The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1885-06-13
COMMENCEMENT EXERCISES.
The Proceedings Up to the Time
of Going to Press.
THE BAccALAUREATE.


The sermon was an admirable one
In the first place it contained thought
and thought logically arranged; in
the second place the speaker used
) plain, simple and meaning words to
express his ideas, and in the third
place it was delivered in such a way
as to be distinctly heard throughout
the entire hall. 1t is not an uncom.
mon thing to hear people who are en-
titled to an opinion, say that it was
the best sermon of the kind ever de
livered at the University. OF course
this is broad statement, but it Ger
tainly is not very extravagant one.
A large audience was present. Per
feet stiffness reigned throughout the
entire services. This fact alone is
enough to establish the superstition
that it was an uncommon effort. Be
low is n brief abstract of the sermon
THE GENESIS OF HUMAN SIN: GEN. Ill, l. 6.
The Fall of Man herein described WAS
the fall not of one but of all. Adam
was not man only but the federal
head and representative of the race.
His act was putatively our act and
his state is our state. Thus the i'm
age of God was blotted from the soul
and the development Of the race was
brought to rude stop, while to this
event is traceable the disease and
suffering and death with which the
world is filled-the world below man
as well as man himself, for the curse
fell on the whole creation, which
''groaneth and travaileth in pain to-
gether until now"
One school of evolutionists denies
the Fall on the ground that human
history has been one of steady pro-
gress from low and simple to high
and complex state. We must empha-
size the words one school, for large
and influential class Of evolutionary
philosophers hold along with their
theory the doctrine of the Fall and
all other doctrines of the Bible. By
the school referred to above, it is
urged that archaeology teaches the
steady advance of man in the nipple
ments used, that comparative ethnol-
ogy teaches the progress Of man in
civilization from state more or less
like that of our present savage tribes,
and that comparative philology
teaches that the highly complex
languages of to-day are developed
from forms low and simple. Wemay
cordially admit the development
while we deny the intended inference,
viz: that the development began at
mans earliest existence. The early
man of science is not proven to be
man. in his original state and the
theory of degereration-that man as
found in scientific Investigations is
not primal, but fallen and degraded
from a state holy and perfect-must
be confuted before this school of evo-
lutionists can consider their claim
established. Besides, the tradition
of the Fall is universal, the records
of heather nations contain references
to ii though sometimes obscurely, and
above all the words of the text which
are no myth or legend teach it as an
historical fact.
The Fall of Man was accomplished
by Satan, himself an angel fallen
from heaven. God had given every
tree of the garden Of Eden save one
to Adam and Eve and of this one He
had forbidden them to eat on pain of
death. 1t was Satan's selfappointed
task to make them dsobey and eat
The present occasion requires the
limitation of our study to one out of
several interesting questions here
arising The object is to trace the
genesis of human sin and note the
steps by which holy soul was made
sinful and as Ewes sin was first we
naturally consider it.
l. "Hath God said?" The ques-
ton implies reverence for God but
doubt as to one of Gods commands.
The purpose Of it was to fracture the
certainty as to Gods will which per-
vaded the mind of Eve. SO the
tempter asserted nothing and denied
nothing, he was content to question.
If Eve could be brought to doubt the
clearly expressed will of God, the
way to sin would be we'll opened. |
The effort proved successful. The
doubt entered the mind and Eve
represented the warning of God "ye
shall surely die" as ''lest We die"-a
chance, risk rather than an abso-
lutte certainty. AND here long before
she ate of the fruit was the first sin
committed.
Sin comes to us first in doubts and
questions. Hath God said that the
wicked will perish foreverY Hath
God said that there is no salvation
out of Christi The doubt enter
tanned soon relaxes the hold on the
word of God and opens the way to
unbelief.
Agnosticism, the intellectual vice
of the day, illustrates this principle.
1t does not deny the existence of God |
but often asserts in terms apparently |
reverent a Supreme Being; yet it de-
MES that we can know Him or form
true ideas of His nature. 1t refuses
to see God while He has revealed |
Himself beyond question; it rejects
the evidence which He supplies. 1t
therefore is sin for to doubt what
God reveals as certainty is sin of
heinous type.
Two distinctions must he taken
between philosophic doubt, which is
commendable and moral doubt
doubt concerning duty to man and
God-which is sinful; between Sa-
tan's suggestion of doubt and our
harboring of doubt.
II. aye shall not surely die" Sa-
tan now boldly contradicts The Word
of God and assigns a blasphemous
reason to- account for the divine pro.
hibition. Ewes mind poisoned by
doubt is easily carried ON to unbe-
lief. Three marks of unbelief of all
kinds appear here:
l. Gods word is contradicted. aye
shall'' says God, "ye shall not says
Satan.
2. False promises are made, for
Eve did die and instead of being as