The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1898-11-29
The ORIGIN OF The DAY
IT IS \ SACRED. NOT y SECULAR,
INSTITUTION.
The LESSONS IT SHOULD TEACH
freely ye have Received, Freely Give
thanksgiving tnjoins Sacrifice as
Well as r. jeicing. An Appeal
for the Orphans
for the Orphans

THANKSGIVING sermon preached by
Rev. VI. NJ. Marshall, j.. d., at CHRIST
Church, November 24th.)
.Freely We have received: freely give.
st. Matthew 10 chap. part OF Sth verse,
These words, YOU may remember
brethren. are 4 part of our Lord 5 dlrec-
tions to the twelve when He sent them
forth into the world TO preach the Cos
pel. LAS We go, preach. saying the KING
dom Of Heaven is at hand. Heal the SICK,
cleanse the leperS, raise the dead, cast
out devils: freely ye have received, free
Iy give"
Without any improperly | think they
may also be received somewhat apart
from their Immediate connection and ap-
piled to all Christians, for st. Peter
calls all such IAN holy priesthood to Of
Ter up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to
God by Jesus Christi and st. John
in Revelation says. Jesus Chrlst
X \ \ \ hath made Us kings ana
priests unto God and his Father
Nay. more: it IS true Of all men
whether they profess and call them
selves Christians or not-It is true Of
every human being as belonging to the
great brotherhood of man-that they
have freely received from God and there
fore should freely give Of good to others
every man in his own order, each
according to his several ability.
No law Of Nature tone indeed which
God has established for the very main
tenace and continued being Of the WORLD.
is of more universal applicability or more
apparent than this great law OF depend
cnce and inter-dependence. the one upon
the other, that applies to all of Gods
creatures. great or small. ANIMATE or IN
animate. whether in earth. air. or SEA.
Not one is made for itself alone; but
each-hoWeyer tiny or however ire
menuous-for others, and all for the
glory of God.
OF everything about us II may be said.
as the Apostle SAYS. man. the greatest OF
Gods creatures of earth. Not one
liveth unto himself and not Il dieth
unto himself.' Every moral Influence.
good or lad, set = going in the world
ana none are 50 humble or so insight
ticant as not to constantly exercise such
influence-gocS on and on III an ever
widening circle and contributes its quota
to the general result.
! True. there may he, and are. counter
acting influences to hold them IN check.
but there are other concurrent ones to
further them: and in any ease It IS true
in morals rs in physics that nothing is
destroyed. We may alter its form. we
may divert its force: but the force is
there and-however infinitesimal we may
regard tit is a factor in the general
result. 1t is a part of the complete
whole. 1t is so in the world Of matter.
1t is so not less in the world of mind
and morals.
Gods law in nature and III grace is
one. as He is one.
These threads of influence. goOG or
bad, however small. make up the wool
anu the warp of the life or the world.
and though we may lose sight of them
they are there nevertheless. and God will
one day brace them every one before our
eyes. cach to its proper sources. and so
shall we be Judged. Brethren. life is a
fearful responsibility. But it may be
made Il corresponding blessing. As we
are higher III the scale of being. we are
capable of. and were made for. higher
happiness and by so much also we nave
the greater responsibility.
OF all of Gods creatures of earth.
man has from his Maker received"
most freely and should therefore most
freely give to his fellow of whatever is
for their good.
That's Gods law. That's Gods COM
mand: Freely We have received, freely
give" The setting apart by the church
of a particular day in every year to be
observed as one of special prayer and
Thanksgiving to Almighty God for the
fruits of the earth, and all the other
blessings of his merciful providence.
had its origin in a devout recognition of
this law of God and this sound principle
of the Faith. | say the setting apart of
such Il day by the church advisedly. For
l find year by year on the recurrence
of this daE there are those who need to
be reminded that Thanksgiving Day is
not in its origin Il creature of the State.
but Of the church. 1t was not and is not
appointed for any political reason what
ever: but as the Rubric itself prefixcd
to the office which we have this morn
inc used expressly states. it is a form
Of prayer and thanksgiving to a.
mighty God for the fruits of the earth
and all the other blessings of his mer-
clful Providence: which it further
states is Ito be used yearly on the first
l thursday III November or on such other
day as Shall be appointed by the civil
authority 1t is appointed in November
because then the harvcsts have been
gathered. ana for the same reason the
day IS Familiarity called in the church Of
England the Harvest Home" festival.
Such services We're common in England
long before they We're known in this
country: but our church finding the oh
s~ervance of such n day in keeping with
the principle which underlieS the ap-
nointment Of Festivals and Fasts and
Saints Days Ton each of which p~articu-
lar doctrines and duties are taucht0.
namely tho principle that what we have
not :; set time for. We are apt more or
less to neclect-madc the day to he oh
served one and the same throughout the
country. that is National. and prepared
Tor rs due celebration that arnropriato
office which. in common with thousands
- tens of thousands of chnrchmen
throughout the land. We have this very
h0nr used.
Another sound principle of the Faith
IS TO honor and defer to the powers
that be and hence the appointment Of