The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1905-08-31
I HE PULPIT.
A SCHOLARLY SUNDAY SERMON RY
THE REV. J. D. BURRsLL.
Subject: The Friend of God.

the Classon Avenue PRESBYTERIAN
Church, preached an interesting SER
mon on the subject, The Friend of
God" The text was from James ii :23:
He was called the Friend Of God"
Mr.. Burrell said:
The figure of Abraham is one of the
most majestic spared to us by the past.
He stands before us in singular dig
nifty. serenity and power, and his SUI
preme quality was that he was the
friend of God.
The phrase is peculiar. 1t is not said
that God was his friend. but that he
was Gods friend. There is a differ
ence. We accept the friendship of
God as matter of course. like the air
we breathe. But the thought that man
may be friend to God scarcely comes
to us at ALL
). There is something deeply touching
about that thought. For we usually
look upon God as sufficient unto Him
self. Yet in this other respect we see
Him longing for friends. That desire
ms common among men, for there are
many lonesome, misunderstood. hungry
Tor friendly word of appreciation
Now think of God also as misunder-
stood, grieved by neglect, yearning to
be loved. Then think of Abraham as
giving God his heart. You see how
much it meant to God that Abraham
was his friend.
One is led to be the friend of another
by liking him. The reason why we
like him may be ineXplicable to our
selves, for there is no accounting for
tastes. All fruits are the gifts of God
to men, yet some we enjoy and others
we reject All people are children of
God, and we can love every one of
them in a disinterested and fraternal
way. But this does not interfere with
our liking some better than others.
Even our Saviour felt this human ten
dency and was drawn by it to a spe-
cial intimacy with the apostle John.
l suppose there never was a person
about whom people differed more than
Charles Lamb. Some could not endure
his perpetual raillery. his bad puns,
his stammer. Others knew him to be
one of the rarest spirits. subtle in in
tellect, exquisite in taste and grandly
unSelfish.
Now that liking which makes friend
ship between man and man makes it
Abetween man and God. We can pic
Ire Abraham at the close of the day,
#When the tents had been pitched and
the evening meal eaten. going apart
from the camp for a little space that
he might open his soul to God. We
can imagine David at night time while
the city slept, mounting to the roof Of
the palace and beneath the canopy Of
stars communing with the Most High.
We can see Christ escaping from the
crowds that thronged His steps and
eagerly hiding for a brief time in the
a SecluSiOn of some mountain top that
He might be alone with His Father.
1t was because ali three of these liked
God.
"a 1t is a question worth asking wheth-
er we like God. / do not say reverence
and honor, do not say submit to and
81 obey. Do we like God? 1t is a pecu-
& liar question. Perhaps asking it makes
us wonder whether our appreciation of
4God does not lack something of the
warm throb Of life.
Friendship also involves similarity
Df tastes. In fact, most of our friend
ships come about through our being
y brought together in the pursuit of some
common interest, by an ocean voyage,
a golf club. a board of directors. a
Sunday-School class, for example. Peo-
pie whose chief interests differ are not
likely to become friends; Emerson and
Boss Tweed, for example.
There is no better field for studying
She laws of friendship than a college
Eoung men or women who have known
Zach other pleasantly enter in the same
class, 60 together for a time then
gradually, without any i'll feeling what
Ever draw apart in order to form other
combinations. This shifting is gener-
lily due to the dominating power of
ome common interest-French. boat
ng. editing a paper together, member
hip in the same fraternity and the
ike.
The same principle holds true in the
Friendship between man and God. 1t
5 brought about by similarity of tastes
nd interests. Supreme in God is the
tense of order, whose moral side is
Righteousness. How can He have any
Friendship with q man who lacks this
#ense of order? Who does not mind
icing a glutton or drunkard or i'm
#ure or telling lie or taking what is
lot his? AS Paul says, what fellow
hip hath righteousness with UPRIGHT
OuSneSsY' And another characteris-
@c of God is His spirit of charity. But
oppose a man is Indifferent, hard and
Alfish, prone to cherish grudges and 10
20 unkindnesses, how is friendship
Ossible between him and God? He
hat loveth not his brother whom he
nth seen, how can he love God whom
hath not SEEM"
1t is important. then, for us to ask if
like what God likes, if we value
gflly, as He does, the soul, the spirit
II life, a character of purity and good
SIS. These are the foundations Of
endship between heaven and earth.
gain, part of friendship is loyalty.
Il loyalty how far? Through bad re-
Brt as we'll as through good report?
ssuredly. The friendship that will
BIT endure strain is Of little worth.
Twenty years ago a young man was
Eept away by the excitement of gam
ing in Wall Street, and misused the
nds of the bank of which he was
resident. The deficit Of millions was
ade good. But, of course, the dis
ace was there. Yet to-day he has
landing in certain small social cir
His friends, you see, realized that