The Washington weekly post., 1900-04-24
Metaphysics Make Poor Creeds.

so It f. tie same cid sun in TIE heavens,
but in cur time il has gone to making
daguerreotypes and photographs. II is
the same old water, but in our century II
hss gone 20 running steam engines II is
the same old electricity, but in our time
II has become a lightning-footed errand
boy. So It Is the old Bible but new appli-
cations, new uses, new interpretations.
You must remember that during the last
three hundred years words have changed
their meaning. and some of them now
mean more. ard some less. I do not think
that John Calvin believed, as some say he
DID. in the d5mnation OF. infants, although
some OF the recent hot disputes would
seem 10 imply that there Is such 4 ininC as
the damnation of infants. \ ran who be-
lieyes In the damnation Of infants himself
deserves 20 lose heaven. ! do not think
any good man could admit such a pOssi-
hIlity. What Christ will do with all the
babies in the next world l conclude from
what He did with the babies in Palestine,
when he huEsed thsm and kissed them
Wien SOME Of you grown people 20 out OF
this world your doubtful destiny VIII Be
an embarrassment to ministers officiating
at your Cbsequies. who will have 10 b
cautious 50 as not 10 hurt surviving
AllEAlA1. Dul NilEll lllt bdL 4lilk CuifAi III
go there are no ifs or butts or guesses,
We must remember that good John Cal
vim was o logician and a metaphysiciau
and by the Droclivities of his nature put
some things in an unfortunate way. Logic
has Its use. and metaphysics has its use,
but they are not good at making creeds.
y gardener hands you blooming rose,
dewy. fresh, but a severe bOtanist comes
TO you with d rose and says, i will show
you the structure of this rose and he
proceeds TO take il apart, and pulls off the
leaves, and he says, There are the pet-
ais and he takes out the anthers, and ne
says, Just look at the wonderful struc-
ture of these floral pillars, and then he
cuts the stem 10 show you the juices o.
the plant So logic or metaphysics takes
the aromatic rose OF the Christian relg
ION and says: I will just show yOU how
this rose of religion was fashioned and
it pulls off of il a piece and says: That IS
the human will and another piece and
SAYS. This is Gods will and another
piece and says: This is sovereignty and
another piece and says: This IS free
agency this is this and that is that. And
while I stand looking q. the fragments Of
the rose pulled apart, one whom the
Naryg took for a gardener comes in and
presents me with a crimson rose red as
blood, and SAYS: Inhale the sweetness
Of this; wear il on your heart, and wear
IL forever / must confess that / prefer
the rose in full bloom to the rose pulled
apart.
Faith in Christ Is All.
What a time we have had with the dog
matics. the apoloGetics, and the hermeneu-
tics The defect in some of the creeds
is that they try to tell US all about the
DEGREES of God. Now the only human be-
ing that was ever competent TO hand!s
that subject was Paul. and he would not
have been competent had he not been in
spired / believe in the sovereignty of
God and I believe in mars free agency.
but no one can harmonic the two. II IS
not necessary that we harmonic them
Every sermon that / have ever heard
that attempted such harn!onization was
TO me as clear as a London fog, as clear
as mud. My brother of the nineteenth
century, my brother of the sixteenth CEN
tury, give us Paups statement and leave
out your own Better one chapter of
Paul on that subject than all of Calvin's
Institutes, able and honest and mighty as
they are. Do not try to measure either
the throne of God or the thunderbolts of
God with your little steel pen. What do
you know about the DEGREES? Yea can
not pry open the door of Gods eternal
counsels. Ycu cannot explain the mys-
less the mysteries of His government FIVE
hundred Quintiilion years ago.
Il move for a creed for all our denomi-
Iations made ont of Scripture quotations
pure and simple. That would take the
earth for God. That would be impreg-
Liable against infdelity and Apollyonic
assault. That would be beyond human
criticism. The denomination, whatever
its name be, that can rise up 10 that will
/ be the church of the millennium, will
swallow up all other denominations, and
be the one that will be the bride when
/ the Bridegroom cOmeth. Let US make il
simpler and palmer for people TO get into
/ the kingdom of God. Do not hinder peO-
PIE by the idea that they may not have
been elected. Dc not tag on to the one
essential of faith In Christ any of the in
Vulnerable non-essentials. A man who
! heartily accepts Christ is a Christian,
and the man who does not accept Him is
not a Christian, and that is all there is of
It. He need not believe in election or
reprobation. He need not believe in the
eternal generation of the Son. He need
rot believe in everlasting punishment.
I He need not believe in infant baptism.
He need no. believe in plenary inspira-
tiOn. Faith in Christ is the criterion, is
| the test, IS the pivot, is the Indispensable
MOrbidness Hampers Faith.
/ -'NN NlAtAU aAt Nl4Ost NllO hOuAh 1Ah bl-
! to the tests rather than subtract from
| them. There are thousands who would
not accept persons into church member
/ ship If they drink wine, or If they smoke
| cigars, CT if they attend the theaters, or
if they play cards, or if they drive a fast
| horse. But do not substitute tests which
| the Bible does not establish. There is
| one passage Of Scripture wide enough to
] LOT oil in, N nrrgh+ n ~ and RI kpaD
! out all who ought to be kept out: Be
/ lieve in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou
! shalt be saved Get a mans heart right
/ and his life will be right. But now that
| the old creeds have been put under pub
/ lie scrutiny, something radical must be
/ done. Some would split them, some
would carve them, some would elongate
| them. some would abbreyiate them. 4,
/ the present moment and in the present
shape they are a hindrance. Lazarus j.
/ alive, but hampered with the old grave
/ clothes If you want one glorious Church
/ free and unincumbered, take of the
| cerements Of old ecclesiastical vocabulary
/ Loose her, aid let her go.
! Again, there are Christians who are VI
] der sepulchral shadows, and hindered and
/ hoppled by doubts and fears and sins LONG
/ ago repepted Of What they need is tC
I nde-stand the liberty Of the sons of God
| They spend more time under the shadow
/ OF Sinai than at the base OF Calvary
! They have been singing the only poor
/ hymn that Newton ever wrote:
| "'Tis point long know;
or II causes anxious thought:
Do I love tbs Lord no?
An hie or an not?
@ 10 know do you? Why do yoU
| rot .rd OUT GC work for God, and
ycE viii very So .4d OUT. The mar
40 5 all the tiIne ieel ne his pulse and
/ locking al his L L;us 10 see whether IL Is
coated. is morbid, and cannot be physical
! ly wclL The doctor will say: Go out in.
| to the fresh air and into active life, and
stop thinking OF yourself and you will gel
well and strong. 30 there are people who
/ are watching their spiritual symptoms
| and they call il self-exanination, and
/ they get weaker and sicklier IN then
/ faith all the time Go out and do some
| thing nobly Christian. Take holy exercise
/ and then examine yourself. and instead
/ OF Newton's saturnine and bilious hymn
that ] first quoted, you viii sing Newton.
! her