The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-10-13
SOME KINDS OF PULPITS
SERMON BY THE REV. j. c. SMITH, OF
THE TABERNACLE CHURCH.
The Future, He Says, Will Rnise the
Natural to the Supernatural by the
Reverse of that Process.

The Rev. j. Cumming Smith, of the Tab
ernacle Church, preached yesterday morn
ing on the text, THE Kingdom of Heaven
Suffereth Violence Matt. XII, L. He said:
Jesus meant that titanic power enters
into true moral earnestness but He did not
mean that a harsh, barbaric quality be-
longed to virile earnestness. The kingdom
of heaven is fundamentally positive, gen.
tie, magnetic. 1t appeals to the best in
US; to the upper manhood which is just
as real part of us as the lower manhood
although too often 1t is dormant pulpit
that INDUCES in satire as staple or in
suits the loneliness of our reason, or scat
tiers the sweet wholesome sentiments of our
nature, supposing all the while it is loyal
| to the Lord In proportion as it caluminates
| our human powers, will ALLEVIATE the lead
ing minds from the gospel. If you enter
a summer woodland lying, basking and
reveling in all the sumptuous softness of
noontide and let the quiet notes Of a flute
| or tender voice carry over the scenery you
VIII ind how animal life, from silver
breasted dove to aggressive, buzzing in
sect, Is drawn by the grateful music. Life
the loftiest and the lowliest feels the one
| divine alurement. On the other hand, if
| instead of flute the sharp report of a
rifle Is heard all nature manifests re-
Vulslon and bird and beast dart away ter
rlf1ed There are elements that repel every
| where and elements that discord and an
tagonlze everywhere. Some things appeal
| 10 the lower and passional temperament;
| others to the governing, moral and noble
| assortment To which category does the
gospel belong? Does it irritate and in
| furiate men? Or does it persuade and en-
franchise men? Is it brutal or beatifc?
We cannot trust too much to the essen
tial winningness of the gospel message, I.
if l be lifted up, will draw And to do this
| we must not force strain things and
thus fail the very aim we take. If you
make out human nature too vile and
| too wormy and void of every graceful or
generous quality in order to be stupidity
| faithful to your doctrine of total depravity,
| then you miss the mark and you raise a
| doubt as to whether so hideous a creature is
| worthy OF infinite love. For even infinite
love must be intelligent in its outflow to-
| ward objects or cease to be real love. If,
| on the other hand, the minister mounts
| the pulpit, kid gloves on hand and a vel
vety or diplomatic voice that would sooner
| lose soul than wound a we'll paying par
| ishioner's pride, and pours forth praise on
| human excellence and virtue, such coward
Ice becomes nauseous to the pews. Such
| violates every instinct of common sense and
outrages every demand of heroism To lift
| too high or to drag down too low is equally
| disastrous. Jesus pursued the policy neither
of defaming nor panegyrizing human nature.
but drawing 1T out SO that it would act as it
nave intrinsic power TO elevate. IT, for
example. man turns the knob IN my door
and then presses pr sses the door down it does
man comes and turns the knob and then
lifts the door up and it does not open. 1t
sticks at the top. The simplest trick is not
TO press up or down or even to press at all
but to let the door swing easily on it's own
hinges, and how naturally ii opensi No
force work is necessary. You can judge
human nature pretty much by the way il
opens door. Trust the door to turn on
Its hinges without severe pushing and press
ing that wrenches the hinges.
-HE METHOD OF CHRIST.
"There are negative and denunciatory
methods of vilifying human nature and
they fail to WOO and win. There are weak
voiced and apologize and fattering
rhetoricians in the pulpit and they soon
forfeit respect. Both types force things.
Both these lose sight of plainest facts
Both these dstort the complete message
from the Father to His wandering chill
dren. The true plan is the plan of Jesus.
who could believe in the power of God s
world and who could believe in the inherent
nobeness in men after all allowance is
made for their obliquity. To this we al
face the deeper facts. However be-
} smirched human nature is however many
knaves and backbiters and pretenders
! immense possibilities and profound hunger
for the things of God. II this is not true
! nothing is true, and if it is true it makes
trinsic attractiveness and warm welcome
and honest hope for all who open them
selves to Its offer. Nor does this involve the
idea of minimizing the awfulness of sin
or toning down the rigor of Gods holy
government.
And back of all this lies the simple truth
that no man is truly himself until his bet.
ter nature has been called forth to its. due
| part by the claims of Christ Christian
is the only normal sor, or man. Clip the
, | wings off the eagle, or remove the dome
! | from the capitol; bedim or efface the
| perspective of a painting, deform the
, statue by striking off limb, you do moi
mar them any more than you destroy tine
! glory of man by denying him a capacity
| for the higher life that finds its fullness
= | and surrender in Christ. The carnal man
is miserable mutlation. The pride so off.
| ten associated with the brilliant deyelop.
ment of our inferior nature in craftiness
{ | or selhshness or cunning meanness Is
| simply pride over the beast in us
D SAINTS OF TO-DAY
Not while the upper nature has respond.
| ed to the imperial summons OF the one
: maker of us all and risen to a career OF
! obedience and even joyous sacrifice can il
a be said that we have become anything like
e the happy and el-proportioned beings
9 God aimed to make grow to. and there.
r fore true religious life is the only natura
q life possible. Any doctrine that lowers the
j | standard or holiness or cheapens the
e | entrance into heaven is not only false Il
I God but criminal to humanity. Our Lin
4 | coins and Wilberforces and Shaftesbury.
are not looked on as strange or artificial
4 | beings but as our best human types Henc.
n the noble of biography, that is, OF
| biography that brings before us real men II
I their real strength who do not need an,
q trimmings of eulogy from the writer's.
a patriot is the greatest literary achieve
h | ment IL does more than any sermon o