The evening herald. [volume] (Shenandoah, Pa.) 1891-1966, 1892-05-31
SUNDAY SERMON.
Rev. PowIck Continues His Series OF Dis
courses on Fools"

Rev. Powick Continues His Series OF Dis
courses on Fools"
The second sermon of the course on
"Foolsp was delivered at the Methodist
Episcopal church on Sunday evening by
the pastor. The text was from Psalms
xviii; 1.-THE fool hath said in his heart
there is no God" The fool despises the
narrowness of orthodoxy and proclaims his
own liberality rs though he were not the
narrowest blgot in the world. The creed
of the fool has but one article in it, and
that is a negation of every other mans
creed. The theology of atheism is aunt
versal cut-throst. Its only aim is to muir
der faith and substitute doubt-to rob the
benighted wayfarer of his lantern and the
h helpless cripple of his cruteh, while giving
nothing in return. The fool may say in
his heart there is no God, but, fortunately
for the world, the bible says there is.
Hence the issue is joined and we are to
choose which TO believe.
The bible never attempts to prove that
there is a God. 1t simply declares Him.
God never descends to reason with q fool,
nor should we.a There is no common
ground to stand upon. The repetition of
truth is the only proper way to deal with
disbelief. Its cause is moral, and not in
tellectusl; the wish is fsthertothe thought.
The Psalmists explanation is, "They are
corrupt, they have done abominable
works. The Savior's remedy is, IF n
man be willing to do the will of God he
shall know of the doctrine"
But, however much the fool may thus
soliloquize with his heart and coax it to be-
lieve there is no God, his heart steadily re-
fuses to be fooled. Some fools not only say
in their heart there is nc God, but they
blurt it right out. But this is only an eff
fort to silence the protests Of a faith that
refuses to die. While conscience remains
to plead Gods cause, and while the dis
tinctions between right and wrong survive
the wreck of moral death, the supercilious
declaration of atheism can never be more
than a soliloquy. He may still insist there
is no God; but he finds himself in a uni
verse that is full o. fills footprints. He
finds mysteries all around him that he can
not explain without God; and if he should
succeed in explaining them to his own
satisfaction without God, to all but a credu-
lous fool like himself, his explanations
would be a harded tax on human credulity
than any doctrine that the bible contains.
Another characteristic of the fool who
says in his heart there is no God, is
that he is never willing to have such fool;
as himself for n%eighbors. He always
prefers to live among people who say there
is a God and who worship at His shrine.
From the way some people curse religion
one might think it is the greatest foe o.
humanity, and be led to wonder why they
do not go off and found ideal communities
where they would hear nothing about it
We are accustomed to think there are nj
hypocrites but among professed christians
but the fools who say in their heart there i
no God, and are unwilling to live among
their own kind and TO teach their children
to adopt their W creed, are hypocrite
about as big as any the sun has yet shon,
upon.
Another singular thing is that the foo
who says in his heart there lie no God, wheI
he comes to die, usually wants somebody
who believes there is God to help him on
of his foolishness that he may escape it
consequences. The dying daughter of
noted infdel asked him, Ami to die il
my mothers faith or in yours2 She died
christian years ago, rejoicing in Jesus anC
assured of heaven. You are an unbeliever
1 am now going to make a last venture
advise me, / beseech you; what shall l dor
"Die in your mothers faith" was the re
Spouse. If the faith of the Bible is gooC
enough for a dying hour, it is good enough
for active life. And if atheism csnpo
stand this test it is worthless. There is NJ
atheism in hell. Devils believe snC
tremble. 1t exists only among the fools o
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