The herald., 1898-10-03

for the hrst time
since his return to this city to take up the
work of the pastorate HIS subject was
'First Things First" Before the sermon
Mr. Prichard thanked the members OF the
rongrega ton for the cordial manner In
which he had been received by them, and
for their thoughtful preparations for the
comfort Of himself and his family.
The following Is a brief outline Of the SER
mon, the text Of which was from Matthew
$685. "But seek ye first the kingdom o1
God. and his Righteousness, and all these
things shall be added unto you." Every
body admires the sermon on tho mount
That portion Of 1t from which the text is
taken is an especial favor.te with many
They love to read it's references to Gods
fatherly care and providence They are
charmed with the Masters reference t.
the fowls and to the lihes. It il blessed tc
be reminded thus how close the Lord o1
Glory has come to the level OF human ne
cessities. How the familiar, the ordinary
and even the commonplace things Of life
become a medium for his sublime spirit.
ual Instructions. And yet while univer.
sally approved, its blessed lesson IS seldom
appropriated. While much praised, it is
little experienced
There Is no principle so simple as single
mindedness. This Is the one thing which
men decline to practice, and yet It is the
one thing upon which the Lord insists. 1t
Is the great thought Of this passage. In
three ways the blessed Master enforces t.
as the object the motive and the occupa-
tion of life. One can only make his life
object either heavenly or earthly. Where
H,t to- vrv,n ~ hao RI ho Iun
The service Of God or mammon must be
chosen. Both cannot fmpel him In one
or the other he must find his motive. The
great occupation of life is not accumula-
ton, but use. If we are employed with
one we cannot be with the other
Now, of all this the text is a summary.
''Seek ye first the Kingdom Of God and his
Righteousness, and all these things shall
be added unto you"
First things must be put first There Is
an Interchangeable order of sequence in
everything. First the foundation, then
the building. First the sowing, then the
reap.ng. Thus one includes and necessi-
tates the other. What is of first import
ance can never be made secondary, nor
that which is secondary put first without
irreparable loss and injury.
Mr.. Prichard then proceeded to apply the
principles thus enunciated to those who
make religion secondary thing, giving
business, pleasure and social position the
principal place in their lives. to the neglect
of their spiritual natures; to protesting
Christians who are discontented or anx-
ious. or ambitious or covetous Of worldly
good thus neglecting their highest privi-
leges, and to the church to which he had
been called. as affording suggestion Of the
true aims and ambitions of such a company
of Christians
He that soweth only his own flesh,
shall OF the flesh reap corruption"-Ga
vi:S-was the text an
Sin and nounced by the Rev.
sinners c. J.-K. Jones at the
Church Of the Unity
yesterday morning. There is an ideal of
life, said the speaker, which we do not
and never can attain. There is a conflict
between physical forces of the body and
the mental forces of our higher nature,
In many cases the physical forces are
stronger than the mental. In healthy men
and women we have a directly normal re-
lation between the body and the mind In
which the mind asserts its divine tendency.
In such cases we have, other things being
equal, moral development of the indi-
vidual.
AS fast as men grow toward their moral
ideals they are creating higher ideals of
character. In the healthy state Of moral
life men are always behind their ideals.
Jesus condemned the lower view which
His people, scribes and priests, took of re-
ligion. For His people and men of all
time He raised the standard of ideal char
acter in religion. He placed 1t in truth and
honesty of intention.
We then find a natural or psychological
reason for mans sense of imperfection. He
does not live uA to his ideal Of what he
can or ought to be. The we'll balanced
man and woman who have always been
properly nurtured and surrounded by the
best of influences In home and social life
can and do avoid wrong-doing as rule
The exceptions reveal a special reason for
the offense or crime. What then is called
crime or sin against social rights and or
der Is the natural result of imperfect con-
ditions of birth and surroundings In a ma
iority of cases. The old way of explaining
evil in the world was to say that 1t was
the work of the devil. We now know that
what is wrong Is due to natural causes and
deepest student Of these subjects that
many Of the criminal evils from which So
ciety suffers can be removed.
The preachers of sin and about sin are
forgetful of the fact that men are growing
better with each succeeding generation.
AS the grade of society rises we find that
offcnses against peace and order decrease
IN their grossness. All that we see and
Know are natural effects of natural causes.
Wise and Jealous men are now endeavorng
to learn these causes. and as fast as they
have learned them the treatment of wrong
doers has been more humane,
Rev. Burt Estes Howard Of the Church
of the Covenant took his text from Heb
14-17, the last clause
ihe True of which is, "Thou
f1esthood art priest for
ever, after the order
Of Mechizedek.''
Every while there comes forth from
the womb of the ages a man who seems
to gather unto himself the greatness Of
his kind, soul that rises into the heart of
the infinite, lifting the race with II Cod.
ward and becoming the gateway thnouyh
which larger ideal, noblcr thought a
holier truth, diviner life enters human
affairs The greatness Of these men ia
accidental, 1t is essential These are true
priests and kings Of the earth. Thev are
priests and kings by the divine right Of
the kingly soul that is in them. or such
tina 1ec,,a NJ Ma zaratb