The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1900-05-04

the electric lights nave Deen turned
on the i~mperfections of tina creed
imperfect-let us put the old creed
respectfully aside and get a brand new
one
It is impossible that people VINO liy-
ed hundreds of years ago should fash
ION an appropriate creed for our times
John Calvin was a great and good
man, but he died 336 years ago. The
best centuries of Bible study have
come since then, n explorers have
done their work, and you might as well
have the world go back and stick to
what Robert Fulton knew about
steamboats, and reject the subsequent
improvements in navigation, and 60
back to John Gutenberg, the inventor
of the art of printing, n respect all
modern newspaper press, and go back
to the time when telegraphy was the
elevating Of signals or the burning OF
bonfires on the hilltops and reject the
magnetic wire which is the tongue Oh
nations as to ignore all the exegetes
and the philologists and h theolo-
gians Of the last 336 years and put your
head under the sleeve of the gown of
a sixteenth century doctor. / could call
the names of 20 living Presbyterian
ministers of religion who could make
a better creed tina John Calvin The
nineteenth century ought not to be
called to sit at the feet of the six
tenth.
CHANGE IN CONDITIONS.
But, you say, sit is the same old
Bible, and John Calvin had that as
we'll as the present student of the
Scriptures" Yes; so it is the same
old sun in the heavens, but in our
time it has gone to making daguer-
reotypes and photographs. 1t is the
same old water; but in our century it
has gone to running steam engines.
1t is the same Did electricity; but in
our time it has become a light
ming footed errand boy. So it is the
new interpretations, new uses,
new interpretations. You must re-
member that during the last 300 years
words have changed their meaning,
and some Of them now mean more and
some less. 1 do not think that John
Calvin believed, as some say he did,
in the damnation of infants, although
some Of the recent hot disputes would
seem to imply that there is such a
thing as the damnation of infants. A
man who believes in the damnatiOn
of infants himself deserves to lose
heaven. / do not think any good man
could admit such a possibility. What
Christ will do with all the babies in
the next world 1 conclude from what
he did with the babies in Palestine
when lie Rugged them and kissed them.
When some of you grown people go out
of this world, your doubtful destiny
will be an embarrassment to ministers
officiating at your o~bsequies, who will
have to be cautious so as not to hurt
surviving friends. But when the dar-
ling children go there are NJ Ifs" or
butts" of gueSses.
We must remember that good John
Calvin was a logician and a metaphy-
sician, and by the procliviteS of his
nature put some things in an %unfortu-
nate way. Logic has it's use and me-
taphysics has it's use, u they are
not good at making creeds. A gard
ener hands you a blooming rose, dewy,
fresh, but a severe botaniSt comes to
you with a rose and say Il will show
you the structure of this rose" and he
proceeds to take it apart and pulls off
the leaves and he says, There are the
petals" and he takes out the anthers,
and he says, Just look at the Won
derful structure of these floral pillarsI'
and hen he cuts the stem to show
o the juices of the plant. So logic
or metaphysics takes the aromatic rose
of the Christian religion and says, 81
will just show you how this rose OF
off of it a piece and says, THAT is the
human WILL" and another piece and
says, This is Gods WILL" 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 at the
fragments of the rose pulled apart, one
whom h Marys took for a gardener
comes in n presents me with a
crimson rose, red as blood, and says
"Inhale the sweetness of this; wear
1t on your heart, n wear it forever
I must confess that I prefer the rose
in full BLOOM to the rose pulled apart
DEFECTS OF SOME CREEDS.
What a time we have with the dog
MATES, the apologetics and the her.
meneutics. The defect in some Of the
creeds is that they try to tell US al
about the DEGREES of God. Now the
only human being that was ever com
petent to handle that subject was
Paul, and he would not I'VE been com
petent had he not been inspired. I be
lieve in the sovereignty of Sod and
believe in mans free agency, but nc
one can harmonic the two. 1t is no
necessary that we harmonic them
Every sermon that I have ever heard
that attempted such harmonizatior
was to me as clear as a London fog
as clear as mud. Ny brother Of the
nineteenth century, give US Paul's
statement and leave out your own
Better n chapter of Paul on thai
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 O.
God with our little steel pen. Wha-
do you know about the DEGREES? You
cannot pry open the door of God.
eternal counsels. You annot explain
the mysteries of Gods government
now; much less the mysteries of hi:
government five hundred quintillior
years ago.
1 move for a creed for all our c.
nominations made out for Scripture
quotations pure and simple. THAI
would be ~impregnable against inf.
deity and Apollyonic assault. That
would be beyond human criticism. TIL.
denomination, whatever it's name be
that can rise up to that will be thu
church of millennium, will swal
low up all other denominations and b.
the one that will be the bride wher
the Bridegroom cometh. Let us MAKE
1t simpler and palmer for people t.
get into h kingdom of God. Do no
hinder people by the idea that THEY
may not have been elected. Do no
tag on to the one essential OF faitf
in Christ any of the innumerahle non.