Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1903-10-22
The MORAL CONQUEROR
4 BrilIiaot sermon By Rev. 7. K.
Williams.
We Should Spend Our Few Brief Years
Fighting Sin and Serving Man.

BROOKLYN, N. Y.-The Rev. 7. Rhond-
da Williams, pastor of the Greenheld Con-
gregational Church. Bradford, England,
morning morning. There was a large audience.
The Rev. DR.. Newell Dwight Hills intro
duced Mr.. Williams. Earnest attention
was given to his thoughtful sermon, Inc
subject was "Life's Yield to the Moral
Conoueror." and the text was from pas
sages in the Apocalypse. Mr.. Williams
said:
Each one OF the messages to the churches
of Asia closes with promise. They con-
tain threats and warnings and command
ments, but at the close stands the promise
like distant hill in. sunshine, seen
through the storm, to lure on ever the
worst-beaten to the better things oil COO
and man. The messages lay down the
moral task without compromise, but they
close with the assurance that
"The topping crags of duty scaled
Are close upon the shining tablelands,
To which our God Himself is moon ana
SUM-"
which every morally earnest man is ac-
ouainted with. He knows that its condl'
tons are STERN, that there is vi gor III IT.,
but he knows also that the vigor is Blended
with tenderness that all its struggle IS
permeated by promise. We might indeed
saw that moral earnestness and hopeful-
ness go togther. Stand loyalty under the
bower of duty, and YOU will hear the bird
of hope sing Unfathfulness to the moral
ideal breeds pessmism of the worst kind;
fidelity. while it does not encourage cheap
and lightsome optimism, does inscrlbe IN
the heart of the blacklist duty the shining
word of the coming time. God has so made
us that embodied in the bosom of loyalty
lies the assurance of triumph for the, good.
Now, it is this loyalty to the good, this
fidelity to the moral ideal, this persevering
attitude. which | take to be indicated N i,
the word Overcoming or "conquerlng
Every promise is made to HIM who over
cometh" or who ''conquers." Not. mark
YOU, to him who has overcome, or who has
conquered in any full or final sense These
promises are not OF gifts to he bestowed
at the end of the course, but of experiences
to be realized in going on, so long as you
60 on in the right way. Now. is 1t TACT
for it is no use preaching theories away
from the facts of life-that the promises
made to those Asian churches in the name
of Christ, sent to them by John as direct
from Christ, are to be regarded as promises
made to us by God? For myself can
not regard them so. except SO Tar as
they contain truths attested by the exper-
ientc of men. Indeed. the messages given
to the churches OF Asia are not entirely
from Christ as He was, not from Christ as
we understand Him to-day, but from
Christ as John understood Him. When
we read the promises of the moral life we
read not only the facts of our moral eXpe-
rencc. but also certain Interpretation
given BY more than one bias, such rs the
personal bias or the national bias. The tu-
ture we depict may be IN essence guaran,,
tced by the universal laws OF the moral
life. but the depletion may bear personal
or national colors. which must fade; per
sonal and national elements which must
be eliminated. John was a Christian, but
he was also jew. Like every man, ne
had a temperament, both the nationality
and the personality would affect his vision
of the future. Our Christ never takes abb
solute and full possession OF us. our very
best understanding Of Him has some mix
turc of ourselves IN II. winch = not m him.
TO him that oycrcomcth and kecpcth
Ny word will | give power over the ma.
tons, and he shall rule them with a rod OF
iron, as the vessels of a potter Shall be
broken to shivens, even as | received OF
Ny Father Here are words attributed
to Jesus which none OF lis would like to
think of Him az speaking. We could not
find in Jesus any. promise ct authority
over nations to rule them with rod OF
iron as the vessels OF a potter are broken
10 .hiver.. nor do we think of Him AS
claiming TO have received such from His
Father. That Is not our way oi thinking
of Christ to-day Then how did john
"o,,a 10 hear Christ say that? because
Jnbn had heen reared ~ ;hc atmosphere
and FED unon the sentiments of Psalm ii.
H. lavish te,rhrrs LaU taught him TO re.
a,rd ps,In i ~ Ne..ianir And what was
, t' Mess i 70 dny Thr Lord said to Him,
"tI, ~ Ne and I viii Give thee the ma.
tions for thinc inheritance and the utter.
mnst narts nf ihr earth for thy posscs.
SION Thou shall brrnk them with A rod
Of iron. thou Shalt dash them to pieces
iI.o n notter's vnssol - Some lows some.
limo, believed that that was one of the
th;ng, tbe Nnssioh would do When A
low r,ma to hehnye that Jesus was the
Mall ,ou ,ronld ,L;ni, that Lr would
~ .' I., ,Lro,, IF ,b,t al mmi;,n Jcsms
w. ..rn,,o va No al 20 KAT lobn,
. noJ oro ioary ,ion ere II ,m meek ~
In,rt ,n,,l,. ;, "Rle,,eJ ,rc the ,nerI. "
"DthSr cl,ooL ntc Thc "enor,l
'I,.. ava ,oaIS;n, ~ Jos,,, ,r,s no
a." H. - = nnnoor,t;or IS
~ " 49,, ,,'' b., Loj,ayod tbnt
- i,'' ~ W,,';oL "a.i,L r,r ,y;tb
Lts"s ""2 '', Ic,i 81 IA 81 rIi"nal cnn'
n,,. " '""I "ttnY',.oh :. ~ I,.,,e MAJ
;rps,'t I't' a, , ~ w.. ln'',s
- Mt", 'o,,, IN. ups ,', -, ,;,; ,6,,
ri'"nans, n,, "'' "m' NJ; ,.,",.
mms ip!.eAeH,,ns "S'mH, 't rh;f
~, WY" ~" ~ r,,,,.
t,"oI wen X, ',MI ,,,I gum w. n ~ r.e
70 ''N"EE' N"'m'lR 'ou'. w ""'r "m''N,
..'"N ~ -I"I -; 81 ~ r,'ti' i, y,
WV H>.''' H. Sa''i' ~, ~ hal' ~
o>'i a. ~" Go'H, "hi." III, n"",i
| " ' -