The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1894-09-03
MOODY IS NOW
IN COMMAND
Concluded from Page !.

| SCRANTON street DapJlbt CuuIo", "hN
Rev. D. G. Hughes, D. D Of the jack
son Street Baptist Church, conducted
the preliminary services, after which
Caswallon Davis rivetsd the attention
OF the gathering by the excellence of
his rendition Of the solo "Where Will
You Spend Eternityf"
Mr.. Bliss preached characteristic.
simple and vigorous sermon based on
First Corinthians, i-22. and following
verses Some time ago, he remarked,
he constantly turned away from the
verses 80 and 81 in the chapter to which
he directed their special attention, but
now no verses throughout the entire
Scriptures were clearer to him. There
were men who called themselves higher
critics who wanted to find out God by
their own wisdom, and stated that the
Bible was good book, but that it was
written in days OF ignorance, and that
II it had been written in the present
generation 1t would have been much
better work, Such was the work Of
the higher critics, but any fool can
criticise, He. himself, knew moro at
the age OF IA than he knows now.
THEY DESP0IL CHRISTIANITY.
They take all the flesh and meat off
Christians and leaving the bones call it
higher criticism. Let us seek through
Jesus Christ and we get more wisdom
in five minutes than in 10000 Of re-
search. A lawyer of Chicago once
asked him to recommend book upon
the philosophy of salvation and he re-
piled You want no book, you want
Jasus Christ" Great was the lawyers
CONSERVATION to be hold that no book
was necessary but simply faith in
Christ. Ho asked the man of law to
pray and pray that his eyes be opened
TO pray for God to help him and in
time that man came out filled with
Gods wisdom without any research
into philosophy.
| The Bible was sufficient for all, and
the wisdom to be obtained was only to
be had through faith in Jesus Christ
our Lord. The words sanctification
was mentioned in the wordi Of his text
and this was word that he always
turned from some time ago as 80 many
people spoke OF sanctification who had
80 little of it. There was a great diff
ference of opinion as to "sanotifea-
ton" Some held that il was instau-
taneous and some argued that it was
progressive. 80 that he would not
dwell upon that point, but this he
would say, that he never saw anyone
get too sanctified, so that there was no
necessity to split hairs upon the sub
ject.
The speaker then went on to speak
Of the word redeemed and very
sptly explained that in Heaven the
poor of sight would not require glasses
or spectacles, crutches would be dis
pensed with, no rheumatism would be
there. no dyspepsia incurred.
In concluding his remarks, Mr.. Bliss
gave an illustration how Christ and
the devil were bidding for the souls of
men and said they are bidding in this
tent this afternoon. and 1t is for you
now to give the answer: Will you
take the offer Of Christ or the bids Of
the devil2
MooDY's EVENING SERMON.
The evening meeting in the Gospel
tent was announced to begin at $780,
but at Z o'clock the eapacious tent
was filled and selections from the Cos.
pei Hymns were sung by the choir and
the multitude which was gathered
under the canvas Rev Dr.. Freeman
and the Rev. d. G. Hughes, D. D., con-
Quoted the opening services, after
which Miss Carrie Sanders rendered a
solo suitable to tine occasion. Mr..
Moody read the parable of the great
supper from Luke. chapter fonr-
teen. after which he engaged in prayer.
The well-known hymn, "Rock Of Ages
Cleft for Me" having been sung, Mr..
Moody began his sermon, and said that
the subjectof his remarks would be
the three men who had made excuses
from attending the supper. Let it be
observed that they made" excuse, as
they had not one ready.
If men were invited to funeral or
execution their reluctance would be
understood, but here they were invited
to feastl How many in Scranton would
decline an invitation to feast. he
rather thought there would be a rush
to be on hand to get a good seat.
Neither weather. or little indisposi-
tion would prevent them being present.
Had his hearers ever tried their hands
at making excuses There was not
boy, even OF four years old present that
evening, who had not done 30. The
first man spoken of in the parable
made an excuse that he had bought n
piece of land. He could imagine him
saying that he would like to be at the
supper. in fact no man in the kingdom
would be better pleased, but have
some land and must see it. A queer
time to 20 and see the ground at supper
time. The real estate was probably
going up at that time and he did not
want to lose bargain, but why did he
not see the ground before he bought
it. That was the time to see it
and in any case the land had no legs 80
that 1t could run away in the msau-
time, neither could any one steal it;
in fact, the land was there to this day,
so that it showed how trivial his ex-
excuse was. The same applied to the
man who had bought the ocean. The
excuse OF the third man who had mar
ried wife was more absurd, still as a
feast was just the place to take bride,
but instead of that he took shelter be-
hind his nswly-married wife. Now, in
plain English, this was lying.
HAS MAN GROWN wIsER2
But has man grown wiser in the
intervening 1900 years2 We laugh at
those men and say their excuses are
pretty thin, but he asked those who
faced him and sat on the front seat
were they any better, or could they
give better excuses2 II so, let them
stand up and do 30. He thought that
no man ever gave better excuse. and
he thought that he could find moro
fools than those men in the very tent
in which he then spoke. There was
no place in the whole world where the
fruits of Christianity should he more
clearly seen than iu America and Penn
sylvania. Even in his audieecs he was
sure that there plenty OF men who