The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1903-11-11
A SERMON FOR SUNDAY
A DISCOURSE ENTITLED IAN OLD
QUESTION FOR THE NEW ACE"
The Rev. c. f. McNa1ly Talks Instruc-
lively on a Subject of Vital Importance
TO Us AIl-Thc Highest Typo of Life is
That Spent For others.

TO Us Au-Thc Highest Typo Of Lie is
That Spent For others.
BROOKLYN. n. Yin the Sixth Avenue
Baptist Church Sunday morning. the pas.
tor, the Rev. Charles K. McNally preached
on "An Old Question for the New Age
His text was from John x:24: III Thou he
the Christ, tell us plainly" Mr.. McNally
said:
The men who asked this question were
dead in earnest. They asked it because
the answer was Of vital import to them.
That word Christ" was laden with a
wealth of meaning for these Jewish qnes-
of the Greek "Christos," which in its turn
inherits all the meaning that the Hebrew
embodied in his word Messiah" Around
this word for hundreds Of years all Jewish
life, political and religious. had centcred.
The Psalmists had made it the dominant
note in many of their sweetest songs. It's
multi-coiored shadings had formed the
warn and woof of prophetic visions. The
mother as she lnlled her little one to, s'eep
sang of Messsianic hore: The Little lad s
as he came to his fathers knee asking for
a tale had his imagination fired by the
story of what would he when Messiah
should come. More than The. name Of
Cromwell or Wesley to England. and
of Washington or Edwards to Amer
lea. was the name of Messiah to a Jew,
for it was at once the battle cry Of his po-
htical liberties and the keynote of his re-
Gqion.
The Jews as they thought Of the Messiah
may be divided into two, classes, those
whose conception was predominant!y reI;-
gious and spiritual. and those whose
thought was predominantly political: ]
say predominantlv because the two views
were commonly blended. The more spirit.
nal honcd for the deiiverarce Of the ma
tions from the bondage of sin. and the re-
ligious supremacy of the Jewish nation
through the ministry cf the Messiah. while
the less religions looked for the po!itica!
pre-eminence Of the Jews under the lead
ership of the Messianic King. However
divergent the views, in two things all were
Jewish pre-eminence. and he in his coming
would be the especially anointed Of God,
having the powers, the words and the
snirit nf God. he was to he the instrument
of God. the voice of Gods will to and for
the nation. Earlier in the history OF the
nation the conception was more sniritual.
hnt by the time of the coming Of Jesus OF
Nazareth their hope had lost it's higher
and more spiritual character.
One morning toward the close OF His
earthly ministry. when the chilling blasts
courts of the temple to sheltered spot.
Jesus, the now far famed teacher and
claimant OF Messianic hnnors. might have
been seen pacing up and down the paved
| Enclosure known as Solomon's Porch. 1t
was the feast of dedication and the faith.
ers of the nation were gathered in Jerusa-
lem. There was mrch agitation and con-
fict among them. The fame and claim nt
Jesus Of Nazareth was known to all.
! Many of these very men had followed in
the crowds to see and hear Him. The
more spiritual had felt a strange. stirring
of the soul in response to the cali Of this
strange teacher to a purer and more exalt.
ed life bnt surely thev reasoned this could
not he the Christ--He was so different
from what they had expected the Christ
| to be. The less religious were even more
puzzled. The life of Jesus from the Great.
ure comfort side was nothing 10 he en-
We'd. Thev could find nothing 70 explain
the aim of this Teacher with His suhrer.
sive teaching. OF one thing thev were
sure. He was dangerous man. for while
by implication and even openly He claimed
| to be the Christ, He in no wav correspond:
ed to their idea of what the Christ should
| he. Surely He was not the Messiah ot
| base snch a claim!
While Jesus paced thouchtfully up and
down within the porch He was quickly
| surrounded by an eager. pressing crowd
| some intense with yearning for assurance
and satisfaction of soul. others dark with
| the clouds of stricken conscience and the
righteousness Of disappointed hatred. Not
withstanding their varied feelings. all alike
were anxious to ply Him with questions:
Eagerly they pressed unon Him the vita!
question Glow long wilt Thou ho'd ns in
| 1toroII,, E1Jo,p 1o,o ,,,ilt nh M,
lift up our sou's?" excite ns. hold us he.
tween hope and fear? "If Thou really art
the Christ. then tell us plainly" Such is
the inevitable question which must he
asked nv every sonl when brought face to
| face with the claim Of Jesus to be the
| Christ Of God. Was Hn the aroirted oil
God? Was He "the Kings Son" who
should he called Wonderful. counselor
the mighty God. the everlasting Father
the nrince of peace" Was He indeed
the Christ. or was He an imposter or a
own enthnsiasms? These questions as old
| as Christianity are vital to our day and
! hour. IF He is not the Christ we NAV he
| done with Him and 20 our wav. If He is
in very truth "the anointed." "thp sent OF
God" we are hound to listen th His voice
as the voice of God, to learn His precepts
and obey.
To our question cart Thou the Christi
Jesrs rsakes answer; note His words:
II told you, hut .ye believe not" The
| Immediate appeal Of Tesns was to His YER
bal attestation OF His Messiahship. A.
ready He had told them that God was His
Father. that the Father had sent Him
| into the world in His nan4. to establish
| His kingdom among men, but they would
| not believe. Of what nse was IT. to tel!
| Shem that which they had already heard
and had refused to believe? Nor was it al.
| together strange that His verbal attesta.
ton of His Messiahship was not readily ac.
cepted. for His assertion to be one with
God was a most startling one. Men, give
credence slowly to the claims of others;
they must see reasons or they vii, not be,
| lieve. Should man come to our National
Goyernment claiming to be the Ambassa-
dor of England the first thing that would
| be required of hir, would be that he shonld
| furnish credentials Failing to furnish
| them he would be laughed at for, a foo:.
|. Jesus saw that He must found is"c'aim
| on something more convincing than His
verbal attestation. He recognized the ne.
| cessity for proof and furnishes that proof
in His words "the works that do ir NJ, !,
| Fathers name these bear witness of Me. ,.
| This anpeal Of Jesus to His works as proof
that He was the Christ requires that VIC
| for moment examine them.
Strenuous efforts have been made during
this. the new age. to read cut of the works
| of Jesus all that is supernatural and dl-
| vine. He is unnteiligible, we are tod. nn-
| less accounted for on human grounds alone.
Consider. then, that when viewed in the
light of human action. His works were
beautiful and powerful beyond compare,
and in themselves noirt to higher divine
life. The advanced thinkers OF our day
have. within comparatively few years,
reached the conclusion that the, highest
type of life is that snans which 6r 5ney y0bers fa a The
! highest personal life is realized only ass
that life, forgetting self, rises above : se5