The herald., 1893-01-16
THE DOCTRINES THEY OFFERED.
Spiritual Food for Thought
Given in the Churches.
Features of a Number Of Sermons
of Yesterday.
DR. Chichester on the Weakness of Max
ing Baste-Rev. Clarke at Christ
Church-Rev. Stradley at
Trinity Church.

lore q large congregation.
The text was the closing sentence of
the 10Th verse of the 2Sth chapter of
Isaiah; He that Believeth Shall Not
Make Haste.
The apparent weakness Of the present
day is in making haste. The slow
methods OF our foreiathers fill US with
astonishment, and we cay time is
money. The chief aim OF man is to get
there, and as consequence there is a
desire to make short cuts both in re-
ligion and education. We are hearing
today OF the shorter creeds and yet these
short cuts are not always productive OF
the best results. Travellers relate how
in India the conjurers can grow orange
trees within half an hour, but the
trouble ie they cannot market these
oranges. Excellency, fuilness and
righteousness do not come from making
haste.
Life's obstacles are not overcome
within an hour; it takes patience, but
of all the excellent qualities named by
Potter, patience becomes the least liked.
1t does not mean laziness or idleness,
but implies stamina and backbone and
after having arrived at some determine
ton to stand by and wait. Be patient
for the coming of the Lord and be
patient towards all men.
The reason that patience is not exer-
cised more in our daily life Is because 1t
implies waiting and not making haste.
In the old colonial DAYS the Indians
one Sunday entered Quaker meeting
house with the intention of massacreing
all of the worshippers, but such an air
OF reverence pervaded the place that the
Indians bolted and made no attempt
upon the lives of the congregation.
When asked why they stopped the chief
replied that the Great Spirit had en-
tered his heart and that he waited and
became filled with kindly feeling tow
ard the intended victims.
1t is q fact that our impstience ie
often caused by our fear. Strong pa
tience makes strong men snd weak
patience weak men.
In our spiritual preparation and our
study Of the Bible we see that God never
uses any rude means, and whenever He
sends us anything He always prepares
it. For example, Moses, before oecom-
ing prophet, was preparing for 40
years. Even Christ spent many wears
in preparation. He was 80 years pre-
pairing, mending the plows and hGrrows
and furniture OF the simple people, all
of the time learning, and finally coming
forth in the fullness OF His know ledge.
The best definition for Christ is the IN
finite capacity for taking pains. .I.
You may talk of inspiration, hut the
only inspiration that accomplishes good
for the world is that which works iNces-
sanity at the first production. Look at
Demosthenes' years of preparation aud
Milton, who was the Ounce of his class.
But all the work accomplished by the
church during the past 10 centuries has
certainly been backward when two
thirds of the eaTth's population t0isy
have nos knowledge OF God. Peop.e
have claimed thai the religion in ghich
Cod existed would have accomplished
something sooner, and Ingerscll has re-
marx ed if God had any revelation to max Q
He would have written it on the face
of the sun. The only panacea to all of
these complaints is patience. We need
patience in the unfolding OF Gods work.
There was at one time devout Chris
tion on board OF ship when it was sur
rounded by ice and the wind was against
it, and every moment appeared to be the
last. He fell on his knees and prayed
that the storm might cease. Almost in
stantly the sky cleared and the wind
changed in the favor of the ship. which
began moving away from the danger.
The sailors asked the captain, who was
an unbeliever, if they should crowd on
more all, out he replied: "No; for
Gods sake, no! There is some al
mighty power that is guiding the ship
Let it alone" And so it is with our
life. God is ever omnipotent, and HIS
hand is at the guidance of everything.
What we need is patience toward
those who have fallen. Some bright
thinker has said that we treat them
either in the ways of the wolf, the bison
ur the bee, and not of Christ. When
ever one of the pack falls down the
wolves turn upon and devour it. When
bison is overcome the herd leaves it to
die alone, and in the hive when the
drones become too numerous the work
ers turn upon and kill or drive them
out. But the way of Christ Is to help
the fallen, to forgive him and to be pa
tient toward him, no matter whether he
tries the patience or not. Be patient to a
man if he is this side of hell. Recently
in the east a prominent member of q
Congregational church was sentenced to
the penitentiary for committing series
of embezzlements, extending over a
number of years. He wrote to the pas
tor, expressing remorse for his sins. On
motion of the pastor, the church passed
resolutions of coincidence for him. This
is all right, the people say, for moral
sins. but not for theological sins. We
are too willing to forgive or to have pa
tience toward the thief, the adulterer,
and to condemn bim who departs from
our faith. Such treatment is not right.
Patience should be extended to the
theological wrong doer as well as the
moral culprit.
The old churches taught the people to
have patience for the coming OF the
Lord. The reason that the churches of
the present day do not teach this
more is that there are really two camps
J the church. One believes that Christ
coming before, and the other that He
u come after. the millennium. So
-nany harsh things have been said in
regard to these two views that the peo-
pie have tired of it, and think that the
controversy had better be put away un-
til after it has been settled,
Christ Church
Communion services were held in
Christ church yesterday. The pastor,
Rev. Mr., Clark, delivered a sermon