tt
10 buiid up one reason why such general petitions
often 90 unanswered Is because We do not care r""in
10 20 10 the trouble Df Cfrtlng particular pctuous.
The gtcrng pcucfHtr+ ut our drvoiinus If, oitchcr
nan ntber,yi-e me ont .orl. ~ our spiritual .oih
There ere two ar three oincr features oi h' story
winch remain to be- uoiIccd tltd element Oi DaSiFs
urccs Inv M tc cautious adoption Of such means as
neaus. There not much t0at ~ could do. but he
dad could aud what IA. dii BE- did a. wei ms c
knew how. When stand N the presence OF our GO
at first impulse Is 70 measure his stature aud cal
cuatc the weight ul his spears head, second
Impulse is to conclude that our mcagre appliance a'c
ol 80 account, ad that therefore the Whole matter mu-t
any WORK Jodond who oi rs has uot Iour first stci
@ ,,r m Nr ,f"i 49, ~, ,i, br ot ,r., RI nur
sing with tender respect aud not dcspe It because It
ia not a sword. ana when thc tn" comes usc d na
though the issue depended totally on the manner oi
Afoirth element in DA siGs success aas that he Wa,
.ri"cnns. lie .ncscrded among Other reasons be-
cause llborcd along lJtn hat was familiar 10 him
wcnt of the doctrine fhat tue way 10 do an
extraordinary thag s not rcsurt 10 extraordinary
mems oi doing H. We can taae suggestions from thc
wisdom Of others aud learn Les others expert
cnce. but no man becomes great by Imitation Or wins
bY importation. man Ctn De- none other than
hw' eli Win any Just expcca of making success
| OF lie. Every SuccctHful outcome OF man blossoms
directly from the mau own individuality. In ordinary
secuilr cnplnymcnts our individually ~ gOOd de
| gree preserved: but when come over INTO the rc
gious domain there preach, prSy aud behave IKE
that Is OTHER tau ourselves. Let instance
prayer In our ordinary cOuvrraatOn speak nalur-
| ally with easy inf ction and spontaneous cmphasi-
But there few saints that pray they talk IL
Is our ds pOsIuOn 10 pray with assumed sanciim0ny
counterfeit Infections and with borrowed petitions. all
which Of spiritual wJX-WOrE, all tine more
| pulsivc from the lahorcducss of TIRE imitation. ono
IL NJ Inn. InL.-L LII.