The Portland daily press., 1888-03-22

better with prophecy of the best-the omni-
presence OF mind-the unity of force in cor
relation of forces. Revelation teaches the
same truth in word of Moses and Isaiah, OF
Paul and Jesus The Scriptures are not
Of nd DSt
The Old Testament proclams the, soyer-
eighty of God. The New Testament declares
it with equal emphasis. We say, then, tnai
the Sovereign of the Universe has an END
to reach and means to use in order to achlese
His end. We say, taught by Reason. Science
and Revelation, that the end of Sovereign
who is Father must be the perfection of HIS
creatures. This is their final holiness and
happiness
rewards to make men continue in the doing
of the right-punishment to make them
cease doing evil-Jesus Christ who, by lie
and teachings and death, draws all men unto
himself.
Under the sovereignty of God. reward
must do its work. Under this, punishment
must end in improvement. Under this, the
mission of Christ must be fulfilled.
All men, then, will turn at last from sin to
goodness and to Christ. Man has free VIII,
bat it is limited. He can choose his time OF
yielding to God. But brought into the
world without his consent Influenced by en-
vironment and heredity, he cannot sin so
greatly as to deserve endless punishment
he cannot defy God. 1t is Gods will that all
men shall be delivered from sin.
That will must be done since God Is sover-
eign. Mr.. Blanchard gave Illustrations OF
the great comfort this doctrine gives. He
spoke of a wife yearly craZed as, sitting by
the body of her husband, she feared that he
was "l0st"-0f dying man, once Congre-
gationalist, who had asked him to give his
reasons for being Universalist-of a wom-
an, wretched to the point OF despair, now at
peace-Of a venerable Unlversalst father OF
a good Methodist, who dying, said, 1T Is
l,,.t.r hon, or
without fear to their father who is Ruler OF
the Universe Nothing is beyond His con
troll. He puts bound to evil. lie gives trl-
umph to the good. Let this new church
stand for this glorious doctrine. Let Its
worshippers surveying the world, and look
ing into its future ages and into the higher
life, have the faith and courage and peace
which came to Paul and Christ because they
believed in God as the Saviour Of all men.
Rev. Geo. Ii. Emerson, ID. d., followed Mr..
Blanchard upon the subject, "Universalism
| Vindicates Divine Providence" DR.. Emer-
son spoke of the difference in the feeling now
prevailing among the denominations with
| that OF former years, and illustrated his ad-
| dress by some very pointed and amusing an
| ecdotes. The speaker continued by IN
| quiring what we mean by divine Providence.
The world, he said, was under the reign OF
| law. but if this were all there was no place
| for divine Providence. The speaker quoted
| the words of the Psalmist, what Is man
/ that thou ART mindful Ol ulll, anu Sone'h
| ued by saying that it was this mindfulness
| of God for man that constituted Providence.
| If the imperative of the Psalmist is genuine
| when he said IF go to the uttermost parts
| of the earth, there thou wilt be also. this is
| divine Providence. 1t is the thoughtfulnesS
| of God. Ii we had no sorrows aud grle1 5
| there would be no need of Providence. 1t Is
| because there are things we can't understand
| that we think of God as taking care OF us.
| There are two fundamental idea of divine
Providence, LIST, the legal ideas; ID, the patei-
| nal idea. The first is Calvinistic, the second
| is the Universalist idea Both agree that
the purposes of God are to yindicate His
glory, sovereignty, and law; and
all believe that God desires the highest good
to men. The difference is which is prlnci-
pal and which is subordinate. Universalism
believes the latter is principal. Calvinism
holds the first is principal.
The speaker continued by asking why, If
the purposes of God were indicative, many
of the things in the world that we most
dread, are in reality blessings In conclu-
sion he said the facts of nature are in accord
with the paternal nature of God.
At the close of Mr.. Emerson's remarks,
Miss Winchester sang a solo "Sancta Maria,
with fine effect.
Rev. 1. j. Mead being unable to be present
on account of illness, the pastor made few
remarks soliciting subscriptions in aid OF the
church. The exercises of the evening closed
with hymn 347 and the benediction by the
pastor Seventy-nine people took the train
at Cumberland Mills for Portland at 1910
o'clock