The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1896-04-06
IN ELOQUENT PREACHER.
Discourses at Grace nj. II. Church on "The
Greatest Thing in the WorId.,.

|
IN ELOQUENT PREACHER.
Discourses at Grace M. Il. Church on 'The
Greatest Thing in the World.''
| At 1890 yesterday morning the Rev.
w. w. Wilson of Freeport l.. l., an
eloquent speaker, preached at Grace M.
| e. church. The church about the altar
was very beautifully decorated with
| flowers and palms. Mr. Wilson's re-
marks were upon the topic ''The Great
est Thing in the World A synopsis
of his address is as follows:
And now abideth faith, hope and
charity, these three, but the greatest of
| these is charity"-I. Cor, xiii, 13.
| In 1889 at Mr.. Moody's Summer School
Of Theology at Northfield, Mass, Pro-
| fessor Henry Drummond, the erudite
author of the Natural Law in the Spir-
| itual World, delivered an address on
| Love, the Greatest Thing in the
| World using this entire chapter as
the basis of his remarks, Like all 9TH
er effusions of his pen and utterances Of
| his lips, it was SO fascinating in it's
| oIS ~, ClSSdAAt III lIo uICtlOIl dlu HSTSc-
| tile in it's thought that it was printed
| in pamphlet form and widely circulated
| not only in our own language, but in
other languages, and not only in our
own land, but in other lands. And
while in many respects it is worthy of
| the admiration it has received, it is by
no means sound in it's theology and
should be read with serious misgiving
by every Methodist. Professor Drum
mond, whatever may be his claims as a
theologian, is pre- eminently scientist
and expresses theological thought in
| scientific terms, which is as great a
mistake as to express military thought
in nautical terms, or legal in medical
The spheres are entirely distinct and
should be kept 50. We are not surpris-
| ed, therefore. to hear him say that as
| you have seen scientists take a. beam
of light and pass it through crystal
prism and have it come out on the 9TH
| er side broken up into its constituent
elements, so Paul takes this thing
which he calls love and passes it
| through the magnificent prism of his
own inspired intellect and it comes out
on the other side broken up into it's
| COlStllu tieIIltHlS, Which, lie pIO-
| ceeds to name. Now, we all know that
Paul does no such thing. He takes
this thing which we call love, which
proceeds from the Father and from the
Son and from the Holy Ghost, which
was humbled in the manger, exempli-
| fed in the life. sublimed in death and
glorified in the resurrection and ascen-
sion of our Lord, and shows how it is
divinely surplanted in the human soul,
and then notes how it is manifested in
the life.
He also is at fault when he speaks
| of the manner in which we come into
possession of love. He says it is by in
duction. And here the scientist is seen
again. He says that if we take a piece
| of iron and place it alongside of a per-
manent magnet it will become magnet
| ic, and if we leave it there it will be-
come a permanent magnet. IF he had
said that piece of adamant should
first be changed into iron and then
placed beside permanent magnet it
would become magnetic, or left there it
would become permanent magnet, he
would have provided for the change of
heart which is as radical and must be
wrought before nearness to Christ will
benefit us. Judas was nearer to Christ
than many of the apostles at the table,
but was he better? Many pressed
against Jesus in the crowd, but only
one touched Him to be benefited by
Him. So out of many a. home have
gone children widely different from the
parents that gave them birth.
| Instead of regarding this subject,
therefore. in the light of analysis, con-
trast and defense, we shall view it in
| the light of the now abiding, the abid-
| ing and the greatest of the abiding.
Under the now abiding he spoke Of
| prophecies, tongues and knowledge,
showing how they all passed away. and
under the abiding he spoke of faith,
hope and love at length, showing how
| love was the greatest of the abiding in
that
| THAT we are nothing without it.
If we had the gift of prophecies and
could understand all mysteries and all
knowledge, and have not charity, ETC.,
we are nothing.
because we are everything with it.
Charity suffereth long and is kind, etc.
| 3-Because it outlasts the rest Faith
| SIloill NC SNetiiO"Cu up III SiSAlL dIiu uOpc
| in fruition. but love shall endure for
ever.
| The sermon was elaborate. dwelling
upon each point in particular and de-
Quoting lessons suitable to the occa-.
sion. it being claimed that if from the
Easter service they could come into the
possession of this love, whose fragrance
and beauty were like unto that of the
flowers so tastefully arranged, it would
be a memorable Easter to them, and
nothing short of it would be satisfac-
tory or gratifying to Him who raised
from the dead the body of the Lord
| Jesus.