The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-09-03
SOUL IS SUBJECT
TO CONSTANT PERIL
The Rev. u. D, Mooney breaches
At Second Presbyterian
OUR FUTURES UNCERTAIN
Sin Is a Thing of the Heart, and
We Do Not Know What
Our Hearts Con.
tain.
OUR FUTURES UNCERTAIN


large congregation at the Second Pres
byterian church yesterday morning on
"Our Constant Peril" He took his texts
from 1 Corinthians 10I2 and Psalm 51:1O:
Let him that thlnketh he standeth take
heed lest he fall" Great in me a clean
heart, God. and renew a right spirit
within me-" !
Mr.. Mooney spoke in part as follows:
These texts of scripture speak to us of
our universal peril, a peril TO which all |
men are liable everywhere. The peril of
| losing the ground we have gained, the
peril of blighting our characters, the peril
| of falling into great sin. And this peril |
Is not only universal it is also constant
We face It every day and hour, even
when the way is smooth. and we are I'M
conscious of any danger.
There is no time in life when a man
is not liable to sin, no time in life when
he can say he is absolutely safe from evil.
| Moses went through a great portion of his
life without committing a great fragrant
sin, only to fall in his maturity. David
escaped the pitfalls of youth only to fail
in his years of ripe manhood and 'liscre-
ton. Elijah held his faith in humanity
through the crisis of Mount Carmel only
to lose 1t after ne had gained the vic
tory
Overestimated Strength.
Most of us some of the time. and some
of us most of the time overestimate our
strength, and our endurance We measure
ourselves, and the measurement is too
large. In great many public places there
are what are called testing machines. a
| If ,o
chine places a coin in the slot, and by
full pressure of his muscles gains some
idea Of his physical capacity.
Many a man comes away from the ma
chine disappointed. simply because the
machine reveals to him the fact that his
strength is less than he believed. In the
moral and spiritual world men and wom-
en- stand upon this machine every day.
The testing apparatus is composed of the
currents that encircle our life, Of the in
fiuences around about us of the tempta-
lions we meet. of the obligations we
face. Many a man from some such hour
of testing and of trial comes away a
sadder but wiser man.
Constant Danger.
We have way of being very much az
| lOIlSlleu anu dilidLeu at llS SiilS anu liiS
disgrace into which men fall.
Take the incidents so fresh to all of our
minds, the embezzlement of President
Paul Stensland of the Milwaukee Avenue
bank, Chicago, that of President Frank
Nipple of the Real Estate Trust COM
pany of Philadelphia, and those here in
our own city. In the face Of facts like
these we constantly exclaim. how could
they do 1t? AS far as the logic of the
thing is concerned 1t Is surprising and
past understanding but the question for
you and me to face is this, is It, has 1t
been impossible. for us to commit this
sin? Are we absolutely safe from this
sin and others equally evil?
Is 1t not natural to suppose that these
very men who have thus so dismaly
failed in a moral way, expressed the same
surprise, years before their own failure. at
the failure of other men, expressed the
same establishment and condemnation you
and are expressing today In regard to
them. And do you not suppose that there
was time when these men felt absolute
ly safe from this peril, just as safe as
you and l feel today?
Sin a Thing of the Heart.
nc ~ uAi III tHc WhOlC ildtlCI 10 mat
sin is thing of the heart. and when
David learned that he learned the whole
philosophy of sin he did not pray, Lord
keep me from impurity keep me from
lying. keep me from cheating. No, he
went deeper down than that, he prayed,
Create within me clean heart" And
the solemn thing about this scriptural
philosophy of sin is, that we are ignor-
| ant of the contents of our own heart
David was unconscious of the fact that
he was an adulterer, until he snned.
| Stensland and Nipple were ignorant of
the fact that they were embezzers until
they began to take the property of 9TH
ers. When did David become an impure
man, when he committed the actual sin?
No. he was impure before that, the seed
| of mpurity was In his heart, and 1t only
took this combination of circumstances
to give 1t birth.
When did these bank presidents be-
come dishonest, when they took the first
dishonest dollar? 20, they were dishonest
before this. the germ was in the heart,
and it took the proper influences to give
1t Birth.
Our Future Uncertain.
what kind of sins line In our heart to-
day, awaiting a congenial atmosphere to
give them birth, and expression. What is
our hope then?
1t is in building up by the influences
of the gospel and of Gods grace, faster
than the influences of the flesh and sin
can tear down. Sin is destructive, right
eousness is constructive. The constructive
force must be in the ascendant The
theory upon which physicians work to-
day In the cure of consumption, is to so
treat the patient that his flesh and tissue
shall increase more rapidly than the dis
ease can tear down. If they can do this
the patient is safe, If they can't he is
doomed We are suffering with moral
and spiritual consumption, and the Great
| Physician treats us along spiritual lines.
by the same theory. As the strong man
of the race he offers us positive spiritual
| forces, by which we become strong, and
by which we move toward health of
soul and toward righteousness more rap
| idly than the influences of the flesh pull
us down.
And so our part then. is not to be be-
wildered by men, who having the conf
dence of the world have failed. but to