Kansas City daily journal., 1897-01-31
Drawing Nearer tn God.

6. II. Hepworth. in New York Herald
And 1 will love him and will manifest
myself to him.'-John, xiv:21
A purely perfunctory religion is like dir
on the face-you must wash it off before
you can be clean.
| What We need in order to make our lives
noble and grand is personal relation tc
God that Is without fear. but full of rever.
ent love and unquestioning confidence
| 10 many. even among those who cal
themselves Christians. God, if not a myth
Is at any rate an uncertainty. He is so far
away that they can neither see nor hear
HIM They accept the statement of His
existence In a dazed sort of way and hope
that He will exercise kindly providence
over their lives; but as for any spiritual
| experience which makes His existence and
ms providence demonstrated facts. very
Few have had anything of the kind.
say. therefore, that there is a low kind
OF religion which, though it is vastly bet
ter than nothing, is characterized by fogCy
| doubt, by misty distrust and by the con-
| slant feeling that we are not at all secure
in our faith.
AT the same time am sure that there is
! very high kind of religion. which is Illus
] trated by the relation between a little child
| and his mother. When one possesses that
| he has miracle working power. even as
| the disciples had after the Holy Spirit had
| descended upon them.
The Christ was calm even in Gethsemane
because He was consciously in the Fathers
Keeping. The cross was inevitable. but He
was supported during that ordeal by the
absolute certainty that God had not made
and could not make a mistake
We, too. have Gethsemanes, thick dark
ness and horrible adversities. but we have
not the certainty that God is controlling
events, and hence our anxiety. our restless
ness and much of our i'll health as a con-
sequence.
Does not the test point to the way out
OF our dilemma? 1t seems to indicate a
KIND of faith in what is going on IN heaven
which we have scarcely dreamed of. Are
tney VINO are in the upper regions interest
ed IN our welfare, and if they are is there
any bridge across the chasm of death2 Is
II really true that the other world is a
heavenly metropolis, while this world is
simply suburban province. and that they
who live yonder can still help those who
live here?
Chrlst smites the rock of our doubt and
pure water rushes out to quench our thirst.
L Will love Him." That is easy to believe
The mother in Europe loves her child in
America, but, alas, the ocean rolls he
tween them and the separation is complete.
Is that the way in which We are loved by
God and His Christ?
Will manifest myself to him." If the
mother IN Europe could suddenly trans
port hefsef across the sea and stand in |
the presence of the child in America she
would then manifest herself to him. Or
II her mind by means of some magic
thought transference could touch the mind |
of her child. and her warm love so come |
into contact with the child's love that the |
child could say, My mother is here," that. |
too, would be manifestation
IL Christ manifests himself to anyone |
de does something which proves to that |
person that He is with him. And that is |
precisely what He tells us He will do. If
We are in a spiritual condition to receive
Him. II you look through that possibility
you Will see at once that the religion we
now have is to the religion that we ought
10 nave as mere husk of corn is to the
full ear.
Think of life in which Christ manifests
Himself constantly, A life in which
heaven and earth are within calling dis
tance of each other! In which the soul is
that mysterious influences are
round about it, and in which mind and |
heart receive suggestions as to duty, sue
cor in distress and help in time of trial!
We need to vitalize our religion by intro |
ducing into it some New Testament truth. |
The religion we have is mere wooden
image. not living being. 1t is full of
prejudices. but not full of Christ We want
not merely a formal belief in God. but n |
of His presence. He does
not bar us out, but we bar Him out. He
can be close to US when we are at a great
distance from Him.
II man were to spend an hour a day
n serious solitude, in self-communion, two
things, yes, three things would happen-he
would think less of this world; he would
.hink more of the other world: he would
ind that when Christ manifests Himself |
% man that man receives a revelation
If heavenly things which gives strength. |
md poise. and calmness of soul.
We have not yet begun to fathom even |
he shadows of our religion, and as to its |
Iepths we cannot guess what they contain.
All things are possible, physical and spirit
Up excellence, to him whose sou, is In
with the nature of things. as
'hrists was. How close heaven would come
We were really imbued with His spiritr
lie saw the New Jerusalem; He heard the
oices of Its citizens; He was never with
ut the companionshIp of beings to US un- q
cen, and so the dreary road from Bethany l
D Calvary became the road Home. 1t will !
e so with us, too, when we see things
s they really are. q