The evening times., 1899-05-08
Criticisms on the Scripture
Not Unchristian.
New Methods Of Study Strictly in
Accord With Religion.
Nothing of Historical Value Suffers
by New Lines of InvestiEatiOn
Into Biblical Truths

briSgS occupied tne pulpit yesterday MORN
ing. DIR. Briggs read the epistle Of the
day, and after the sermon assisted In the
service of the Holy Communion. which
was partaken Of by large proportion OF
the congregation.
DR.. Briggs opened his address with the
words: II believe in the Holy Ghost" "
Continuing. he said. in part:
I'm these ancient words coming down
through the centuries from the primitive
church We, in common with Christians of
every name throughout the world, have
voiced our prayer, as ever, in morning and
evening prayer. This simple. compact SEN
tence of the catholic faith is full Of rich
and glorious meaning 1t contains all the
wondrous revelations of the Divine Spirit
in Holy Scripture, all His stately step
pings in the Holy Church, all our personal
experience Of His gracious redemption ac-
tivities.
I believe in the Holy Ghost That is.
l believe in Him as the third person Of the
Holy Trinity. as the real. present. omnipo-
tent. all shaping. personal influence in all
history. and in all life; in all that He is in
His essential Being. in all that He has
done. and is doing now, and ever will do
until the ultimate end of all things has
been attained.
Il believe in the Holy Ghost, who on the
day Of Pentecost descended upon the primi-
tive Christian community of Christ's own
disciples. throwing them into the ecstatic
state, in which some spake untelligible
sounds. others interpreted the wonderful
works OF God. and St Peter spake the
master word. recognizing the Christ en-
throned as the Lord of all, the Kingdom OF
Christ as established in the world. and the
Divine Spirit its permanently present
and ever indwelling personal influence and
power. The Divine Spirit on the day of
Pentecost, organized the church as a holy
temple. The Church has ever been advanc-
ing in doctrine. in worship. in organiza-
tion. and in life. under the impulse Of the
indwelling spirit toward the realization
of its glorious destiny.
The Advancement Of Truth.
mo one can read the New Testament
and compare it with the Old Testament
without seeing the wonderful advance Tito
truth that has been made. Truly new
dispensation was inaugurated at Pente-
cost
But however graf and glorious was the
advance of the apostles and the prophets
in their knowledge of the truth they did
not grasp for themselves and they did not
record or transmit to US the whole truth
of God.
"All truth is not in the sacred deposit
of the church. All truth is not in the
drift of tradition.
LAS the truth of the New Testament is
based on the truth of the Old Testament,
SO the truth into which the church advanc-
ed after the Apostolic age is based upon the
whole truth of Holy Scripture. The sacred
deposit of truth in holy church, .he sa-
cred record Of truth in Holy Scripture,
must ever remain the sacred nucleus, the
infallible touchstone and test of all truth;
! but 1t is not and cannot be. and never
has been regarded by the church as being
the whole truth of God.
Christian truth is not something to be
kept in our Bibles and our churches ard
faithfully transmitted in holy institutions
Christian truth is not designed for the in
stitution or for the intellectual and the
merely physical appropriation. 1t is doc
trine animate with the divine power. pull
sating with divine life. imparting grace
confidence. certitude. holy joy, and cour-
age to all who possess it.
Christianity Not nm Infant Class.
Christian truth is to be translated into
Christian life and Christian conduct. The
truth OF Holy Scripture and of holy church
is not on the surface. to be appropriated
by any idle person or any careless passer
by. 1t is not for the sluggard or the dull
ard. There is sufficient In salvation for
all who would be saved, even for the SIM
plest minded, the little child, the poor. and
the ignorant the heather and the outcast.
God requires little from the beginner in
salvation. but Christianity is something
more than an infant class.
He who would grow in knowledge must
use all the talents God has given him.
He should not be content to use rusty tools
or antiquated methods. but should use the
most approved methods and all the sharp
edged tools of modern criticism and sci
-ence.
Truth is Gods daughter. and she must
be wooed with all ones soul in order to be
won. 1t Is not sufficient to listen to mems
talk about her. to look at her from afar.
to learn by tradition about her. and to ac-
cept and retail all mems stories and opin-
ion concerning her The Divine Wisdom
is the fairest CT women. according to the
conception of the Book of Proverbs.
Think you that Gods daughter will
manifest herself to the idle. the careless.
the Indifferent. or to those that think they
know her sufficiently well already, who
are content to know OF her at second or
third hand? Do you think that she will
disclose her beautiful face and glorious
words to mere traditionist, who is con-
tent to know about her through the trans
mitted formulas of throng Of genera
tions? No. thousand times. no!
There are those who think that the
whole Divine truth is known; that It was
revealed to the ante Nicene church. In
nothing could they be more mistaken. The
church has been learning today. The
church of Christ is divided because many
great problems of doctrine and life have
not yet been solved.
Theological Changes Inevitable.
THE ancient substance of truth, as
taught by the ancient and mediaeval
church, will doubtless abide, and the ac-
QUESTION Of truth at the Reformation will
not be laid aside. But with the growth in
Christian knowledge the form Of the
knowledge and the expression of it nee
essarily change.
I'VE cannot know the whole truth of
any doctrine until we know the whole
truth of all doctrines. The new methods
of study, the critical and scientific pro-
cesses of investigation. which in our times
dominate all the realms of knowledge. in
evitably require changes in the realm Of
religion and theology also.
There are men in every age who oppose
the advance of the truth. They deprecate
any advance in the knowledge of the truth,
any improved methods OF study. They de-
sire everything to go just as before, and
that We should hold and transmit the
truth of religion exactly as they have re-
ceived it. Such a thing is impossible in
a living, growing. thinking church.
such thing is impossible for any man
xrho 10 conscfnY,s r,f fhe Holv Shirt du,el