The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1901-11-18
WHEREIN OUR GREATEST
WEAKNESS LIES; ITS CURE.
The Reverend Charles Watson
Draws Lesson From Fallen Is
rael and Her People.

AZ First Urfted Presbyterian church,
Morgan street and Newstead avenue. Inc
Reverend Charles Il. Watson. pastor
preached yesterday morning from the ieNl
Isaiah Il, y and d: why SaNesI th"a- y
Jacob, and speakest, o Israel. My way Is
hid from Jehovah. and the justice due Il
me is passed away from my God? Hast
tbnu moi known Hast thou not heard Inc
everlasting God. jehovah the creator OF
the ends Of the earth, fainteth not hellhti
s. weary; there is no searching o. M ~
derStanding. He giVeth power &c the ialA''
aud to him thaI hath no might he lncieas-
eth strength" He said. in part:
This inspiring message or The prophet
has for its background Israels ConSciousHess
of her weakness and impotence. Man eA-
tremity is Gods opportunity. This Is the
very commonplace Of method IN divine rev
elatiOn. Every experience in life, bringing
with il a Consciousness OF hitherto unieit
needs. becomes Gods opportunity Tor man
ifesting himself in some fresh ana tuiet
way to his children.
Every point in the Overwhelming circle
Of human wants and needs and inspirations
is a place where a more perfect apprehen-
sion of the inexhauStible and satisfying sur
fciency OF God becomes possible. faintihs'
disheartened, weaTied. fallen Israel. crylns
out in her discouragement: MY way Is ma
from jehovah is to learn out OF her eAlie
and dispersion something Of what God Is.
of what God may be to her. OF what Ho4
can do for her. which could nd have been
learned from the clearest ~utterances OF Fer
most clear-sighted prophets in the days, OF
9ler national prosperity and glory.
knowledge of God must come expert
mentally. Unless there is awakened IN
your life something that demands a GoG
40 satisfy IL, you can never know God; ana
even though his existence were demon
strsted beyond the shadow Of doubt. !,
would mean less to you than the news OF
the discovery OF the North Pole or OF the
finding of some remote star, Invisible 10 me
naked eve. We may then thank God for
1he consciousness OF weakness If ii brings
TO us the knowledge Of Gods power, ana
for the perpleXities Of life II they bring us
20 the knowledge of Gods guidance anu iot
fhe consciousness of our siufulness II it
brings US 10 a knowledge OF the sin-cleans-
ing power of Christ ana the Holy Spirit.
The sense OF weaknes comes 10 IL some
dimes through the seeming failures of our
plans Perhaps II Is a matter OF toTtuht-
Beginning Hfe with practically nothing. rig
ii economy and untiring application result
in some little possession.
Just when the best years OF life are
gone and the buoyancy of life IL lost; just
when Increasing demands make success
all the more necessary, just then, some
movement of the market. some new inven-
ton, some new combination OF business in
terests leaves us all but penniless and sends
Us to our homes. thinking. il not saying,
My way is hid from Jehovah and the jus
Tice due me is passed away from my God
In the presence of these world move
nents. We are weak and helpless. even As
though We were TO attempt To- regulate the
movement Of the Gulf Stream or the ocean
tides. Perhaps IL is not a matter OF fortune.
but OF a human life. Here Is a life. pure. no
BILE. sympathetic. inspiring, and in a friend
ship as deep as that between David and
Jonathan, soul becomes knit to soul Then.
when opening life is giving promise Of many
precious years Of this companionship, Just
then some unforeseen circumstance. or that
unwelcome visitor, Death. steps in to snatch
away that fondest privilege Of lite, and we
are left TO travel the rest OF life's Journey
alone. How helpless We are in the face Of
such changes In life, Like men on a raft.
W. are free within the lfmiNg nf a FGNy foot
to do as We please. but meanwhile We are
being carried along by unseen tides, over
which we have no control. and in directions
of which we have no knowledge.
Our greatest weakness. however, lies in
the moral and spiritual sphere. There * no
Undertaking IN which We are 50 sure to
faint and grow weary as when we under
take TO get rid OF sin. Here il a double
task. Behind us are sins already commit
ted: before us are temptations yet 10 Be
faced. A past for which amends must b.
made; a future for which we need strength
with past sin? Forget it. some say TO us
But that il just what We cannot do. and
Der? Is ne not the one who inhabitetl
eternity and are not the past. the present
ana tne futufe equally .befofe h1mE The
world is full Of men and women. ave. and
of children, too, weary and f~ainting under
the intolerable burden OF sin. Some. bv
appeal to false reasoning. are trying to OK
plain away the burden and persuade them
selves that IT Is not there. Others by ali
sorption in pleasure. others by ABSORPTION
I'm business. are seeking to forget that
the burden is upon their hearts. The
WEAKNESS can never cease until these have
come TO him who said. Come unto me. ali
!e that are weary: ana { viii give YOU
rest. Then there is the present and the
future. as wen as the past. How can We
rope TO triumph over the temDter@ H
comes 10 US with a long record Of Victories.
He comes against Us with an experience Il
centuries OF attack upon human nature.
He comes TO US knowing us better than w
know ourselves. He is mightier than we.
From heaven we hear a voice saying Thou
must. but within rs our hearts y ~aufDs
cannot. In the struggle with evil. in
the striving after holiness. We are con
strained 10 cry out. My way is hid from
jehovah
THE Bible does not hesitate to emphasize
the utter insufhciency Of human strength
when cut OF from divine resources. Tier
Is no pessimism in this recognition OF hui
man weakness. IL is the foundation for
something more than mere superficial up
tiTnism. No man has a night to condemn
the beauty OF a building when he has only
the foundation before him. Upon this rec
ngntton of the weakness Of humanity, tha
prophet proceeds 10 erect D structure Of
sufficiency Of God. the Almighty. Hast
thou not heard? The everlasting God faint
eth not. neither is weary His argument
Despair is a denial Of Gods being or a fe-
nlal Of Gods true character We de-
nounce the atheism OF the schools; Let Us
not fofset 10 denoulce the atheism Of
everyday life, There Is atheism in an de-
spair. Only the atheist is entitled to lie a
pessimist. why art thou cast down. Oh.
my soul? Hope thou in God
The prophet bids his, hearers look away
from their own weakness 70 him, who
fainteth not. neither t. weary. the ever
lasting God. Jehovah. This IS the God of
Creation. By the word Of his power. The
universe OF suns and planets came into he
ing: by the guidance of his wisdom they
found their orbits. This is the God Or
Providence. For ages past he has guided
the affairs Of men in the unfolding of his
tory. 1t is safe to trust him for that which
lies ahead. This is the God of R~edenptior.
In the fullness Of time he seEt his only he
gotten son that through him the world
might not perish. but have everlasting life
Having delivered up his own son for us all.
how snail he not also with him give us all
things? This God. you call Father and
Yet YOU are troubled aid anxious. lis
hesrtened and discouraged, You despair
as docs the sconer who saws there is 70
God, You Worry as though YOU had NJ
heavenly fatheri Hast thou not heard?
Jehovah fainteth not, neither is weary. He
. siveth power 10 the faint: they that wait
o. him shall renew their strength