The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1900-12-23

me ilrcarnati ton, or dwelling in human
hesn o. the eternal Sem of God. is not
our redemption but a preparation for our
Tetlenlp tior 1t was
NE SHALL BE not an end. but a
oALLED JESUS" means to an END.
1t was not the
oirth, but the death of Christ that secures
our salvation. For this cause came 1
unto this hour" "and l, if I be lifted up,
WIN draw all men u1lto me-"
w men He was a babe aG1 angel of God
gave Hin His name He shall be called
Jesus, for He Shall save His people from
their sins. When Mary's child lay in
me cradle His destiny was written upon
rus brow NO che can foreteM a child's
Iuture- But this child was bor-I to fight
Win SIN and 10 conquer it. All that He
was, all that He spoke, all that He did
nad relation to sin. He came untainted
Glto the world. the babe of a virgin moth
ed, the CHILD of the Holy Spirit, but from
the hrst breath TO the hour when lie
cC1nnencs His spirit to the Father, He
must resist every assault ana escape
every pollution Of evil The Saviour from
SIN, IN an battles, great and small, was
the conquerer Of Sill Ard at the last,
Wnen our sin was laid upon Him, when
lie was made sin for us, though He knew
no sin, He died winning the victory for
"Flcn lie was born. bethlehem was III
order to Calvary. The cross cast its silad-
0" on the 1nanGer.-Central Presbyterian.
Chrlsuacltty is no longer a segregated.
isolated life; the blunder, or worse THAI
ollEltea'. which leu to mona sticism and
all its attendant
IifE errors and evils is
SIGNIFICANCE fast becoming a
Of thing of the past.
CHRISTMAS. We Christians are
learning that we
are by Gods providence and design In the
world and form a part Of its affairs and
that we owe Il duty TO God We are III
ITS business. in society. in politics. III
every legitimate part and form OF the
RTE OF that word, and that God put us
there And inasnuch as God put US there,
HE had a work for us TO do. And we
want to know and we are honestly ,lskiEg
what is that work and how we are 10 10
1t! How can We so act as to influence
this world for good. and not allow it to
influence us for Dad? In a word, we are
recognizing the social work and duty OF
Christianity; its duty to the body polite,
and we are asking how that duty shall be
fulfilled and that work done.
And it is to this class Of questions That
Christmas is bringing the reply in its
teaching of the incarnation of our Lord
Jesus Christ. Christmas is lifting Him
up III His manifestation to the world, ti:at
He may draw all men unto Him 1t is
holding UP His human life as our great
and only true example, setting Him forth
before us as our PATTERN upon which we
are always to be trying 10 form our lives
1t is teaching us that in this divine hu-
man life is the answer and only answer to
all our problems, and the only soi1ItiGn to
all QUIZ puZZleS.-S0Uthern Churchman.
1t has been a7Jtly and cugenty said that
the inven ton of the character of Jesus
would defy the author. 1t was not a pos
siblity to the age
TIFF. DIVINITY of Tiberius to the
OF CHRIST. hand of the Herods
twhCm Augustus in
u Greek pun called a log), or to the mon
grel element in Catlee. to imagine
Jesus. Could the civilization of the beast
ly Nero, the marrow hypocrisy of the pc
Gantic Phar>isee or of the sensual SSducee
produce the character portrayed by the
authors of the Ittie memorafbilia-the
Gospels? That age is far better know to
us than the centuries Of the dark period
of Europe. 1t was an era of writers. The
rc.nsarocer might picture a Rabbi but it
was not in the thought Of amy citizen of
SYRIA to construct the figure of Jesus. The
moral and mental pigments fit for such Il
portrait, such a radiant character We're
not in existence. They came from the
skEes-jVivine hues. Think Of His career
Lis SWStII.tSS, tt4Lit-NSr NS14tSNS, llIOi
finish. W,insome felicity. These We're not
Semetic. Greek. or Roman. He was
unique and unworldly, You would
soon expect to see q lilly blooming in the
hot sands Of Sahara, as Jesus formed
by His environments.-Chr Advocate.
Christmas is, of course. not a Church
festivaP' with Baptists. Still it is a good
time to be happy, a good time to seek
exquisite and an
a TIME TO matched happiness
BE,HAPPY. which comes from
delicate, thoughtful
service to others Never mind if your gift
must be modest Make it, nevertheless.
Let all the family be remembered. Do not
forget the servants. Remember the sick,
the poor. the neglected. See how much
sunshine you can scatter in these bright
holidays 1t viii not be out of order, |
either. to gather ait the morning hour |
in the house Of God for prayer and praise; |
for. while the day is in all probability not !
a. true anniversary of the Saviour's birth, |
and, if it were ascertainett so to be, we |
cannot find any warrant tor its obser-
vance in Gods Word, still it is inter
woven with many of our most sacred !
and we do well to pause for a
moment and reverently acknowledge Gods
goodness. A bright and merry Christmas,
good friends to you, one and alL-ReliSious |,