National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1885-02-23
GOD AND AIAMMON.
Rev. Alexander CrummeIl Shows That
Man Cannot Serve Two Masters.

Man Cannot Serve Two Masters.
Rev. Alexander Crummell, rector of st.
Luke's Church, corner of Fifteenth street
and Madison avenue, preached an elo-
quent sermon yesterday, taking his text
from St. Matthew vi, "a: "Ye cannot
serve God aud Mammon." 1t seems i'm
possible, said the speaker, that any man
can mistake the meaning of these words,
either the letter or the spirit of them.
They are evidently plain and distinct
declaration that God will have no part
nership in his possession of mans heart
and affections.
But another great power and person
comes forward and says, ~ too must
have a share in your heart. You must
serve me as we'll as God. You may give
him one-half of your heart, but you must
serve mo rs we'll" This is the claim of
Mammon. The Saviour interposes with
this most absolute negative: "Ye cannot
serve God and Mammonw
/. The impossbility Of this divided allie
glance is set before US among the facts of
scripture on divers occasions. The Bible
brings before US the career of both indi-
viduals aud peoples who have made the
rash endeavor repudiated in the text: it
shows us their signal failure and the
utter confusion they brought upon them
selves. We soc this in the attempt to set
up the golden calf by Aaron at Mt. Sinai;
the hot wrath of the Almighty swept
away thousands OF them. thus testifying
to the whole nation that the God of Israel
would tolerate no divided allegiance in
his chosen people. So likewise He
visited tho captivity TO Babylon as
punishment for their base apostacy to
idol worship.
9. But how are we to account for these
facts? What is the ground Of this incom.
patibility of the service Of God and
mammon2
(a.) 1t arises from the great principle Of
relig ion that God Is TO be first. % This
principle is further enforced by the con-
sideration Of that law of our nature, viz:
That we are mastered by one feeling or
principle or sentiment and not by two or
three. Thus the lewd man is governed
by lust He may drink, he may be q
glutton, but il is lust which is his master
His other baser passions are only minis
tiers and servants to his master principle.
Sometime avarice is the master passion.
Tho man is sober and virtuous, but
greed, the inordinatO love of money is
the root of his being, and takes the place
| of God.
Now II is true that men are sometimes
lewd and ambitious; sometimes greedy of
gain and gluttOnous; a man can be sin
ner in a hundred ways. but you will
notice 1t is but the one vice which is the
master passion.
1t is precisely tho same in religion. II
a man is hohammedan, he cannot be
at the same time Christian, for the heart
cannot tone simultaneously two opposite
things. IL can't recognize two Gods, the
one directly unlike the other. 1t cannot
serve God who is the good, aud at the
same time serve another God who is the
| devil
3. Two or three lessons spring from the
subject before US; Ia We learn that the
service of God is in its nature single and
unmixod. 1t requires the grayitation OF
all the strongest currents Of our higher
nature to the person and the heart Of our
Redeemer, (b) Another lesson is the
duty Of tho denial Of self. Give all fol-
all; hold back nothing; sell all you have
mako tho most painful sacrifice TO sec rG
eternal life in this world and everlasting
salvation in the world to come,
/