The Bolivar bulletin. (Bolivar, Tenn.) 1888-1946, 1902-05-30

L. Haul I0aue InlS DOlU dSSG1
of the compelling theme of his minis
try among them, because he perfectly
understood them and was determined
to bring their acts and habits and as
pirations beneath the unifying power
of a great principle, which was the
moral and spiritual dynamic of the uni
verse, the solution of all mystery, and
the clarifying of all aim. People who
turn away from systen1atized religion
to-day are the intellectual children OF
these proud Corinthians, inherltlng
their weakness as well as their
strength. Men and women are found
everywhere who possess capacity for
the right and its doing, and indigna-
tion against any form of wrong. In
their various walks of life they follow
after an ideal; they know the nobility
of self-repression and of labor for the
social estate: they are kindly, honest
and gracious. but they tell us that the
evangelical faith has poverty-stricken
aspects and neglects some things
which are all important to them, be-
cause apart from them they could not
live their lives"
DR.. Cadman claims that there are
several predominating features in this
announcement of ST. Paul which will
help us to understand each other bet
ter. For most of the differences which
vex our progress are due to the dim
ness of our earthly vision, and st. Paul
urges upon us his voluntary dedication
of all knowledge beneath the superior
knowledge of the power of the Cross,
because
First. he says, nothing is discarded
which is legitimate, minor themes are
not lost but they are absorbed IN the
major one. A second point he makes
is that 'Sthe power of the cross is the
power of a fact" The explanation of
that fact we may only attempt, but
the fact itself shines steadily on, un-
hindered by warning statements.
"But, further, the power of the cross
is happily expressed in the text, in the
combination of the person of Jesus
with the principle of sacrifice.
And lastly, the power of the cross,
as we survey the future, is multiply
ing power. There are two classes or
religious forces, those which absorb
and those which are absorbed by them,
and the cross is the supreme absorb
ent, whose vitality, always recurring,
can never be impaired. Rest assured,
you cannot eXaggerate this statement
and there is no need to qualify it. 1t
is the legitimate generalization OF
Christian manhood, Christian thought
and Christian effort. While dialectics
change and literary fashions decay,
the pledge of the permanence of the
cross is in the person who died there
on and in the need of man for the bene-
fits of that passion and death.
Let us dismiss our fears and weep
not for the Cross Bearer, but for our
selves and for our unfaithfulness and
our lukewarmness. For did all
tongues fail and all prophecies cease,
| the holy hill of GOlgotha would send
out afresh new light and truth. There
| shall we keep our tryst with men and
| with the Father of men, and if we
fail. God will raise up ministers and
peoples which appear dumb as the
| stones of the streets, and they that
are far off He viii bring nigh, until
the work has been completed, which
is pledged by the very manner of it's
| beginning to completion. Then shall
the High Priest of our profession prof
fer unto God the Father Himself the
| hlu0QOlu lIuS ICNl anu
| delivered it up. God shall be all and in
all"
Gist of Many Sermons.
Consider the standards and tests OF
! manhood. Many men misjudge them
selves, because they use false tests.
! The warning is, let no man think of
himself more highly than he ought
| to think. This does not mean that
men are to depreciate themselves.
| Humility is one thing; self-deprecia-
| ton is another. Power begins with
self-reliance; conscience is one of
| Gods under agents, and an honest,
| Just pride is another. In measuring
| our manhood we must balance the evil
over against the good. We are what
we are on the average; if we are Gods
children we shall be what we are at
our best, only more.-Rev. DR.. Hills
! If there were men who had never
been awake during the day and had
| never once seen the sun felt its
| warmth, and if these men had come to
doubt even the existence of the sun,
| their doubt and every trace of their
agnosticism would be instantly re-
moved were they to come out but once
| under the sky in which the sun was
shining. In like manner all doubt and
agnositicism with reference to God
is instantly removed by coming into
Gods light.-Rev. W. S. Fulton.
4 brilliant agnostic has said: "We
are known by the things at which we
| laugh And we all laugh at divorce.
The time has come when the press and
! the pulpit must join with all of our
ablest sociologists in pointing out
with ex-President Woolsey: 'sWheth-
| er we are to be thoroughly Christ stian
nation, or to decay and lose our pres
ent political forms depends on our
ability to keep family life pure and
| simple Rev. Frederick Z. Hopkins,
D. D.
No man can win worthy prize with
out a tremendous effort. The prize is
the reward of victory. Moral likeness
| to Christ ought to be the aim of all
| Christian efforts. To dream of the
glory and felicity of heaven is our
privilege--Rev. G. B. Vosburgh.
Every truth at the foundation of
| Christian faith is reasonable. Not all
can be discovered by reason, but when
once discovered they are compatible.
Rev. S. C. Leavell.
Sometimes, to have been born poor
and to have to struggle with diff
culties, makes you the better man.
Rev. DR.. Hyde.
If we would know Christ better we
must make Him better known to the
world without.-Rev. DR.. Shaw.