Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1884-04-21

~ Angusta Pastors.
Ihe services at Augusta churches we're
hardly a. fully attended yesterday a. usual
on fair days. These we're no services q. the
Mstnodist church on account of the absence
OF the pastor, who was attending the confer
ance at Bath.
Ar THE USIvERsALIsr.
Rev. Mr.. Thacher preached at this church
Yesterday, taking his text from Matthew VI:
SO; Take. therefore. no thought of the
morrow" Thi. discourse vas noticed in the
columns Of the Journal a few weeks since,
MI. Thatcher having at the time delivered in
in his own pulpit.
Ar THE FREE BAPTIST. -
The sermon was BY Mr.. Cox, of Lewiston
Text, John XIII "a, Sc: "a new command
ment give unto you, that We love one anoth-
er as l have loved you; that ye also love one
another. By this shall all men know that
you ere my disciples, if We have love, one to
another" Theme, christian love- The
disciples are sorrowful and dissatisfied be-
cruise their master is soon to leave them-not
fuinlllng their expectations by setting up a
kingdom, and giving them places of impor-
lance and trust. The Savior takes the op.
portunity TO teach them to love one another.
Christian love should be stronger than our
differences Of opinion because we love and
serve the5same Savior. We are exhorted to
forbear one another in love. If we love
Christ we shall love one another. The Saw
lor rebuked the disciples for their narrow
ness, but he did it in love. In proportion as
We love Christ we shall esteem it an honor to
be member of his family. When christians
labor shoulder to shoulder snd heart TO heart
then shall the work go forward and the cry
OF victory rent the air.
AT THE CONGREGATIONAL.
The pastor, Rev. A. F. Skeele, preached
from Luke II 40: And he said unto them
How is it that you sought me? Wist We not
that must be about Ey fathers business:"
What is it to live christian life? II is not
to be silent or inactive. Christian life must
show itself by superior vitality. Christianity
has always distinguished itself by superior
strength. The first thought in the text as
shown in the life of Christ is that God was
has father. A christian must know and feel
that he is son of God And then as a
prince, son of king, act accordingly. The
second thought as shown in the life OF Christ.
is that the christian life is business life
Christ was not on the street, but in the tenn
pie about his fathers business. Make your
christian life a life of business. Put the
same energy into it that you do into worldly
BUSINESS. Honesty is the best policy" is
business maxim. Is it the maxim of your
christian life? The question comes to every
christian how much Owest thou? What do
you owe to God? Put your business maxim
into practice here, and honestly pay what
you owe him.
AT THE UNITARIAN.
The Rev Mr.. Gledhill occupied the pulpit
at this church, and took for his text the words
found in acts TX IS, &c, 81 and So: "Lord
what wilt thou have me to do?" etc. Practi-
cally, it is impossible to separate being and
doing in the christian character, and there
fore it is difficult to determine which is the
more to be preferred, holiness or usefulness.
The christian idea is that they are always to
go together. and that the separation of them
makes fatal breach in the character. I'm
happily they are often separated. In the pop
ular literature of the times it frequently hap
pens that a type OF character is set forth in
the hero whose only virtue is a generous i'm
pulse which leads him to do some self sacri-
fcing deed. Integrity and purity are not
only divorced from benevolence, but are
even contrasted with it. We cannot too soon
understand that generosity can never be
substitute for integrity, However, there is
choice between the two and in fixing our aim
in life the preference must be given to benev
olence rather than to holiness; to service
rather than to culture. The law of life is
the law of love, and love leads mans
thoughts onward rather than inward. Moth
ing can be done for the publication of any
mans character till he ceases to make self
the center of his thought and effort. Pauls
question, then. was the right one: "What
wilt thou have me 70 be?'' The being is the
result of the doing. We must adopt the same
rule of service that he adopted, although the
kind of service we render may be different.
1t is in the less conspicuous virtues of life
that we shall wisely begin to be imatators of
the Master. The christian service which we
are called to do in cur homes is perhaps the
most important of any service We can render,
and the man who is thoroughly good at home
can hardly fail to have influence away from
home, while he who fails here can hardly ex
pect that his words of profession in public
places will be with power.
Ar THE FIRST BAPTIST.
The pastor, Rev. Mr.. Tilden, preached an
able sermon. Text, Romans XIV :l-2: "We
then that are strong enough to bear the in
firmites of the weak and not to please our
selves. Let everyone of us please his neigh
Dor for his good to edifcation.' Paul was
writing to the christian church at Rome, in
which were all conditions of people, and his
object was to to teach them how to live to-
gether as christians should. After dwelling
on many important particulars, he sums them
all up in this text 1.-The law 10, the posses
sion of strength lays the possessor under OBJ
legations to the weak People are naturally
gregarious, but they do not naturally par
monte with either. Sin is disintegrating,
centrifugal force; christian love a centripetal
force. The latter not only brings people to-
gether, but it brings them into harmo-
NOUS, happy association. Each christian be-
longs to the other No one says call thine
is mine,'' but everyone says call mine is
thine" First, the ground of this obligation
of the strong TO the weak is that every
christian is bought with price. He is not
his own. We belong to Christ, and we can
not better give ourselves to Him than by
serving the weak ones for whom He has
died Second, the strong cannot render this
service without feeling it. Christ felt that
virtue went out of Him when He healed the
sick. 1t is easier to scold about an others
faults than it is to help our brother correct
them; to take them upon OURSELVES the wav
tho tevt means A pcrson's lnfirmities are