Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1902-07-18
FATHERHOOD OF GOD
Relationship Which Exists Between
the Creator and the Creature.
Sermon by the "Hfghway and By
way'' Preacher in Which He Utters
Some Plain Truths on a Popular
But FaIIaciOus Doctrine.
Copyright, 1902, by A N. Kellogg News
paper Coz

paper Coz
Chicago, July Is, 1902.
Text:-For many as are led by the
Spirit of God, they the sons of God.
For we have not received the spirit of
bondage again to fear; but We have re-
cefved the Spirit of adoption, whereby
cry, Abba. Father.-Rom. S:14-15.
Universal Fatherhood of God.-As
the progenitor of the human race, God
is its Father. The relationship thus
existing between God, the Creator, and
man, the created, is one of origin rath-
er than that of active associa ton and
fellowship. That this is true is not
due to any change in purpose or desire
of God towards the people of the world,
for He is the same yesterday, to-day
and forever, but it is owing to the
prodigality of the human race, which,
beginning in the garden of Eden with
Adam, departed from the Fathers
house, and is no longer worthy to be
called the son of God. Since the will
of man was set up against the perfect
and righteous will of God, and every
man has sought his own way, he has
been in the far country feeding on the
husks of the perishable things of the
world, while the Father sits in His
house eternal in the Heavens await
ing the return of the prodigal, whom
He longs to receive back into the low
ing relationship of son.
The Fatherhood of God is universal
in the sense that eve are His off
spring." and that as Father He longs
and waits for the return of His way
ward and self-seeking children. The
Fatherhood of God is limited in the
sense that only those who repent and
return to the Fathers House by the
way which He has provided are priv
ileged to call Him Father and have a
right to a place again in the family
circle. Man may reason and speculate
all he pleases, and lull to sleep the con-
science by high and broad-sounding
sentiments and subtle sophistries, he
may drag down to human levels Gods
love and Gods Righteousness and make
himself believe that he is son of God
and entitled to place in the Fathers
House, but when he comes to the end
of himself he will find that he is still
in the far country. and that the father
of his thought and reason was a God
head "graven by art and mans DEVICE
Satan hoodwinked Adam into believing
that he could erect for himself a god,
knowing good and evil, and the father
of liars has been at it ever since. He
doesn't care how beautifully you talk
of the love and Fatherhood of God, or
how you denounce him (the deviD, if
you only do not come to yourself, re-
pent and return to the Fathers
House.
And if, while the world is talking of
the universal Fatherhood of God, it has
no atom of truth on which to base it's
claim, Gods Word comes, and with it's
message of light proves the universal
Fatherhood of God by the universal
plan of salvation which it offers. The
testimony of Gods Word does not seek
to rob the world of a Father, but gives
to the world a Father, if it will only
accept Him on Gods reasonable terms
"For this is a faithful saying and
worthy of all acceptation, that Christ
Jesus came into the world to save sin
ners.'' The fact that the world so siren
uously argues its sonship relation to
God and Gods Fatherhood relation to
the world proves how much it really
longs for and needs the true Fathers
love and care. And Gods Word, and
this feeble message which we seek to
deliver in the name of our Faith er
which art in Heaven" only longs to I'M
mask the worlds false notion of the
Fatherhood of God, which would Iea> y
it at last naked and undone in the pres
ence of the righteous Judge, and give
it loving and forgiving Heavenly
Father, who sees the repentant child
while she is yet a great way off, and
rushing out to meet him, writes with
the finger of His love dipped in the
blood of His only begotten Son, His
full and free forgiveness, and, hushing
his pleading to be taken back as a
servant, He reinstates him in his lost
position. and makes him son indeed.
The Mark of Sonship.-'For S many
as are led by the Spirit of God, they are
the sons of God" Here is the distin
gushing mark, the livery by which we
may identify those who have a right
to turn their faces upward and cry:
"Abba, Father And on the other
hand, the sons of men as distinguish ed
from the sons of God wear the livery
of this world and are ruled by the
Esprit of man which is in him. In
the second chapter of I Corinthians
Paul develops this thought fully and
shows that 1.-The natural man receiveth
not the things of the Spirit of God;
for they are foolishness unto him;
| neither can he know them, because
they are spiritually discerned." Fail
are to recognize this important truth
| is the fruitful source of error and false
doctrine. 1t disqualifies man a a judge
of Gods thoughts and Gods ways, and
encourages him to put his trust in
the ''enticing words of mans wisdom
rather than in the demonstration OF
the Spirit and of power" Except as
| the Spirit of God teaches us there
| cannot come one single CLEAN of lioht