The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-08-02

SCOTT ana uTaIc COQIN NAVE NC5a
the church.. it would not have today a
disciple left. The BaptistS were hurled
out Of Boston In olden times. Those VINO
sympathiZed with them were imprisoned,
and when a petition was offered asking
leniency in their behalf all them on VINO
signed il were indicte\ Has intolerance
stopped the Baptist church? Tbs last
statistics in regard to it showed A-us
churches and 400 coo communicates In
tolerance never put down anything.
In England a law was made against
the Jew. England thrust back the Jew
and thrust down the Jew and declared
that no Jew should hold official posi-
ton. n came of it? Were the jews
destroyed? Was their religion over
lister of England? Who was next 10 the
throne? Who was higher than the
throne because he was counselor and ad-
wiser? Disraeli, a Jew. What were We
celebrating in all our churches as well
as only a few years ago!
The one hundredth birthday OF Monte
fore, the great Jewish philanthropist.
Intolerance never yet put down anything
But now, my friends. having shown you
the origin of bigotry or sectarianism and
having shown you the damage IL does, L
want briefly to show you how we are 10
war against this terrible evil, and l
think we ought to begin our war by re-
allZing our own and our I'M
projections. If we make SO many mis-
takes in the common affairs of life, Is II
not possible that We may make mistakes
in regard to our religious affairs? snail
we take a man by the throat or by the
collar because he cannot see religious
truths just as we do? In the light OF
eternity it will be found out / think
there was something wrong in all our
creeds, and something right in all our
creeds, but since We may make mis-
takes in regard to things of the world
do not let US be SO egotistic and so puned
up as to have an idea that we cannot
theories. And then 1 think we will do
a great deal to overthrow the sectarian-
ism from our heart, and the sectarian-
ism from the world. by chiefly charging
in those things in which We agree rather
than those on which We differ.
MOVE INTO LINE.
Now, here is a greater gospel plat
form. A man comes up on this side OF
the platform and says, Il don't believe
in baby sprinklings' Shall 1 shove him
If Here is a man coming up on this
side of the platform, and he says, y
don't believe in the perseverance of the
will say: DO you believe in the Lord
Jesus as your Saviour? Do you trust
him for time and for eternity?" He
says rYeso DO you take Christ for
Come on, brother; one in time and one
in eternity; brother now. brother for
ever" Blessed be God for a gospel
| platform SO large that all who receive
! Christ may stand on it!
L think We may overthrow the severe
sectarianism and bigotry in our hearts
and in the church also by realizing that
all the denominations of Christians have
yielded noble Institutions and noble men.
There IS nothing that so stirs my soul
as this thought One denomination
yielded a Robert Hall and an Adoniram
Judson: another yielded a Latimer and
a Melville; another yielded John Wesley
and the blessed Summerfield. while our
own denomination yielded John Knox and
the AleXanders-men of whom the world
was not worthy. Now, l say, if we are
honest and fair minded men. when we
come up in the presence of such churches
and such denominations, although they
may be different from our own, we ought
to admire them, and We ought to love
and honor them. Churches which can
produce such men and such large heart
ed charity and such magnificent martyr
dom ought to win our affection-at any
rate, our respect. So come on, We 600,
600 E~piscopalians in this country and We
100000 ~Presbyterians and We 1900. coo
Baptists and We $4,000 Methodists-come
on; shoulder to shou\er we will march
for the worlds conquest, for all nations
are to be saved. and God demands that
you and L help. Forward, the whole
line! In the Young Mems Christian as
sociations, in the Bible society, in the
Tract society. in the Foreign Missionary
society, shoulder to shoulder, all denom-
nations.
BROTHERS FOREVER.
Perhaps 1 might forcefully illustrate
this truth by calling your attention to
an incident which took place . years
ago. One Monday morning at about 2
o'clock, while her 900 passengers were
sound asleep in her berths dreaming of
home, the steamer Atlantic crashed into
Mars head. Five hundred souls in ten
minutes landed in eternity. Oh, what a
scene! AgoniZed men and women run
ming up and down the and
clutching for the rigging, and the
plunge of the helpless steamer and the
clapping of the hands of the mercilesS
sea over the drowning and the dead
threw two continents into terror. But
see this brave Quartermaster pushing
out with the life line until he gets to the
rock, and see these fishermen gathering
up the shipwrecked and taking them
into the cabins and wrapping them in
the f1annels snug and warm, and see
that minister of the gospel with three
other men getting into a lifeboat and
pushing out for the wreck, pulling away
across the surf and pulling away until
they saved one more man and then get
ting back with him to the shore. Can
those men ever forget that night? And
can they ever forget their companionshiI
in peril. companionship in struggle, COM
partnership in awful catastrophe and res
cue? Never! Never! In whatever part
of the earth they meet they will be
friends when they mention the story OF
that night when the atlantic struck
Mars head. Well, my friends. our world
has gone into a worse shipwreck. Sir
drove it on the rocks. The old ship has
lurched and tossed in the tempests OF
5000 years. Out with the life line! 1 dc
not care what denomination carries it
Out with the life-boat, l do not care
what denomination rows it. Side by
side, in the memory of common hard.
ships, and common trials, and common
prayers, and common tears. let US be
brothers forever. We must be
One army of the living God,
To his command we bow;
Part of the host have crossed the flood
And part are crossing now.
And L expect to see the day when al
denominations Of Christians shall joir
hands around the cross of Christ ant
recite the creed: Il believe in Coz tn,
Father Almighty, maker of heaven ant
earth, and in Jesus Christ. and in thu
communion of saints, and in life ever
lasting. Amen"