Los Angeles herald., 1906-12-04
CELEBRATES HIS
NINTH ANNIVERSARY
REV. HUGH X. WALKER coMMEM-
CRATES EVENT
breaches Sermon on Honorable Yes
terdays and Hopeful Tomorrows,' -
and Reviews Work of ImmanueI
Presbyterian Church in That Time

The Rev. Hugh K. Walker, D. D.,
celebrated his ninth anniversary as
pastor of Emmanuel Presbyterian
church Sunday. His morning sermon
was upon the topic Honorable Yes
terdays and Hopeful Tomorrows," the
text being found in Isaiah 5612, "And
tomorrow will be as this day, and
much more abundant" In the exposi-
ton of the text DR.. Walker made it
plain that the moral quality of words
depended very largely upon who ut
tered them and the spirit that prompted
their utterance He said in part:
LAS originally spoken, our text is
the language of presumption. A band
OF self-indulgent and wickedly slothful
men, after reveling through cycle of
prosperous days, boast hat the NOR
row will bring them even greater
abundance and enlarged facilities for
indulging in their folly and wanton-
ness. But this was entirely unvar-
ranted. The opposite was likely to be
the case THE mills of the gods grind
slow but exceeding fine' Dishonorable
yesterdays would bring doleful tomor-
rows, and we can only pity them for
their boastful presumption.
"But, on the other hand, these same
words on other lips and uttered in a
different spirit, may mean an abiding
hopefulness, a dauntless assurance in
which the element of presumption is en-
tirely lacking. The men who falter
not in the discharge of any known duty
may expect greater things on the nor
row. On the lips of an Abraham. a
Joseph, Joshua or Daniel the text
would ring out sound and true. Tonor-
row only receives the harvest that yes
terday casts into its lap. Honorable
yesterdays may be expected to produce
hopeful tomorrows.
I'm developing the theme we call at
tention, first, to the record of honorable
yesterdays in the history of the world
We do not seek to hide the fact that
there had been dishonorable yester.
days; the scourge of Egyptian task.
masters, the cruelty of Roman EN-.
perors, the massacre of ST. Bartholo-
news day, the atrocities of the duke
of Alva, the butcheries of Napoleon
the heartless persecution of the Jew.
In Russia and elsewhere. But the list
Of honorable yesterdays is a vastly
longer one. The glories of architecture
art, science, literature, philanthropy
religion pass in rapid review. The
freeing of the serfs, the emancipation
of the slaves, the peace of Portsmouth
are few of the many things to be dwell
upon. IL, as Browning declares. civil,
ization is a majestic temple with loft,
dome, high walls and flaming altars
1t is nothing more nor less than tn,
embodiment Of the worlds honorahl,
yesterdays and a sure pledge of a vas
host OF hopeful tomorr>ws.
1.-The characteristics of honora bI
yesterdays are thrift, intensity cour
age and gentleness, and these ar
the reward Of honorable yesterdays
Even the baffled, beaten, disabled maj
may find comfort in the memory of al
honorable yesterday and it serves a
an incentive to press forward to create
and more honorable achievements. w
are To look back that we may loo
hopefully forward not boastfully bu
gratefully claiming the promise {
larger and better things from ou
Heavenly Father"
DR.. Walker then gave some statistic
concerning the work OF the nine year,
Eighteen hundred members had bee
received into the church, an aVerae
OF 200 each year. OF these somethin
more than 525 had been received o
profession of their faith During III
past five years there had been an n
crease OF more than 40 per cent In th
average additions on profession owe