Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1901-03-18
GODS FAIBERHOOD. " !
THE SUBJECT OFF A SERMON ~ THE
REV. r.. n. BIGGER YESTEn-
DAY MORNING IN THE
THIRD PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.
God rs Our Father should be
and Trusted-We should Approach
Him with Reverence-The Sermon.

Bigger, the pastor of the Third Pres
byterian church, preached an interest
ing sermon on the subject of Goods
Fatherhood." He chose as his text:
"Our Father, which art in Heaven"
Matt. 60.
There is much said in these times OF
the fatherhood OF God and the brother
hood of men. These truths are as old
as the Gospei itself, but are being en-
phasized more by the pulpit and press
now than ever before in the worlds
history. In these times when material
istic, infdelic science, boastfully and
narrowly claiming to be the only true
science, seems determined to make us
believe that we are sons and daugh-
tiers of gorillas, the f%atherhood Of God
cannot be made too emphatic. We are
not base born. We are sons of the
Eternal. Look up, meanest son OF
flesh. God calls you his son. Learn
by flial obedience to call God father.
Why go with your eyes fixed upon the
earth? Look up, and let your thoughts
and hopes brook no calling narrower
than Gods eternal blue"
Our text teaches us the universal
fa%therhood of God. We must leap
over all barriers of social exclusive
80
ness, of hostility, Of interest and jeal-
ousy and feel our oneness with in
feriors, with rivals, with enemies,
when we cross the threshold of this
prayer. When Christ's finger, dipped
in blood. writes the word 'our" on a
mans heart, it blots out the heathen-
ism of caste. Let kid-gloved and laven-
der-scented delicacy gather its skirts
away from the pollution of the ordin-
airy crowd; let men refuse any broth
erly recognition to ~hard-handed toll;
let women refuse to speak to those who
have sinned against society; let ali
such gather for Gods worship, and
they will find that they must remain
dumb before God until they car enter
his gates with the motley hosts of Il
needy and SHINING race, and say. Our
Father which art in Heaven" We
may draw our robes of pride out OF
the mud of general humanity and say,
Father of our set, bless us and all
people equally respectable" But that
is not Christianity. The spirit of fra
ternity lies at the bottom of all re-
ligious experience. God hath made OF
our blood all nations of men for to
dwell on all the face of the earth. The
heather poet Aratus, who liver 270 B.
c., said, I'VE are the offspring of the
deity" Paul along 800 years
later and says this is true and draws
a lesson from it. If the heather rec
ognized the fatherhood of the deity,
how much more should we who know
and worship the true God. The teach
ings of Christ are that God is our
father and every mar u brother.
God being our father, should be hon.
ored and trusted. Canon Wilberforce
says the fathers demand, "Where is
mine honor?" is not satisfied without
witness, enthusiasm and loyalty. The
duty of witness is clear and inalicn~
able. No son of God can claim ex-
emption. There is over-mucn false
shame in the family of God which His
children extenuate by calling it "re-
serve" Not a few would be ashamed
10 be discovered on their knees, even
by members of their own household.
A follower of Mohammed is not
ashamed to be seen on his knees. In
The open space within the walls of the
Immense mosque at Dehlhi, 1000 at
once may be seen OF their knees, or,
rather, Frustrated on their faces. A
Mussulman at Pashawar expressed sur
prise to hear that prayer was a part
of the Christian faith; he never re-
membered of seeing a Christian on his
knees.
A man occupied in business in Lon
don who believed in the fatherhood
of God was among some scofing skep-
'tical companions. In mockery one
challenged him to kneel down and pray.
The Lord gave him courage to do so
right there, and in simple, heartfelt
terms he sought blessing for them all.
In an instant the mockery ceased.
Silent and thoughtful they left him
without a word. 1t cost him much, but
it was worth what it cost. God was
his Father; he knew it and rave him
honor. The true child of God will
want to look up into the fathers face
in prayer. There will be times when
nothing but prayer will relieve his
lonesomeness.
A mother with her little boy had
been for some weeks visiting. The
child had several times expressed a de-
sire to be at home, and in different
ways had given expression to the feel,
ing of Inconsistencies. One day his
mother was startled by a heart-broken
cry from another room. She ran with
all haste, thinking he must be hurt.