The daily morning journal and courier., 1894-11-28
UNION rHAyxsaIyISG SERVICE.

UNION THANKSGIVING sERYICE. Held at Humphrey Street Congregational Church-An Impre e'sive Discourse by Rev. MT. Cooper of Epworth M. E. Church.
 A union Thanksgiving service of the Hope Baptist, Humphrey street Congre- gational and Epworth NJ. E. churches was held at Humphrey street church last evening. A good congregation was present and the service was highly in- teresting. Rev. J. A. Elder offered prayer and pronounced the benediction and Rev. Mir. Luckey read from the scriptures. The Rev. Mr. Cooper of Epworth church delivered an able and edifying discourse, which was listened to with close attention. The leading features of the discourse are In the main as follows:
 St. Luke \: 20th verse: "Notwithstanding, In this rejoice not, that the spirits are sub jcct unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written In heaven" Jesus Christ sent forth the seventy disciples as He was going up to Jerusa- lem to the feast of the tabernacle, and just before His return from that feast, while He was yet at Jerusalem or at Bethany nearby, some of the seventy glowing account of the success of their expedition.
 The Saviour listened with wrapt at tention to their enthusiastic recital of the sick healed and of the devils cast out
 With no intention of belittling their work Jesus admonished them not to re- joice over their power to cast out devils, etc., but rather to rejoice be- cause their names are written in heav- en.
 Before we pass to the consideration of the theme of the text, "The Christians s True Reason for Rejoicing and Giving of Thanks" let us inquire, briefly, whether or not the rejoicing over vic tories won in the moral, social and re- ligious world, is displeasing to Jesus Christ.
 It is a truism of the. Holy Scripture that he serves his country best who serves his God best. It Is manifestly the duty of every Christian layman to take an active part in the moral af- fairs of his country, and wheresoever corruption exists he is to go against his own political party provided such a party is the cause of such a state of corruption. All law abiding citizens can we'll rejoice and give thanks over the downfall of the corrupt rings in New York city, Brooklyn, Jersey City. and in other places and Jesus Christ will not censure such outbursts of jubilation.
 Again, in this competitive age, when each denomination of Christians is pushing with zeal it's special denomina- tional work. we do not believe it is dis pleasing to our Heavenly Father when we rehearse to each other the glorious victories achieved by our respective de- nominations in the spreading of evan- gelical truth and Scripture holiness over these lands.
 However jealous in these particulars we may be let us never lose sight of the truth that after all these things are secondary matters, just as was the healing of the sick and the casting out of the devils in the days of Christ and His disciples. '' '-''.
 The primary and vital truth remains that the Christians true reason for re- joicing and giving of thanks is be- cause his name is written in heaven.
 Before we proceed farther let us sim- ply indicate the four () relations we must bear to God as Christians before we can fully realize that our names are written in heaven. Nt
 I. We became, first, servants of Jesus Christ, which means an active promo tion on our part of the best interests of our nation, our local community, our re- spective church and our family.
 II. We became, second friends of Je- sus Christ and having continual com munion with Him we can furnish sym pathy and comfort to those who need this display of our love.
 III. We became, third, sons of God with Jesus Christ as our elder brother, and thus secure the benefit of the fam fly relation as expressed in the father- hood of God and the brotherhood, of man. ". We became, fourth, heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ, first prospectively and second real heirs in heaven.
 We'll could Jesus Christ axhort His dis ciples to rejoice because their names were written in heaven, and we'll can the Christian church of to-day urge her faithful membership to rejoice and give thanks because their names are writ ten in heaven.
 in the midst of the skeptical and ma terialistic age in which he lives the child of God can triumphantly sing:
 When I can read my title clear,
 To mansions in the skies,
 bid farewell to every fear
 And wipe my weeping eyes.
 Should earth against my soul enYage.
 And fiery darts be hurled. -t Y
 Then can smile at Satan's rage
 And face frOwning world
 Let cares like wild deluge come.
 Let storms of sorrow fall:
 So but safely reach'my home
 My God, my heaven, my all.S
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