The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-06-18
Mr. Jones Thinks that More Souls Have Stun
bled Into He'll Over Different Kinds of
Theology than Anything Else.
An Immense Crowd Gathers to Hear the
Sermon That Converted Sam Small.
Mr.. Jones Appeals with Much Force to the
Consciences Of Sinners, and Is Rewarded
with Responses to His ExhortatiOns.
THE DAY MEETINGS.

Mr.. Jones Says Christian Hnmbug Is a
| Moral Monstrosity in the Universe.
| The audience which assembled to hear Mr.
Jones yesterday morning crowded Meridian
street Church to its full capacity. The opening
| prayer was offered by DR.. Gilbert, and the
hymns sung were Washed in the Blood of the
Lamb. s'Still There's More to Follow" Bring
ing in the Sheaves,n ''rve Found Friend in
Jesus" and Precious Promise" The text of
Mr.. Jonesis sermon was:
Herein is love- not that we love God but that He
loves and gave His Son to be Precipitation for
sins. We eloved Him because He first loved us.
| He said The divine side of this question is
contained in the first verse; Herein is love- and
the human side in the second verse, I'VE love
| Him because he first loved u.s." It may have
been my wrong conception of the truth as l
learned it from the pulpit, or it may have been
false conception Of the truth the part of the
preacher, but declare to you to-day that was
taught, and to certain extent believed, that
| Jesus Christ was but a victim between Gods
wrath and me- got that idea from the pulpit,
too, that if Jesus had not consented to go the
cross and let Goo pour out the vials of His wrath
on Him that God would have wiped ort the
whole race. He was mad, terrible mad and His
you ever hear such ideas as that preacned9 /
want to tell you that right out of this belief
growed all the infidelity that exists in the world
| oday. You make me believe that God was ever
| mad at anybody ever had a grudge against
| anybody, and you will make me an
| infdel Brother, listen. God never poured
| His vials of wrath on Christ or
| anybody else. He was never mad at anybody.
The man who says that God loves the world be-
cause Christ died for it, don't understand the Bible
and what it teaches; for Christ died for the world
| because God loved it. That's it, Jesus Christ
| is the expression of Gods kindness and love for
the world, and it hurts my feelings to hear some
old preacher get up and tell how God poured the
vials of His wrath upon His only begotten Son.
and if Christ hadn't got in somehow, He would
done cleared up the whole race. That's a lie;
that won't do. You might make the ignorant be-
| lieve it, bu. you can't make me believe it. Jesus
is the loving expression of the loving heart of
| God, and His death made it possible for us to
live and die like him and 60 to heaven.
| l don't think that the introduction of the moral
| atonement in any way disturbed the laws of
God. That conception of the atonement that
Christ came and bore it all for US, and that if we
only believe in Him we can do as we please, is
all wrong. The conclusion is wrong and will
+! lead you to hell God can never save any man
| from hell until Jesus Christ has saved him from
| sin. You notice that every time Christ pre-
| figured judgment He put it that the man
! was condemned commended for what he
| had had not done. Brother, there
amt much said about faith in all these things,
| do you notice thats We are not judged accord
| ing to our faith but according to the deeds done
| 10 the body Now, somebody will say, "Jones
LzJz = e,ssA
is anything do believe in, it is faith combined
| with good works The best evidence l have
| that piece of ground will raise crop of corn
| is that have plowed it deep, and tried it, and
| it dij raise corn. don't believe a single thing
| now that did not believe before was convert
| ed. Never in my life did I doubt the truth of
| the Bible that Jesus Christ the Son of
| God just believed it all for twenty one years,
| and went straight within half mile of hell;
but for thirteen years, thank God, / have not
| only been believing. but have been doing.
We are running terribly behind in this country
| in good works. When you sum up religion it is
| a trinity in one-something to love, something
| to do and something to hope for Let's get
| away from this old idea that all we have to do is
to believe. The people who say they believe in
churches, Sunday schools and missions, and
don't DO anything for them, are cheats and hum
| bugs in the eyes of Jesus Christ. Christian
hunbug and sham s a moral monstrosity the
universe Heaven is real, God is rea hell is
real, the devil is real, and if you are not real you
| have got out of the plane OF God This is the
only world that's got any sham in it. can put
up with any sort of humbug better than re-
ligious humbug-a man who processes every
thing and does nothing.
Here is my theology; it is all need. If you
want to do good God will help you to do good:
and if you want to DO bad the devil will help
you That's enough theology for any body
More blood has been shed over creeds and more
souls stumbled into he'll over different kinds of
theology than for anything ese There are a
,nA on hap in Ipdi rc1ir hO
forsake sin and do right who are So confused
over creeds that they don't know what to do
The great groundwork of faith is based on first
love- God loves every man. and He loves Us all
alike | have heard Of churches which claimed
to be the only church of God The old hard
shells do it, believe L don't know how they
up here. but if they are the same they are
| down in Georgia the Lord has turned over the
whole business to mighty ignorant crowd.
| Laughter. Them old fellows with gray jeans
| on, who never read hundred pages in their
! lives saying they've got corner grace and
monopoly on religion! Think OF it! Take and
blow the whols lot from off the face of the earth
and they wouldn't be missed for ten years. Now.
/ like some OF them pretty WE'LL but | must tell
| the truth about this matter Somebody says
God loves Christians better than ne does sinners.
| Where did you get thats Not in the Bible.
| God loves the sinners as we'll as the best,
and if there is any difference he loves the
| sinner better than he does the Christian.
asked my wife tue other day why it Was she
treated me better when was poor, miserable
drunkard than she does now, and she said. Old
| fellow, you needed it more them There's good
| old mother over there who has FIVE sons four of
them preachers, and the other drunken vaea
| bond, poor John. You may talk about them four
as much as You please and she won't resent it,
! but Just say something again John and see how
soon she comes TO his defense That sun up there
shines on everything and everybody alike, and
why2 1t can't help it; that's its nature. God
/ loves every man alike, and whyl Because He
can't help it; that's His nature. His great heart
goe. out like the gushing of river to everything
! in ths universe. Some people don't love God,
| because they don't know Him, anything about
Him. II We all knew Him, we would all love