The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-12-27
GOOD TIDIHGS Of JOY
REV. II. b. COWGILL's CHRISTMAS
SERMON AT FIRST NJ. e.
CHURCH.
MYSTERIES OF CHILDHOOD.
STORY OF THE NATIVITY WAS AC-
CEPTED AS ALL PROPERLY
NATURAL.
Old story Still as True and Reason.
able as 1t Was in Childhood
Days.

! house, soprano, Mrs. 4. u. Hayes, COLI
tralto; Harry George, tenor, and G. II.
BigeloW Jr., baritone. The musical Sc
lections were the anthem, bethlehem"
duet, 81 VIII Magnify Thee" by Miss
Morehouse and Mr.. George, and solo
by Mr.. George. Mrs. Russell r. Dorr
was at the organ.
The subject of Rev. CowgilPs sermon
was Good Tidings of Great JOY" the
text being from st. Luke H., 1O-11.
He said in part:
l hope that we have al had some pleasant
part in those festivities with which Christen-
dom celebrates the birth Of Christ. To most
of us there IS no ether day in the year so
fragrant with holy memories as Christmas
Something remains Of that strong and holy
spell which this day exercised over our minds
in childhood and which still consecrates the
day of our Lords nativity, so that 1t Is not
one Of the common days OF the year. II
we could on ether days forget that eternal
summer of divine life and love wnlch blooms
unseen above and about our world, we can
not forget it on Christmas day. The hlilsldes
are clad with snow, and the trees stretcn
their bare and frosty branches up toWaro u
the cold gray heavens; bur we know that
warmth and gladness are not far away Our
suIIen sleep of wordliness becomes, under
the changing of Christmas bells, an apocalypse
Of divine mercy in which we see the son Oh
let down from heaven, while the angels OF
God 20 to and fro. We have sometimes Deen
weary with our journey, and had stones Ior
our pillow and have slept the sleep OF spl !,
itual unfaith; but now we are sure that Gou
is in His world, and that His heaven IS hot
far away. ,.,
which in childhood we listened 10 the sttly
of the nativity. How natural 1t seemed that
the Great Father should love his human emil
dreu and should send his Heavenly son 10
put their wandering feet in the way VI ne
How wonderful was the love OF Ihe aC lieI
the love Of the Son who came. vi Cou II'
the Heavenly Father must feel toward ms
human children as our eartnly Iatnei . a a,,I.
mothers feel toward US. When lie sd" Jul Jul
need of instruction and warming, our heeu
NJ some one better and wiser than we 10
help us. He would spare His Son. ana OF
course the divine Son would be glaa 10 coiii g
and help US, for did we not Know Wiz w or ~
earthly brothers and sisters? IL was al
nerfectlv natural 1t was the proper Inin5
For Cod to do, if He really loved U.S. anu
of course He did love US; tho miraculous
element IN our Lords advent. we were u tissa
~ MIRACLES A miracle happened every Inc
. habv was born These miracles were nap,
nening all the time. Nobody cou-q uluei sSatia
or explain these miracles. we dlo NOT my Az 9
70 understand them in order to belleVe III li1e
fsc+s We knew the babies Kept conlhs' -.
was as easy to understand now JESUS 81
here and began His wonderful ne as W ~
dorstand how anybody else got here anu pc
een IN live 1t was easier to understand why
lie came than to understand why lne 10 "
us came What we came TOT anu mhdc W" a.
were to do and be was still mystery uuG ~
was clear enough what Jesus came TOT. ne
came ia seek and save the lost, to make
weary and wicked world know God and turn
away from its sin. Why other people snou1u
ha horn might be a question; out hopouy
could ever have a better reason l0a Coo ot how
horn than Jesus had. 1t was easy 10 see now
fine world could get along without almost any :
hody else; but it was clear that II couiu hol
get along without Jesus
# was not strange that God should tnlhk
.bout This thing a good while before he got
II done 1t was not strange that the thlng
should be talked about in heaven. NOR was IL
strange that the precious mystery snoulu leak
out of heaven by and by, ana the Wonuea.
fuI story Of what was going to happen get
started among men. Some angel, with OF
without permission, would fly away to the
earth some day, and fold his unseen wings
beside some holy prophet. and Whisper inc
glad tidngs in his ear. Then the prophet
would be so glad he could not contain himself
and he would go and tell others about It.
Those who heard would tell 1t again; ana SO
the story would go. Then In all tnelr tol
and trouble men would think OF the coming
Savior and coming glory, and take courage.
When it was about time for Him to be COM
ing. some good people ought to know about
It so they would understand what Wonder-
FIJI person had been put during His tender
childhood into their keeping; accordingly the
divine messenger was sent to Joseph and
Mary And wish the Savior was born, the
angels wanted the good news well started
among men; and so to shepherds on tne mus s
about bethlehem they came with their glad
announcement. When one Of them had told
the wondering shepherds about the birth OF
the Messiah prince the whole angel choir be-
came suddenly visible, and they filled the air
with burst Of song
"Glory to God In the highest.
And on earth peace among men
In whom He is we'll pleased"
Now when I review these, my childish i'm
pressions of the story Of the incarnation,
do not see much difference between those
Impressions and the views which I now hold.
I want to say distinctly that the old story Is
still true and reasonable to me. do not see
that all our history and science and philoso-
ply have thrown any reasonable doubt on
the essential elements of the story. The prog
ross of knowledge has, in my judgment done
nothing to discredit faith in a personal God
who loves a sinful world, and works out the
gracious purposes of salvation through the
mission of His Son into the world.
What is there in this fundamental creed
of Christianity that anybody has found out
to be untrue? Have we found out that there
is not a great divine personality, whose
thought feeling and will are the guiding,
moving and creative forces of the universe?
The great men of the world have not yet sue
ceeded in showing us how things came to
be- and to be as they are. without God.
Philosophy has not yet banished God out of
His world.
the object of divine regard. Mans dignity is
written in the wonderful faculties that have
been given him. How wonderful are the pow
ers of the human mindi How wonderful are
mans moral sensibilities How regal in
it's action ofttimes is the will within him!
How tremendous are his capacities for grief
and pleasure! 1t seems not preposterous to
| think of him as a partaker of the divine ma
| ture and an heir to eternity. Why, then,
should it be thought a thing incredible that
| God should come to him? But if He comes to
man in a manner comprehensive, He must
| come and speak to man in terms of human
| thought and experience. This means the in
| carnation.
There are some minds that easily believe in
marvels and miracles. There are others who
| do not easily accept that which seems out
Of the established course. My own belief is
| that O deep and significant harmony obtains
between the marvels of Christianity, especial
| ly the fact of the incarnation, and those
| great laws and movements of nature which
| claim the attention and confidence of the
| man of science. I should say for instance
| that If man has come to be an evolutiGnist
| he should be prepared by that philosophy OF
the universe to believe in great new move
! ment of humanity of such character and i'm
| port as the gospel presents to our contem-
| plation. The eyo1utionist asks us to contem-
| plate first a vast abyss in which God is moi
| manifest through any Of His works. Next
| in the vast void we see the first mist ap-
pear. Out of the first mist slowly come the
! worlds. Out of the molten sphere the habi-
| table globe. In this habitable sphere the
| lower forms of life. Out of these low forms
of life the higher constantly emerge. At the
summit of this pyramid of life man appears
at last. The eternal spirit working through
ages brings man into existence. Out of the
| fire mist, out of the heaving oceans and
| hurtling tempests, out Of the surging seas
of bestial life man is flung at last upon these
| shores OF time
Then sublime evolution goes forward Out
of the stress and toll of human life out OF
it's joys and sorrows, out of savagery and bar