The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1906-03-09
THE PULPIT.
a SCHOLARLY SUNDAY SERMON er
TrS REV. A. n. c. MORSE.
subject; EvangeliIation.

text was from Joshua kill: There
remaineth Yet very much land 10 be
possessed" Mr. Morse said:
There is an ancient Israel. and there
is modern Israel. The task before
the former was the establishment of
the kingdom of God in the land Of
promise. And the task before the lat
ter is the adjustment of the kingdom
of God in all the world. The work be-
fore these ancient people was prepara-
tory and temporal. The work before
the church is final. What remains be-
yond the work appointed 10 lis is yet
hidden behind the hills Of eternity.
The supreme thing then, is the evan
celization of the world. And | make
no apology this morning when | call
your attention 10 this stupendous sub
lect. 1t will do us good 10 lift our eyes
from our own immediate field and look
at the world which is the field Of God :
and 10 leave our own little beaten
track. and 10 swing out into the circle
where sweep His mighty plans. Cen
turieS have elapsed since our work was
announced. and herculean tasks have
been performed. Mountains of preju-
dice have been leveled: rivers Of blood
have been forded; fires of persecution
! have been endured. and whole king
domS have been taken. But there re-
maineth yet much land TO be pos
seSSed.' | want 10 speak TO you then
mp The Authority for Foreign Mis-
sionS. and Their Aims and Inspira-
ton
In n single wo,d. the authority for
Christian missions must he found. not
in the truths we hold. but in the Per
son whom we love. This may be seen
in the very etymolOGy of the word. for
authority is something added-added
10 the abstract truth or duty. There
is no authority apart from a person.
When an attorney is asked his author
ity. he cites the decisions of a Judge;
and when scholar is asked his au-
thOrity, he does not exploit his opin-
ions. but he names his author. The
same principle holds in religion. And
the ultimate authority must he 4 per-
son, and that person must he the high
est. and moreover he must be known.
! 1t is easy to see. therefore, that au-
thOrity is ruled from the so-called re-
! ligion of pantheism. for it posts no
| personal being. 1t rules authority also
from. ratiOnalism. for reason, fallible
and dependent. cannot be the highest
And ii takes authority from agnosti-
ciSm. for that declares that God cannot
be known. But shall not pursue this
! subject into the maZeS of philosophy.
| simply lay this down as an opening
thought that the authority for Chris
tian missions is found i'm Christ be-
! cause He is person. and because He
! is the highest person, and because He
! can be known. 1t is in view of this
that He can s~*. "All authority is
given unto Me in heaven and on earth.
Go We, therefore, and teach all ma
! tions."
Authority belongs to Christ because
He is the eternal word, and is also the
only God with whom we have 10 do. |
! know there are secondary sources or
! authority TO which we must give Ohe-
! dience. such as to parents and teachers
and 10 the laws of the State. But back
of all these and over them all is the
personal Christ and He alone has n
! right TO tell me what are truth and
duty. And authority belongs 10 Him
| because He has undertaken 10 diSpcl
| the darkness of the world by special
revelation Of the love Of God. He has
! joined Himself to humanity To save il.
| And it is this revelation Of God that
is added to all the truth we hold that
! constitutes the authority for missions.
Missions are the propaganda Of Jesus.
! and His method Of recOnciling an apOS-
tate humanity. And even if He had
not uttered His great commission. still
| worldwide missions would have their
claims, for they are but the answer
/ TO the call from the ends of the earth:
for humanity sundered from God feels
| its deSttuton and misery. The whole
world GroanS in its hunger. You can
hear il in the plaintive song Of the bird.
/ and the signing Of every breeze. And
after all worldwide mission is only
an answer to worldwide need.
The authority for missions is "GOd
manifest i'm the flesh" But what
flesh? The flesh Of the Anglo-SaxOn.
We are a wonderful people. Let MS
freely admit that we are the most
virle race upon the earth; that our in
sttutions are the best: that we possess
the bulk Of the worlds culture and re-
finpmcnt. that we are the subjects Of
the best government: and are the most
ingenious and inventive and wealthy.
But how came we 10 have this premier
position? We are only the great grand
children Of heathen and barbarOuS
fathers. We owe our superiority 10
the remaining heather nations 10 the
fact that the Gospel was first preached
to us Wonderful We are. But we
are not the sum total OF the race of
men. who do men say that ! tho
Son Of Man ann" The son Of what
man? OF Abraham; OF the Anglo
Saxon? or the man Of India? Or Of
Africa? Or the man Of the islands Of
the sea? The manhood Of humanity
was in the flesh Of Jesus. and | fall
back upon the humanity Of Christ as
my authority for n worldwide mission.
And that is what makes mo confident
that the Gospel is the power Of God
unto salvation 10 India and China and
Africa, TO the islands OF the sea. Not
thats.ve hope TO make these peoples
but pale copy Of the Anglo-Saxon: but
that we shall develop that gif' of
thought and heart which God has
wrought into their texture. and that
they shall he patterned. not after us.