Custer County Republican. (Broken Bow, Neb.) 1882-1921, 1903-07-09
The wRATH OF GOD,


BY Rev. J. n. Duryee
| He that believeth on the Son hath
pverla sting life. but he that obeyeth
, not the Son shall not see life; but the
wrath of God abideth on him.--John
| ILL.,. SO.
These are precious and, at the same
time. awful words. They come with
! the sanction of divine authority and
echo the voices of the prophets. They
we're spoken by John, the herald of
Jesus, the Messiah, who confirmed
chem by his teaching; and their truth
Is proven by human experience.
Note the term. Life" means the
perfect possession Of every power of
human nature. This includes the will
to use each power. To have a perfect
body would be glorious, but none pos
lesses it. When Socrates saw one that
iecmed complete he cried, "Jove, how
| beautifulv' We have his enthusiasm
| More splendid is the life of the spirit
IN man, and it Is to this these words
refer. Each Of US knows some one
who possesses in rare degree this life;
such interpret to us the divine; we in
stinctively feel they are Of God. ION
God and Godlike men we build our
trust" But even these have their
faults; only one has ever lived on earth
perfect in all things. Imperfection, un-
less rlghted, tends to death. We can
not stand still; we fight against the
downward tendency, seeking help from
such as we think can help us grow bet
ter. SO we tie ourselves to the physi-
clan, the teacher, the friend. Is it not
true that the best wish of your best
moments is that you may become bet
ter? And we have all found that, be-
yond certain point there Is no help
in man. Once there came unto our
world perfect man, "the Son of God,
With power" He gave himself to the
work of redeeming men from death TO
ife, and, through his spirit, he is a
constant savior. "He that believeth in
the Son hath everla sting life"
"Believeth." 1t means more than
assent to the statement of the gospel.
Faith is willing self-surrender to God.
Only thus can his vitality impart itself
to us. This is possible for every one.
They are self-deceived who think other
wise. All about us are those as ignor-
ant, weak, and hard pressed as you
are who, because they open heart and
mind to him, are growing better. Are
not they who refuse to do this fools
ard blind?
The condition for every one is obedi-
ence. Itfs so in all relationships. To
effect a cure the physician must be
Obeyed, the teacher must be followed,
the friend honored, and if the Redeem
er is to save from death to life our
part is to honor, follow and obey.
And now, note the alternative: HE
that obeyeth not the Son shall not see
hfe; but the wrath of God abideth on
him." Perhaps you persuade yourself
that this is visionary statement and
are Indifferent to it. Remember there
is relationship between you and God
He is your Heavenly father" God
cannot be Indifferent to you. You are
and always will be his child. 1t is the
worst blunder one can make to think
that God is careless about him.
Do the words, 1.-The wrath of God,
seem cruel words? Nevertheless, our
human relationships explain them. We
are more than inhabitants; we are citi
zens Of New York, having certain in
herent rights and obligations. Its laws
are the measure of these. If l choose
to go contrary to these rules of con
duct and commit crime the wrath OF
the city, the penalty of infringement
of law, is incurred. The convicted
= criminal is still part of New York
The same conditions hold in the family
. life. Does 1t seem strange that the
divine government is illustrated by
these analogies? Remember the laws
of God are not arbitrary; they are es
sential to life. Still the problem faces
us, how can the God of love ever bC
wrathful toward his child? Well, un
doubtedly the Bible proclaims this, anC
so does nature She works by law, anC
TO the ohedient is beneficial. Electric
y ity carries your message and move
your cars, but disobey her and sh,
kills you. This is the meaning of ap
piod science. And in the moral worlC
. the same principle holds 1t is thus
' in friendship; refuse to love and homo
,, your friend and how her life rebuke
you. by and by you hate the goodness
t which you will not initiate Judas wa
5 cursed by the same friendship that en-
y nobled John. a great teacher said
u Men are ruined by their best and dear
est friends, not by their indulgen
fondness, but by the noble eXampl
v that is never followed and the nobl
invitation that is never answered" Tx
q perience has taught some of us tina
this is true.
+ l desire above all else to max
s known Gods love. 1t is a reality, /
Is the one power that can meet ever
need of man, and can lift up stained
broken lives into strength, and beauty
n ana perfecness. l have tried TO d
y this to-day. Only you must face tn
facts of life and know the truth. Co
- doez care for you. He has given 20
Is power. scope, above all his spirit, tina
,.,,, NAV hnno,nn papfa,t IJoptif