The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1904-12-01

fishers of men, They obeyed. Heart,
intellect and will accepted and believed
Christ to have the right and the power
to communicate to them "sonship" Of
God. Disciples of Him who walked among
them as their Redeemer. And when they
had given Him that simple confidence and
proved it openly by obedience to His COM
mand of public confession of His claim,
glad and willing to be known as His tol-
lowers and co-workers, at that moment
were they given the right to be the chill
dren of God. Then were they born not
of blood. nor of the will of the flesh, nor
of the will of man, but of God. The gen.
uineness of their faith and sonship was
attested in various ways. To them saliva
ton in Christ was equipment for service
to others. They did not doubt the di-
vine personality of Christ, but they fok
lowed Him. Your child loves and rejoices
in you when he obeys you. Christ the
great captain of righteousness is asking
men to follow Him. IF .ye know. these
things, happy are ye if ye do them; This
means more than mere intellectual assent
for this may remain only profession and
not pass into feeling and action.
You recall the searching words of Christ
speaking to the intellectual failures of the
Pharisees, in Matthew xv: 8: "This peo-
ple honoreth Me with their lips. but their
heart is far from Me. But in vain they do
worship Me, teaching for doctrine the
commandments of men" And again,
when He was speaking to this same aris-
tocracy of the intellect and sticklers for
the strict letter of the law, He said: And
why call ye me Lord! Lord! and do not
the things which I say?" Manifestly,
then, Christ was eager that men should
give honest, hearty assent to His claims
Of discipleship. He then promised poten-
tial freedom, personal liberty. But the
mere exercise of faith was not enough.
Christianity is something larger and inner
than even the genuine exercise OF faith
in the person and work of Christ.
Faith unfolds itself in many forms OF
Christian experience and activity, all OF
which are embraced in repentance,
growth and service" When St. Paul
wrote TO- that little band of men at Ephe-
sus, who had exercised their faith in the
personal Christ, he bade them grow up
in all things into Him, who is the head
even Christ" But lest there may be some
among us this morning who, in thinking
this whole matter over: do not find it 50
God, but who do not quite appreciate the
relation of a man to his sin, to his fail
ures. his deliberate acts of wrong and evil,
is it necessary to repent? And what. is
repentance? Except We repent" cried
John the Baptist Manifestly it is neces-
sary. And what is it? 1T is a deep
change of the entire thinking, feeling and
willing man; and involves as its elements
enlightenment, contrition and confession,
prayer for pardon and peace, counting the
cost and endeavor after new obedience.
Look at these for moment. Enlghten-
ment! This is the work of the Holy
Ghost. It was not until the prodigal son
came to himself that he started on that
wondrous pathway to lifelong blessing:
Enlightenment as to his own folly and
sin and consciousness that fathers love
awaited his return. Ny brother, if some
things are uncertain. pray for enlighten-
ment and He who in the same chapter
proclaimed Himself to be the light 6f
men Will reveal the path to contrition
and confession. II have sinned against
heaven and in Thy sight" was life Civ.
ing confession and PRAYER. 1t showed
that faith in the Fathers love was sorry
and ashamed for its past ingratitude. In
that heart cry for pardon was the SOULS
receiving Christ and because He received,
he had the right to be son of God. Man
repented and God by His divine act re-
generated.
There are Others here to-day who will
admit the truth OF much that l say, but
in whom and about whom there are OBJ
stacles which YOU have not the courage
and the determined patience to overcome:
Some of these obstacles are the power OF
sin in the soul, for. like St. Paul of Old,
you find law that when you do good
evil is present." false price in ones
own personality and achievement, for
there arc not a few of US, with Il thank
Thee that ! am not as other men are
tendencies: the environment of worldly
interests and friendships, and the lnslIi,
cerity of many protesting Christians. An.
how many of MS does this latter includey
Nevertheless. not few are enabled to
rise above these obstacles and become sons
of God. ~.
Again I ask the initial question of this
message, can I do as please? Or must
I do as another pleases? And l believe
an honest study of the New Testament.
win show US that the only freedom which
is comprehensive is the freedom and lib
e-ty which God gives to our whole nature
when We have accepted or received His
Son Jesus Christ to be our Redeemer and
Master. Nav you this day. my earnest.
seeking friends. find the Christ whose
sscriicial love, represented in this atoning
blood. and receiving Him by faith. be
called children of God, and if children,
then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs
with Christ, If so be that we suffer with
Him. that we may be also glorlted to-
gether.
Every Man 3 Painter.
tpo;nt ,,a n;ctnre - sajd a GREAT mas.