The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-12-17
THE REV. MR. MORLEY
cARRoLLTcN, GA, MINISTER
 BREACHES IN SELMA.
Young Divine Creates . Most Favor able Impression Upon the Con gregation of the Christian
 Church--other News
Advertiser Bureau,

Advertiser Bureau,
 Selma, Dec. IS. 1901. Rev. W c. Mobley of Carrollton, Ca. arrived in Selma Saturday night ana filled the pulpit of the Christian Cnurcn Sunday morning and evening He was invited here to preach with the view so calling him to fill the pastorate, maoe vacant by the resignation of Rev. J. B. Rice. Mir. Mobley is quite young man, but he Is fine speaker and made most favorable impression on his consre- Ration He is a hard student ana nas . brilliant career before him as minister. Yesterday morning he took for his text Matt. viii, p: "But Jesus said unto mm' follow thou me-" He opened his re- marks by saying that no more important lesson was set forth in the gospel than that of following Christ. The woros ?. the Saviour were quoted when he called some of his disciples, who were fisher men. when he said: Follow thou me ana I will make you fishers of men," He then related the story of the man who came to Jesus and asked the privilege or goine and buryinx his dead father and quoted Christ as telling him to follow him and 'let the dead bury the dead"
 He dealt agnostacism heavy blow ana said his respects to ambitious politicai schemers, who would sacrifice all. even fnelT power It was time they were calling halt and living nearer to God
 He asked why 1t was that we had not picked out some great man and followed him. Peter had said that we should always give a reason for the faith that is in us. for the hope that inspires us. Why' he asked, should we not follow Noses the great law giver, the man who conn muned with God in the burning push! Moses was q great and good man, ana why was he not picked out as the one for the Christian world to follow. Moses lived. he was human, he sinned, he died as other men do, and has not arisen from the dead. Zoroaster. the great Persian leader, laid down a fine code of ethics and gave us a higher. clearer conception Of fife. Why not take him as our guide? Confucius, the great Chinese philosopher. laid down a high code of morals Tor ms people. Why not follow him? Paul the great apostle to the Gentiles, preached as never man preached before or since. He was shipwrecked, prosecuted, reviled. and was finally crucifed. Why not take his life and teachings as a guide to our lives? Martin Luther, John Wesley, Alexander Campbell, all were great men and lived and did an immense amount of good in their day and generation. Why not take them as our guide? Because all of them were human. they lived as we live, they were not perfect. they died and have not risen from the dead.
 We follow Christ because of the just ness of his claim. He came among men and claimed to be the Son of God. and he proved his claim. He was tempted as men are in the wilderness for forty days and forty nights and he sinned not. He had been betrayed. was taken before Pilate and was condemned.
 The preacher followed the meek and lowly Jesus to Cavalry. Tn beautiful language he described how the rocks were rent, how the moon was turned to blood and the sun hid its face. He depicted the human agony of the son of God as he exclaimed, My God. my God. why has thou forsaken me-"
 He then went on to say that there were no manifestations of superhun1an power like the rocks being rent, the moon turn ing to blood and the sun hiding its face when Peter and Paul and the other faith. ful followers of Christ were put to death. NO wonder" the preacher exclaimed, that Napoleon said of Christ: He lived like an angel and he died like God"
 'Nicodemus. one of the seventy wise men who expounded the law and the gospel to the Jews, came to Christ and acknowledged him as a great man and sought of him to know the better way of life. Christ sat on the well and delivered to the DOT woman the bread of life. The Jews did not like Christ in their day and time. They sent out officers to arrest him, but they returned without Him and reported to their Superiors that never man spake like this man.
 Christ proved his title by the noble life that he lived, by his death and his glorious resurrection. He prevsd the Justness of his claim to being the Son of God and his life illustrated the greatness of his mission. He said, I came to seek and to save the lost, to bring reconcilia- ton between God and man. want to eS- tablish a reciprocity between them This He did and Is entitled to our everlasting love and affection for the sacrifice that he made.''
 The speaker here described the power and greatness of Christ.
 '"rhe very mountain peaks, that tower toward the heavens he said, !" tell of the majesty and glory of God. The brook that goes babhling over rocks and by messy banks tell us that there is a God. But we have the revealed will of God in the New Testament. All these things teach us that we should follow Christ. We should follow Him for His goodness. He had shown His sympathy for man kind when He obeyed the summons and went 10 Mary anu MArInd anu Eaiseo Lazarus from the dead"
 He pictured the great and tender heart cd Saviour standing on the mount and looking down on Jerusalem and saying, as the tears coursed down his cheeks: ''How oft would have gather you under my wing as a hen would her brood, but you would not"
 Christ made a great sacrifice. he laid down his life for us, and we should fol- low him for that. He came and he freed woman from the fetters that bound her, and ever since His coming she has had her rights along with man. The sacri- flee that Christ made can scarcely be comprehended by man. He came unso- licited, uninvited on our part. He met us, lived among us and died for us, and, therefore. we should love Him and give our lives to Him.
 NRr T. g Iohngon Dead.