The Farmville herald. [volume] (Farmville, Va.) 1890-1934, 1900-02-23

lusiratons that will bring to mind the
ghastlier sacrifice Of Him who in the
high places of the field, on the cross.
fought our battles and endured our
struggle and died our death.
\ German sculptor made an image Of
Christ, and he asked his little child, two
years old, who it was, and she said:
That must be some very great man."
The sculptor was displeased with the
criticism, so he got another block of
marble and chiseled away on ii two or
three years, and then he brought in his
little child, four or five years of age,
and said TO her: "Who do you think
hat is?' She said: "That must be the
Jne who took little children in His arms
and blessed them" Then the sculptor
vas satisfied. Oh, my friends, what the
world wants is not a cold Christ, not an
intellectual Christ, not a severely mag
isterial Christ, but a loving Christ,
spreading out His arms of sympathy to
press the whole world TO His loving
heart!
But ! remark also that the religious
discourse of the future of which speak
will be a popular discourse. There are
those in these times who speak of pop
ular sermon as though there must be
something wrong about it. AS these
critics are duh themselves, the world
gets the impression that n sermon is
good in proportion as it is stupid. Christ
was the most popular preacher the
world ever saw and. considering the
small number of the worlds popula-
lion, had the largest audiences ever
gathered. He never preached anywhere
without making great sensation. Peo-
pie rushed out in the wilderness to hear
him reckless of their physical necessi-
ties. So great was their anxiety to
hear Christ that, taking no food with
them. they would have tainted and
starved had not Christ performed
miracle and fed them. Why did so
many people take the truth at Christ's
hands? Because they all understood
IT, lie illustrated his subject by a hen
and her chickens, by bushel measure,
10y a handful of salt, by birds fight
and by a lily's aroma. All the people
knew what he meant, and they flocked
TO Him. And when the religious dis
course Of the future appears it will not
be princetonian, not Rochesterian, not
Andoverian, not Middletonian, but Oil
vetic-plain, practical, unique, earnest,
comprehensive Of all the woes, wants,
sins and sorrows Of an auditory.
But when the exhortation or dis
course does come there viii be thou
sand cleaning scimeters 10 charge on
it. There are in so many theological
seminaries professors telling young
men how to preach, themselves not
knowing how, and | am told that if a
young man in some Of our theological
seminaries SAYS anything quaint or
thrilling or unique faculty and students
hv at him and set him right and
straighten him out and smooth him
down and chop him off until he says ev-
crvthing Just as everybody else says it..
Oh. when the future religious discourse
of the Christian church arrives all the
churches of Christ in our great cities
will be thronged, The world wants
spiritual help. All who have buried
their dead want comfort. All know
themselves to be mortal and to be i'm
mortal, and they want to hear about
the great future. tell you, my friends,
if the people of our great cities who
have had trouble only thought they
could get practical and sympathetic
help in the Christian church, there
would not be a street in Washington or
New York or any other city which
would be passable on the Sabbath day
If there were a church on it, for all the
people would press to that asylum Of
mercy, that great house Of comfort and
consolation.
A mother with a dead babe in her
arms came to the god silva and asked
TO have her child restored to life. The
god silva said to her: you go and get
a handful Of mustard seed from house
i'm which there has been no sorrow
and in which there has been no death,
and / will restore your child to life" !"
So the mother went out, andsshe went
from house to house and from home TO
home looking for a place where there
had been no sorrow and where there
had been no death, but she found none.
She went back to the god silva and
said: "My mission is a failure. You
see. l haven't brought the mustard
seed. l can't find place where there
has been no sorrow and no death
"Ohl" said the god silva. understand.
YOUR sorrows are no worse than the
sorrows of others. We all have our
griefs. and all have our heartbreaks." ="
Laugh. and the world laughs with you;
Weep. and you weep alone;
For the sad old earth must borrow its
mirth
But has trouble enough Of its own.
We hear a great deal of discussion
now all over the land about why people
do not 90 to church. Some say tits be-
cause Christianity is dying out and be-
cause people do not believe in the truth
of Gods Word, and all that. The rea-
son is because our sermons and eX-
hortations are not interesting and
practical and helpful. Some one might
as well tell the whole truth on this sub
iect. and so ! will tell it. The religious
discourse Of the future, the Gospel SER
mon to come forth and shake the ma
tions and lift people out Of darkness
viii be a popular sermon, just for the
simple reason that it will meet the