The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1904-03-17
a SERMON FOR SUNDAY
AN ELOQUENT DISCOURSE BY THE
REV. ROBERT MACDONALD.

Subject: "Christians Outside the Church.
MANY a Man is Losing His Soul Be-
cause He Cannot Believe in Jonah and
the Whale-Harmful Prejudices.
BROOKLYN, n. Yin the Washington
Avenue Baptist Church Sunday morning,
the pastor, the Rev. Robert Macdonald.
delivered the last of the series of sermons
on Christians Outside the Church." the
special subject being, Reasons Why Those
Outside the Church Stay Outside" The
text was from I Corinthians, xi:22:
sWhat9 despise ye the Church of Christi
Mr. Macdonald said:
No church has power to take man to
Heaven beyond the power he has himself
TO gain entrance there. And whether or
not he Las the necessary ability depends
cross and following in the steps of Jesus
Christ. Heaven is state of blessedness
rather than a locality beyond the stars, and
must come to us before we can 60 to it.
Whatever else is implied in following Jesus
church membership is included. Jesus
commanded baptism. To illustrate His
meaning He Himself was baptized in the
Jordan. His reason was ''for so it becon-
eth US to fulfill all Righteousness" If He.
the perfect man, thought it necessary to
fulfill all righteousness. think not for mo-
ment that any one of His imperfect follow
ers can be excused. Paul in Romans shows
baptism to be the likeness of Christ's death
and resurrection. If We have been ualted
with Him in the likeness of His death. we
shall stand in the likeness of His resurrec-
ton. All denominations make baptism the
door of entrance to the church. At Pente-
cost 5000 were added through baptism in a
single day. Then there is ''the Lords Sup
per-" ''This is My body which was broken
Tor you," is the Redeemer's word. The
apostle to the Church of Corin;h commends
its perpetuation as a memorial to their
Lord. Baptism and "the Lords Supper"
are then very significant and belong to the
Christian Church. Not to join the church
is to despise these helps to the cultivation
of the spiritual life so full of sacred
meaning. An Christians should embrace
both as precious memorials of the Saviour's
death. To embrace these is to join the
church. To neglect them Is to despise the
church. Worse than that. To neglect
them is to disobey your Lord, whom you
profess to serve. Even further, it Is to
show disregard for your Lords dying re.
quest, ''This do in remembrance of Me"
You would submit to much Inconvenience
ko comply with the dying wish of an
earthly friend. But your Lords dying re-
quest is ignored: How can you expect to
to hear God say, "This is Ny beloved Son
i'm whom T am well pleased" Instead of
pleasing your Lord, you offend Him. You
never Thought it was so serious matter
before, did you? Sleep not this night un:
It'll you possess as well as profess the LORD
Jesus: Be an out and out Christian. Sym
pathize with and come into that organlza.
ton that is perpetuating these sacred
rites. Keep not isolated from the one or
ganization that God has set up for the re-
demption of the world.
Now for these reasons you stay out and
feel justified in SO doing.
You object to the creed Of the church.
Creeds are forms, and you detest the for
NAL. Yet I know of no one who needs
forms more than you who raise this pro
test; your religious life is so slack. That
which you need above all else is to con-
form to worthy ecclesiastical order, for
you are amazingly disorde1!y, religtousiy
speaking. For Others that may be good
excuse, but hardly for you. We all admit
that no creed is as important as the llIe 1t
contains, just as no cradle Is as important
as the babe rocked there, and IS no suit OF
clothes is as important as the man who
wears them. Nevertheless Christian or
church without a creed IS like an engine
without a track-ittle progress can be
made. There is neither ideal nor practical
existence without belief, and what man
believes is his creed. And his creed Il
the channel through which the very water
of life flows into his thirsty soul: Block
up the channel and the water becomes
sfagnant. But that is not the fault OF the
creed. Thou only art to blame. A grow
ing man, it is true, needs an expanding
creed, and woe unto him whose creed IS
not expressive of the word of God and the
revelation in Jesus! We must admit that
as many a Christian is ke2t outside the
church because, of its. creed: SO many
man is in the church for the 'creed's sake.
Such man is as devoid of vital hold on
Christ as is an Egyptian mummy dead
10000 years. Creeds are curse when they
take the place of the life, and more than
one church in Christendom has lost its
life and is clntching only its creed. Better
stay out of church like that and retain
your life than, entering in, lose 1T. Srcn
a church is. however, an exception to the
rule that does not strengthen the life OF
every member within its fold. If they give
it the opportunity so to do. 1t is our false
thought about the church that is to be De.
will we derive?" Our question ought to
be, "What opportunity will it provide to
render benefit to my fellows less favored
than MYSELF" Our Christian profession is
. sham that does not interpose God and
humanity in place of self. Conversion in
troduces Us to God and estranges US from
self. Not for sells sake, then, but for
Christ's sake do We join the church.
When we become new men in Christ Jesus
we take as instinctively to the church as
does the duck to the water or the bird to
the air. S
e A second reason have heard you give
for remaining outside the church is because
its members are not good enough. You
look for perfection. You find imperiection.
You are at fault; not the church. You ex-
pect too much. Come into the church
and it will not be many months before you
wonder how Satan ever SO got possession
of your mind as to begui!e you into es-
, pecting perfection OF church members. But
YOU will also find them much more Christ
ike than you expected-not in absolute
holiness, but in desire for more righteous
ness in their lives and in the world. Hear
the apostle exclaim that life is battle
field: s"Fight the good fight of faith" !"
Life is race course, so run that you may
attain. Read his letters to the churches
disputings, contentious among you. These
priceless letters to the Corinthians would
never have been written had it not been