The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1904-05-16
The Rev Albert Dale Gantz, paste


of the First Presbyterian church.
Birch and First streets, preached to
a large and interested congregation
| yesterday afternoon on the theme of
Christs Ascension. He said:
| The Ascension service of today
brings us to the last scene in the
earthly life Of our Lord. Since the
Christmas festival we have followed
the course of his natural life from the
cradle to the grave, from Bethlehem
| to Cavalry. When 10, in contrast to
| all other earthly life we have two ex-
| ira scenes which make this life unique
for to the birth and crucifxion of the
| Goldman are added the glorious res
direction and ascension. At Easter
we listened to the Lord Himself dis
cOursing on the resurrection. Today
we shall hear Him speak concerning
His ascension ere the cloud receives
Him up out of our sight, and we hear
His voice no more. Before, however,
we listen to His loving words, let US
pause for a moment to prepare our
minds for their reception. l think we
best may do this by looking at the
fact of the ascensiOn-asking what 1t
is and how and when it happened.
Then we can understand it's meaning.
We can safely say, at the outset, that
the ascension was the visible ascent
of Christ from the earth forty days
after His resurrection. This is an
historical fact. And let me add in
this connection that Christianity-the
religion of Jesus Christ-is a relig-
ion of supernatural historical facts as
we'll as of superb moral teachings.
There is and to emphasize this basal
element in it today, in view of the
dangerous tendency to regard all that
is valuable in Christianity as quite in
| dependent of mere historical truth and
to feel that the high doctrines of faith
alone are worthy of regard This is
grave error and very mischievous in
its consequences. The religion of the
New Testament came into the world
as did the religion of the Old. with
the claim that it was sent from
heaven. Some undeniable evidence
must be given to substantiate this
claim. We find that in both testa-
| ments such evidence was given. and
given in such a manner and such
abundance as to overwhelm all in
| credulity.
1t was only in this way that a su-
pernatural religion could get a start
and gain credence. And it is pre-
| cisely on the basis of a series of we'll
| established and we'll accredited super
| natural facts that Christianity was
| built. Those facts were recorded by
| credible, trustworthy and competent
eye witnesses, and being handed down
| to US have become historical facts
| facts of history. We are dealing with
one of these supernatural historical
| facts this afternoon namely. that
| Jesus Christ the son of the Virgin
| Mary, who was born in Bethlehem.
| lived in Nazareth of Galilee, was ex-
ecuted under Pontius PLATE the Ro-
earth in a visible bodily form and
| received up into heaven. This is the
simple statement of fact-of some
| thing that actually took place, some
thing which a large number of cred
1ble witnesses saw and reported. 1t
| is fact to which two angels in
| stantly bore witness-'Ye men of Cal
lice, why stand ye looking into heaven?
this Jesus who was received up from
you into heaven, shall so come again"
The first martyr, Stephen. in the
| throes OF dying agony saw the ascend
ed Lord standing as if to receive him
| or come to his assistance. Paul who
| was caught up into the seventh heaven
was able to make as the boast of his
| apostleship-I have seen the Lord
| While the sublime John in Patmos.
| held converse with the glorious as
| cended Savior the King and Head of
His church. Such a glorious fact as
| this ascension could not escape the
| scored writer's and we find almost
| Immediately that it was Incorporated
by the Apostolic church in a creed
| which is held by all Christendom-
| familiar alike to Holman and Greek
| Catholic and to protestant of every
| name and sect-the Apostoles Greed
/ which teaches us to say, I believe in
God the Father Almighty, maker of
heaven and earth: And in Jesus
/ Christ. his only Son. our Lord; who
: was conceived by the Holy Ghost. born
. Of the Virgin Nary, slcie.eu under