The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1904-08-20
CONSCIOUS
NESS OF GOD


Xiii, IL.
The one great religious need of our
day is IL sense of God. Not of personal
Sin, nor of personal freedom, nor Of di-
vine sovereignty. nor OF divine merry.
nor of human wlrtchelness, NOR of fu-
ture peLalty-but just of God. And by
"a sense of God NOR" is meant than Il
conviction that he exists and reign~
more than a belief that His providence
is over all His works: more than Hn as
surance that He is mcrciful and intends
to secure the salvation of every sinner
THAT will consent to lie saved. There Is
meant IL sense of His constant. wntrhful.
helpful presence with each human >pr-
it that will open itself II His coming.
Now if you study the development Of
reli. on in the world you find that God
has been always aiming to enter this
sense of Himself into the human heart.
As it is II sense Of God, it can be entered
most readily, to say the least. through
the Senses as of sight and hearing. BY
the aid of Il vigorous imagination one
may get it from books and oral descrip
tons, but only iu II partial, half-vital
way. One may be aided by observing
others experience and following it. with
IT Nue ItSHlu 10 l'ISbiIdl
But after all it is essential that sooner
OF later he should somehow ''see God"
SO Jesus says to Philip: How sayNst
thou" how canst thpu say, "shOw Us the
Father? He that hath seen Me hath
seen the Father
1t is il common remark that there are
no such profound experiences of cohtri-
ton in these latter days as we read Of in
the lives of the fathers. The fact *
traced to Il variety If causes. Some SAY
there is not enough preaching of wrath
and Judgment Others that this is but
one feature of tn" gone raj Supcrhcality
of an age that reads newspapers instead
Of books, and is NOR" Interested III lr''i-
ties than in Theology. Others that an
cient expressions of Iruitence Were eX
travaga and that people have discov-
cred that they are r.. "rally SO bad after
AL. Others that We nave grown more
TRUTHFUL and will not blncken ourselves
even TO make ont IL strong plea for Iii
vino mercy. But til" raj can>'' j. this:
We have only n superficial sense "f God.
We do not live unG"- an abiding con
seriousness of His presence at our side.
We think of particular ~iIiS as d>h1n"s-
ty, falschood, cruelty; we see that they
lie against men, and iHiurc mon; We do
not consider sin the state of the heart,
the condition Of alienation from Heaven.
We lose Elght II tn" tact that OUT rt rms
condition spring All tranSgreSslon>. We
can be unjust to or nelghborS. unkind
to cur children, @1Nn to our servants,
hard to the lo"r aura Wretched without
"nce thinking THAT these have anything
10 do with 'i"". TINS EXPLAINS the an
omaly of men Ire .... tyl@rlMcli in their
families, DIS lIiGi"G dS nelghboi>' brutal
70 empIDy,> :. rrn". :" Iumb inlmaiS, he
faultrrS in hu>inrNS, who attend church
with the greatest prhctuality and could
by no means he tempted to blaNFhenle.
They have Il >".''' ~ fod III these Iat-
ter things. hut l.p'h' IN the former. But
this is Impossible. Except under II de-
fectlve CONSCIOUSNESS u ''Od. 1t l. IN
durable, thercf"r" by legislation or NOR
nI naNims ct forms Of religion. There
must be vast f@'n~"n OF the divine;
that is to say. found sense of God
as ilSeparAhIr Il any and every mo-
ment of life e. = t1ue that Christ. in
His pCtur" Of the last Judgment makes
love to man TIN ir>7 II character; hut 1t
Is also true tina II" represents service
to man as service - Him. and inhuman-
AZ w hi''h a. H''' 80 .s'''~t ii'ii''
If we once Iti,.i. this consciousness Of
God in rcfrr,nr, T., the fundamental
sHlbiect of sin. II .~,.7 uart of our work
as Christians is accomplished. 1t will
permcatc. like }ray"I. all cur thinking
and living. Take. f." instance, faith
What ingenuity has. Seen expended up-
on defining religions or saving faith 1t
has been lahoi"or.,y Disseminated from
supcrstitiou, from ,.,,.lulity, from Gre
,Ience, from Intellectual assent, from
traditional aruuieSt4nce in received
creeds or >y>tr!ns. The element of con-
tidcnce has been insisted upon, of ex-
pcctation. of trust. ri love To believe
in Jesus Christ. one has said, is to cred
If His words and works; another, to fol-
low His cXamplp: another to RELY uDon
His atCaemru;: another, to accept His
as Master aw3 I;arla.,ner, But if il all
these. ana u..r. !. : something aJ diff
cult to define IL, una instinct. 1t j. a
sense of Gal n.al Christ. inwrouyht by
+bo Holy S,i,t+ Z, ,...utr,r, ,uir,I and
heart. II is fine fountain of all GOOD
emotions and affections. 1t both lrc-
ccdeS an" >"rFlF'S Hn"N!e"Ee Il '''l@-
.,nir,ot's, ,,;,., -,,l,n,i.,.;,,n ,lr- Ia.
nial. II is the hrli-'> m.tlcr amid the