Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1903-08-06
CHRISTIAN SERVICE"
Sunday Sermon By the Rev. DR..
George D. Adams.
Tells Of tn. Spiritual Uplifting Which Adde's
With Those WHO Walk Constantly
With Cod--Christian Suffering.


/ New York CITY.-When Rev. DIR. Geo. ID.
Adams, the new pastor of the First baF'
list Church, Lee avenue and keap street,
preached his first sermon as pastor OF ths
church, he selected for his text, Hebrews
xii: and 9: Therefore, let us also, seeing
we are comprised about with so great
cloud of witnesses, lay aside every weigh5
and the sin which is admired by many ana
let us run with patience the race tnaV -
set before us, looking unto Jesus, the su-
thor and perfecter Of our faith; who, for
the ioy that was before Him, endured the
cross. despised the shame and hath sat
down at the right hand of the throne OF
God" On. w, and said: ., .u
A very casual observer could easily tell
that many Christians have lost the Joy o.
the Christian service which they once mao
1t takes no scholar, nor, indeed, critic; OF
many, who one day rejoiced with un-
speakable joy" in the service, OF Jesus
Christ. are to-day Indifferent. Indeed, we
ourselves find some times, when to come to
the house of God is burden, and we drag
n weary body or reluctant soul into the
presence of the Almighty and try to, wor-
shin Him in the beauty of holiness. we
find again and again, if we should follow
the inclination of our hearts and minds
are new experiences comparatively. once
we could give up any pleasure for an hour
with God, and when to have Leen IN HIS
presence and feel that He was hearing us;
70 enjoy the touch of kindred spirits; to
have enjoyed the song and the prayer and
the service, out Of Gods heart, would have
been better to us than riches and more
precious than fine gold. But that IS gone.
We find ourselves sometimes coming DC.
4h,,lr ought. dOinO this or
that service because it is customary; enter
ing into this form or that because 1t is
habit to do so, and in the saner l!oments
of our conscience we come sometimes 70
sav: "Why is this SOP" Has God changed?
Has the power of the old gospel to ale.
viate human life of it's brudens and suffer
ings gone? Is there less of power and ell.
cacy in the saving grace, OF Jesus Christ
now than once? After all, is Gods service
really and truly at bottom nothing but a
drudgery? Or, has something taken place
with us? Have we left behind something
we once had and have we passed beyond
that moment OF exutant spirit when IN the
presence of Jesus our heart bounded with
the low of a new faith and the experience
OF salvation? Well, we are perfectly. sure
God has not changed. We are perfectly
sure Jesus is "the same, yesterday. today
and forever We, have not doubt tha5
when we come to think of it after. all Is
not the matter of being saved subject or
Just as much JOY in the twentieth century
as in the first century? Has there been
any change in the attitude of the gospel!
We are bound to confess there has been
none, and if that is true, then the trouble
is with us. Somewhere we have lost some
thing, and / am looking into faces tins
morning that know better than DO, IN
~ = I,ot hat OF
the priceless treasure of Christian hope
Now, to get that back. When / was, a
bov wept when first | saw the wrinkle,
coming on my mothers face. wanted
her to remain always young, and there are
thousands of Christian hearts, some repre-
scented here, doubtless, that have wept at
the loss Of their Christian experence-lt Is
dead, Joy is gone. Oh, what would we give
to get it back l am persuaded that we
would give great deal to get 1t back, put
I am more thoroughly persuaded that the
wav to get it back is to get into the attl-
tude of life that makes it constant. The
best thing is not to get back the Christian
experience of years ago. but to get into the
attitude of life that makes that experience
perennial.
:. am going, therefore, to discuss the
sources Of Joy. The thing that most lies
behind that experience and the first thing
that confronts the Christian In the mat,
ter is duty. We do not like that word
duty. We associate with the, word duty;
sacrifice, and are surprised when we find
When / say to you, = want Yon. to 40
YOUR duty YOU say, Don't talk to me
about duty: don't like that word, That
is largely because the word has com to you
to mean matter of bondage, when in re.
atty it ought to mean a matter of freedom
Why it was duty ,ehind the text: Let u.s.
therefore, seeing we are comprised about
with SO great cloud of witnesses lay aside
every weight and the sin which is admired
by many Tor 50 delight in-@;omc special sin
OF the age, | suppose) and let us run with
patience the race that is set before us.
looking unto Jesus, the author and perfect
err OF our faith, who, for the JOY that was
set before Him, endured the cross, de-
epised the shame, and hath sat down at the
right hand of the throne of God" That
is duty. In the light with which Jesus de.
spised the cross we ought not to stop and
reason about duty. want you to notice
There is kind of doctrine abroad to-day
which is called the ethical religious idea. /
do not mean that at all. Duty is ethical
not legal Duty resides in the recesses OF
mans character, not in the external leg.
isiation concerning him. | am a moral
being, therefore I ought. A dog or a
horse can never be called upon because OF
onghtness-they are not moral beings. They
are within the restrictions of master and
that Is legal. There is something in man
that is an oughtness Il ought, therefore
I must" Because | am a moral being
ought. therefore duty is ethical Many
man fuliills the law and breaks every pos.
sible moral duty. The saloonkeeper is
keeping the letter of the law but he is
doing an immoral thing. 1t is not matter
OF legality or politics, but OF moral ought.
ness Until that moral oughtncss is obeyed
I am in bondage, but when / obey thu
moral oughtness | am free. l passeA
through a great sewing machine works in
Belvidere, H., and saw the machine called
the automatic screw The ordinary ma
chine knows more than lot of men. Men
cant do a thing as you tell them to. You
set o man on q job OF work and he will
change the way Of doing it just as sure as
he live5-that is, if he is an American. If
he is a Chinaman or a Russian he won't.
That is why corporations hire that kind OF
than he is told. But you tell an American
to do q thing precisely in a certain way;
he won't do it; you cant hire him to do it.
But machine will. You say that is re.
stricted. No, it is not. 1t will take the.
pig iron and turn it out perfect screws as
small as a piece in your watch, and do it
all day long. That is liberty. The iron
was restricted in the pig iron. II is at lib,
erty, in the screw, shape, because it is doing
its intended work, and man is at liberty
only when he is doing his God-intended
service. Morally speaking, duty is ethical,l
then. I do my duty before God, not be-
cause must, but because | ought. I am
less a man and less free when I refuse to
do a thing / was made to. do. The chief
end OF man, says the catechism, is to wor-
ship God and enjoy Him. Exactly. So
that duty is part Of joy in service.
Selfshness is incompatible with service.
The servant is not the servant when think
ing more of the wage than the business.
You cannot serve and be selfish. The sin
of this age is selfshness, my friends.
trc t Wireless e teegraphy and "f automo,
biles, but let me tell you, the sin of the
age is pure, unadulterated selhshness, Ten