The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1904-01-11
SHOULD BE A MEMBER
EVERY FOLLOWER OF CHRIST
SHOULD BE IN THE CHURCH
OF CHRIST.
Man Is Social Beino and Tbr;,.e
Eest When in Close Contact
With His Fellows.


mon TO a large congregation. He
chose Tor his subject And the Lord
ADDED to the Church Daily" taking
MS text from Acts Hal He said in
part:
This text suggests that Christ or
gained or caused to be organized. y
church in the world. 1t follows from
TINS tact that every disciple or follow
er Of Christ should be a member of
the church Of Christ, for if one can re-
main out of the church and be justified
IN so DONG, then every other one GER
talnly can. And this destroys the pos
Slblllty OF church. This is so evil
dent that 1t really needs no argument
and yet we sometimes hear persons
say that they can live Christ better
out OF the church than in the church.
II Such person We're brought fact to
fact with Christ and were to put his
thought into words he would have to
say, Lord. Jesus, l believe in you but
don't you know that when you caused
a church to be set up in the world YOU
made great mistake, for | can live
your teaching better out of the church
than in it. You Numbered, Jesus, You
Numbered. You know Il good deal but
not quite as much as | do
Nov TO be sure no man would thus
speak to the Lord. face to face with
him. but men sometime entertain in a
vague way thoughts which they never
form riAto IN words and which startle
them when SO formulated. It is not
true that any person can live Christ
better out of the church than in it. for
man * q social being and always
thrives best when in close contact with
his fellows.
Take the most cultured person in this
audience or the most cultured person
in our town aud transport him TO
lonely island there to remain for ter
years during which time he shall look
in no human face and hear no human
voice and then be returned to us. We
shall find that he who went out in
beauty and culture returns a savage.
Man left to himself degenerates. Rob
inaon Crus0e returned from Fernandez
i barbarian. On the other hand saw
age brought from his solitude soon be
gins to change and become cultured |
and refined.
"Whera do We find The finest speci- |
mems OF men? Do we find them in |
caves and iungles or where men most
closely congregate? Now the church |
is organized to bring man into the
closest possible contact SO that We may |
the eye and glow of the countenance |
and feel the very heart throb
But if it were possible for any one
to live Christ better out of the church |
than in it, he nevertheless should be-
come a member for the good he may
that we are not to live for ourselves
but for the good we may be doing
while the years are rolling on.
If a Christian has greatness Of
intellect he is expected to use that to
help his fellows and if he is so strong
ought to say no and yes when he
should say yes. Why then it is his duty
to take his place beside his brother
who may not be 50 strong or so self
poised in order that he may jmpart
to the weaker one and SO
enable him to conquer
A noted general was accustomed to
arrange his men SO that veteran and
recruit should stand side by side so
the man of courage tried might i'm
part his spirit to the other. Ihus
should il always be in the church Let
him that is strong bear the burdens
Of the weak. Bear We one anothers
burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ
Others give as a reason for not
joining the church the statement that
there are hypocrites in the church and
they don't wish to be allied with them
# is we'll for such to consider that
though there are hypocrites in the
church they do not belong to the
church. They are there as frauds.
Counterfeit bills and bogus COINS are
sometimes found in the banks, yet we
DO not say away with the banks. Be
sides there are hypocrites in the world
outside of the church and we are
brought in contact with them, and can
not escape. unless we go out of the
world and even then if we are not
right ourselves we may have our posi-
tons with the hypocrites and the unbe-
lever.
Some others say there are so many
join. This objection is more fancl1ui
than real for while there are many So
cieties or denominations this only
gives one a better chance to find
in which he can be can be
at home and where he can
live and work to the best advantage
for Christ. =