The times., 1899-10-23
DUTY TO CHRIST.
4 Sermon by Rev, Alfred Harding Mt
st. PauI's y. T.. Church.

4 Sermon by Rev, Alfred Harding Mt
st. PauPs p. T.. Church.
The Rev. Alfred Harding, rector of St
PauFs Episcopal Church, at the service
yesterday morning took for his text Acts
iy:19-20: But Peter and John answered
and said unto them, whether it be right in
the sight of God to hearken unto you more
than unto God. Judge ye, for we cannot
but speak the things which We have seen
and heard" And Acts y:29: I'VE ought to
obey God rather than men. his theme be-
ing duty the guiding principle OF the
Christian life"
He spoke in part as follows:
"A marvellous change has passed over
the apostles since the last time they were
Jewish SanhedTim Then, St. John, the
best beloved watched his masters degra-
dation, saw him buffeted and blasphemed,
not, we may be sure, without intense feel
ing. but certainly without protest. St
Peter, keenly alive to the danger of the
situation, when suspected OF being one of
them swore openly that he did not know
the Lord. Very marvellous is the change
from then till now. Yesterday they stood
again in the presence of Annas and Cal
phas, boldly charging them with the crime
of the CrUcihXion of their Lord, and pro-
claiming the name of Jesus Christ of Naz-
areth as the source of the power whereby
the miracle of healing the lame man in the
{ temple was wrought, and for doing which
they had been arIaigned. Today, after a
night in prison, being threatened that
henceforth they speak to no man in this
name, and commanded not to speak or
teach at all in the name of Jesus they an
swer boldly Whether it be right in the
sight OF God to heaTken to you more than
unto God judge ye; for we cannot but
speak the things which we have seen ard
heard. And later on. being again sum
moned before the council for having dis
obeyed the command, and for having filed
Jerusalem with their doctrine, they
/ summed up their previous answer in CON
else form: We. ought to obey God rather
than men.
What brought about this change from
the timidity of the days of their masters
degradation and their bodness now, at
which the High Priests marveled and be-
fore which they quaiIed? Two great events,
the resurrection Of Jesus from the dead
showing him to be the Son of God with
power and the coming of the Holy Ghost
I The change wrought in them by the Holy
Ghost was chiefly a change in the guiding
principle of their lives Once their guild
ing principle was TO please themselves;
now it is enshTined in the one small but
/ mighty NOIu, NOuGeTIul IN us WlQe sig
nifcance and power-duty. We cannot
they say but speak the things which we
have seen and heard The Holy Ghost
taught them the sacred significance of
duty. God had revealed TO them his love
and goodness in the person of his son.
Jesus Christ. lie had commanded them 10
; go unto all the world and preach the gos-
pei to every creature The way of duty
opened out clear and distinct before them
~, q
hinder them We ought to obey God
rather than men. Duty had become the
guiding principle Of life
These noble words of the apostle have
been taken TO assert the supremacy of con
science In reality they assert the supre-
macy Of Jesus Christ. Conscience indeed,
was operating in them but it was an
llumined conscience. It was conscience
rightly nstTucted-convinced of the su-
preme authority Of Jesus Christ There is
a vast difference between a conscience thus
illumued and a conscience warped and
twisted by repeated violations of the di-
vine law. II is one of the fearful Conse-
quences of sin that the COnsCienccs of men
become thereby as the apostle says
scared with hot iron There is a vast
difference between an instructed conscience
and what we often find defended uader the
name of conscience, some system butt on
I
to context or the general tenor OF the
, Scriptures, and which really stand for Sc f.
assertion and self-wili.
How many errors have Eeen prOpagat1d
/ in the name Of conscience, EOw many
crimes parpetrated2 Too much stress can
not be laid on the need of a wei instructed
conscience. Such was the conscience o.
the apostles 1t was convinced OF the au-
thOrity OF Jesus Christ conscience speak
iug C9a ba
the supreme duty of obedience to him
rather than to men.
Two things are of supreme impO tanoe
/ in our lives, TO know our duty and to do it,
But they are very different II is price
less blessing to know what we ought to
DO, but a blessing turned into a curse if
we Go it not. The broad lines Of DUTY are
set forth with great simplicity in the
Church's catechism, our duty toward God
and our duty toward our nGighb-r. Th2ss
are the great principles of life, drawn fro
the inexhaustible treasures of the sacred
Scriptures. Religion is a life of duty, and
that duty revealed by Jesus Christ. Re
lgion is not a sentiment or series OF
emotions, or only q means OF escaping
punishment after death. 1t is 4 lie OF
duty sustained by the grace of Gcd. nour-
ished by the sacTaments. 1t embraces
every act OF life Whatsoever ye do in
word or deed 90 all in the name Of the
Lord Jesus.
The prominent thought is rot to do our
duty to avoid punishment or to get reward,
but to 90 it because IT is duty, to do right
because it is right. to speak truth becauss
it is true to make duty the guiding prin.
ciple of life, because that IS the end for
which God made us-tO do our duty, and
thus to glorIfy God. And this was tae
sum of the life of our great example Jesus
Christ, whose meat and drink was to do
his Fathers Will.
Here is the secret OF so much failure il
orr own lives, and in Christianity today
The supremacy OF duty is not for the mass