Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1904-07-22
Calnase
Sermon
BY Rev.
Frank De Witt Talmagc, d. ID.


upon many OF the miracles Of modern
science" which are interpreted in the
light OF Christ's promise to his follow.
ers In John xiv. l., Greater works
than these shall he do"
Man increases not his gospel faith by
lowering the standards or the cross
You might as well expect water to run
uphill of its own accord. or violets 20
grow during midwinter in a snowbank.
or daylight TO follow after the sinking
of the sun in the west. or the flush OF
health 10 be seen on the pale cheek OF
n corpse. or humming bird to volun-
tarily make her nest in the dark laby-
rinths like ground mole, as for n ra-
diant faith capable OF transforming
character to exist in any temple un-
less the chief cornerstone of that tenn
pie Is Jesus Christ. "And l. IL be
lifted up from earth, will draw all men
unto me-" said Jesus Christ just n
short time before his crucifiXion. 81
am the way, the truth and the life.
No man cometh unto the Father but by
me-" speaks our resurrected Redeemer
TO the gospel workers of the present
day.
Let II be clearly understood at the out
set that by no word or thought would
i seek TO depreciate the power and
influence OF Christs personality and
work. He IL is who fills all created
things; he 1t Is who gives life. natural.
mental, social. He is the inspirer, the
spring from which come all our tri-
mn he INF II ho
the promise which he gave to his disci-
pies, Greater works than these shall
he do" has been fulfilled and that
man inspired with his spirit has with
the natural forces at his disposal done
more for uplifting humanity, as Christ
said he should. than did Christ him
self. Man has taken hold of the DOW
er which Christ bestowed and has ap-
piled It beyond the opportunities which
Christ had to complete the work that
he Initiated. Christ fed the multitudes:
Christ opened the blinded eyes and
Strengthened the crooked limbs; Christ
assuaged pain and stopped the chronic
issue OF blood. Christ was n great
preacher and drew the multitudes
about him. Christ fought against the
heathenish doctrine that might IS
right" Christ was the greatest of all
workers Of wonders that the world had
ever seen. There was only one Christ.
There will never be another. Yet there
are senses. natural as we'll as spiritual,
an which his promise has been kept to
his followers. and they have been en-
abled through the power cmanating
from him to do works which surpass
those he did I'm his life on earth. But
let IL never be forgotten that these
greater works. which man has done
have been accomplished only because
Jesus has lived and Jesus prophetic
words have been fulfilled. In order To
get better grasp OF this theme let me
read TO you the full verse in which the
words OF my test are found. Verify,
verify say unto you he that believeth
on me the works that do shall he do
also, and greater works than these
shall he do, because / 20 unto my Fa-
ther."
Christ Amazed Ills Generation.
Jesus Christ was the amazcment Of
amazements TO the people of his day
and generation as worker OF natural
phenomena. He seemed To his time
superior To all natural laws. When he
went out TO visit his disciples in their
ship, he did not have To use the land.
as other people had to do. He stepped
upon the crystal pavement OF Lake
Galilee rs easily us an Alpine climber
might rest his foot upon solid rock, ms
easily as Il kinds feet might glue them
selves TO mountain crag. When he
spoke, the homage OF obedience was
rendered 10 him, not alone by men in
the synagogue, by beasts OF the field
and the fowls OF the air, but by the
winds and the waves. He called 10 the
Gallean tempest. Peace be still" AT
the glance OF his eye the conscious
water blushed 10 see the face OF its
Lord" at the wedding in Cana OF Cali
lee. At word from his lin the fig
tree dried up and withered away. All
he had TO say was. LET no fruit grow
on thee henceforward forever" At his
call came whole schools of fish TO be
caught by the Galilean fishermen. BY
MS touch whole ovens full of bread
seemed TO be miraculously created.
Wonderful were those triumphs over
natural laws and forces, but what
triunrphs has man achieved since that
time by compelling those natural laws
and forces TO serve his purposes and
by Harvesting them as his sePyantsl
What wonder can be greater than for
man TO speak in n telephone receiver.
as have done, I'm Chicago and has,
my voice heard in New York city. 1860
miles away? / do not consider IL any
more or wonder than for Theodore
Roosevelt TO start the great, ponderous
machinery in the worlds fair at st.
Louis by touching simple button.
Christ walking upon the waves OF Lake
Galilee excited the wonder of the spec
tators, but how they would have Won
dered how they have seen that sub
marine boat constructed by an Amerl-
can inventor, which he supplied with
such wonderful mechanism that il can
sink TO the bottom OF the sea and SUD-
port life there for twenty-four hours.
or II they could have known how
spark. as n mermaid, could carry mans
message by running along the pathway
or Pacific cable from Vancouver to
Australia. OF how n great iron hull
could be made to battle against storm
and tide and carry thousands OF human
beings. besides tons upon tons of
freight from New York 20 LIVERPOOL.
Christ feeding the multitudes with the
1ve loaves and two fishes TO me is won.
derful. but man making the dry desert
blossom as rose by the stored up
waters OF irrigation. man making rain
descend IN regions where for centuries
nature as a forbidding angel OF the
Edenic paradise has said Thou shalt
not man making the fruits OF the
Asiatic climes TO mate with the fruits
OF the California hills. man making
street cars 10 run without horses and
steam engines 10 Shrek through
Gothard pass and disappear into
Housatonic tunnel. man making his air
ships lighter than the atmosphere we
breathe-ali these are triumphs over
natural forces so wonderful that say.
as compare them with the phenomena
n l.