The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1900-10-15

Bible before reading It, John Stuart
Mill (Silcox) is said never to have never
read the Bible, yet he wrote against 1t.
And Thomas Paine in his age Of Rea-
SON. says, IT had beside me neither
Bible nor Testament to refer to, though
l was writing against both"
Regarding the great scenes and
events and personages referred to in
| Scripture it must be granted that they
are of such nature that 1T is far more
reasonable to believe them "historicap'
! than to suppose them to be fictitious"
made up by the writer's of the Book.
For example, the records of the gospels
give us the life and character of Jesus.
But that life and character are such
that it is much easier to think of 1t as
real than to think Of it as the product
Of the Evangelsts alone. Regarding
His words, even His enemies admitted
that never man spake like this man" y
| Speaking of His works Nicodemas, one
of the Pharisees and learned man, as
| his office denotes, said "Rabbi, we know
that thou art a teacher, come from God
for no man can do these miracles that
Thou doest, except God be with Him."
while those who rejected Him acknowl-
edged that He did work miracles by
saying that HE cast out devils by the
prince of devils" Take away all other
testimony and leave us the life of
Christ as recorded in the Gospels and
we have sufficient proof that this Book
is of God, inspired" and not of men.
(See Christ's testimony to scribes). 1t
was impossible for such life as His
to be invented it was not in man
Kind to do the work Who could or
would have written or imagined it? AS
Theodore Parker has well said "It
would take a Jesus to forge a Jesus"
And John Stuart Mill, the sceptic, asks,
"Who among His disciples or among
their converts was capable of inventing
the sayings accorded to Jesus or of
imagining the life and character reveal
ed in the gospels?'
How little truth has to fear In the
end from the most searching criticism
is finely shown In sentence In the pre-
face to DeWette's Commentary on Rev.
elation, published just before his DEATH
That such an intellect as his, illuminat-
ed by learning so vast and of a free
dom and fearlessness so unquestioned
found that all the mighty labors of his
life led back to the foot of the cross,
is a fact most significant This great
German thinker says, This only l
know, that there is salvation in no other
name than in that of Jesus Christ the
crucified, and that nothing loftier offers
itself to humanity, than the Goldman
hood realized in Him, and the King
dom of God which He founded" That
G thn hi If crra a
giant thinker. Yes, the life and char
acter Of Jesus of Nazareth stand out
as invincible fortresses against the re-
peated and persistent attacks of infidel-
tty. From time immemorial the fierc-
est onslaughts have been made at this
point His own footsteps when He
trod this earth were logged by men
whose sole object was to catch Him in
His words. While many followed Him
from sheer force of love, others follow
ed Him that they might seize and twist
His words. Some played the part of
friends" that they might get nearer
to Him, and thus be more sure of His
words and deeds that they might accuse
Him. And mark you, it was not alone
when He preached that He was thus
slyly followed. No. But they stood
around Him like a pack of hungry
wolves, painting and eager for their
prey, when he was feeding the starv-
ing multitudes: when He was healing
the sick; when He was raising the
dead; when He sat down to eat in the
of publicans and sinners, those
whom He had come to save: when the
innocent babes We're folded to His bos-
t. Ii i,Ir
deeply of it If only for a passing mo-
ment-the Son of God-this sinful lost
worlds only redeemer, followed and |
tracked, like ticket of leave" man,
while procaiming the unsearchable |
riches Of God. And this Is just what |
lnf1dels have been doing for near nine |
teen hundred years, and are still doing |
to-day. But, Notwithstanding all their |
loud talk and blasphemous banter, |
they are playing a loosing game. They |
are on the wrong side. Oh, may the |
Judge Of all the world enable them to
see this ere they stand at the bar of an |
nsulted God. Tell me, what cares yon-
Ter rock-ribbed mountain for the wild |
oar Of the mid winter blast, when
,rees are falling, houses tumblng, and
he ships are sinking at sea? Nothing;
absolutely nothing. Like an immovable
mighty mount 1t still points up toward
God. And just so Is It with Gods
Book In the midst of noisy men, 1t
still stands mid the battle of words and
he shouts of men. And even when the
Did Mount has persisted the old Book
hall still live.
Bishop Whipple of Minnesota says
I once met thoughtful scholar who
old me that for years he had read
very book he could which assailed the
eligion of Jesus Christ, and he said he
hould have become an inhdel but for
hree things. First, I am a man.
m going somewhere. Tonight / am |
ay nearer the grave than l was last
light. / have read all that such inf
ell books can tell me. They shed not
ne solitary ray of hope or light upon I,
he darkness They shall not take away
he only guide that have and leave me
tone blind.
"Secord--I had mother. I saw her
o down into the dark valley where I ,
m going, and she leaned upon an un- ,
cen arm and calmly as a child goes to
leep upon the breast of it's mother I