Los Angeles herald., 1905-12-11
ACCUSES MEN
OF INGRATITUDE
SAYS MINISTER'S HAVE AIR OF
SELF IMPORTANCE
Pastor Joseph Smale Tells Congrega-
ton Of New Testament Church
That Cry Of City is "com-
mereel CspItall"

Pastor Joseph Smale of the First
New Testament church spoke yester-
day morning on the subject Of "Un-
profitable Servants" from the text:
80 likewise ye. when We shall have
done all these things which are com
manded you, say we are Improbable
servants; we have done that which
was our duty to do.'' Luke 1910. He
said in part:
you will find i'm connection with the
Spirit filled life that tho soul will take
up this uttorancc given to it by the
Lord Jesus Christ, 7 am an unpro0ta-
BILE servant Horatius Bonar says:
All that I was-rny sin, my guilt, my
death---was all mine own. All that 7
am | owe to thee my gracious Lord
alone This is the language of the
deeply spiritual soul, but otherwise we
listen in vain for the sefabaslng and
God magnifyinE strain. Rather is the
supposed greatness of man dinned into
our ears.
MAN is called a miniature Of great
ness absolute. Hear the preacher of
man from behind the desk or from the
covers of literature and how he plumes
the race. So lofty are his conceptions
Of humanity that the sum and sub
stance of what he has to say is this:
Man is immortal. infinite, a god and
In confirmation of this we are pointed
TO mans mind. the brainness of this
one and the inventive genius of the
other.
when man lauds his race because
he discovers iii the race symptoms of
greatness and does not pay tribute to
God for those symptoms of greatness,
he is a thief in the act he is running
off with the things of God. When VIC
face the truth about man there is no
room for pride. Let us not take pride
In birth; we have only to go back far
enough and we keep company with
savages.
at is not the question of how our
fellow creatures regard us, but how
God regards us. If in the estimation
of men I have character, but God
writes me down characterless. I must
renounce the verdict of men and take
the conclusion of God. Man has an
innate propensity to braggadocio. If
he has done anything above the aver
age everybody around must know it.
7 am not of the common order. 1t
was my mind that was at the bottom
Of that proposition not knowing that
IT was the blessing of the Lord. Jesus
Christ deals deathblow to the arro-
CANT assumptions. the conceit and
vanity of lf-congratuations, when
he says When We have done all that
is commanded of you, say we are un-
profitable servants
"He who thinks himself a profitable
element in this world is wide of the
mark Talk not of the nobility and
dignity of man until he works for
God as earnestly as he works for him
self. Even religious teachers gather
to themselves an air of self Importance
and God is nowhere. They are abus-
Ing their powers of learning to destroy
the faith that they ought TO build up
and conserve; and instead of bringing
men out of darkness they are plunging
them into Skepticism and an awful
gloom
Look at man standing on the want
age ground of wealth and influence,
and where are these things being laid
at the feet of the Lord, The aim of
the average capitalist is to accumulate
more capital--keep getting-keep in
creasing. and if religion figures in
their benevolence it is with a view to
promoting education and civilizing So
ciety Take our city alone. Do you not
think if man We're anything near right
we should witness today. strongly sup
ported, a colossal gospel agency right
in the center of the city. Instead of
that commercial greed is pressing out
religion to the circumference of our
city and the cry is Commerce, COM
merce capital, capital' for selfish
ambition. If men We're anything near
right we should have commerce to
drive the mighty engine of the will
of God. Men are ingrates, where God
has conferred most lavishly.
"IIow are we living? Nationally or
insanely? Know We not that God has
given to each one of us a mind, and
he has ordained that this mind shall
have a vital relation to his truth? The
body is resigned to the temple of the
Holy Ghost Are YOU bringing to bear
mind, heart, will. spirit, body and
means to glorify God? If you are not,
will YOU understand that the Lord
writes you down an unprofitablc SER
want?
"In concluding word to the people
Of God What has he wrought in our
behalf? We are converted we are
among the sons of God; we are the
children of the most high God. Are
we living to the glory of God? Is it
through and through godly OF is it
vanished religion merely? Can I have
a religion so deep down in my heart
that when ] am away from everybody
can say 20 God, thou art my un-
rcasinp low"