The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1898-06-03
Baccalaures.e Sermon.

Baptist church Sunday evening had the
pleasure Of listening to an exceedingly
instructive baccalaureate sermon by
Rev. c. v. Northrop. The exercises
throughout were of high character,
the solos by Mrs. Eta H. Gould and
Miss Daisy Fish being much enjoyed.
The graduating class, the high. school
faculty and the board of education &C.
cupied seats in the center of the audi
forum, while on the platform were
Supt Simmons, Revs. Benson, Sweet,
Cromer and Northrop. Rev Sweet
read the scripture lesson and Rev. Ben
son offered prayer.
The subject of Mr.. Northrop's address
was The Man of the Hour" the text
being from Chron. 1914: Captain
of the host: he that was least was equal
to an hundred, and the greatest to
thousand" He said in part.
"We are a nation of hero. worshippers.
We admire the individual who with for
titude and pluck FORCES to the front and
wins for himself an enduring name. We
never read of heroes or heroines but we
ask, What is the secret of their success?
What were their ideals, their principles,
what was the supreme foundation on
which they built? pm. After stating that
the men of the Goth century must be bet
ter men than those of the 10Th century
or they will fail, Mr.. Northrop mention
ed some of the necessary qualifications of
'the man of thousand" He must be q
man of mind, must have conscience,
must have a high ideal, must be man
of will, must will to do tremendous hard
work, and above all must be a man of
character.
| The sermon was replete with sound,
practical advice to the members of the
class and the earnestness of the speaker
added much to the impressiveness of the
discourse which closed with the following;
81 cannot impart to you Jacobs bless
ing, but can offer my hearty congratula-
tons on the completeness of the high
school course, and my earnest counsel and
best wishes for your future happiness and
prosperity. Keep up vigorous and con.
slant regulation of your own minds. You
are common heritors in the weaknesses
of depraved race. Sloth and pleasure
are the besetting sins of graduates. Hith-
erto you have had your tasks assigned
you day by day. Now, most of YOU will
have to blaze your own paths. By dill
gent application you have explored some
| of the fields of science and learning; but
broader stretches remain unexplored and
harder tasks yet remain to be accom-
plished in your own self conquest and in
the practical problems of life. Take
| heed to yourselves Two worlds stand
opposed to the best in you, and your
| struggle must be constant and untiring
Cultivate right habits. Right habits are
more than half the battle of life. Take
special care of your mental and moral
habits. Be active and useful-no drones
who eat up the substance of the earth
and give nothing in return. He that
tilleth his land shall have plenty of
bread; but he that followeth after vain
persons shall have poverty Ennoble
what you touch. God commands it and
right society expects it. Strive after the
highest personal character. Strong men
are the bulwarks of the nation. Be men
and women OF unfinching firmness and
courage in the cause of right. Be enthu-
siastic for Righteousness. Make your
lives tell for the betterment of the world.
If there be any wrong and meanness, let
your lives be against it. If there be any
thing Godlike, be you prepared to give it
an uplift. Study the Word of God; for
those who ignore the Word of God may
expect to be deserted by the Spirit Of
God. 1t was the big-brained man, the
whole-souled consecrated Gladstone, who
said, Take human being and make an
accomplished man in natural philosophy,
in mathematics, as merchant, as a law
year, as physician, and conceal from
him knowledge and power of the chris
tan Fifth, and he.would go forth into the
world poor and miserable and blind.
"Put on, therefore, my young friends, the
whole armor of God that we may be able
to stand against the wiles of the devil.
Do not attempt to stand alone. Thous-
ands, strong as you, have fallen in this
terrible fight. Therefore, seek first the
kingdom of heaven and all these things
shall be added unto to you. I charge
this upon you because it is right, and be-
cause we know not the hour when the
Son of Man cometh. Some of you may
meet with crushing disappointment,
which will make your hearts bleed, and
| you will need One to whom you can 60
for solace and strength. Remember that
you never can drag God from his throne
by playing the ostrich, burying your
head in an earth bank. See to it that
you give constant recognition in your
everyday life to Gods supremacy and
care. Strive to recompense the care of