The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1894-05-18
A CHEERFUL CHURCH.
Subject Of a Recent Sermon by
Rev. DR.. Talmage.
Simple Theology-Church Architecture
Evils of Lugubrious Religion-Keep-
ing Abreast of the Times-Activ-
ity In Church Work.

4
ity In Church Work.
| The subject of late sermon preached
at Brooklyn by Rev. T. Dewitt Tai
mage was: "a Cheerful Church." and
the text was selected from Solomon S
Song, w. 1: "Behoid, thou art fair, my
love" The noted preacher said:
Higher criticism" says that this
book of Solomon's Song is love scene,
a forlorn maiden signing for her beau.
II so, it is an unclean and debauched
utterance inserted in the pure Word of
God and is not fit for common reading.
My opinion is that it is an inspired ode
setting forth the feeling of Christ
toward the church and of the church
toward Christ Christ is the bride
groom, and the church is the bride.
The same words we can utter to-day
truthfully whether in regard to the
church of God in general or this church
in particular: Behold, thou art fair,
my love-" When came to Brooklyn
/ found a small band of Christian dis
ciples who from various causes had be-
come less and less, until they stood
upon the very verge of extinction as a
church; and the question was being
agitated from time to time whether it
would be possible to maintain church
life longer.
l have thought that it might be
| profitable to us to state briefly what
kind of church we have been trying
to establish.
In the first place. remark that we
have been trying to build here a Chris
tian church; distinctively such; in other
words, church where we should
preach the Lord JESUS Christ and Him
crucified. My theology is all gone into
/ five letters-Jesus, Jesus, the pardon
of all offenses Jesus, the foundation
of all structures. Jesus, the balm for
all wounds. Jesus, the eye-salve for
all blindness Jesus, the guide through
all perplexities. Jesus, the hope for
all discouragements Jesus, the re-
form for all wrongs l have faith
to believe that there is more
power in one drop of the blood
of Jesus Christ to cure the woes of
the world than in an ocean full of hui
man quackery. Jesus is the grandest
note in any minstrelsy. He is the
I brightest gem in any crown. Height
overlapping all height. The center
of every circumference. The circum-
ference to every center. The pacifier
of all turbulence. The umpire of all
disputes. Jesus! Jesus! At His table
all nations are to sit Around this
throne all worlds are to revolve. He is
to be the irradiation of the universe
Jesus! Jesus! 1t is that truth we have
tried to preach in this tabernacle,
Do you ask more infinitely what we
believe? l can tell you. We have no
dry, withered, juiceless theology. We
believe in God, the Father Almighty,
maker of Heaven and earth, the deliv-
erer of the distressed, the home for the
homeless, the friend for the friendless.
We believe in Jesus Christ, able to save
uttermost, pardoning the guilty, inn
putting His righteousness to the be-
lever. We believe in the Holy Ghost,
the comforter, the sanctifier, cheering
up the heart in life's ills, and kindling
bright lights in every dark landing
DldCc we DtticNc tlldt tDc WllOlt TdCt
is so sunken in sin that nothing but
the omnipotent arm of God can
ever lift it out. We believe in
grace-free grace, sovereign. grace,
triumphant grace, eteral grace
We believe in a Bible-authentic
in its statements. immaculate in its
teachings. glorious in its promises. We
believe in Heaven. the abode of the
righteous; and in hell, the residence of
those who are soul suicides-of their
own free choice refusing the divine
mercy. We believe in the salvation of
all men who accept Christ by faith. be
they sprinkled or immersed, worship
they in cathedral or in log cabin, be-
lieve they in Presbyterianism or in
Episcopacy, dwell they under Italian
skies or in Siberian snow storms, be
they Ethiopian or American. All are
one in Christ One Lord, one faith, one
baptism, on the way to one Heaven.
remark, further, that we have tried
here to build church distinctly I'M
conventional Instead of asking, as
some people are disposed to do, how
other people do it, we have asked the
question how people do not do it I'm
perious custom has decided that
churches shall be angular, cherries,
gloomy, unsympathetic; forgetting
that what men call a pious gloom is
impious, and that that church has
the best architecture, where the peo-
pie are the most comfortable, and that
that is the most efficient Christian
service where the people are made
most sick of sin, and most
anxious after Christ and Heaven.
And so we called the architects
together with our first church building
and said: ''Give us an amphitheater"-l
that is, large family circle, gathered
around a fireplace. For many years
we had felt that an amphitheater was
the only proper shape for an audi
ence ROOM The prominent architects
of the country said: ut cannot be
done. You need churchly building"
And so we had plan after plan of
churchly buildings presented; but in
due time God sent a man who grasped
our idea and executed it So far from
being a failure, it satisfied our want, |
and all our three churches were built
on the amphitheatrical plan, and
scores Of churches all over the country
have adopted the same plan.
And, my brethren and sisters we
fail in our work just in proportion as
we try to be like other churches We |
believe that God intended every church, |
like every man, to be individual, gath |
ering up all its peculiarities and |
idiosyncracies, and hurting them to-
ward some good and grand object In |
other words, no two churches ought |
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