The Caucasian. (Shreveport, La.) 1900-192?, 1903-02-12


to him.'' It is not the pulpit that is
dead; it is the pew which refuses to
speak and therefore has lost it's power
to listen.
Wesley and the Dumb Pew.
John Wesley. one of the greatest men
who ever lived. no matter how you take
him. realized, and profoundly realized.
that dumb pew invariably meant an
ineffective pulpit and dead church.
What did he do? John Wesley. by Oil
vine inspiration. made his pulpit one
o. tie mightieSt thrones of the ages
when he kindled the pew into artlcu-
lat" life John Wesley also harnessed
to the pulpit the power of Christian
song. He started his brother Charles
writing hymns, He gave those hymns
to the people, the common people, and,
like David. he cried: praise We the
Lord; praise We the Lord from the
heavens! Both young men and maid
ems. old men and children. let them
praise the name of the Lord! Then
John Wesley took the old Bible, the BIZ
BE of Martin Luther He took that
Bible out of the chanceI and the clOis-
ter. He gave it to the people, the com
mon people. He said to them as Paul
said unto young Timothy: "Preach the
word Be instant in season. out OF sea-
son Reprove, rebuke, eNhort.' Then
john Wesley placed his hands upon the
c0mu0nest of men in ordination. He
took the cobbler from off his stool, the
miner from the dark caverns of the
earth, the farmer from the field and
the clerk from the store. He said unto
these men who had been studying the
word Of God ''Brethren, you do not
need a theological training, Preach
Jesus Christ: preach; everywhere
preach, preach, preach"'
The older denominations of England
at that time sneered at the Wesleyans.
In derision they called them "Metho-
distS" because they did everything I'M
meth odically- What was the result?
Was Wesleys foolish plan? Oh, no
When Charles Wesley started the peo-
pie singing instead of RELOCATING that
duty to trained choir, as many of our
! churches do today; when John Wesley
started his people praying and pleading
in the barns, in the homes, on the street
corners, Charles and John Wesley. by
the power of the pew, reused all Eng
| land for Christ. And today the great
est danger of the Methodist church is
| that she is developing too much an in
| tellectuaI pulpit instead of pleading,
| praying, testifying pew. John Wesley
believed in that pew; John Wesley, by
| the grace of God, compelled that pew
| to speak Oh, thou deaf and dumb
| spirit of the church pew. in the name
| of Christ command thee to come out
| and be gone into everlasting darkness!
! The caverns of the black inferno alone
| are suited to thy whitening and blast
| ing and accursed silence. Let the sill
| yer tongue of Christian testimony here
after speak from the pew. This plea,
oh, Christian women, is spoken to you
as we'll as to your brother.
Would that the tongue Of the dumb
i spirit of Christian testimony might be
Embossed and begin to speak for Christ
! In the homes! | am not now abiding
to the Christian testimony which ought
to be heard among our children by our
own Preside | am referring to the
word of gospel invitation, which should
/ be addressed to the sinful and goddess
/ homes in the midst Of every Christian
! community
The Present Condition.
| A noted southern educator some time
] ago bfuntly said, 1T is often far easier
for a man to sign thousand dollar
/ 1heck for foreign missions than it is
for him to speak Christian word Of
encouragement to the bootblack boy
cleaning his shoes on the street cor
ner" That is very wise saying. But
carry the principle still further. II
is often far easier for a Christian lady
to get up church fair i'll the interests
of foreign missions or to read a paper
/ before that society upon the Ffiipinos
| or the Chinese or Siamese than it is TIC
go to the family which lives in the fiat
i above her and ask them If they love
the Lord Jesus Christ. Ought such a
/ condition ever to exist? 1t is about
time for some of us to learn to sing
with the right spirit Bishop Heber's
i grand old gospel hymn:
i If you cannot cross the ocean
And the heather lands explore.
i You can find the heather nearer.
i You can help them at your door.
My brother living in Chicago. do yot
/ not know that there are within a radius
of three blocks of your house scores
and scores of families who never heal
the name of Jesus spoken in theil
! homes except in blasphemy? Do you
not know that within a radius of sis
blocks of this church. every Sunday
night while am preaching. scores ant
! scores of young men and women pas:
in and out of the Fatal doors of the sa
looms, and places of evil resort? Some
of us are foolish enough to think tina
the haunts Of Satan are open only 81,
days of the week. that on the seventh
day Satan rests and shuts up shop ans
says 10 his hifeIings, My agents an{
servants. let us allow God to open biz