Morning journal and courier., 1884-04-14
Trinity M E. Church.

Easter Sermon by Presiding Elder War
 delI-A Large COnEregGtion Present
 An Interesting Discourse.
 There was a large congregation at Trinity Methodist Episcopal church yesterday, many
 of them no doubt expecting to hear the in-
 troductory sermon of Rev. Dr, J. O. Peck,
 recently appointed to this charge. While
 disappointed in this, they vera not disaE-
 by Rev. w. H. Wardell, the recently ap-
 pointed presiding elder of the New Haven
 district in the New York East conference.
 The elder prefaced his sermon by few
 explanatory remarks relative to the circuna-
 stances which placed him, instead of the
 regularly appointed pastor in the pulpit, on Easter Sunday. He said that Dr. Peck wRs very weary from the Iabors of the late cons ference, it having been held in the church over which he had recently nninistered and
 he had asked him (the elder) to fill his pulpit
 to day. He had no doubt but that their new pastor would be present and preach his first
 sermon next Sunday.
 Elder Werde1 selected for his text First l Corinthians, 1928, "But every man In his ] own order; Christ the first fruits; afterW ! they that are Christ's at his coming" The preacher spoke in substance as follows: Dr. | Payne, 8 distingulshedGer commsntarian, says that this verse is the crowning glory of 1 the apostles writing. It inspires the great ] est hope in regard to our departed friends. To the Apostle Paul the thought that as l Christ lives we shall live also was his joy. ! There is no thought so inspiring on this | beautiful Easter morning as the thought of I Christ, the first fruits of them that slept. I The apostle has in mind the gathering of the | fret fFrifG nf khQ harVaak and Christ suggested himself as he rose from l the dead the Sunday following the | feast of the Passover. There can be no 1 doubt about the historical truth of Christs
 resurrection. He was first seen by Peter, ] then by the twelve, then by James. sub 1 init that the fact of his resurrection was presented by the brethren of the Coriathian
 church clearly and unmistakably. The evil denee comes to us as if it were from Pauls 1 own lips. They could not have invented such | 8 story as this and palm it of upon the world. We must relax our hopes for the fu- 1 ture if we doubt the resurrection of Christ. Paul shows that if Christ died and went down with the grave, he died as a man, that he | rose from the dead as a man and ascended | to the right hand of God, and this carries l into it the truth of the final resurrection of | the dead. As Christ has risen, so we also shall rise, and this mortal shall put on ina- 1 mortality.
 | 1b OoGOAASS Q NAGnA 4uOctAOA bh0G WO oCO GO it on this resurrection morning that we have 1 the spirit of Christ within us: Then may we
 take comfort in the thought that Christ has
 risen and that we also shall rise with him. | As Christ suffered and died and went down l into the grave so all of us must suffer and 1 die and go down into the grave. We are to | suffer with him that we may be gloriied with him. These bodies go down into the grave
 and moulder into dust, but they come forth again clothed in immortal beauty
 and vigor. Christ as the first fruits
 establishes the character of our resurrection. 1 He is the representative of our humanity. 1 So as Christ rose from the grave, so he bore
 our humanity up to the throne of God. Christ has never been seen on earth as he is; but ip
 that great day of the resurrection we shall | see him as he is and we shall be like him. | O, what will the reality be when we are
 immortal in the likeness of God and with ! Christ sit down on his throne. God help us | that we may hear the all hail of our Saviour l this morning and at last win glorious vic- 1 tory through our Lord Jesus Christi