The age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1897-1902, 1899-11-20
PARTING WORDS OF
REV. G. G. KELLY
His Farewell Sermon at the First
Methodist Church.
MOST TOUCHING ADDRESS
Retiring Pastor Gave Assurances OF His
Love and Regard, and Reviewed
His Work for Christ and
the Church
MOST TOUCHING ADDRESS

At the morning service on yesterday, Dr.
G. c. Kelly, the retiring pastor of the First
Methodist church, took occasion to speak of
the motives and aims of his ministry in
Birmingham, and also some of the results
that had been achieved. DR.. Kelly spoke
on the text Ii. Corinthians, iv. %: But
have renowned the hidden things of dis
honesty, not walking in craftiness. nor
handling the word of God deceitfully: but
oy manifestation of the truth. commencing
ourselves to every mans conscience in the
sight of Cod" etc.
Ut Kelly spoke substantially as follows:
you will bear witness that it is not my
custom to speak of myself in the pulpit. 1t
ofends the spirit of good taste and devo-
ton for the preacher to magnify himself in
his preaching. Yet it is proper for me on
this occasion to speak of the motives and
aims of my ministry among you.
Il came to you four years ago to find a
condition that [ did not anticipate. If I
had known all I should likely have asked
Tor another assignment l mean l should
have given 1t as my judgment that another
field would be more favorable for me. But
when l saw the situation I addressed my
self to 1t with cheerfulness and content
ment. | have never regarded myself as
your salaried employe. obligated to render
so much service for so much pay. 1 have
counted myself your servant for Jesus
sake. l have sought to share you burdens.
1 do not covet an easy place. 1 love to
stand by struggling cause to lend a hand
to men and women who are overloaded. 1t
will always be a pleasant remembrance to
me that / was with you in the days of debt
and sef-denial.
81 have sought to handle the word of
God in sincerity and honesty. 1 have
never had any sense of fear concerning
preaching the truth. I am afraid to be I'M
just, unfair, uncharitable untrue. j am
afraid to msinterpret to wrest the
Scriptures I am afraid of partial or dis
proportionate dogmatsm The preacher
from whom we get text was not the
victim of the zealot of one idea. 1t is the
breadth and perfect balance of the Scrip
lures that give them their supremacy. The
good Shepherd enters by the open door, he
does not climb up some other way. He
commends himself to the consciences of
men. The preacher who seeks to secure
men except by the application of the truth
of God to their conscience lacks drectness
and moral earnestness.
Friends for the Lord
81 have not sought to make personal dis
ciples l crave friendship. My heart yearns,
my hand is extended for true friend but
l would rather win friends for my Lord. 1t
has not occurred to me to try to make my
self popular. I am not Indifferent to the
advantages of the good will and favor of
the public, but l am willing to be forgotten
if thereby the Christ may be the better
known 1 may say in all good conscience
/ have not striven to make name for my
self but to leave a distinct impression of
the Christ in your lives. If a single soul
has a more vivid and perfect vision of Him
in consequence of my ministry amoung you
l have my reward
among the organized agencies of Christi
anity 1 believe Methodism is the best,
we'll as one of the most widely extended
products of the Holy Spirit. But 1 believe
that Methodism should preserve the mind
of Wesley. He was not only the most rev.
erent and dutiful church man, but was
When a condition arose he sought to meet
it as a man of common sense. l heard a
professor of Vanderbilt say in preachers
meeting last Monday: If John Wesley were
alive he would startie the traditional clergy
of this day as he did in that day And
venture to add he would startle many
Methodists. Genuine and aggressive Meth
odism will not hesitate to adopt the most
effective means to attain desirable ends.
So believe and preach.
81 have had much to say about Christian
unity. Christ is not divided. The spirit of
division, of aloofness is essentially anti
Christ Christ prayed that all His might
be perfected into one that the world might
believe the Father had sent Him. The Gre
dentials of Christ that He asks for and the
world waits for is the unity of believers in
Him. I preach this because l think the
times demand it. l preach 1t not as
theory, a sentiment, but a fact that we
need to emphasize and make much of.
Methodists find it easy to preach and prac-