The Honolulu republican. [volume] (Honolulu, T.H.) 1900-1902, 1901-02-28
SERMON ON REPENTANCE
BY BISHOP WILLIS
DISTINCTION BETWEEN ODDLY
SORROW AND SORROW
OF THE WORLD.
Suicide : Heinous criue-The Ter
rlbie End Of King Saul-Curse
Of ciIbos as Predicted BY David
in Psalm.

Repentance - 70 De our SUBJECT EOl
the Sunday evenings during Lent, Il
lustrsted o. its fruits in the lives ans
characters OF we'll known persons Il
Bible history. whose repentances arr
recorded in holy scripture. either FOL
our example or our warning. For re
pentance IS q word which signife.
two very different attitudes Of mind
according as it IS sincere and true. q
hollow and unreal The forsaking o
the sin for which you grieye is tn,
first token Of true repentance as de
fined In the Catechism. Rsmorse TO
the consequence OF sin. and fear O
disgrace, without any change OF hear
toward the sin, is the principal feature
OF that so-cailed repentance By which
nothing is repented Of. In the Second
Epistle 70 the Corinthians St Pau
contrasts the final issue OF these two
repentances: Cody sorrow workett
repentance TO salvation not TO be re
pented Of but the sorrow Of the world
worketn death"
The repentance Of Saul was the sub
ject Of the first sermon His career
was traced from his elevation TO the
throne OF Israel to his miserable end
on Mount Gilboa. The nature Of the
trials by which he was p.oyei vas
fully explained. and It was shown hov
hollow his repentance for disCbcdience
was. The concluding portion Of the
sermon touched on his resort TO the
Witch OF Endor and his suicide On
Mount Gilboa.
We ara aDr,roa chino +ba a,5 -,
sumed as he had been by envy. to
wreak vengeance on David being the
one aim OF his darkened soul, he had
neglected his kingdom and its de-
fences. and now he has TO meet an
other invasion OF cue Philistines. He
gathers an army on Mount Gilboa.
But all the courage of his youth was
gone The melancholy picture is Civ
en- OF the king. the commander in chief
AFRAID and greatly trembling To
whom could he turn for aid in this
dark hour? Samuel was dead. In
vain he enquired of the Lord. whose
priests he had slain. whose anointed
be had prosecuted. He had alienated
himself from God and God answered
him not In the despair of a reprobate
mind he resolves to seek by sorcery
20 know the issue of the impending
battle. BY the law of Moses all deal
Ing in the black art was a capital of
Tense, and one good feature of the
reign of Saul had oeen the expulsion
OF all sorcerers and necromancers from
the iaSd- He learns from his officers
that witch vas stili TO be found at
Endor. At dead 81 night he reaches
the house OF the sorcereSs. He had
disguised himself. for had the woman
known that il was Saul she would
have denied having any dealings with
the devil Having sworn to secure her
safety from the law. he asks her to
bring up Samuel The cry of terror
that the witch uttered when she saw
the figure of Samuel approaching
makes it plain that her incantations.
which probably she had not yet be.
gun, had nothing to do with Samuel's
appearing. God for his own purpose
permitted Samuels spirit to appear to
Saul
No inference can be drawn from the
narrative that sorcerers anu NEGRO
mancers have power to disturb the re-
pose of the departed spirits of the
righteous. Ii does teach us that for
adequate reasons God may employ the
spirits OF his prophets to amaze and
confound those who practice these
wicked arts As some interpreters
have expressed doubts whether the
apparition that conversed with Saul
was really the personality of Samuel
let me remind you that there was no
doubt of this In the mind of the Jewish
church. and il is written of Samuel By
the son OF Sirach: After his death
he prophesied and showed the king
his end. and lifted up his voice from
the earth in prophecy TO blot out the
wickedness Of the people"
Tomorrow shalt thou and thy sons
be with me" were the words of Samuel
that must have been ringing in Saurs
ears as he returned TO the camp on
Mount Gilhoa. One more scene. Saul
lies wounded on the battle field. He
appeals TO his armor bearers 10 dis
patch him that he may not fall into
the hands OF the Philistines. The ar
NOR bearer refused. therefore Saul fell
upon the point OF his sword and died. |
Such was the end of that unhappy |
man; his self-will. impotence. rebel |
lion and infidelity eliminating in self
murder. In these days when there is
a tendency to make excuses for the
crime OF suicide, it's Nervousness needs
to be proclaimed with no uncertain
voice We are not the authors AMI /
we are not the lords of our own lives
nor may We leave our assigned most
or rush without summons into the
presence OF our Judge, any more than
We may execute vengeance on our
neighbor and send him TO the tribunal
of God. In the words OF one OF the
Elixahethan poets
This life's fort committed to my
trust.
Which must not yield up till il be
forced:
Nor will l: he's not valiant that dares
die.
But he that boldly bears calamity
That the curse Of God must blight
the very spot where such a crime is
committed was clearly in David's mind
rs he composed the elegy IN which he
gives expression TO his poignant grief
AZ the death OF Jonathan. II is not the
death OF Jonathan. but that OF
Saul which had left IFS dark stain and
The curse OF ba-renness on the hills oil
Silboa: 'Ye mountains Of Gilboa. let
here be no dew. neither Let there be
'aln upon you, nor fields OF offerings.
Tor there the shield of the mighty is
l1leiy cast away, the shicii of Saul. as
hough he had not be anointed with
ILL.,