Omaha daily bee., 1884-10-21
COUNCIL BLUFFS
ADDITIONAL LOCAL NEWS.
AIdre Creator than Human.


The pulpit of the Congregations
church Of this city was occupied on Sun
day both morning and evening by Rev
Mr.. Brooks, of Tabor, Iowa, president o
Tabor college. The text chosen for the
evening sermon was from The first chap
ter of the gospel of st. John, fourtl
verse, "In Him was life, and that life wa
the light of men"
The world is full of life. We know it
we feel it, we hear and see its effects or
every side, But can you tell me what
life is! There is mysterious some,
thing bound up in the acorn,
1t makes no noise, but in the earth 1t
bursts its shell and puts forth roots so
small that a child can easily crush it,
but they continue to increase in size and
development, branches appear, and
under the influences of sunshine and rain
it becomes in timo the mighty oak. A
grain of wheat dropped into the earth
dies, but cluster of roots appear, reach
out into the earth, sends up q stalk and
yields hundred fold. This curious
germ we call life. We do not understand
it. but know that it exists. No philoso-
pher reveals it; no researches of science
bring it to light. 1t is shrouded in i'm
penetrsble mystery to the human heart.
All life is from God but this life which
was the life of men was moro than
human life. Its effects are as clearly
shown as the effects of the animal and
vegetable life. Man had lived upon the
earth many years before Christ came.
There had been time enough to see what
the life of man could produce. There
had been periods of civilization. The
Persian and Grecisn empires had passed
away. In some of the arts they had
excelled the civilization of the nineteenth
century.
aThese nations had their Gods and their
ideas of worship, but they expected their
religion to reach beyond the power of
nation.
These civilizations had passed away,
Rome had come into power, and the
whole world was subject to the throne of
Rome. All the people were pagans ex-
cept the Jews. The Roman empire had
already reached the zenith of Its power.
The history of centuries had proven that
man needed something not yet found to
give the true life.
Man had worshipped idols and the
stars of heaven but no power had been
found to deliver him. In all the power
of the nation there was moral corrup-
tion that was sure to be destroyed.
In the fullness of time the Lord came
in the presence of Christ to bring light
and life unto the world. The Jews
were looking for Messiah to deliver
them from the bondage of Rome.
There are many considerations that
show Christ to have been more than hu-
man, and that there was in him that life
which is the light of man.
First, his beginning: How utterly un-
like anything human, that little child
of poor family, living in one of the
smallest villages and belonging to de-
spised race, should bring life and light
into the world.
The principles and purity of Christ's
life proves it to be more than human.
Even his enemies testify to the perfec-
ton of his teachings. He was light
dawning in the darkness. He was the
original teacher.
In Christ's teachings there is no strug-
Cling. There is no cropping of his way in
the darkness. He was himself the light
and in him was no darkness.
There have been in the history of the
world men who were in advance of the
age in which they lived, but Christ was
in no sense such an outgrowth or devel-
opment. Like the sun which Civ ves light
to the solar system, so Christ was the
light of man; the central figure, stand
ing above, and the history of the world
shows that no other figure will stand be-
side his.
The means which Christ used were not
adequate to produce the result they did !
Unless we admit that there was some
hing in his character outside the pale of |
human influences. He utterly discarded |
all the means used by man to gain power
md influence. Men use wealth and So
liability to gain those who have power,
out Gods ways are not our ways.
The change in the disciples, especially
John and Peter through the influence of
Christ, and his death and resurrection
be accounted for in any other way
han to admit Christ to have been pos.
essed of more than human power.
If any are disposed to deny that Christ
rose from the dead let them devise some
means to account for the conduct of the
lisciples. The Roman government &C.
,epted the christian religion. Persecu-
ion ran riot, and in 270 years from the
leath of Christ it is estimated that three
Millions of christians were put to death.
When ConBtatine came TO the throne
le accepted the religion of Christianity
nd ordered these prosecutions to cease.
)hrist's religion was of the heart of the
will. In him every man is free. "Call
10 man master" "He that would be
hief among you let him be, servant of all. "
Still another proof that this life is from
fod, Is that the system Christ gave is
omplete. The human race can never
ut grow Christianity. 1t is essential to
10 growth of moral character.
Another satisfactory proof is the
tate of christianity in the world. Un-
elievers sometimes speak of Christians
s very credulous, but certainly those
rho do not believe must be the most
of mankind. They must be
eve that the best enlightened and most
owerful nations, in some inconceivable
'ay, for reasons without foundations,
ave been imposed upon by fraud that !
hat has taken such possession of them,
lch an eternal influence, that it is more
owerful than anything else ever known.