The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1904-07-29

TO God on the score Of the increasing
claims of Caesar. This laxiiy on the part
OF men and women to-day ! giving back
20 God the things that are Gods Is simply
upalhng in view Of Gods un-ivalled gifts
aud blessings 20 us. II u be t-ue that to
whom much Is gwen OF him shall much be
required" and that judgment will ever be-
GIN at the house Of God with the prlyll-
eyed, what Is 10 be said when We all stand.
as stand we shall, before the Sen of Mao!
"le cannot serve God and mammon.
Christ Je-us does not nloCk the way of
our paying our just debt 10 Caesar, but
He does warn US with the utmost PLAIN
ness not 10 give Caesar everything.
Ii we allow ''the huge mundane machine
10 run over our souls, like some car OF
Juggernaut, crushing out our religious free
dom and initiative, we shall he horribly
tattened IN our manhood, our sympathles,
our ideals, our conceptions Of HE. The
results may not appear fully Tor while.
but IN the end there will be experienced
an lInpoyerishment, an atrophy, sinister,
MANNED and crippled growth which Will
make US unit for our citizenship IN the
higher kingdom here or there. St Paul,
in beginning his Epistle 20 the Romans
that is, 10 the people who then lived at
the capital city of Caesars realm-accounts
in the following words Tor the SIN and
misery, the failure and decadence of heath
endom: He tells them that when they
knew God, they glorihed Him not as God,
neither were thankful Processing them
selves to be wise, they became fools. They
changed His truth into lie, and wor-
SHIPPED and served the creature more than
the Creator, who is blessed forever lt
was an awful blunder. No greater could be
made by any man or people. They made
the world they lived IN Their goa, their
only god, and worshiped and .eved II
with their whole hearts. They worshiped
power, knowledge, pleasure, wealth, force,
passion, art. They lived for these things
| until they fancied that these were the
only things TO live for. We know the re-
sul;. As they rejected Him, so God re-
Jected them. AS punishment lie gave
them over TO moral corruption, TO an
| abandoned mind, TO a fostering decadencc.
And men crowded around and stroyc
| for place and food, and the strong beat
down the weak and the rich were gorged
| and the poor were sent empty away, and
| strife and cruelty filled the earth with
violence" That was happening at the
very moment Christ spoke these tremen-
| dous words: Render 10 God the things
heathemsm which exists everywhere on
| tins earth where II Is not persistently
| kept down by the spirit OF Jesus Christ.
| To God the things that are God 10
| God the things that are God's' Let that
| cry haunt you until II compels you TO pay
! your debt. 1--we the courage TO look on
| the one fand az what you are giving TO the
world represented by Caesar, and on the
other at what you are actually giving TO
| God. Is God missing HIS rights? Is your
| duty To Him threatened by the power
| and pomp of this massive earth All then
| be all the more careful that your debt TO
| heaven is paid. BY the blood of the Cruel
| fed, give back 10 God what really belongs
| to Him! Your soul, your heart your con.
victions, your spiritual reality, your eternal
| being-all these TO God, for they are His.
| Believe Him when lie tells you that all
| else that we see and handle Is but a shadow
| that passeth away. Aye. trust Him when
| He pledges you His help whenever you
| sincerely want TO follow Him, and prom.
| isei never TO leave you TO struggle on by
yourself Through Him who condescended
| 10 make His home in our hearts who by
| His spirit "heipeth our lnhrmitles," let us
make such offering to God as yet we can.
| Give God, through Jesus Christ, your
| Saviour, first OF all yourself. lie will ac.
| cept nothing in the stead OF you. DO not
| clutch the portion of goods that falleth TO
| you and try to have them all TO yourself
| in some far country, where you shall never
hear the Fathers voice or see His face /;
but whatever YOU do have from Him.
| whether more OF less, try TO ENJOY 1t as a
| child IN your Fathers house, under the
| constant henedction of His smile. In the
| face of this tremendous pressure of earth,
| which bears down so Leavlly upon every
soul, resolve manfully that you Will not
yield, that the great and first command.
| ment of Christ. Thou shalt love the Lord
thy God shall be kept. Render unto
Caesar the things that are Caesars and
unto Go! the things that are Gods"