The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1893-10-02
IT'S ArrEAI TO conxos SENSE.


hsv. DE-. AIssen On the Reasonabien ess
Of Christian Faith.
Another large audience Yesterday morn
ing heard DR.. Alexander Alison preach at
the First Presbyterian church the COM
panion sermon to that preached last Sun
day morning on ''ChIistianity's Appeal 10
the Intellect" The subject OF yesterdays
sermon was "Christianity's Appeal to
common Sense" The text chosen was
whittier shall go from Thy spirit etc -
Psalms cxxxix:7.
In opening DIR. Alison said that many
were OF the opinion that by abolish
ing the system OF Christianity all of the
evils condemned by Christianity would
also be abolished. but this was q self de-
fusion. Christianity should not be sad
died with things not belonging to It.
Moral evil and the like were no more the
result OF Christianity than was physical
evii the result OF doctors. political evil of
statesmen. or the Ten Commandments for
all SIN. The evils complained OF abound
in every land and under every religious
system.
To prove to the satisfaction of any one
that man 10 q sinner 10 is only necessary to
read any history; the Bible Is not the only
history that says 90.
Note our prisons. bars, securities.
continued the doctor. "Why did this city
require ten Of our respectable citizens TO
sign bonds in $4,000 each to secure the
honesty Of city official? Because the
city recognizes the possibility of loss; be-
cause human nature is sinful and may
thus be tempted to do evil. even to break
the laws of man. Christianity Is not re-
sponsible for the sinfuiness Of man--it il
here because OF IL; II Is only remedial
system; il declares that only the heart il
decsitfui. Man recognizes in his fellow
man sinner who Is TO be watched and
gwen as little chance TO sin as possible"
Going from the subject OF sin to that OF
sickness. il was shown that the latter i'll
was everywhere prevalent. as was tho
former; and % with death. which respects
no person more than another. Being .
Christian will do nothing to make man
immortal any more than IL will keep him
from being sinner II he chooses not to
make an effort for the right. He IL free
moral agent and Is under moral judy
ment, and this he knows without Bible
He Is under the restraint of laws innnmer-
able, and he must acknowledge that he
would not be free from restraint If he
should discard Christianity.
I'VE are all conscious that the life that
now Is is not ideal. We feel there can be
an improvement on our present existence
We long for the good time coming. All
men do this and ell these things even If
one does not consider Christianity at all
But herein is the beauty Of the Chris
tan religion. It comes to man In this
condition. It finds him as we have stated.
II proposes 20 him how he shall use his
freedom to the highest advantage. II re-
Yeais to him the moral government under
which he Is. Ii shows him its beauty and
Its benefits IL he will recognize and obey
its laws. 1t points him TO an ideal future,
a future free from sin, sickness, mental
worry, death. Herein is the superiority
of Christianity over every other system.
Go TO heathenism. 90 10 pagan philosophy,
so to infideiity--what do you find2 All
other systems propose to destroy sin by
killing of the sinner. Christianity pro-
poses to kill Oft sin by saving the sinner.
What philosophy IL like this1 Has the
world ever seen its like before7 Ii pro-
poses to reconstruct the world by recon-
structing the sinner. Suppose Seattle
should be brought under such dominion
as this--every individual given a new
hearth Surely such thing as dishonesty
would be unknown: such thing as coilat-
erals would be unnecessary, because eyerv
individual would be under the power of
the Cross, swayed by the religion of the
meek and iowly Jesus"
II man is sick he viii secure the serv-
ices of good physician at once. declared
the doctor. and If he Is sonl-sick, as every
one is, should he not look to Jesus, the
Great Physician? The fact 10. Christianity
finds the world full OF spiritual malaria.
but II proposes TO change mans environ
ment by changing man. That which APP
reals to common sense should prevail,
and If so We shall say. in the words of the
text, whittier shall go from Thy spirit
Whittier shall dee from Thy presence 7"
Christianlty's appeal to the intellect will
surely result IN Christ being accepted as a
personal savior.