The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1892-04-14

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self. That exploration Dllt into NV
church thirty or forty newspaper cor
respondents from north snuth east
and west; which opened for me nav
avenues in which to preach the oosne1
that otherwise never would have hae,,
opened. Years passed on and I
preached series OF sermons on
amusements, and false report OF
what | did say-and one of the SER
mons said to have been preached bv
me was not mine in q single word
reused a violence that threatened me
with poison and dirk and pistol, until
the chief OF Brooklyn police, without
any suggestion from me, took posses-
sion of the church with "a policemen
to see that no harm was done. That
excitement opened many doors, which
L entered for preaching the gospel.
Alter awhile came an ecclesiastical
trial, in which L was arraigned bv
people who did not like the way did
things, and, though I was &C Quilted
or all the charges, the contest shook
the American Church. That battle
made me more friends than ANYTHING
mat ever happened, and gave me
Chrlstendom and more than Christen-
dom for my weekly audience. On the
demolition Of each church we got a,
better and larger church, and not a
disaster, not a caricature, not a per-
secutlon, not an assault, during these
20 years, but turned out for our ad-
vantage, and ought l not to believe
that 'all things work together for
good?" Hosannah!
ANOTHER LESSON HAVE LEARNED
during these % years is that it is not
necessary to preach error or pick
flaws IN the old Bible in order to get
an audience. The old Book, without
any fixing up is good enough for me,
and higher criticism, as it is called,
means lower religion. Higher criticism
is another form of infdelity, and it's
disciples will believe less and less, I'M
til many Of them will land in Nowhere,
and become the worshipers OF an
eternal "What-is-it?" The most of
these higher critics seem to be seeking
notoriety by pitching into the Bible.
1t IS such a brave thing to strike your
grandmother. The old gospel put in
modern phrase, and without any OF
the conventionalities, and adapted to
all the wants and woes of humanity I
have found the mightiest magnet, and
we have never lacked an audience.
Next to the blessing of my own family
l account the blessing that I have al
ways had a great multitude Of people
to preach to. That old gospel / have
preached to you these % years of my
brooklyn passionate, and that old
Gospel l will preach till I die, and
charge my son, who is on the way
to the ministry, to preach it
after me, for I remember
Paul's thunderbolt: eff any man
preach any other Gospel, let him be
accursed." And now, as stand here
on my 23d anniversary, see two
audiences. The one is made up of all
those who have worshiped with us
in the past, but have been translated
to higher realms. What children
too fair and two sweet and too lovely
for earth, and the Lord took them, but
they seem present to-day The Group
has gone out of the swollen throat,
and the pallor from the cheek. and
they have on them the health and
radiance Of heaven. Hail groups of
glorifed children! How glad I am to
have you come back to us today!
And here sit those aged ones, who de-
parted this life leaving an awful va
cancy in home and church. Hail,
fathers and mothers in Israeli how
glad we are to have you come back
to greet us.
BUT THE OTHER AUDIENCE.
I see in imagination is made up OF all
those to whom we have had oppor-
tunity as a church, directly OF in
directly. Of presenting the gospel.
Yea, all my parishes seem to come
back today. The people of my first
charge In Belleville, n. J. The people
of my second charge in Syracuse, n.
Y. The people OF my third charge in
Philadelphia. And the people of all
these three Brooklyn Tabernacles.
Look at them, and all those
whom, through the printing press. we
have invited to God and heaven, now
seeming to sit in galleries above gal
leries, fifty galleries hundred CALLER
les. q thousand galleries high. I greet
them all in your name and in Christs
name, all whom | have confronted
from my first serm on in my first vii
lage charge, where my lips trembled
and my knees knocked together from
alright, speaking from the text. Jere-
miah l., 6: 'Ah, Lord God. behold |
cannot speak, for I am a child" until
the sermon l preach. today from Luke
tx, 33: Let us make three taber-
nacles," those OF the past, the pres
ent, all gathered in Imagination, and
if not in reality, all of US grateful to
God for past mercies, all OF US sorry
for misimproved opportunities, all
hopeful! for eternal raptures, and,
while the visible and the invisible au-
diences of the present and the past
commingle, give out to be sung by
those who are here today, and to be
sung by those who shall read OF this
scene of "Reminiscences and congratulate
ton, that hymn which has been rolling
on since Isaac Watts started it 100
years ago: -..-
Our God our help in ages past
Our hope for years to come;
Our shelter from the stormy blast
And our eternal home.