Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-06-30
Ministers Who Succeed.


foolishness of preaching, but not by foolish
preaching. There is a good deal of foolish
preaching. What wonder If stand-up essays
stepped in poppy JUICE should send the congre-
cation to the land of Nod? Who is to blame
when barrenness follows the sowing of nothing7
The reason why manya preacher has not bet
ter "luck'' in fishing for men, afirms a sue
cessful pastor, is that he will insist upon whip
ping stream already fshed out, or in trying
| to catch salt fish in fresh waters, or in flying
for salmon where only mudfsh abound, and
not infrequently in angling on dry ground.
Sometimes, too, the preacher makes the mis-
take of absorbing all functions into himself.
But he should train others to work. What are
the deacons for, or the elders. or the members?
The reason why the gospel fleet has been out
expert, is because the captains of the vessels
have been trying to work their ships alone,
carrying the crews as passengers, and them
selves doing the steering, handling all the sails
from lib to pennant, besides washing the deck
and working the guns: only occasionally calling
on a raw hand, who obeys the order to reef q
sail by casting out an anchor.
The men who succeed in the ministry are
those who have the faculty, native or acquired
of calling out and adjusting the activities Of
order; but see to it that the others follow. One
man, in this gunpowder age, cannot storm and
capture redoubt. -
Divine Sympathy With Workers.
out more constantly than this of the divine
sympathy with work and workers. The drones
may be troubled to find scriptural warrant
for their idleness-to find anything but ebuke
as where the wise man exclaims THE slug
gard will not plow; therefore shall he begin
harvest and have nothing" But as for the
sons and daughters of labor they walk star
crowned and clothed in beatirudes. Jesus spent
80 years of his 33 upon earth in carpenters
- T. a.
significant utterances is this: My Father
worketh hitherto, and l work" When he was
about to set out upon the campaign of the
earth's redemption, he selected his staff officers
from among the hardy children of labor-tough
fishermen like Peter, James and John, tent.
makers, like Paul.
most illustrious epoch.makers belonged to the
same class. Abraham. Isaac, Jacob, Job, were
berdsmen. The law-giver. Moses, the minstrel.
King. David. the prophets Elisha and Amos
were shepherds. Israel itself in manifold
splendid passages is represented as herd,
whose shepherds are prophets and kings. Let
the church continue to rest low down among
the people. And look you, friend StucE-up.
take off your kid gloves and go to work if you
would rest by and by in glory.
Phnrisees and Sndducecs.
To-day is devoted by the Sunday schools of
America to review of the last quarters les
sons. The grand theme has been the culminat.
the persons who have figured prominently we
find the disciples. the devoted women who were
last at the cross and earliest at the sepulcher,
and the Pharisees and Sadducees. The Phari-
sees are quite familiar-are they not yet with
us? The Sadducees are not SO well known
Hence we quote descriptive sentence or two
from the Bible Class Primer:
The Sadducees seem TO have been in the first
instance neither religious sect nor a political
r1ar " INIT q n ripal 1rr has
were much smaller body than the Pharisees
and belonged for the most part to the wealthy
and influential priestly families who formed
absorbing interest in the secular side Of poll |
tics placed them in radical opposition to the |
Pharisees. Their leaders were the elders who |
had seats IN the Council the military officers, |
the statesmen and officials who took part in the
management of public affairs. Their religious |
position was little more than protest against !
the extreme demands which the Pharisaic sys- |
TEN made on faith and conduct. |
To the Messianic hope they were profoundly |
Indifferent. They denied the doctrine of the |
whose thoughts and aims were confined to the |
present life, and they had no interest in a |
spiritual world or life beyond the grave.
The Genufneness of the Gospels.
One Of the most eminent authorities on the |
Bible is DR.. William Smith, the compiler of
the "Bible Dictionary" which is a monument |
of ability and learning In speaking of the
four gospels. he remarks: 1t may be fairly
said that the genuineness of these four narra-
tives rests upon better evidence than that Of
any other ancient wri tings. They were all COM
posed during the latter half of the first CEN
tury: those of Matthew and Mark some years
before the destruction of Jerusalem: that of
Luke about A. d. 81, and that of John toward |
the close of the century. Before the end of
the second century there is abundant evidence |
that the four GOSPELS, as one collection, were
rho Iaxv- i
ish mind in its lowest decay should have IN
vented the character of Jesus of Nazareth,
and the sublime system of morality contained
In its teaching; or that four writers should
have fixed the popular impression IN four plain,
simple and unadorned narratives without any
outbursts Of national prejudice, or any attempt
to give political tone to the events they wrote