St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-02-23
PRIDE Is THE FAULT.
That Is at the Bottom of Our
Worst Mistakes.

Rev. D. j. Burrell, at Westminster
church last evening. spoke from the
ext "Vho hath believed our report ~
Isaiah So, 1. He said: 'In the reign
of Ahaz there was a great. revival i'll
Israel. The heart of Isaiah was glad
dened by the coming back of multi
tudes from paganism to the worship OF
Jehovah. But it was only as the fash
Ing of northern lights. The people soon
returned to their denominations, and a
night closed in which was destined to
continue almost unbr0ken for 700 years.
The evangelical prophet, bowed down
with sorrow and 5pondency, yanisheS
in the gathering twilight, lamenting,
Who hath believed our report, and 10
whom is the arm OF the Lord re-
vealedp
1.-The report here referred to is the
tidingS of salvation in Christ. rms IS
the best news The world ever heard,
that God, justly offended by our trans
gresSonS against His holy law, is will
ing to forgive, and that III sending His
only begotten Son to die He has made
ample provision for our deiverance
from the shame, the bondage and the
penalty of sin.
news? Why do they refuse the saliva
ton offered on the simple and sole con-
dition of faith in Jesus Christ? Why do
they decline he very thing for which
the soul of the whole human race has
groaned and travelled together until
now?
Pride is at the bottom of it. Ruskin
says pride is at the bottom of all our
worst mistakes" The gospel presents
for our consideration and acceptance
five great truths, all of which are abhor-
rent to our intellectual or moral pride.
Three of them at once antagOnize our
intellectual pride, namely: First, the
Manger. The doctrine OF the lncarna-
ton is far beyond our comprehension.
1t is super rational. 1t is not more
mysterious than our interactlon of soul
and body, but the latter is visible fact
and we cannot reject it. Second, the
Cross. The doctrine of the vicarious
atoEement is indeed no stranger than
the fact that mans life is the purchase
of his mothers anguish, but it abldeS
in the dim realms of spiritual truth,
where eyes cannot see or hands handle
it. Third, the Open Sepulcher, where
life and Immortality are brought TO
light. There is, obviously, as battling
and bewidering a mystery in the fact
that a grain of wheat if it die bringeth
forth much fruit; but our minds, being
sOrdid and narrow, consent to grasp the
lower while rejecting the higher truth.
Aside from these, there are two great
gospel truths which are abhorrent to
our moral pride. One is sin; the shame,
leprosy, palsy, blindness and horror of
sin abiding in our hearts and ending in
spiritual and eternal death. We may
be conscious of it, but are not willing to
be reminded of it. The other is grace,
free grace; the only terms upon which
sinner can be saved. The wages of
sin is death, but the gift of God is
eternal life. ''Ho! every one that thirst
eth. come We to the waters, and he that
hath no money, come we, buy and eat :;
yea, buy wine and milk without money
and without price," We do not want a
gratuitous salvation. We want to work
for it, to give something for it, to suf-
fer for it. But we cannot. God is pot
merchant that He should dispose of
His wares, but He is a:king, and He gives
right royalty. The only plan of Saliva
ton is through faith in Jesus Christ.
We must be saved by free grace if saved
at all.