Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1895-12-16
DUTIES Of CHRISTIANS.
Dr.. Riker Points Out the Conditions Of
Discipleship
In His Discourse at the Fourth
Street Church-The Forty Hours
Devotion at the Cathedral-Dr
Swope Discourses on Eternity.
Wesley NJ. E. Services.

At the Fourth Street NJ. f. Church,
yesterday morning, the Rev. DR.. A. B.
Riker, concluded his series of dis
courses on the Ten Commandments.
In the evening he preached a special
sermon on the Conditions of Disciple
ship. taking his text from Matt. 1924
If any man Will come after me, let
him deny himself, and take up his cross
and follow me"
Many persons, he said, do not have an
adequate conception OF what Chris,
tithan's duty is. The question is an
swered in the words of the text. 1t is
no slight thing to be a Christian. 1t
requires the whole man, the whole wo-
man. Christ conveyed the idea of dis
clpleship in the words of the text. What
are the doctrines of discipleship? The
first is the divinity of Christ, the abso-
Lutte truth Of all He said, and the abso,
lutte worth of all He said, and His right
TO make such demands of men.
The second thing to be considered is
the sinfulness of men, and the punish
ment of sin. The condition of the sin
ner is absolutely hopeless. The Scrip
lures do not represent him as sick, but
dead. The sinner is like the condemned
Englishman, who after he had exhaust
ed every means to save his life. asked
for writing materials and an attorney
to make his will. He was told that he
could not make a WILL he owned moth
ing, as in the eyes of the law he was
dead. That is the attitude of the sin
ner.
The third doctrine is that Christ Of
fers the opportunity to escape the PEN
atty of sin. The fourth, that this offer
is conditioned upon our coming into
rightful relations with God. Heaven
viii be peopled with those who are fiji
for it. The apostles could not under
stand the spiritual truth that Christ is
not after the external, but the internal
man. That is the difficulty to-day
Man is not better, despite the CEN
turtles Of Christian truth and all the his
tory of the church behind us. The fifth
doctrine is that men are free agents
and can accept or reject the offers OF
divine mercy. God will cooperate with
him who is willing to be spiritualized
who is willing to put himself in Gods
hands and accept the divine remedy.
The condition of true discipleship is
total, irreversible, unconditional surren-
der of ones whole being, body, soul
business, intellect, will, everything sub
ordinate to the will of Jesus Christ
This is far from the question of mere
church membership. 1t has nothing
to do with our external relationship; il
has to do with the will Church mem
bership is an important thing, the kind
of church which sustains the internal
life is important, but has nothing to dc
with mans relationship to Christ.
To be His disciple, Christ says We
must deny ourselves. He was rigid and
severe, His requirements absolute
Christ should dwell within us. anC
when any question comes up it should
be settled, not according to our own in.
clinatiOns, but in accordance with His
requirements. The Christian must
deny himself utterly.
He tells us to take up His cross
Christ is severe, but we do not dare tC
trifle in the matter of salvation AS
applied to our lives, His words mean
that we must take up everything i'm
posed upon us as becomes Christians
The society woman who wants to join
church has her cross to bear in the
form of the sneers of her friends on ac-
count of her Puritanical ideas. But our