The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-03-13
which the individual can guide himself In
answering these questions.
CHARACTER DEFENDED.


answering these questions.
CHARACTER DEFENDED.
THE first principle is that the moral
quality Of an act depends not on the act.
but on the spirit of the agent doing the
act. Paul says an idol is nothing in the
world; it does not do any harm to eat
meat offered to idols--that on the one side.
He says he that eateth the bread and
drinketh the wine at the communion table
Of the Lord eats and drinks to his own
condemnation if he does not eat and drink
in the right spirit-that is on the other.
You eat meat offered to idols in the right
spirit-that is right; you eat and drink
bread and wine at the Lords table in The
wrong spirit-that is wrong. Character de-
pendS on the spirit, not on the deed done.
What an awful thing to MAIN a man and
leave him lame all his life. Yes, unless
you are a surgeon and you cut off his leg
in order to save his life. Not the act done,
but the spirit and the purpose with which
the act is Gone, that determines the char
acter Of the act.
Therefore whatever a man thinks is
wrong, is wrong. 1t does not necessarily
follow that whatever he thinks is right, is
right. Whatever a man thinks is wrong is
wrong. This is what Paul means in that
phrase, unsupported in the older version,
ana not quite correctly translated, VEN
ture to think, in the newer one, He that
eateth is damned If he eateth.' Paul does
not mean by any means that If a man is a
II, but that is the way a great many people
would read the text. He says if a man does
ao, perfectly innocent thing. when at the
against his doing 1t, he is condemned; be-
cause he is condemned for violating his
conscience; not for the thing he does. but
Tor the spirit in which he does 1t.
How will you draw the line? There are
no lines, because life does not consist in
walking within rules or laws. Life consists
IN the spirit of loyalty to God and loyalty
10 ones feIlow-men, because they are chill
dren of God. Is it right to play cards? Can
any man tell me, ethcally, why If you
1t is wrong, and if you print certain his
torical names on the cards it is right? Can
anyone tell me why it is wicked to knock
Is billiards, and right to knock them around
on the green turf--hat is croquet? The
morality Of an act does not depend on the
act, 1t depends on the spirit with which the
act is done. Therefore there are no lines
and therefore if a man violates his own
conscience in doing a thing he is doing
SO long as you ask the question If you are
doubtful whether it is right to go to the
theater or not, for you it is wrong. My
grandfather used to say, Always keep on
the safe side of certainty 1t is q good
proverb, especially for young people; it is
not bad for older ones. You must respect
your own conscience; that is the first prin-
ciple.
THE CONSCIENCE OF OTHERS.
And the second priciple is, you must re-
gard the conscience of other men. But not
obey their conscience. If / may never do
anything which the conscience of some
neighbor of mine objects to, / really never
shall get anything done in the world The
Roman Catholic cannot go to a Protestant
church because the Roman Catholic thinks
1t is wrong, and he cannot go to Roman
Catholic church because the Protestant
thinks it wrong. The Protestant cannot go
to the Roman Catholic church because the
Protestant thinks it is wrong, and he can
not go to the Protestant church because the
Roman Catholic thinks it is wrong He
cannot go to church at all. We can
not go to church If we let another
mans conscience rule for us. But we
are to have regard for other mems con-
science. We are to have respect for them
but not to be obedient to them. These are
the very simple principles which Paul lays
down in this fourteenth chapter of Romans
There are certain doubtful things whether
they are right or not, depends on the spirit
of the doer, not on the deed done. If you
are doubtful, they are wrong to you. If you
are not doubtful, and still the doing <of
them will do more harm than the doing of
them will do good, they are wrong. For
doubtful acts are to be measured by their
probable results on yourself and on others.
FINALLY, Paul brings this portion of his
eplstle to close with the enunciation of
whole of his teaching in one single sentence,
Whatsoever is not of faith is SIM That is
to say there is only one right life; it is the
life of a man who is living loyal to God
loyal spirit in him he is living a right life,
though he may make mistakes and though
he may do some wrong things; and, on the
other hand, If he Is not living that loyal life,
if he does not receive that God, if he is not
in fellowship with his Father if he is not
living the life of service and love- his life is
wrong, radically wrong, and no measuring
by standards and no complying with laws
can make it righteous.
"Pauls epistle. to the Romans, then, to
sum up these four lectures in one brief
paragraph, l understand to be this: Neither
the state nor the individual can be made
right by attempting conformity to law ex-
ternal to ones self, whether that law is hu-
man or divine. Man cannot be squared to
Righteousness. There is only one way of
free gift of God into the heart When one
has received this free gift of God into the
heart a new life springs up in him sponta-
neously. He is as one married who gets a
new life Of love from his wedding. He is as
one emancipated; he is set free from the
old bondage and the old relation of servi-
tude. He is as a dead man who has been
called from the. grave by the overmastering
voice of the Christ to him even tribula-
ton seems joyful for tribulation is working
out character, and character is all he cares
for. To whom does God offer this free gift?
To all the world. There is it is true, a
destiny or fate which overrules US. But it
is not as the Romans think tia mere mex
orable necessity; 1t is not as the Jews think
it-an autocratic and irresponsible partial
ism; it is not as the Greeks think tia des-
tiny which exists only to punish the wicked
and avenge sim The end of this destiny
the object of this fate, the accomplishment
of this Providence is infinite and eternal
mercy; and when it has accomplished it's
result humanity which was shut up unto
disobedience will be brought out into new
ness of life, and that newness of life will
mean Tor us here and now giving ourselves
wholly and unreservedly in the spirit of
joyous love to the service of our fellow
men because to the service of our God
n fhn OH CV11 70 fI,<
to the family, because they are part of
Gods ordinance; settling all doubtful ques-
tionS by the voice of God that is within
us, and regarding the voice of God as it
speaks TO others, and living the life of
faith which is the life of freedom and Of
Joyousness.