Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1890-03-03
DR. TALNAGSs WINS AS TO TH8 POUNDA-
TONS on WHICH 1T SHOULD STAND.
Hs Moves for a Common, Universal Orsed-Away
With DOgmas and IpOlOgstiss-His
Ideas Of Infant Damna-
ton
Special Telegram to the Register.

are like Lazarus, h0bbling up the stairs
the tomb, blund hand and foot, and th,
object of this sermon is to help free theil
body and free their soul, and shall try Il
obey the Masters command that comes t(
me and comes TO every minister Of religion
Loose him, and let him CO." FIRST
many are e'bound hand and foot by religious
crteis. Let no man misinterpret me ri
anisgonizlng creeds. l have eight or ter
of them; q creed about religion, creed
aboat art. creed about social life. creed
about government, and so on. A creed il
something that man believes, whether il
be written or unwrittsn. The Presby teriaD
Church is now agitsted about its creed.
Some good men in il are for keeping it be-
cause it was
FRAMED FROM THE BELIEF
Of John Calvin. Other good men in IL
want revision. am With neither party.
Instead of revision ! want substitution. ]
was sorry to have the question disturbed
at all. The creed did not hinder us from
Offering the pardon and the comfort OF the
Gospel to all men and tbs Westminster
Confession has not inteIfered with me one
minute. But now that tie electric lights
have been turned ON the imperfeciiops Of
that creed-snd everything that man fash
ions is imperfect-let us put the old creed
respectfully aside and get brand rev
one. Itis impossible that people who lived
hundreds of years ago should fashion an
appropriate creed for our times. John
Calvin was great and good man, but he
died three hundred and twenty six yeaI s
ago. The best centuries of Bible study
hAve come since then, and explorers have
done their work, and you might as we'll
have the world go back aud stick to what
Robert Fulton knew about steam boats and
reject the subseq ueat Improvements in
navigation; and 90 back to John Gutten-
berg, the inventor Of the art Of printing,
and rtjsct all modern newspaper presses,
and 20 back TO the time when telegrsphy
was TIE elevsting of signals or the burning
of bOnfres on the hilltops, and rejsct the
magnetic wire, which is the
TONGUE OF NATIONS,
as to ignore all the exegetes and the phil
Ologisis end the theologians of the last
three hundred and twenty-six years and
pot your head under the sleeve of this
gown of a Sixteenth century doctor. l
could call the names of twenty living
Presbyterian ministers OF religion who
could make a better creei than John Gal
vim. The Nineteenth century ought not
to be called to cit at the feet OF the Six
teenth.
But" you say, ''it is the same old
Bible, and John Calvin had that es well
az the present student Of the Sculptures. I"
Yes; so 1t is the same old sun in the hesv-
ems, bat in our time il has gone to making
dagerreotypes and photographs. II is the
same old water, but in our century it has
gone to running steam engines. 1t is the
same cid electricity, but in our time 1t
has become lightning footed errand boy.
81 it is the old Bible, but new spplica-
,icns, new uses, new interpretations. You
must remember that during the last three
hundred wears words have changed their
meaning and some Of them now mean
more aud some less. DO not think that
John Calvin believed, as some say be did,
in the damnation of infants, although
some of the recent hot disputes would
seem to imply that there is tuch thing
AZ the dampation of infants.
A man who believes in the damnation Of
Infants himself deserves to lose Hesven. /
do not think any good man could admit
such a possibility. What Christ will DO
with AL the babies in the next world l
cor clude from what he did with the babies
in Palestine when
HE HUGGBD THEM
and kissed them. When eome OF You
grown people go ont OF this world your
Doubt destiny will be an embarrassment
to ministers officiating at your obsequiss,
who will have to be cautious so as not to
hur. surviving friends. But when the
darling children go there are no ifs" or
''butsn or GUESTS. We must remember
that good John Calvin was logician and
a metaphysician and by the prcclivities OF
his nature put some things in an unfortun-
ate way. Logic has its uss and metsphys-
ics has its use, but they are rot good at
making creeds.
What q time we have had with the
dogmatics, the apologetics and the herem-
eneusics. The defsct in some of the creeds
il that they try TO tell us all about the de-
crees Of God. Now the only human being
that has ever been competent to handle
that subiect was Paul, and he would not
have been competent had he not been in
snired. l believe in the sovereignty Of
God and believe in mans free agency,
mt no one can hlrmonizs the two. 1t IS
not necessary that he hsrmonizs them.
Every sermon that / ever heard that at
temp pied such nsrmonizstiOn wss to me as
clear as a London fog, as clear as mud. My
brother of the Nineteenth century, my
brother of the Sixteenth century,
GIVE US PAUL's STATEMENT
and leave out your own. Better one chap
ter of Paul on that subject than all of Gal
WINS institutes, able and hontst and
mi0hty "a they are. d. not try 10 meas
ure either the throne OF God or the thun-
derbol.s Of God with your little steel pen.
What do you know about the DEGREES!
You cannot pry open the door Of Gods
eternal connsels. You cannot explain the
mysteries Of his government i've hundred
a 1iutillion of years sgo. move Tor creed
for all our denominations made out OF
Seripture quotations pure and simple.
That would take the earth for God. That
vould be impregnable sgsinst in6delity
and Apollyonic assault That would be
beyond human criticism.
The denomination, whatever its name
be. that can rise up to that will be the
CHURCH OF THE MILLENNIUM,
will swallow up al other denominations
and be the one that will be the bride when
the Bridegroom cometh. Let Us make 1t
simpler and palmer for people to get into
tbs kingdom OF God. Do not hinder pto-
ple hy toe idea that they msJ not have
beeu elec'ed. Do not tsg on to the one es-
sentisl of faith in Christ any OF the innu-
msrable non essentials. A man who
heartily accepts Christ is Christian and
the man who doss not accsp: him is not a
Cbristisn, and that is sll there is OF it. Hs
need not believe inlsltction or reprobstiop.
He need no. believe in the eternal genera
tion Of the Son. He Feed not believe In
everlasting punishment lie need not be-
lisye in infant baptism. lie need not be-
lisys in pleusry inspiration. Faith in
Christ is the criterion, Is the test, is the
niyot. IS the indispensable. But there are
hose who would sdd unto the tests rather
than subtract from them. Theie sre thou
sand, who would not accept persons into
chnrch membership if they drink wine or
II thew smoke cigars or if they attend the
theatre or il they play cards or II toey
dr;vs a fast horse. Now, do not dtips
x;ns or smoke or attend the theatre, never
played
| ro-s...,,s5 nm Third Pace I