Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1902-06-14
THE LIFE ETERNAL.
BY Rev. Gardner ). EIdridge. ID. d.

AhE LIZ ETERNAL.
BY Rev. Gardner ). EIdridRe. ID. d.
And this is life eternal that they might
know thee, the only true God. and Jesus
Christ whom thou hast sent,-Jonn
xvii, 3.
What our life is to be will depend large
ly upon our conception of God We grow
up in the likeness of our God. II our
God is arbitrary we will be arbitrary.
There are men who worship not Il ration
al God but an arbitrary God, aud their
life is just As arbitrary rs their God. Ii
our God is austcre our life will be aus
tere. II our God is ACCOMPLISHMENTS
outlined with our theological pencil-then
our life will be narrow and intoleran.,
ready to autagonize every soul that can
not live and move and have its being in
our own little circle. a few minutes
conversation with Il man will very often
! hetray the character of his God. 1t is
! important for a true life that We know
the true God. This is life eternal, that
! they might know thee the only true
God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast
sent"
! To know God | must stand face to face
| with him. l must hear him speak. | must
!
| through all the joys and sorrows, through
all the great transactions of life. In
/ truth. God cannot be defined 10 YOU. but
he has defined himself. Where? In Je-
sus Christ. not Carlyle. not Plato. not
| Abraham, but Jesus Christ, and when
you want to teach God to your little boy,
do not try to teach him by way of far
fetched definitions. but take him by the
hand and lead him TO Jesus Christ. and
whisper God to him. See him as he
stands there in quiet modest majesty,
and says. Peace, be still" to the angry
waves. That Is God. the true God
There are people who only see God in
the waves, but there he is above the
waves. See him as he meets the widow
Of Main, with his great-heartcd sympa-
thy. as she journeys toward the grave,
saying, Weep not" That is the true
God. When l hear a voice coming to ne
ou of this book like the sound of many
waters" speaking now in laundering ac-
cents Of wrath till sin blanches with fear,
and now in those other world tones borne
in from distant shores that seem to lift
and bear my life beyond its mcancr
sphere, or in the low rhythmic measure
that bushes the outburst of grief, then
my heart says, This is the true God;
let my soul rest there"
TO know the true God is life eternal
Where shall we lind him, in the heavens?
We take our astronomical staff in hand
and journey up to the skies. We knock
at the celestial door and ask. is God
here" and we come back 10 say, There
is no God there" With geological ham
mer in hand we walk into the fields and
in ut the granite doors, and we come
back to say, He is not here" But did
you expect to find God there? Did you
find any rocks in the heavens? Did you
find any planets in the fields? Look into
the fields and look into the book for God.
| Yes but God is not equally revealed cy~
erywbcre. There may be no God in lap
| loui's heaven. but there is a God in New
| tons heaven; there is a God in David :
heaven; there is n God in your heaven.
How shall we search for God? With
critics eye. Then do you know what
you will gct+ Just what you are looking
for. You will get bundle Of Moses
mistakes You win get Jonah's whale
and Joshna's sun. There is nothing
more pitabIc in this world than the lit
| tie critic who is never able to burst the
veins Of mere criticism, going up in the
| broad mountains Of God and putting his
| finger down here and there. saying. "IIcre
| is mistake and there is a mistake
| Coming down into the valley Of suffering
| humanity not with the balm Of sympa-
thy. but with the vinegar of criticism,
| lcafng over the pages of this book and
finding fault with this period and that
I How shall we know God? Just as we
know anything else, by faith and demon
stration. not the demonstration Of the
schoolmaster, not the demonstration Of
| the thc0logian but the demonstration of
| the spirit. But says some one, II have
| trouble about believing. ! cannot be
! lievc" Then You are an anomaly To
demonstrate that seed has life it must
| be planted in the earth. and then it VIII
| blossom into a thing Of beauty. | come
| to you with Jesus Christ ] say the true
| God j. thore Yon say we will test MIN,
we will prove him. We must have a dem
! onstration Bring out the philosophers,
/ bring out the critics. bring out the thro.
I logiaus You shall know him 10y demon.
strati0n, but not by demonstration Of
men, but by the demonstration Of the
| spirit plant in thy life. Set him in thy
heart. and there he will grow and bios.
som forth in all the glory Of godliness.
/ This is the rock, this is the foundation.
Gods philosophy Of life is very simple
lie made the body out Of dust lie
breatbcd the soul in from himself. 10
know the dust * science. 70 know God
is religion. TO know the dust is life tenn
poral. TO know God is life eternal
confess / do not know how Christ is both
human and divine; l do not know how the
two natures blend in one; de- not know
how the two wills are welded together.
I cannot fathom the infinite. I cannot rise
~ it's height What better would my life
be II ! could: But / know Jesus Cbrisl.
for when his Righteousness had settled
upou my soul his sunlight awakened me
to a now day. new life.
AL THAT is human must retrogradc If