The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1904-10-27
A SERMON FOR SUNDAY
AN ELOQUENT DISCOURSE ENTITLED,
!"CLORIFY YINC THE FATHER"

:CLORIF IINC HE "a HeH.
Preached by the Rev, DR.. Thomas b. Nc
Leod, of Brooklyn, n. I.-We Can
Make God Real, We Can Make the
Gospel Sublime.
BROOKLYN, n. Y.-Upon his return to
his pulpit from his vacation, the Rev: Dr.
Thomas B. Mcleod, pastor OF the Clinton
Avenue Congregational Church, preached
an eloquent sermon Sunday morning on
''Glorifying the Father" The text was
chosen from John Sv:S: Herein Is My
Father g,oriied that We bear much fruit,
so shall ye be My disciples" DR.. Mcleod
said:
How vital, dear friends, are all New
Testament representations of religion
Compare the New Testament with the eth:
ical teaching, or religious teaching of ali
other books in this respect, and you are
simply astonished. There is nothing me-
chanical in them, nothing formal, nothing
institutional-ev process is a process OF
life 1t is no use for man, or for men, to
claim that they have Abraham for their
father. Religion is not matter OF VINO a
mans ancestors were: it is matter or
what man himself is. Jesus has given us
in one pithy sentence His estimate OF the
II
scent, on heredity, on social prestige, wher.
He says that God could raise up, or make
children, unto Abraham out of the very
stones OF the roadside. The concern that
interests God, when it comes to the matter
of religion, is whether a man is living
plant or a dead stick. The hedge, though
It be a hedge of flowers or roses, in which
the stake occurs, does not make the stake
living thing. The line of descent in
which man stands, nor the soclsi posi-
ton he occupies, nor the church OF winch
he is an attendant, or member, is moth
ing. The man may after all be nothing
better than dead stake in hedge:
There was certain fine man, q fine man
socially, religiously, politically-one OF the
best of men as men went-came to Jesus
to make inquiry on the subject of religion.
He was reverent and devout and respect
full and courteous and cultured and learned,
leader and teacher of the people, lee
iurer on ethics, but when it came to reli-
gion, Jesus said to that man, eye must be
born again" The vitality of the represen-
tation we find in the New Testament reli-
gion is its life; II have come that ye might
have life. and that ye might have it more
abundantly.'
And. so of tests. Not simply Of the rep
rescntations or descriptions of religion. but
also of the tests, the New Testament tests
of religion. How are we to know that we
are living Christians? How are we to
know that others are living Christians?
Why, the New Testament pushes US up to
the point of urgent belief, and insists on
it, that the test is fruit, not leaves, not
flowers, but fruit, and that fruitiulness IS
the only essential thing that shall triumph
under the test. Jesus may endure barren
ness outside of the church, but He cannot
endure it inside of the church. A brambie
in the woods is bearable, but a bramble IN
the orchard, that is intolerabie; by theis
fruits ye shall know them. Men 90 not
gather figs of thisties or grapes of thorns. -
"The man of God is perfect, fruitful unto
all good works"
How little stress Jesus lays upon those
tests that are so universally adopted and
applied, and admitted to be sufficiently ad-
eo,ate: attendance upon religious ordln-
arces, subscription to creed and statement,
routine observance of rites and ceremonies;
He makes nothing of all that. and He
comes to us, friends, just as He came to
the fruitless, leafy fig tree by the ways!de.
searching for fruit, not for leaves, not for
blossoms, not for horescence, not for eS-
thetic delight in sacred music. not for tond-
ness of the literary side of religion, not fo-
keen appetite for well digested and pre-
sented truth, but for frnit-fruit. and He
comes up closer to US. friends. than any,
body else can comedian our dearest anu
nearest can come-for, after. all, these can
see only outside appearances. He sees real,
tiles. They see things that pass for good
works in US, born. it may be, of wicked
ambition or of self-conceit.i He sees right
down into the centre of the soul, and He ls
looking for fruit What shall He find III
you and me? Fruit or leaves, or just bare
branches? -,
The test is fruitfulress. Now that ought
to be an easy test to Apply, and 1t surely;
friends, is safe test to apply-for you anu
me to apply to our own selves, But tnel,
some one may say, "Well, what constitutes
INV soul before God; I am ready now to 60
down on my face before God and apply the
test: T am ready now for heart-searching,
and to measure myself by this standard,
but want to know what constitutes
fruitfulness." ssWhat are the fruits that
Jesus expects and that I am to look tor
and by which I am to measure myself: =.
Why, the Bib'e is simply full Of that, 1t
has set the whole thing so plain, and so
fully, and so variousiv that waytarlng
man though fool need not mistake as to
what frutfulness N. the Christian life IS:
Jesus says. BLESSED are the poor IN spirit:
SOElc UOW, VIC etiG oeNA
about the fruits. s'B'essed are the poor IN
spirit; blessed are the meek; blessed arc
the merciful (the good heartedl; blessed
are the pure in heart; blessed are, the
peacenskers; blessed are they who have
not simp,f relish now and then, but
hunger and thirst after Righteousness
riehtness. These are the fruits that the
Christian man is expected to grow IN his
character.
An apostle says, the fruits, or the fruit
of the spirit, is love, Joy, long suffering
patience, meekness. faith. temperance. The
fruit that the Christian is to develop. that
viii be developed, that Jesus will expect u
there be life-.ove-the heart Of all good
ness--!ove to God and love to man. "Who
loveth not his brother whom he hath seen,
how shall he love God-how can he love
God whom he hath rot seen?' Fruit: love
-ioy. Joy in fellowship with God; JOY IN
fellowship with believers; joy in service
and ministry. Love-jov-peace Content
inent of mind under all circumstances. the
harmony of conviction, of thought and at
fection. Long suffering -, patient endur
ance not only in ah1iction, but patient en-;
durance of wrong and provocation and
meekness and temperance and all the rest
What does fruitfulness mean? 1t means
simply the development or achievement Of
oh,r,cter that will anrrove itself to God.