The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1896-12-05

missionary movement, and every
great quickening of religious life
among the nations of mankind.
Men need leader. Christ is the
Leader, God-appointed and man
satisfying. When we see the devo-
ton that has been his throughout all
Christian history, when we see what
wonders this loyalty has wrought
among men, no men need miss the
way to the helpful sermon. What
men have done, men will do. Every
deed of service will be exalted by the
thought of the cup of water in the
Masters name. Every sin crushed
out will be counted victory for
HIM. The dreary task, the lonely
life, the hard duty is TRANSPORTED
when we are his disciples. Devotion
to him is the key to the hearts and
lives of men. Universalist congrega-
tions need to have Christ presented
to them as mighty quickening
| power. How many of our ministers
preach as if they fully believed that
Jesus is the only name under heaven
whereby men may be saved, and yet
all Christian experience proves this
the case. No great church and no
great preacher has ever believed any
thing different. Look at the great
religious leaders who have moved
men: Paul, Chryso stom, Bunyan,
Whitefeld, Wesley, Chaplin, Moody,
Brooks, and you will find men who
have made the Christ the root and sub
stance of their message to the world.
We are 80 fearful of seeming ''or
thodox," we shut our eyes to the mas
ter influence in all the world to win
men. We forget that the church
with the most medieval creed, that
still calls men to be loyal to near
and personal Christ, will grow and
flourish while the church, whose
creed meets the approval of the best
minds and hearts, will languish and
stagnate if it neglects this appeal.
l am glad that this note has b en-
struck by one of our own leaders:
The deepest hunger Of the strongest
souls is the longing to exercise i'm
plicit obedience to consecrated au
thority. want an absolutely sacred
shrine. The brightest image of God
| see in Jesus the Christ. His voice
then shall be to me as the voice of
God" And again, "The center of
our faith and the soul of our progress
must be the living and triumphant
Christ"
Do you wish to help men? Preach
the leadership of Christ. Too often
we get vague generalities, an intang
ible Christ-spirit instead of the living
Christ, Son of Man and Son of God.
The existence and immanelce, even
the love of God, great facts in our
lives as they are, do not move us;
they are beyond, above us. God is
incomprehensible, Christ is real, COM
prehensible, tangible. We reach af-
ter God, we follow Christ. 1t is for
this God sent the Christ to the world,
the express image of his own divinity,
infnity made finite, God adapted to
the nature and comprehension of
man, the word made flesh and dwell
ing among us. Whatever we may
think intellectually or theologically,
Beecher's word is profoundly true:
"Jesus is the only God we know"
He is Gods arm reaching down from
heaven for the uplifting of man, his
own right hand extended to men in
the hand-clasp of spiritual oneness.
Paul made no mistake when he made
Christ and Him crucified" the sub
stance of his preaching to men. All
the refining influences of modern civ
ilization may do much to raise the en-
vironment of men; but still, as of old,
it is Christ who lifts men.
My brethren, it is with special
thought of the young people of our
church that all this has been written.
A church, to grow, must hold those
who are born and reared in its faith.
To do this it must bring to the heart
the message answering to its deepest
needs. must furnish motive power for
the highest aspiration. Nothing else
satisfies. Youth looks for leadership.
There are moments in the lives of
every young person when the heart
and soul are reaching out for the
spiritual motives which find their
source in Christ. We have appealed
to them on every other side of their
multifarious activities. The problem
of problems has been to hold the
young to the church. We have
made the Church a social center with
parties and theatricals, Trilby socia-
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