The Roanoke daily times. (Roanoke, Va.) 1895-1897, 1895-09-29
HYP0CRITE, OH YE HrPR0CRITE
Religion of Public Opinion.
Read and Digest.
for They Loved tho Praise of Men Moro
Hhan the Praise OF Cod Taken
From the Forty third vor.e Of the
Twelfth Chapter OF St. John

these words were spoken OF cersniu
INDIVIDUALS who refused TO confess mat
Jesus was the Christ. because he Was
eI .remely unpopular with the scribes
ano pharisees, and principal psople of
Jerusalem. ro Va
There is plain distinction between
sell love, or the simple desire of hsppi-
ness' ana selhshness. Self love, the
aeslre OF happiness and dread OF misery
Is constitutional; it is part of our
frame as God made US, and as ne in,
tended US 20 be-; and its indulgence
within the limits of the law OF God. 10
not sinful. Whenever It is indulgad
contrary to. the law OF God, it becomes
sinful. When the desire of happiness
or the dread of misery becomes the
controlling principle, and we prefer our
own gsatihcation to some other greater
interest, 1t becomes selfishneas. When.
to avoid paia or procure happiness. wa
sacrifice other greater interests, we VIC.
iase the great law of disinterested
oenevolence; 1t is no longer self-loye.
acting within lawful bounds, but selfish
ness.
In my last Sunday morning lecture.
L described class of professors OF relip.
ION, who are moved to perform reli9-
lous exercises by hope and fear. They
arc moved sometimes by self love. and
-
promo ooJace is not to glorify God, but
10 secure their own salvation. You vii,
fecoliect that this class, and the class I
hao described as the real friends OF God
ana man, agree in many things, and II
you LOOK only at the things in which
they agree, you cannot distinguish be-
tween them. IL is only by close obser-
walton OF those things in which thew
u!Her' that you can see the main design
vi she iatter class Is not to glorify God,
out TO secure their own salvation. In
that way we can soc their supreme oh
1ect developed, and see that when thew
40 the same things, outwardly, which
those do whose supreme object Is to
giorify God, they do them from entirely
inherent motives, and conse Quently the
acts themselves are, in the sig hit OF God,
OF an entirely different character.
Io-day, l design to point out the
cnaracteristics OF the third Glass of pro-
lesslng christians, who love the praise
Oh men more than the praise of God"
would not be understood to implv
that mere regard for reputation has
ieo TINS class 10 profess religion. Re-
llglon has always been too unpopular
with the great mass of mankind to
render 1t general thing to become pro-
iesslng Christians from mere regard to
reputation. hut l mean, that where 1t
Is not generally unpopular 10 become q
professor of religion, and will not di-
minish popularity, but will increase it
with many, complex motive operates
the fope OF securing happiness in q
future world, and that it may increase
reputation here. And thus many are
LED to profess religion, when after all,
on close examination, it will be seen
that the leading object, which ia priced
beyond anything else. is the good opin-
lon OF their fellow men. Sooner than
forfeit this utterly, they would not pro-
fess religion. Their profession turns on
this Ard although they do profess to
be sincere Christians, you msy see BY
their conduct, on close examination,
that they will do nothing tina. will for
feit this good opinion OF men. Thew
Will not encounter the odium that they
must, II they were to give themselves
up to root sin out OF the heart
observe, that impenitent sinners are
always influenced by one OF two things,
In all that they do that appears like re-
ilgion. Either they do them out of re-
gard to mere natural princip pies as com
passion or self-love-principles that are
constitutional In them-or from selfish
ness They are done either out of re-
gard to their own reputation or happi-
ness, or the qualification OF some natural
principle in them, that has no moral
character; and not from tho love of
zoo In item. They "love the praise of
men more than the praise of God
VIII now mention several things by
which you may detect the true char
acter OF the class OF persons of whom L