The Savannah morning news., 1902-06-16
COMMENCEMENT SERMON.
Delivered mt the University by Rev.
VIM. j. AOung.

at II O'Clock the annual commence
ment service was delivered at the
University Chapel by Rev. William ].
Young, of Lynchburg. Va. The music
arranged for the occasion was excel
lent, and the sermon one of great
power.
DR.. Young spoke as follows:
Text: I have yet many things to say
unto you. but ye cannot hear them
now Howbeit, when he, the spirit of
truth, is come, he Will guide you into
all truth" John 1912, 10.
All truth has come to men, as they
have been able to take it in. God
did not pour it into mans mind all
at once in the beginning, now, yet, aye,
any subsequent time. Such thing would
be impossible. for the truth must in
every case come to us, as we are able
TO understand and use it. The Bible
itself is a record of a process by which
the truth by law, and symbol, and
prophecy, and through Jesus Christ,
was given to the race, in many ways
and in many parts" 1t follows, of
necessity, that Jesus could not give all
his wonderful message 10 the men of
his day--that message which was to
affect the worlds life and thought to
the end of time. Many things he could
not tell them, because they were not
ready for them These things were to
be revealed by the Holy Spirit.
We actually ask ourselves what 9TH
er things, in the way of religious or
Christian truth, have come to the world
since Christ left it,
In the early church we have the epis-
ties of Paul and others containing an
unfolding of the words and works of
Jesus. Alongside of these we would
place the gospels, which, apart. from
the record of the Saviors life and
teaching, contain the peculiar views of
the writers in regard to the Master
exhibiting themselves in the ways in
which the facts are grouped and made
use of. In the later church we have
all the creeds and confessions of faith
of various branches of Gods people.
written under circumstances which
lead US inevitably to the conclusion
that the spirit rested al such times, in
an especial manner, upon his church.
Nor must we forget to mention here
the hymns of the church, coming to US
from almost every century of her eX-
istence-hymns which bear on every
line marks of divine inspiration.
In the history of nations, and in the
unfolding of society, God has been
writing large his truth, and revealing
which is as leaven hidden in meal, as
the seed decisions of national legisla-
lures are after all but the divine al
phabet with which he tells us truths,
plainly legible to him who is not to
blind to read. Just as the world be-
fore the coming of Jesus was for CEN
turtles making ready for his coming,
so since he came has the world been
unfolding and applying the gospel he
brought.
In the progress of scientific investi-
cation ne Wife has constantly broken
forth upon the world. That nature of
which Paul says that it was created
in and for Jesus, must be in every way
a Christian thing, and pick and shovel
and retort must have given to men the
hidden truth, just as truly as the an
Gent record read by the, antiquarian
make plain the meaning of the difficult
passages of the Old Testament. or con-
firmed their credibility. Men like
Drummond have read these hieroglyph-
les on rock and flower and star, and
shown US that they speak new things
about God and about Jesus of Naza-
reth-
So also have the inspired works Of the
artist, and the inspired touch of the
musician been aiding us to see new
beauties in Jesus and in every event
of his life. The other day I turned the
pages of a book containing nothing
but small copies of the leading pic
lures based upon Gospel story, and it
seemed TO me that l had enjoyed a
walk with the Man of Galilee. and had
received fresh from his lips a marvel
Gus sermon.
We are not to forget that these many
things which have come to us since
Jesus left the world are but the I'M
folding of truth which he spoke while
here on earth, or revealed in his life
and person. 1t must all be tested by
that final test given in this life and in
these words. This is true even of the
epistles of Paul. The Gospels are 10
be the Interpreters of the dark say
ings of the great apostle. these dark
sayings are not to be the interpreters
of the Gospel. Much more is this true
of the creeds and dogmas of the
church, the revelations of history and
Of science, the lessons of art and OF
music. Strictly speaking, nothing new
has come; the Spirit has simply taken
the things of Christ and shown them
unto US. The bringing to the front OF
the doctrine of Gods Fatherhood and
the making of all other teaching sec
ondary to this is but the result of the
reading as on palimpsest. underneath
the accumulated dogma of the Chris
tian ages, the precious words of Jesus
himself. The doctrine of evolution
wherein it is true is but another way
of putting that truth which Jesus 81
often emphasized, that the kingdom o.
nature and the kingdom of grace alike
are a growth. The higher criticism
In so far as 1t is true, is in almost start
ling harmony with the Masters de
nunciation of the ritualistic or higl
church party of his day, and his sym
pathy with those people who were thu
descendants of the spirit of TIL
prophet, who despised the outward
forms, if there was nothing more thai
these. The new science of sociology il
but an effort to see in society the work
ing of that law of love, which, accord
ing to Christian teaching, is the sum
ming up of all the words of both thu
tables of the law given by Moses.
These many things have a peculiar
value and a special interest for us
They are the new, fresh things, the
things of force to-day-the gospel OF
to-day They are the gospel applied
to our present needs. They are the
answer to our present doubts ant
fears, If we fail to understand tn,
message thus coming to us to-day w,
fail, indeed. Does Jesus not often sa!
to men to-day. as he said to the Phar
isees of His own day, "Ye hypocrites
We can discern the face of the sky. Blu
can We not discern the signs of TIL
times" The church and the worlt
have again and again in the pas
failed to read the new message whel
it came. Was it not so in the day
of Luther, Wesley, the Earl of Shafts
bury, Frederick Robertson, Charlie
Kingsley? Has the world given du
heed to some things God has spokei