The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1903-10-19
Christianity as Taught by Christ
Third the Series Of Sermons Delivered by Or. H. S.
Bradley and Published by The Constitution. The
Fourth will be Prnted Next Monday.

! stretched their imaglnations beyond the
warrant of facts and have made the I'M
preston upon those who listened to thein
! that the only way for men to become
religious was to pass through such
weird and fantastic experiences as they
| describe.
The aspect of the temptation, Draw
attention to self rather than do good.
comes with especial force to those who
undertake religious work How seduc-
tive the tempter Is when he approaches
the preacher and whispers in his ear,
Make reputation for yourself as an
eloquent preacher Men like to nave
their ears tickled by fine rhetorical
! flights Strive for the plaudits of the
multitude" That preacher who thinks
more Of how his sermon Will sound imam
of the good he will do in instructing, or
! rebuking or encouraging his hearers mas
yielded to the tempter at this point Goo
! calls the minister to teach, to preach 20
| save, and whenever he stoops to make
reputation for eloquence he yields TO the
| tempter and prostitutes his once
! Jesus was tempted to feel that because
| He had committed Himself to Goa he
/ could show His contempt for physical
! and moral laws. Does not the same
/ temptation come TO us?
!
/ years ago, a considerable body Of Chris
! fans who were said to believe that God
| did not require that men should study and
mediate in order to know His laws ana
/ His purpose. 1t was said that their MIN
listers taught that all that was necessary
| for them having once received the cail'
was that they should stand up to preach
and God would fill their mouths COD
did fill their mouths, but He filled them
with wind, and the result of this 1anatl-
csm has been what we might have Elk
| pccted, namely, that that branch Oh the
church IS about dead NO man can kho"
| facts and truth without study. and Goa
| does not set any premium on Ignorance
! in furthering His cause The most con-
| spicuous Illustrations we have OF men
| whom God used most successfully are TO
be found in Moses, the great lawglver
| of Old Testament times and PAM, the
| apostle to the Gentiles, In New Iesta-
ment times. Moses, reared IN Pharoahs
| house, having access during his youth 70
| theroyal libraries and later going away 70
the Egyptian university and familiarizing
| himself with all the scientific and inter-
airy knowledge of the most progressive
nation in the world, was used by God
; in conspicuous service. Saul Of Tarsus'
drilled in the schools of his native town
and Instructed by the greatest master IN
! Jerusalem, rendered the largest service
to the Christian church that has ever
been rendered by any single individual.
! IT IS presumption, and not faith, when !
! satisfy myself to remain ignorant on any
| useful subject when have the chance to
! know
PRESUME to risk danger because you
| are In harmony with God" says the
| tempter. That man presumes upon God
/ who imagines that having had what he
/ calls religious experience he can there
| fore put himself in situations which would
| be perilous to one who has not had such
! an experience The explanation Of the
! fall Of many men and women who have
! reached considerable heights IN re-
| ligious life and who have made
J loud professions OF their perfect
J character, is to be found in the fact that
they failed to keep that perfect balance
which Jesus kept when He avoided tanat-
/ icism Many mans high emotional
experience has been to him most dan
gerous thing Presenting upon it. he
has subjected himself to temptations
which he found himself unable to resist.
/ The safeguards of his conduct were re-
moved by his fanatcal trust in God and
the old passions, taking advantage of the
4 opportunity, whelmed him in destruction.
Not only does the tempter suggest to
rs that we heedlcsSly expose ourselves
to danger. but he also suggests that we
j presume upon God to get us out of trou-
Bile into which we have unwttingiy
come IL l find myself suffering from
some disease or from broken bones and
refuse to employ the best medical or
I surgical skill to assist nature to recover
I her balance and regain my health,
do not thereby show my faith in God
but betray my fanaticism. God is pledged
to help those who help themselves. But
/ God never wrought Il miracle to accom-
pish an end that could be accomplished
by normal, natural processes. There is
grave danger in our modern times that
! some Of us will be swept off our feet
by the wild claims of those who make
light of nature and physical laws. The
physical is not everything and the spir-
1 itual is not everything. There needs to
! be recognition Of the claims of each. To
deny the spiritual i'll magnfying the
/ claims OF the physical is 10 ally one S
! self with the brutes; to deny the physi-
cal in magnfying the claims of the spir-
tua is to become a fanatic. My spirit
/ my personality my soul lives in a physi-
| cal body ana / must reckon with the
claims of each.
trust III ttQ 10 me point of denying
/ your own reason said the tempter
Jesus answer Thou shalt not tempt the
! Lord thy Cod" should have a broader
! application than is sometimes given it.
Every man looks forward with a reason
able degree of certainty to period, in the
latter part of his life. that is unproduc-
tive. The body gets feeble and the mind
grows dull The man that trusts God as
Jesus taught that He should be trusted
| win make provision for these unprod,lc-
tive years. During the productive time
he viii lay aside something for what
the world calls "rainy day" The I'M
! married man may disregard some OF the
! provisions that our modern life furnishes
4 that tho married man cannot afford to
disrc~'-fr. Life Insurance may be a matte,
! of debate or even Of Indifference to the
! unmarried man. but 1t becomes a dutL.
to the man with a wife and children. The
trust that God viii take care of the wife
and children If the accident of death
should oyertake the husband and father
Is not faith in Cod but PRESUMPTION
That man, without property enough to
keep wife and children from suffering
who can save enough out of his earnings
to pay the premiums on life insurance
policy that would keen them from want
and refuses tempts God
It is not an uncommon thino for