Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1900-04-27
RELIGIOUS CREEDS.
Or. TALMAGs DISCUSSES THEA, Gooc
AND BAD.


Founded ora Faith In ChrIst-rbas
Alone 40 he the Test.
wAsuSoroS, April pat time
when the old discussion of creeds is
being vigorously and somewhat bitter
" revived this discourse OF DIR. Tai.
mage has a special interest. The text
Is John Si, Al. Loose him and let him
CO."
My Bible is, at the place of this text,
written all over with. lead pencil marks
made at Bethany on the ruins of the
house of Mary and Martha and Laza-
rus. We dismounted from our horses
sea. Bethany was the summer even
Ing rc:reat of Jesus. After spending
the day in the hot city of Jerusalem he
would come out there almost every
evening TO the house of his three
friends think the occupants of that
house Were orphans. for the father and
mother are not mentioned. But the
son and two daughters must have in
herited property, for il must have been.
Judging from what | saw Of the foun-
dations and the size of the rooms, an
opulcnt home. Lazarus, the brother.
was now at the head Of the household.
and his sisters depended en- him and
were proud of him. for he was very
popular, and everybody liked him. and
these girls were splendid girls-Martha
a first rate housekeeper and Mary n
spirituelle, somewhat dreamy. but af-
fectionate, aud as good girl as could
be found In all Palestine. But one day
Lazarus got sick The sisters were i'm
CONSERVATION. Father gone and moth
er gone, they feel very nervous lest
they lose their brother also. Disease
did its quick work. How the girls hung
over his pillow! Not much sleep about
that house-no sleep at all.
From the characteristics otherwise
developed Judge that Martha prepar-
cd the medicines and made tempting
dishes OF food for the poor appetite of
the sufferer, but Mary prayed and sob
bed. Worse and worse gets Lazarus
until the doctor announces that he can
do no more. The shrek that went up
from that household when the last
breath had been drawn and the two
sisters were being led by sympathizers
into the adjoining room all those of us
can imagine who have had our own
hearts broken. But why was not Jesus
there, as he so often had been? Far
away In the country districts, preach
ing, healing other sick. how unfortu-
nate that this omnipotent Doctor had
not been at that domestic crisis in
Bethany. When at last Jesus arrived
ia Bethany. Lazarus had been buried
four days, and dissolution had taken
place. In that climate the GREATNESS
body disintcgrates more rapidly than
In ours. II Immediately after decease
the body had been awakened into life.
unbelievers might have said he was
only In comatoSe state or In sort OF
trance and by~some vigorous manipula-
ton or powerful stimulant vitality had
been renewed. No! Four days dead.
Jesus wcpt.
At the door of the sepulchcr Is n
crowd OF people. but the three most
memorable are Jesus, who was the
family friend, and the two bercft sis
tiers. We went into the traditional
tomb one December day. and IL is deep
down and dark. aud with torches we
explored IL. We found IL all quiet that
afternoon OF our visit. but the day spo-
ken OF In the Bible there was present
IN excited multitude. / wonder what
Jesus will do? lie orders tile door OF
the grave removed. and them he begins
10 descend the steps, Mary and Martha
close after him and the crowd after
them. Deeper down into the shadows
and deeper. The hot tears or Jesus
roll over his checks and p!ash upon the
backs OF his hands. Were ever SO many
sorrows compressed into so small n
space rs in that group pressing on
down after Christ. all the time bemoan.
ing that he had not como before?
Now all the whispering and all the
crying and ali the sounds OF shutting
ieet are stopped. IL is the silence OF
expectancy. Death had conquered. but
now the vanquishcr OF death confront
cd the scene. Amid the awful hush OF
the tomb the familiar name which
Christ had often had upon his Inns IN
The hospitalitics OF the village lonfe
came back 10 his tongue. and with n
pathos and an almightincss OF which
the resurrection OF the last day shall
only be an. echo he cries. Lazarus.
come forthr' The eyes OF the slumber.
er open. and he rises and comes 10 the
loot or the steps and with great dill.
Guilty begins to ascend. for the core.
ments or tire tomb are yet on him, and
MS feet are fast. and his hands are
tast and the Impediments TO all his
movements are so great that Jesus
commands: Take Off these cercments,
hemove these hindrances. Unfasten
these graveclothesl Loose him and
let him goI''
On. am so glad that after the Lord
raised Lazarus he went on and com
manded the ioosening OF the cords that
pound his feet. SO that he could walk
ana the breaking of OF the cerement
that bound his hands. SO that ne could
stretch out his arms in salutation. and
the tearing or OF the bandage from
around his jaws. so that he could
speak. What would resurrected life
nave been 10 Lazarus II he had not
been freed from all those cripplements
or his body? | am glad that Christ
commanded his complete emancipation.
saying. Loose him and let him 60"
Only Half Liberated.
The unfortunate thing now la that 40
many Christia ms are only half liberat-
ell. They have been raised from the
death and burial OF sin into spiritual
hre. Out they yet have the graveclothes
on them. They are, like Lazarus. hob
bling up the stairs OF the tomb bound
hand and foot, and the object of this
sermon is TO help free their body and
tree their soul, and shall try to obey
Che Masters command that comes to
mo and comes to every minister of re-
ngion, Loose him and let him CO."
Many are bound hand and foot by re-
hgious creeds. Let no man misinter-
pref me as antagonizing creeds, / have
eight or ten OF them-a creed about re-
hgfon. creed about art, a creed about
social life, q creed about government
and so on A creed is something that a
man believes whether It be written or
unwritten- The Presbyterian church
Is now agitated about It's creed. Some
good men In II are for keeping IL be-
cause 1t was framed from the belief of
.kOtrn Calvin n<har GOOD ,oaY, ~ a.