The daily morning journal and courier., 1900-05-07
SERMON ON CONVERSION
INTERPRETING SUNDAY DISCOURSE F
 BY REY. GEO. B. CUTTEN.

Some Kind of n ReIigion Necessary to Except ChrIstiantty-Obedie the Keynote of the Latter.
 At the Howard avenue Baptist church
 last evening the pastor, Rev. George B.
 Cutten, discoursed on the subject "Con-
 version" The sermon, very interest,"
 ing one, was taken from the text Acts
 xii, 6-16. In part it follows: Frequently we hear the question ask
 ed, What does it mean to be converted
 and what is the process?" This ques-
 tion cannot be fully answered, but let
 us take some lessons from the account
 of the conversion of Paul, of which we
 have just read. Paul's conversion was
 not normal, we may think, and yet
 what is to be the standard? Your con-
 version was not like your friends, nor
 his like mine, yet all conversions are
 the same in the essential parts, however
 much they may differ in details The
 story of Paul's conversion is familiar to
 all of us so it need not be repeated here, but emphasis will be laid on the points
 in it, viz: That he accepted of the rev.
 elation given to him; that he did as he
 was told, and that he identified himself
 with Christs work and Chrlst's follow
 CTS.
 Some kind of a religion is necessary
 to all men, and, further, all men have
 some kind It may be very crude, it
 may be very refined 1t may be very
 savage, 1t may be very gentle, 1t may
 be very superstitious, it may be very
 reasonable, but nevertheless he has it, and lives by it. The civilized gambler
 may have as his deity what he calls luck; the barbarian hunter may be more specific and worship the sun or the moon. The eastern nations may nomi- nally worship Confucius and the west ern nations Christ, but the real individ- ual worshipper may have far less wor- thy objects, such as the mighty dollar, glittering honor or the hideous idol
 Since religion is instinctive and neces- sary for man, the question comes to every one, What kind of a religion shall I have?" and quickly returns the an- swer, If religion Is necessary, then the best religion is the one for me- But how determine the best? We cannot by the different claims, for each one boasts of superiority. It is by the fruits we can know them, and only thus. Follow in the train of Mohammedanism, and what do we find? Women degraded, converts are made by the sword, and the lower instead of the higher in man Is appealed to. Follow Hinduism and when allowed it's sway we find the child sorrified, widows burned fellowship de- nied outside of caste and women de- graded Buddhism gives as it's greatest prize annihtlation, for God does not ex- ist and self1shness is the keynote. But turn for a moment in contrast to the revelation of Jesus Christ to us as sure ly as to Paul, and what do we find as it's results? The highest civilization the world has seen, advancement in all ma- terial ways, the weak and helpless pro- tected, the vicious placed under control, men working for others. peace, happt- ness and joy given to all followers, and the fellowship of God with all men. Is there any doubt as to the best? Ask the woman in Arabia, ask information from the widow in India, talk with the in China, Africa and the islands of the sea, where Christ does not rule, and the answer will come in one un- broken chorus: Christ raises woman and helps her to a higher life. Nowhere Is life of men higher than the life of wo- man cannot rise higher than his wife-and if women are raised the na- ton is raised.
 The second point of emphasis is that xl l.1 +oJI nha5 se, the keynote of Christianity. Faith, hope and love are all great, but they are dependant on obedience for their power and validity. You may" is different from you must" and you must" is the language of the gospel. Marvel not that I say unto you, y!e must be born again. The words of the Old Testament can we'll be carried over into he New when it says ITO obey is bet ter than sacrifice" The greatest sacri- Ice without obedience is not equal to .he smallest obedience without sacrifice. When the answer to Pauls question:, Lord, what shall do?' came, Paul did t, and only in this way did he become I power in the early church; only thus ,ould he do anything for Christ, so it must be with us.
 Paul became great factor in the ad- of Christianity, because he identified himself with Christ's work md His followers. We hear of silent but never see them, because here are not any. Christians cannot be ilent. If they follow Christ they try o do all the good they can, and their ives, if not their tongues, are eloquent or Him.
 Let us accept the best religion, the re- igion of God as revealed through Christ. Let us obey the leading of the Spirit and identify ourselves with His york and cause if we would make the most of our lives and be in a position to4 lelp others.