Virginian-pilot. (Norfolk, Va.) 1898-1911, 1899-01-24
TWAS A VERY
FINE SERMON
BY Rev. Mr.. Waterfield of
Owen Memorial Church.
BE THOU STRONG THEREFORE
And show rhyselro Man, the Subject
Of the Reverend GeniIemnn,s Dis
course The EittIo Edince ruled
with an Apprcciative Audience,
who Listen Win Great Delight TO
The Words of Wisdom.
BE THOU STRONG THEREFORE,

The attendance at Owens Memorial
Church Sunday night was by far the
largest that has assembled in the lit
tie ediiice since it's dedication There
were between six and seven hundred
present, while many turned away. \
very large proportion of the congrega-
ton were young people.
The occasion was Il special sermon
to young men by the pastor, Rev. Il.
L. Waterfield. Special music had been
arranged and the service was enjoyed
TO the fullest extent.
The text was from 1st Kings 90
BE thou strong, therefore, and show
thyself Il man"
These words were spoken by King
David, who had ruled over Israel for
~ years, and now the day Of his de-
parture was at hand he called his son
Solomon, addressing him in the Ian
guage of the text: BE thou strong.
therefore, and show thyself Il man."
David, who had served his people
and country for forty years, was now
about to leave this world for the King
dem of God on high, but his interest in
the i+nGdnIn of Israel and in the cause
OF God was just as great as ever so
he called his son Solomon to him. who
was to be his heir and successor and
who would ere long hold the sceptre
and rule his people. and gave him his
final charge, and that charge is the
subject of this discourse. BE thou
strong, therefore, and show myself n
mar"
Il an. = slad trat avid did not tell
lemon to be Il king, but to be n man.
For it takes a man to be a king, but
not every king is n man.
Now David did not tell Solomon to
be man physically. 1t wasn't the
physical, but moral strength of which
he was talking. Physical strength is a
very good thing; so is mental strength.
They are necessary and absolutely es
sential to the well-be!ng and the make
up OF the highest type of physical man.
But these attributes We're far from the
| mind of David, whose injunction to the
heir to the throne of Israel as contain
ed in the text. He had reference to q
| higher attribute than either of those
! just passed upon. David above all
things desired that his son should have
moral strength,-"Be thou a man." says
the king.
Mental strength is a. very good thing
and we are told that Solomon possessed
n great deal of it; yea, we are told that
he was the wiseSt of men. But 1t was
not the intellectual man which David
alluded to, but the moral man. For
| moral strength is the measure OF man
hood and that is the substance of the
teXt-"Aloral strength is the measure
of manhood
Now, by strength l mean the power
to act. or the power to do. and the pow
er to resist For example. you have
the power, the physical power, to get
up and leave this house. if YOU wish
to do SO. or you have the power to re-
sist that inclination and stay where
you are. so l say by strength l mean
the power to do. to resist and by moral
strength 1 mean, in the first place, the
power 10 conform to the divine law,
or the power to do the will of God. How
many of us conform to that law? How
many Of us do the will of God? 1t is
not reasonable for us to say we do not
know what that divine law is, for we
have it here in the Blessed Book
Neither is it reasonable in us TO say
that we do not know what the Will
of God Is. TOT We hdvc IT REVERTED ~
us here in his divine law. Nor will it
do for lis to say that we cannot do his
will. for God has commanded it. and
for us TO say that we cannot do it would
be equal TO saying that God has COM
manded us TO do something that we
are not able to perform, and God never
does that.
There are some people who seem to
have no power whatever to do the Will
of God. I have known people who have
started in the Christian life a great
many times. and yet they made ship
wreck Of the faith every time. but this
was because they did not try to do the
will of God as they should. and further
than that. they did not ask Gods help
and His blessings upon them: for God
has promised TO help us and 10 bless us
in all our honest. earnest efforts to
serve Him. and to do His will.
But there are people who are trying
their hesI 10 serve God in newnees of
life. There are multitudes OF people to
day who are trying their best 10 do
Gods will In all things. and that is all
that God requires OF us. for the an
gels do IcSnC t'hrigf p.,p
formed 10 the divine law and did Gods
Will perfectly at all times and in all
things He did ii with Joy and drligh;
Then said |. 10 come" in the vol.
ume of the book it il; written az me.
II delight 10 do thy Will q Nv Godi"
And He Is our great eXemplar lie is
our great ideal. The idedi that we
should always hold up before US and
strive to initiate.
In the ntNt place moral strength is
the power To RESIST temptation Of the
wicked. II Is Il GOOD thing for us to
be tempted. Christ as God man was
tempted but without sin. THIS at once
proves the divinity OF the Son Of God
TO resist the temptations; IL wr
have the power. il VIC harken unto the
parting injunction nf the great king to
his son. Re thou strong" and obey the
divine viii OF God. we will then dem
orstratc To the world what Is meant in
the ttXt-wc. IL tempted. can and VIII
say no. Get behind me Satan. Have
the courage to say no when tempted
that's manhood: that's moral strength
O, young men. lie thou strong
Now how is this the measure of
manhood? Because IL is one of the
principal things that distinguishes us
from the lower order of created beings
Take the animal kingdom. the
lower order have many attributes
which are held by man and are com
mon to us. They have instinct, saSac-
ity proves and are sympathetic in
their very natures. But this moral at
| tribute is alone attainable by man. who
+.AL i,.,r g ,.,ls