The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-03-20

God unto perfect manhood, unto the meas
ure Of the stature of the ftillness of Christ.
And then he goes on with practically the
same ethical conclusions as those embodied
In the epistle to the CoIossians and those
which you have found already in Romans
and Corinthians, and which 1 need not
further elaborate.
ORIENTALISM IN OUR LAND.
In our own time thoughts have again
crossed the ocean and come to America,
borne on the wings of the wind of Itera-
ture, brought by the missionaries of an
Oriental faith. And they are welcome. And
there is something we have to learn from
them. For we must not forget, as we have
often forgotten, that Christianity was born
midway between the occidept and the
orient; that it has something in the quality
of both beliefs. We must not forget what
we sometimes have been inclined to forget,
that we are occidentals, and perhaps have
seen Christianity only in part. We must
remember that all cur creeds and confess
sicnS represent not Christ ianity, but
Apostles creed, primitive Christianity, the
creed of Plus TX, Roman Christianity, the
Westminster confession OF faith, Calvinistic
Christianity, Anglican Christianity and
even the writings and sermons of Maurice
and Brooks and Erskine and Bushnell and
Beecher-new theology Christianity nat
it is not all. For Mozoomdhar. think, has
taught US, by his oriental Christ that there
Is conception of Christianity passed to
the orient which we with our definitions
and our sharp lines and our precise think
iEg have not yet been able to comprehend.
And If these messengers from the far East,
fore us, shall compel US to re-
examine our Christianity: re-examine
the character and life Of Christ re-
Of our creeds, ancient or modern, but in the
light of the larger knowledge Of the nine
tenth century they will render us a service.
P11t an he fhor ho1 Wa T1oOn
philosophy in the spirit of Paul. shall
not meet it as those who say we can take
from Christianity, and amalgamate them,
and out of them get a universal religion.
Christianity is absolutely exclusive, be-
cause it is absolutely inclusive. There is but
one God; not Jehovah and Jupiter and
an Odn and a Thor-one God. And there
is but one Lord Jesus Christ-one Messiah;
not a Confucius and a Socrates and
Sadartha and a Mohammed ard Joe
Smith and a Jesus Christ-one Lord Jesus
cept Him as the one sole Messiah of the
world. That is what the apostle means
when he says there is none other name
given under heaven among men whereby
we can be saved. Jesus Christ is the
worlds Saviour. Not a Saviour of a He
brew race not Saviour of a Christian peo-
pie, when all other people are to be saved
by their own religions in other ways. And
this Christianity is an exclusive religion
it is Maurice who said Christianity has in
it all that is best and true in other re-
lgions We will use other thoughts to in
terpret this our religion, but not to amalga-
mate this with another, or think we have
yet to search the world for a universal re-
ligion because we have one that is pro-
vincial.
FOUR QUESTIONS.
Religion as thought has four questions
to answer: First, what is God? Second,
what is man? Third what is the relation
between God and man? Fourth, what is the
life, which T1oon ic n live whom no I10dar-
stands and enters into that relation? There
is no other question; there is nothing left.
What is God? What is man? What are
the relations between God and man? And
how are men to live when they have en-
tered into that relationship? Now, Chris
tianity has it's answer to each one of those
four questions. God-one true righteous,
loving, helpful Father of the whole human
race. God-love. And love, what is that?
Such life as Jesus Christ lived on the
earth. What is man? Man is in the image
OF God. If he is not, if he fails in that, he
God, and not until he has come to be in the
image of God will he be a man. What is a
a mouth appearing out Of the marble block.
No, 1t is not statue, it is a half-done
statue stat Wait AIT until the sculptor is through;
is done will you see a man, and you never
saw one except as you saw him in Jesus of
fWeen this COD ND Th ib is the Teati2n be
tNCSA lii4o OOO eillu ILLS HAL. II Is the re-
lationship of the most intimate fellowship
that the human soul can conceive; one life
dwelling in the other life. and fill
fulness. You cannot get any closer rela-
tlonship to God than that. When this full
ness has been realized, when you and l
have the fulness of God in u.s. when God
has finished the man life will result Just
such a life as Christ lived with all the
splendor of Self-sacrifice, with all the glory
CT service, with all the magnificent herOism,
with all the enduring patience. What has
Orientalism to ada to that? 1t is reincarna-
tality in nobler sphere. 1t is an uncon-
ditioned and unknown and unknoWable in
place Of Lying God, a loving Father Re-
pentance nor sin it knows not; nor redemp-
tion for it cannot know redemption save
as 1t knows sin and repentance. And for the
eternal life which the Gospel of the Lord
Jesus Christ offers and for the rest which
comes from fulneSS and abundance of life
it offers a Nirvana-the rest of grave and
an endless sleep.
1.-Two more lectures will complete this
course. L shall not speak of what are known
as the pastoral epistles-the epiStles to Tim
othy and Ttus-chiefly because there is lit
tie in them which has not been practically
covered by the lectures which have already
been given, and what little there is is &C.
cles1astical rather than ethical in its ma
ture, and think therefore, not necessary
to be included in this course. Next Sunday
the Philippians; PauPs experience in prison;
and a week from Sunday night, bringing
this course to close, 1 shall consider the
effect of Paul'S teaching on the Christian
thought Of the world"