Elk City mining news. (Elk City, Idaho) 1903-1913, 1904-09-24
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the form In which the inquiry Is made
tnat we use. L would not If 1 could,
ieau you Into speculative realms sug-
gested by this ancient agnostic. This
inquiry strongly indicates that the
spokesman did not believe in God, and
the history of the times would verify
that conclusion.
There is no doubt that we have to-
day risen far above that spiritual des-
titution. We accept at least the fact
that there is a God. We do not at
tempt to prove what the Bible every
where takes for granted, that God is.
God is the most certain fact of objec-
tive knowledge. This Is everywhere
true. The idea of God Is innate. The
existence of God and of a future life
is everywhere recognized.
An unwavering faith in God is not
superstition but is a characteristic
of the highest intelligence and of
well-balanced mind. 1t is an exponent
of a large and deep spiritual nature.
Religion and God are infinite concep-
lions. Dwarfed souls have no satisfac-
ton In them. One must be spiritually
minded to investigate spiritual things.
To the spiritually minded belief makes
no greater demands in many respects
than the facts of science. There are
facts in the physical universe relative
to space, time, matter, motion and
light that finite minds cannot conceive.
Marvellous beyond expression are the
statements of science, and yet they are
not too great for the faith of men. But
do you not think 1t marvel that men
can accept these things without ques-
ton, and on the other hand their attt-
tude toward God or Christianity is
that of wavering skephcism?
But we brush aside all these oues-
tons and make inquiry, not as to the
existence or power of God, but how Is
he related to me? How is he affected
toward me? To Christians there IL
one word that answers the questions.
and that is father. God Is our father.
This word of profound significance and
OF surprising tenderness belongs to
man alone. When we have said that
God created the heavens, the earth and
all material things we have given most
OF which the subject admits. But II
is not simply true that he created spir-
its, but he is the father of them. And
more his offspring.
Paternal love is the element in which
COO lives and reignS. Recognizing
this fact we must be awakened to the
correlated truth with all it's reciprocal
obligations, and that is, we are chill
dren of the heavenly Father. We are
made partakers of the divine nature
The subject opens a large field for in
vestigation. The dewdrop on the rose
reflects perfectly the whole sky above
II we are partakers of the divine ma
ture, there will be something about oul
spirit, speech, walk and life which
will reflect the divine. AS children we
have faculties by which our service
may be most natural and blessed
These faculties are the highest proc
that God is our father. Nature doe.
not perpetuate faculties that have NJ
work to do. They are gradually en-
feebled and finally taken away. If oul
faculties for recognizing and commun
ing with God were needless, they
would soon disappear. There is
passage of scripture of special tender
ness upon this point. You have beer
heart-broken, it may be, through tn,
exercise of pity upon your child. Coz
speaks to you in all the tenderness o
his nature: Like as a father pitietl
his children, SO the Lord pitch then
that fear him." What would we do 1
we did not know that the Affections o
this life were working for the peaceful
fruit Of eternal righteousness? All
my soul, thou needest the divine Faith
er. Thou modest to feel that the issu
of every dark thing Is going to be 70
his glory and for thy perfection.