St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-12-18
DAVID'S SERMON.
Strong Study of the Character of
Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ.
Rev. j. w. David. of the Oxford M.
E. church, yesterday forenoon preached
from Romans l., l:
paul is a Servant of Jesus Christ"
The following is a digest Of his re-
marks:
AS Christians we are helped and
strengthened in a study OF the life and
teachings of Jesus, because we look to
Him and think of Him as our perfect
example. Yet we must not forget that
there are struggles and experiences in
our lives which find no exact resem-
dances i'll any chapter of OUT Lords
history. Jesus I'VE struggled after
perfection. He was perfect. Jesus
never struggled after a pure heart. He
was pure. Christ never struggled after
scholastic culture and intellectual attain
mentS. He was omniScience. Christ
eve struggled to be free from the
thralldom of sin. He never sinned.
Jesus never said, "What peaceful hours
/ { once enjoyed; how sweet their men,
DRY still" He was peace.
so we turn to the apostles and diScl-
pies, and We find so much in their as
ISOLATION with Him that is helpful and
encouraging to us we linger. We turn
to paul, a servant of Jesus Christ"
and we study his life and teachings be-
cause we find him to be a man like our
selves striving to overcome and become
more like Christ. He was born at
TarsuS emo mean city'), of Jewish eX-
traction. a Hebrew of the Hebrews, and
had no Gentle blood. We watch him
in his boyhood, brought VI at the feet
of the most learned man of his age,
tutored i'll the Jewish religion, he
comes to be a strong exponent OF the
Jewish faith. Powerful because of his
scholastic culture and catechitical ILL
Struction.
You hear HIM when he says: 81
was jealous towards God as We all are
this day." At another time he Saiu:
"Circulncised the eighth day, of the
stock of Israel, of the tribe of BenJa-
min, an Hebrew of tile Hebrews, touch
ing the righteousness which is in the
law, blameless."
l study the life and teachings of
Christ, and in no page of His history do
[ find Him struggling 10 be free from
the thralldOm OF sin. But l turn to
Paul and L see him as Saul yonder in
the city of Jerusalem, a mighty slave to
sin, a monster devil, and it required the
sledge hammer of Gods truth to break
his heart of stone and the operation Of
IN 44OlJ OPiLiO ~ SiNolloS Olii otIo
give light and peace and glory. For in
his ethical darkness he firmly believed
that this new religion ought to be put
down. And he went about through
Judea and Samaria prosecuting the
Christians, arreSting and committing
them to prison. He stood by and con-
Sented to the stoning of Stephen. Yet,
in all this bloody work he says his con-
science did not trouble him. When be-
fore Agrippa he said: Il verify thought
with myself that l ought to do many
things contrary to the name of Jesus Of
Nazareth"
On no page Of Jesus history do [ find
that He ever denied His God. But L
turn to Peter, and l see him yonder
weeping bitterly. He remembers what
he said to the little maid. How he re-
penis before God and mani And we
see him on the day of Pentecost fully
restored, preaching that wonderful SER
mon when 5000 were added to the
church. l thank God for a Peter and a
Paul and others who were associated
with Jesus, whose tinitenesS and weak
nesses give US courage to come to the
infinite i'll our SinfulneSS and weakness
that we may have forgiveness and help.
Sometimes the question is asked, rs
the guilt of sin wholly in the intention
with which i: is committed ?"
The Holy Spirit taught Paul,of Tarsus
that conscience to be a safe guide must
De Illuminated by the torchlight of
God'S truth, and guided and directed by
the Word of GOD.
Paul was thoroughly unselfish and
self-Sacriicing. He utterly ignored
caste. cliQues and circles. He believed
that if he would ave men he must iden-
tify himself with them. When a social
circle or a reading club comes to be
more to a professor of religion than his
church or the salvation of souls about
HIM, he needs to keep Peter company
repenting. God never intended that
there should be cliques and circles in
the church Of Jesus Christ; but that
we should all be one in Christ. We
may call our conventions and discuss
"HoW the church shall reach the COM
mon people or the Masses" from now
until the day of Judgment, and unless
we stop driving them out, the question
will not be solved. Paul understood it
when he said, 81 am all things to all
men that | might by all means save
some"
Paul, the eloquent and learned man
as he was, could make the day laborer
feel at home in his presence. With
equal adaptablliLy could he turn to the
philosopher. He would go into the
poor mans hut as well as the rich mans
mansion. He loved men because OF
their souls. and was not ashamed to
mention his co-laborers, although poor
and not known to the world. He has
made their memory immortal by the
mere fact of mentioning their names.
On, how the church and the world needs
more Pauls.
Holiday ~XCursion