Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1898-02-01
NEWPORT NEWS VA. TUESDAY, FEBRUARY l. 1875.

whether one recognized it as a divine
ordinance or not the Sabbath as a Gay
of rest was a necessity.
He said the exceptions to the law
were few and easily understood. They
were comprised under two heads: works
OF necessity and works Of mercy. He
declared that much unnecessary work
was done on the Sabbath because of
the greed for gain and said that a num-
Der OF men throughout the country
were forced to work on Sunday not be-
cause they wanted to, but because they
felt impeBsd to do so by the inexorable
law of brad and meat.
There WAS no necessity for passing
more laws. In addition to the law of
God on the subject, the law of the State
OF Virginia was plain and easily under
stood. SO far as the railroads were
concerned 1T provided that nothing but
Passengers, mail and perishable freight
should be moved on the Sabbath, and
when 1T said perishaDle freight it didn't
mean a train of twenty-four cars of
some thing else and one bunch of iba-
nanas; it didn't mean a train load of
stuff which might just as we'll wait I'M
til Monday, with ain old broken-down
steer on the rear car
It sW4s not his province as a minister
OF the&EoSpel to either criticise or de-
fend the action of the officials in falling
to enforce the Sabbath law; they must
answer for themselves before the bar
luf God: but it was his duty as d citizen
of the State of Virginia to do all in his
power to arouse public sentiment to the
point OF backing UP the officials in doing
their duty. He declared that public
sentiment was more powerful than the
officers of the law, more powerful than
the law itself. This was a government
oy the people, for the people, and when
the people said a thing must be done
1T was done. There was no official in
the country from the President down
to the hlmblest position in the public
service who was not susceptible to and
Iamenable to this all powerful influence,
apd in this lay the solution of the ques-
ton ~
Rev. Mr.. Lipscomb then told what
constitutes a proper observance of the
Sabbath, saying that those who devoted
the entire day to physical rest and neg
!ected the spiritual side of their nature,
had only half of the idea The ideal
sabbath was one which com bined a ces-
sation from secular labor with the Gull
tiVation of the religious and spiritual
side of life.
The sermon was listened TO with
marked attention by a congregation
which entirely filed the church.
At might Rev. ]. T. Whitley. of Hamp-
ton occupied the pulpit and Rev. MIR:
Llpscomb. occupied the pulpit of t1l9
First Methodist church, of Hampton.
CHRIST IN SOCIETY"
Sunday night Rev. C. C. Cox, pastor
OF the Baptist church, preached the
fifth of a series of sermons on the life
Of Christ, the subject being Christ in
Society" Mr. Cox said that the word
society was very vague term, and to
explain the meaning read the several
definitions given in Webster's diction-
airy.
You can readily see,'' said Mr.. Cox.
tt,oS JAf1,
up into three distinct classes. First,
the association of number of persons
together for mutual profit, taking for
Instance the Society for the Prevention
of Cruelty to Animals. The second
seems to get a little nearer the subject
in hand, and refers to those gathered
either for social relations. and the.
third seems to be coeXtenSive with hui
nlanity. The author of an article on
the science OF right living holds that a
man stands in the center of concentric
circles. Man stands in the center of it
all and society feels his touch to it's
fullest extremity. Let us look at so
ciety, not in its highest sense, but as
t effects mans social relations.
In the first place Christ was in So
ciety. His life was of a social nature.
Lord Bacon said that only fools and
she gods loved solitude. God does not
love solitude. but He is united to His
creatures and walks with them day by
from people, but walked with them and
used THE everyday occurrences of life
to illustrate some of His greatest
truths.
There was a great difference between
Christ and His forerunnner, John the
Baptist. John lived in the mountains
of solitude. am often reminded of
him in Cooper's Deer Slayer" His
ra'inlant of canel's hair and his food
locust and wild honey-carries with
thesr2 the idea of retirement. Christ
a. even live retired life during
thu ..ne which He spent in preparing
Hi!nsslf for his life work
Soon after the beginning of His Gal
lean ministry we find Him at a mar
r.ass feast in Cana. He not only graeed
the occasion with His presence but took
part in the festivities, and when the
host was about to be disgraced came
TO his rescue Some Ike the claim
that the parties married We're rela ted to
Jesus mother. this idea being formed
because Of the prominent part which she
took, and the manner i'm which she di-
rected things. Let that be as it may;
We know that He walked some distance
to be there. and that He made Himself
sociable after His arrival. I'VE find Him
at numerous feasts in the homes of
rich and poor alike. lie called Zacheus
down from his position in the sycamore
tree, and told him that it was at his
home ttiat He was to dine that day
he as not only found in the homes of
the rich and the poor, but we find Him
sitting as the guest of sinners and pub
leans, and was even known as the
friend OF this much despised class of
people.
Some OF His best utterances We're at
public feasts, among them being the
declaration that He came not to call
the righteous but sinners to repentance
that it was the sick and not the well
which We're in need of q nhysicion. He
was interested in social life to the ex-
tent that He took notice of little child
ren, and used incidents in their lives
as examples for some OF his lessons,
among them being the mimicks Of the
children in their play around the mar
ket places as they piped to each other.
fie also told His disciples that unless
they humbled themselves Fand became
as little children they could not enter
into. the Kingdom of heaven. What
the Lord Jesus Christ demands is not
that we ISOLATE ourselves from society,
but that we go into society and try to
lift it up.