The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1904-02-21
DIR. TALMAGE'S SERMON.
nx rHE REv. FRANK pg Wiz TALMAeE. 0. Q.


fer as we suffer and be tempted as we a1a
tempted, yet be without sin. He carAe
as a God of never ending love- Mystery
Mysteryl The Trinity Is an lnexplaina-
BILE mystery. Yet II is mystery we all
Il is mystery essential to our peace.
Mystery Of the Trinity.
Thus the mystery Of the Trinity means
simply this; God the Father comes to us
and says: ITO explain to you all things.
my child, would be to set before YOU
what you could not comprehend. Your
mind is too weak to grasp 1t. any more
than a little child in his fathers labora-
tory can understand or grasp the chemi-
cal principle of the adhesion of the basic
elements. But II you see the Godhead
yelled by a human form If you see the
Spirit of God animating being like your
self, If you come in contact with the di-
vine projections. active in human envi-
ronment. you will then have a glimpse
of the glory of the Godhead and realize
something of the supernal mystery of
Father. Son and Holy Spirit. All this L
will show to prove that | am God, the
Loving Father, and We are my children
Today we find the Trinity a mystery.
But though mystery deep and high
anu ONtI BOWtIiiSs II Is d sItIN SO SIM
pie that a little child can reverence the
majesty of the Father. can realize the
love of the Son and can yield to the in
fiuence of the Holy Spirit. Great and yet
beautiful and simple is the mystery Of
goodness in Jesus Christ.
The conflicting doctrines of Gods ON
Impotence and mans free agency are an
inexplainable mystery. Yes, we know
that God Is infinitely greater than man.
We know that the Creator who holds
the seas in the palm of His hand and at
whose touch the volcanoes smoke and the
earth trembies and whose voice is the
voice of the storm, has supreme control
over the creatures he has made. He can
say to man, Go, and he goeth. come. and
he cometh; do this. and he doeth It," But,
though God the Omnipotent is truly all
powerful. I know l can resist His will.
| know, as a free agent | can raise my
hand or lower 1t. | know that | can clinch
my fist with hate or have the open palm
of love. l know ! can walk across this
pulpit to the right or to the left. | know
I can choose between right and wrong.
Free, free Free am l. g1oriously freel
mystery-a great unfathomable mys-
terry With God the Omnipotent | am
still man, the free agent
Harmonizing creeds.
These twoS conflicting facts are true,
but who can reconcile them? Therefore.
after we have once accepted this mystery
we can harmonic all Christian creeds At
the foot of the cross. With il we can
take down the bars of sectarianism and
call all members of the different Protest
ant churches our brothers and our sisters.
How can YOU do that?" says some one to
me. Simply enough. After this mystery
this great fundamental mystery-is once
granted the question n the manner of
your service and the church in which
you will worship is determined by the
aspect from which you view your relation
to God, If | begin to argue from God
down to man. | become a Calvinst If l
say to myself, II know God is omnipo-
tent; | know He can foresee all things
He can save me if He will, I know" then
naturally go into the Presbyterian
church, But If say to myself, Il know
am free agent; know I can accept
or reject my Heavenly Father" I go into
the Methodist church. Then, instead of
arguing from God down to man, l argue
from man up to God. 1t is simply the diff
ference of putting the emphasis of my
creed upon Gods omnipotence or man s
free agency. Yet, though | was born
Calvinist and have been baptized in
CalVinistic church and have received my
seminary. yet today | feel just as much
at home in the Methodist church as do
In the Presbyterian. ] could just as log
ieally be a member of a Methodist con-
ference as l am now a member of a Cal
whistle presbytery.
A Difficult Task.
The harmonizing of the two doctrines
Gods omnpotence and mans free
agency-is a task that many have at
tempted in vain. But 1t is glorious mys-
terry that should make of believers of the
different Protestant churches brothers
and sisters at the foot of the cross
Therefore. my Christian brother, If you
are living in a small country town do not
make the mistake of trying to run in that
village five or six different churches when
there are only enough inhabitants to sup
port one Do not try to run a Congrega-
tional church and Methodist church
and a Lutheran church and a Baptist
church and an Episcopaan church and
a United Presbyterian church. Do not
keep on continually talking about my
church." All Christian churches ought
to belong to you and you to them. The
difference of Protestant creeds is merely
that of extra emphasis upon some one of
Gods great attributes. Remember here
after that you ought to be able to worship
fore a Methodist altar as an Episcopallan
chancel or as in a Presbyterian pew. God
has many gospel sheopfods. These sheep
are all feed by the same Divine Shep-
herd, although at times they are sepa-
rated from each other by the sectarlan
fences built by mans creed and by infin-
tie ignorance. "Other sheep have | which
are not of this fold applies as much to
the Protestant church across the street
as to your own chapel
The mystery of why God ever let sin
come into the world: 1t IS an inexplica-
BILE mystery 1t Is a mystery the more
inexplicable because, from a human
standpoint, If there had been no sin then
there would have been no need of a place
of future punishment. But, after we
have once accepted the belief that low
ing God has allowed sin to come into this
world for a purpose which we cannot
fathom or analyze, then we find that
some of the most beautiful sacrifices OF
Christian heroes and heroines have been
inspired from this source to overcome the
awful and tternal effects Of evil. II there
had been no sin there would have been
no Moffatts and Whipples and Judsons.
no Careys and Taylors, no Wilson's and
Brainerds, no Patons and Elliotts In the
missionary fields trying to save the ig-
norant. brutal and canniballstic savages
from the awful degradation of their livts.
If there had been no sin there would have
been no Catherine Booths as angels Of
light" laboring among the London slums,
no Towards among the prisons no Will
liamses to reach out rtscuing hands from
the Young Mems Christian associations
If there We're no sin there would be no
such saving work for us to do for Christ
as we can one and all now perform In His