The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1886-03-03

able and full Of glory.
ANOTHER WANT OF THE HUMAN SOUL
ia an adequate object of love. As the be-
searches The flowers OF summer for honey, 81
the soul Is ever In quest of some object or
which to bestow It's love. But what objec
cah fill and satisfy mans capacity for love
All history shows that there is no object un
der the sun on which the soul can settle IT.
affection with an unbroken repose; and w
know that by virtue of the laws of our ma
ture, the finite can never satisfy the craving
of our love. What will satisfy it? Words.
We cannot love words. To prize them at al
we must know and love the utterer. Jesu
Christ the divine Saviour is the preciousnes
of the soul. y Brought to faith In him 1t ex
ultantly exclaims: "In this Is our 900 ane
Christ himself removes indifference. fear, EN-
nifty, which keeps the soul from God: 1r
Christ, not III propositions is God reconcll1ne
the world unto himself Christ. and not doc
Faith IN the person of Christ. brings the sou
and God together, and SO settles the soul II
right relation to its true centre, and gives !
pence, and JOY, and completeness 10 Christ
If they would have God as the portion o
their souls. He Is the door into the loving
home of the great Father.
Thus our doctrine is enforced by all The
needs of the soul. 1t Is also implied IN th(
grand demand made upon us by the Gospel
IL more than thirty passages of the Gospe
according to st. John, we find with reference
to Christ, "beieving in me" believing IN
him." or "bclieVing in the Son." The same
lists. and by Peter and Paul. The Scripture:
represent faith In Christ Ms the 'w0rk of God,
MS the grand condition of salvation, rs the
means Of usefulness. "He that believeth or
me, the works that do shall he do also, anc
greater works than these shall he do" 1t IL
himself, and not doctrine, which Is made, the
grand subject Of Christian cotnmemoratiGn
Do this in remembrance or me- Ho" sig
nihcant! Not of my death as on abstrac
fact, not of any event in my life, but of my
self Recur to my history only to learn wila
am now in love and In power to save. He
not abstract doctrines. Is representei as the
grand subject of the Christian ministry
teaching every man. that we may present e,y
cry man perfect In Christ Jesus. He Ia the ob
Ject to which MI true Christian teaching
points. When the Saviour walked and talked
"beginning a, Moses and all the prophets he
expounded the things concerning himself,
and thus he did through all his ministry
Teaching the nature OF God, lie declares. me
that hath seen menme' ne the personal az oarS.n aaivo
tion of man, he makes himself the object o.
thought. OF trust, Of love. It has been wei
said, III you develop human soul, you mnSl
In some way develop it's feelings to anotheI
soul" Personal attachment to the personal
Christ is the Saviour's method of salvation.
Salvation is the right relationship Of our
life to this oneabSolutcly perfect person. ~
we, like the hewIldered youth on A1t. Moriall
ing?" The Scriptures direct orr eye to Christ
"IIe gave himself for our sins" "He ap
peared to put away sin by the sacrifice q
himself" We learn to say, ''He gave h1msel
torme.', Thepersonnl Christ is not only oul
lawgivcr but also our law No decalogue
will suffice rs q law for lis. We wanta life. a
living example, n mighty personal leader
In Jesus Christ himself we behold obedience
presented in an attractive form. and SO that we
Himself ii hat6 E suffered, being tempted The
con vert of the Church In All sorrow is to oe e
you always The power and, life of the
Church Is not In creed and rituals. or IN elo
quence, music. or architecture. but the pres
ence OF Christ presen in its assemblies. There
is no Church If I1e is not present. lie Is In ihe
lecture the chief cornerstone was essential
to the building. He Is the head, and If he be
removed, there is no body. but: a decapitatcu
trunk. Jesus Christ himself Is the Revelation
Of God. the salvation of men, the Lamb O.
God that talk eth away the sin of the world
the embodiment of divine law, the comfort OF
the sOrrowing, the life and head OF the
Church. In Jesus Christ himself as He is pre-
sented in the Gospel also we have the best
evidence of the divinity Of the Scriptures that
can be presented to the world. And SHINE
the personal Christ is your final judge. Your
life is lived under his eye, and In the end you
will be conscious Of your responsible relation
to him. We must all appear before the judy
ment seat Of Christ. Christianity is reVela"
tion of personal relation.
ALL MEN ARE RELATED TO JESUS CHRIST
IF NOT AS A SAVIOUR, CERTAINLY AS
JUDGE.
Sufficient has, conceive, been advanced tc
show, that the true faith OF the Gospel means
faith-trust-in Jesus Christ Himself, and not
belief in propositions, what ever the character
and amount of doctrine, such propositions
may represent.
would now conclude by using the subject
to explain three remarkable facts, and TO an
swer an important question. It is fact that
many religious professors make sad conf
plants concerning their faith. Who has not
heard in every religious circle expressions
like these: II feel that my faith Is very fee
BILE, I cannot take hold upon the promises,
is to believer" What do these prevalent com
plants Indicate? That the faith of those who
who make them Is directed TO propositions
rather than to Il person. No one feels any
difficulty in beliving In person OF undouDt
ed goodness and integrity, who is known tc
have the will and the power to help, and the
constancv necessary to secure unaulterlns
friendship. DO you ever hear the CHILD OF pa
rents whose love Is genuine, and honesty In
corruptible, say have great difficulty in be-
lieving in my father or my mother, and IN
"laying hold of their promises" DO you ever
hear u wife say in relation 10 4 husband, VINO
has ever appeared to her incapable OF doing a
wrong act: IL am distressed that cannothave
a stronger faith in him." No, and II the iaitf
of religious people were directed to the Sa
viour Himsef, we should not hear all this
sentimental lamentation. Indeed If you be
lieve in Him, you will accept his doctrines
even though you cannot understand them
acquiesce in his procedure; although you lal
to appreciate or even TO discern It's wisdom
II l believe in q man. / take his, WORD
If believe in Christ accept His revelations
Belief in Him Is in fact necessary In order
rightly to believe His words, and duly appre-
hend their meaning.
Our doctrine explains also
THE WEAKNESS OF THE CHURCH
in its efforts to Christianize the world. When
Christ descended from the mount of transfiy.
uration he found that his disciples had been
trying to cast out demon, but had tniled
and on their asking him, the cause OF theiI
failure, he said, "because of your unbeliel
rs grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto
this mountaip, remove hence, unto yonde1
pldce, and 1t shall remove, and nothing shall
has talked much about its faith, has fought fol
It's faith has bled for its faith, has even perse
cuted for its faith, but alas, too often Its ialtf
has meant some verbal articles, some logica
system, some honored human tradition, rath
er than the living, loving, personal, present
Son of Man and Son of God. Faith in Jesus
Christ Himself would enkindle enthusiastic
zeal, and beget heroic self.devotlOn, till the
duty of ministers would be not to urge mer
to more labor and liberality, but to restrain
them from efforts and offerings beyond theil
ability. Even the best cause needs 10 be rep
resented in glorious leader, worthy for hi
own sake OF all admiration and oil love In or
der fully to enlist mems hearts. The thirt
fact which the subject explains Is the divis
ions which lesson the strength and mar th'
symmetry OF the visible church.
If all the members of all the denomination
believed with q living faith in the persona
christ, divisions would oenSe. Christ woult
be the centre, and all would flow to Him, antt
so flow together. There would still be diversl
ty of opinion, but common love would rule
all, and cause this diversity only to brig ghteIt