Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1890-04-10

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would be impregnable against intidelity
and Apollyonic assault. That would be
beyond human criticism. The denom-
ination, whatever its name be, that can
rise up to that will be the church Of the
millennium. will swallow up all denom-
nations and be the one that will be the
bride when the bridegroom cometh.
Let us make it simpler and palmer for
people to get into the kingdom Of God.
Do not hinder people by the idea that
they may not have been elected. Do not
tag on to the one essential of faith in
Christ any of the innumerable
non-essentials. A man who heart
ily accepts Christ is a Christian,
and the man who does not
accept him is not a Christian, and
that is all there is of it. He need not
believe in election or reprobation. He
need not believe in the eternal genera
tion OF the Son. He need not believe in
everlasting punishment He need not
believe in infant baptism. He need not
believe in plenary inspiration. Faith
in Christ is the criterion, is the test, is
the pivot, is the indispensable. But
there are those who would add unto the
tests rather than subtract from them.
There are thousands who would not ac-
cept persons into church membership If
they drink wine or If they smoke cigars,
or II they attend the theater, or if they
play cards, or if they drive fast horse.
Now do not drink wine or smoke or at
tend the theater, never played game
of cards and do not drive a fast horse,
although I would if owned one. But
do not substitute tests which the Bible
does not establish. There is one pas
sage Of Scripture wide enough TO let all
in who ought to enter and to keep out
all who ought to be kept out: believe
in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt
be saved" Get a mans heart right and
his life will be right. But now that the
old creeds have been put under public
scrutiny some thing radical must be
done. Some would split them, some
would carve them, some would elongate
them, some would abreviate them. Al
the present moment and in the present
shape they are hindrance. Lazarus
is alive but hampered with the old grave
clothes. II you want one glorious
church. free and unencumbered, take of
the cerements of old ecclesiastical voca.
bulary. Loose her and let her go
Again, there are Christians who are
under sepulchral shadows, and hindered
and hoppled by doubts and fears and
sins long ago repented of. What they
need is to understand the liberty of the
sons Of God. They spend more time
under the shadows Of Sinai than at the
base of Calvary.
The man who is all the time feeling
Of his pulse and looking at his tongue to
sec whether it is coated is morbid and
can not be physically well. The doctor
will say: go out into the fresh air and
into active life, and stop thinking OF
yourself, and you will get well and
strong" So there are people who are
watching their spiritual symptoms, and
they call it differentiation, and they
ret weaker and sicklier in their faith all
the time. Go out and do something
nobly Christian.
What many OF you Christians most
need is to get your grave clothes of. l
rejoice that you have been brought from
.he death OF sin to the life Of the Cos
pei, but you need to get your hand loose
Ind your feet loose and your tongue
Dose and your soul loose. There is no
lin that the Bible so arraigns and pune.
,ures and flagellates as the sin Of unbe-
ief, and that is what is the matter with
7ou. oh" you say, 'if you knew what
once was and how many times have
strayed, you would under
tand why do not come ont brighter"
Then / think you would call yourself
The chief of sinners.
am glad you hit upon that term. for
have promise that fits into your case
S the cogs OF one wheel between the
ogs OF another wheel, or as the key fits
nto the labyrinths OF lock. A man
gho was once called Saul, but afterward
'aul, declared: This is a faithful say
ng and worthy OF all acceptation that
'hrist Jesus came into the world to save
inners, OF whom l am chief" Mark
hat-"of whom / am chief" Put
own your overcoats and hats and / will
AXE care Of them while you kill
tephen. so Saul said to the stoners
the first martyr-''I do not care to ex-
ri myself much, but l will guard your
urplus apparel while you do the muir
Or" The New Testament account says:
The witnesses laid down their clothes at
young mans feet whose name was Saul"
70 wonder he said: sinners, Of whom
am the chief" Christ is used to climb
lg. He climbed to the top of the tenn
lie. He climbed to the top of Mt. Olivet.
e climbed TO the top Of the cliffs about
azareth. He climbed to the top Of
olgotha- And to the top of the hills
nd the mounstains of your transgression
3 is ready to climb with pardon for
iery one of you.
The groan Of Calvary is mightier than
lie thunder Of Sinai Full receipt is
Tered for all your indebtedness If one
rows a stone at midnigni into bush
here the hedge bird roosts, it imme-
ately begins to sing. and into the mid
ght hedges of your dependency these
IA n Il -.