Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1897-04-12
CREED MAKES CHARACTER.
Continued from First Page.

! If YOU please. a creed is not true because
multitudes believe it and because it has
! stood the test of fire nd time, but be
cause the creed was true therefore. it has
stood the test and borne its fruits.
DRIFTING.
In all churches We may find many sad
! examples Of those who have drifted away
from the true faith because with the head
} they tried to believe. not with the heart,
| unto salvation. I am free to say that
mental detection from the cardinal truths
Of any creed Is a sure sign OF moral de-
! Election in character There is enough OF
| Christ in any creed 10 save any honest
soul. The design of church creeds Is ho'
| 10 create divisions. as some ignorantiy
assert. but TO cure disseusions and 10 heaI
| divisions. He is very ignorant Of church
| history who charges upon creeds the
sources of errors and causes Of sectarian
strifes. Because Of errors therefore creeds;
not creeds and therefore errors.
FREE THOUGHT.
No church captures men and then COM
pels them to believe its creed. Not at all.
! He is not a freeman who follows course
| his whole nature cannot endorse, and the
| Christ in every creed appears 20 man
whole being. whatever the phase Of the
| Christ life presented. as dew drop globes
the sun or contains all the elements OF the
sea. To reject any creed is to reject
Christ. A churchless man is a Christless
man. False 10 any. he IS false TO all. \
! freeman in sin and in salvation. No man
| is a loval citizen Of America who ignores
man a loyal citizen Of the commonwealth
Of Christianity who neglects membership
| in some church Nor is this the rhetoric
Wanting of sectarian bigot. am
pleading for no special church. am advo-
eating a principle. My point is. that ne
who ignores any Christian doctrine does
so at the peril Of his own character ana
usefulness. and he does so when he re-
pudiates the church. imDeaches divine
wisdom and goodness in founding the
| church by his Indifference to its sacred
saving vows; and drifts into the shoreless
sea of doubt ano on to damnaton.
CHRISTIAN CONCENSUS.
Tho concensus of Christian thought
tbroupb the centuries constitutes the es-
| sontjal doctrines of the Christian faith
! and furnishes every ground of confidence
md assurance for any right-minded. right
hearted man. We are heirs of the ripened
wisdom of the ages To subscribe to any
CHRISTIAN creed is far more honest and
intelligent than to follow in aimless' nope
less wanderings the vague and Vasrah1
| ,o.iors of mon N variance with the Bible s
cardinal doctrines.
BEWARE OF PROXY.
To mt vour creed as a substitute for
! foitb and not IS the exponent Of that
| faith. is credulity and not Intelligent ialtn'
| Mere mental assent to cnurcn creed Is
the result of moral consent TO be saved
Inv the Christ in the creed. The cred
that makes a character must be per
| sonal faith in vital truth. not sunst-
| tute for faith to save one the trouoie Oh
| thinking. In conclusion, we are come 10
the starting point Of Scripture: lie that
beIieveth shall be saved; he that believeth
NOT shall he damned" Herein we find
profound philosophical and not works
a primary condition 70 salvation
PLEASING GOD.
| man without creed Is man without
| % character. without faith, it is impos-
sjble TO please Cod" Why? Because a
man without faith in Christ is without
roryer 70 become holy and useful. the only
| tbirqs nleasing to God. Not faith, but
faith at work, pleases Cod mere are
two salvations: one at the beginning anu
| the other at the closing Of Chrisllan NE
on earth. "He that believeth shaH pe
| saved" is the first; He that ehuur1h 70
the end shall be saved the second be
ueva and show the reason Of a man. Be
,ieve and taste the pleasures OF a Cod
Three great questions concern US all
what to believe. why to believe and now 70
! helieve am not sent to tell any one
| hov, ~ trust lie knows how, he neglects
the what he forgets the why
Faitb in error leads TO an erroneous
| ufe. faitb in truth. to true life; faith in
| Cbrist 70 q Christian life. But 1t must be
| faith working by love, issuing IN peace
Droducine rood fruits. the end eternal life.
Fopr creeds cover the range OF human
| ,bougbt in religion Up in the historic
,o,,er Of the centuries hangs the church
clock of Christianity. its four faces turn
ing severally toward the -FOUR oaIuli.@i
noi,+s If universal Christendom. The
nendulum of theologic thought swings 10
| and fro touching two extremes and IN ITS
arc including two means. The uniVersahst
who believes God is too good to damn
him. the Unitarian who believes himself
too good to be damned, these the e%-
-remes. and Just this side the one we have
Calv;n,sm which makes God sovereign
and man serf: and just this side the
cher Armiuianism, which declares man
is free though Christ be king. The fifth
creed If creed it be. is theism. Ere the
| clocl of destiny tolls out the death knell
Of thy soul and lecves thee to repent
without hope. TO be lost without the
shadow Of excuse adopt some phase of
Christian truth convinced Of one thing.
! that II is far more rational to try though
Won fail than never TO try at all.