The record-union., 1899-12-03

of love to man To be irreligious to-
ward God is surely as sinful as to be
irreligious toward man. He who shows
no regard for God holy days, for God 5
holy house, for Gods holy word, and
for Gods holy laws, is not living as a
man made in Gods image and re-
deemed in Gods mercy should live. The
man who never bows before his Maker
in penitence and prayer, who never ap-
proaches Him in reverent Thanksgiving
and praise, who never reads His holy
word to learn Gods thought and pur-
pose toward him, is living an unreal
sonable, unnatural, ignoble and wicked
life. To withhold reverence and wor'
ship, affection and obedience from God
betrays a, woeful defect of character
There must be something radically bad
in that mans life whose heart does not
go out in affection and worship toward
the great and merciful God who ere
ated, redeemed and preserves him. 1t
is terrible indictment to bring against
man to say that he is so perverse
that he lives as though there was no
God to whom he is accountable and
on whom he is dependent. The funda-
to-day is, there is no fear of God be-
fore them.
The reverent recognition of God IS
at the basis of every strong and noble
life The heroes of Hebrew history
We're heroic because of their conscious
ness of God. Their lives and literature
were full of God. Their visions We're
visions of God. Their ideal of duty
was the will of God No higher tribute
could be paid to a man than was PAID
to- Enoch, of whom it was said, he
walked with God,'' and had the tesu-
mony that he pleased Cod Nehemiah
gave the secret of his brothers great
ness when he said of him: He was a
faithful man, and one that feared Goa
above many" Abraham was the frleno
of God; Moses was the servant OF Gou
and Daniel was the beloved OF COD
Man never reaches the highest attitudes
of character until he comes into con-
scious fellowship with God. The might
lest motive and strongest appeal ever
addressed to man are in those WORDS .
81 am the Lord thy Cod and BE We
holy, for l am holy, Faith in Go1'
allegiance to God, this is the secret OF
all SIfOIlS, Dedulllul ana uStlui liz.
Much is said in these days about the
brotherhood of man. The doctrine
needs to be taught, for it is vital to
true and full religious life. But we
will never learn the doctrine of the
brotherhood of man until we learn the
doctrine of the Fatherhood of God. Inc
doctrine of the brotherhood Of man has
absolutely no foundation, except in the
doctrine of the Fatherhood of Coo.
There must be fatherhood before there
can be brotherhood. The brothers III
a family are brothers because of their
common relation to one father 1t Is
our common relationship to God. our
common sonship to God, that deter
mines our relationship to one another.
It is only as man realizes that God IS
his Father that he recognizes man as
his brother. Faithfulness to God IS
the handspring Of fidelity to man.
Above the consciousness of what we
owe our fellow-man should be the con-
seriousness of what we owe to God. The
first of all the commandments brings
us face to face with God. Religion prl-
marily and mainly centers about Goa.
1t is a revelation of God. 1t is Coo
seeking man. It is man reconciled to
God. Sin in its essence is disobedience
to God. Against Thee, and Thee only
have I sinned and done evil in Thy
sight" was the confession of the royal
penitent when he realized the true ma
ture and extent of his wrong. All sins
against man are in reality sins against