Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1905-04-06
THE PULPIT.
A SCHOLARLY SUNDAY SERMON BY
THE REV. ST. CLAIR HESTER.

A SCHOLARLY SUNDAY SERMON BY
THE REV. ST. CLAIR HESTER.
Subject: "Church and Family"
Brooklyn, N Y.-The Rev. st. Clair
Hester, rector of the Church of the
Messiah, preached the fourth sermon
in the special series under the aus
pices Of the Mems Guild Sunday.
His subject was 1.-The Church and the
Family" The text was from Ephe-
slams v:25: Christ loved the church
and gave Himself for it." Mr. Hester
said:
| It is evident to any one reading the
accounts of the life and words Of Jesus
Christ while on this earth that it was
His desire and purpose to found So
ciety to represent Him, to preserve His
memory, to make known and carry out
His will. His mission was not intend
ed to be meteOric in characteristics
across the horizon of mans vision-as-
tonish and puzzle by means of miracles
and wonders. and then disappear,
leaving the darkness as it was before
He came. His coming and being in
this world was intended to make and
actually did make difference, a great
difference, in the views and hopes and
motives and lives Of those who came
under His influence. And He planned
that the moment He inaugurated the
work He started, should not come to
end when He withdrew from the
world, and was no longer present in
the flesh to direct and superintend its
extension. Furthermore, it was in His
mind that His society was not only to
continue, but also to grow, to enlarge,
until it should be worldwide, until all
men should have opportunity to enter
its ranks Therefore it is that we find
Him solemnly addressing His disciples
and declaring that upon their con-
=. fessed faith in Him as the Son of God
having power to plan and execute as
God. He would build His church and
that the gates of hell. the combined
powers of evil, should not prevail
) against it, They have combined
against it and attacked it again and
again. they are still in bitter opposi-
: ton to it, but there is no sign of yield
ing.
| st. Paul says: Christ loved the
) church" What is the proof, the evi-
dence. that this assertion is true? He
, founded and established it-a man does
!, not build house unless he thinks that
it will be worth something. He Sc
lected and trained and appointed off.
GERS to be His successors and as His
parting Instructions bade them go into
all the world and preach His gospel to
every creature. He instituted and or.
dained sacraments as pledges of His
love, as continual reminders, as means
by which the souls of the faithful
might be fed and refreshed. Finally
as st. Paul says, He gave Himself fol
it; as st. Luke says, He purchased il
s with His own blood. This is an absO
4 lutte. conclusive demonstration. Great
+ er love hath no man than this that h'
lay down his life for his friends, ant
this is what He did for His church.
Oh, yes, He loved it; of this there ar
many and infallible proofs. But hov
: about Ourselves-0,.r love, yours ant
S mine? It suffers by comparison? Cal
your feeling for the church of God b
: described by any such words as love
=. Is it not the truth that there is indiffe1
ence. cold. callous Indifference, on tn
part of many and positive disbelief an
opposition on the part of many other
in their attitude toward the church
e ANY one of us could name dozen i
Illustrations of it. We must admit i
O Thousands never enter sacred edlhc'
Other thousands only occasionally q
curiosity or whim moves them. The1
are some here tonight who, so far 9
any church connection is concerned
may be described as irregulars an
neutrals, onlookers and outsiders.
'e Let me ask you in all seriousness
can you imagine that this venerab
society. established at such gre;
II cost. even the life blood OF the Lo1
Jesus Christ, has no claim on your a
legiance? The church is the instit
,. ton, the organization Of Jesus Christ
is it putting it too strong to say th'
to reject it is to reject Him? Peep
who think or act in this way do not r
fleet or they do not realize the bene1
to and blessing Christianity is to cou
Ii try. or the church to the family. n
nation or society of people have. ev
90 existed on the face Of the earth wit
: out some form of religion. Statesme
sovereigns, empire builders. economis
have admitted and recognized its po'
er, it's value, have promoted it
&c every means at their command ev
e. when, in some instances, they did q
believe in it because they saw the