Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1905-07-27

OF the land. Over many rugged mile
he must travel with his family and his
sheep and oxen for sacrifice and his
tent and provision for his journey, i'll
order to perform his religious duties.
There at Jerusalem was the temple.
There he expected to meet God, or at
least there God would be propitious.
There was the priest who could offer
his sacrifice and present his confession
to God. There was the holy place and
the most holy place. the locus of the
Jewish worship. Even in far of lands,
when he worshiped he turned his face
toward the temple, as if his heart were
there, in any case.
Then, too, his daily devotions found
expression In most elaborate ceremo-
NAL. There were divers wash1ngs, as
there were multifarious causes of un-
cleanness. There were tthings and
manifold offerings There were sin Of
ferings and peace offerings, all asso-
ciated with infinite trouble to the wor-
shipper. These minute requirements
were infinitely multiplied by the Jew
In the time of Christ and His apostles,
so that Peter spoke of it as a yoke
(which neither our fathers nor we
were able to bear"
Now it was immunity from these in
tolerable burdens that was the first
great practical boon of Christianity.
Our Lord stated the precious truth to
the woman at the well. Said she,
"Our fathers worshiped in this noun
tain (Terezim), and ye say that in Je-
rusalem is the place where men ought
to worship" Jesus saith unto her,
Woman, believe Me, the hour cometh
when We shall neither in this mountain,
nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the
Father. But the hour cometh and now
Is, when the true worshipers shall wor-
ship the Father in spirit and in truth.
God is spirit, and they that worship
Him must worship Him in spirit and
in truth" It was one Of the first mean
ings of Christ's sacrifice, to abolish the
temple. When He bowed His head in
death on Calvary and said 1T is fin
ished," "the veil of the temple was rent
In twain from the top to the bottom"
and the whole significance of the tenn
pie service passed away. The temple
itself did not long survive the death Of
Christ, and the ecclesiastical capital
was soon destroyed Henceforth the
Church of God in the world was on
different basis. Henceforth God be-
came accessible without Offering or
priest without temple or altar, and ir-
respective Of locality. We are enjoying
in a measure that rest which Christ
came to everest from ceremonial
burdens. We are living in The dispen-
sation of the spirit, and the church is
wherever the spirit moves men to Wor-
ship. Wherever the Holy Spirit has
goco and planted the gospel Of Christ
in the hearts of men, turning their
thoughts and affections to God, there is
the church. It matters not whether it
be in Greenland's icy mountains or In
dia's coral strand It matters not
whether it be in gorgeous cathedral or
in mountain cave. It matters not
whether the worshiper be white or
black, whether he worship on his knees
or on his feet or on his back, so long as
he worship in spirit and in truth.
Christianity SO far as it consists of a
visible performance at all is the most
natural and spontaneous outgO of the
religious instincts to God, and religious
/ worship is essentially a personal COM
munion with God, and in such form
and place as is best suited to the wor-
shipper and most in accordance with the
| Will OIL 0Ou.
Hence, you will see, one of the prime
characteristics of the church triumph
ant is perfect liberty. "Get religion -
said Augustine, land do as you please" /"
| By which he meant if you truly get re-
| ligion you will always please to do
right. Paul means the same thing
when he says, eff ye be in the spirit
! We are not under the law" And Jesus
meant the same when He said, "Make
the tree good and his fruit will be
good" And hence, the ideal Christian
| life is perfectly spontaneous. Obe-
| dience is not by compulsion of law, but
| by impulsion of love. "All the law is
| fulfilled in one word, Thou shalt
/ love-"
We have heard not little about
''the consent Of the governed" and we
are likely to hear more. The state.
ment as it stands in that fanous docu-
ment will not bear literal application.
| But there is good reason to believe
| that our fathers knew what they were
! talking about. If they had said, gov.
ernment derives its potency from the
consent of the governed" they would
| have been uttering the exact truth
| Statutes are imperative until the sub
| jects consent. Perfect society implies
perfect acquiescence in the will Of the
superior or law making power. The
more society progresses toward unity
! the simpler and more equable will gov
ernment become, because the more gen