Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1906-03-01
CHRIST LEADETH US
OUR REGULAR SUNDAY SERMON
Though the Way Seems Rough, Our
Savior Leadeth Us, and We Should
Be Content to Follow Him.

Savior AeaueIH Us, ana we Should
Be Content to Follow Him.
New York City.-Sunday morning. In
the Collegiate Church, the Rev. DR..
Donald Sage Mackay preached on
''How to Grow a Soul.'' The text was
from II Peter iii:1S:, "Grow in grace
and in the knowledge Of our Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ DR.. Mackay
said:
In the course of my reading the other
evening I came across this striking and
suggestive sentence, s'We can each
grow soul if we are willing to pay
the price, These words set me think
ing. What tremendous possibility
God has placed in the grasp of each
one of u.s. We have in our power the
opportunity of growing an immortal
soul. That opportunity is this life-the
question is, Are we willing to pay the
price?
Do we realize what the growth of q
soul within US means? Do we realize
what life is without soul? We hear
it sometimes said of one that he is
"soulless man." Usually we under
stand by that description man de-
void of the ordinary feelings Of our
common humanity lacking in kindli-
ness and sympathy, and incapable of
generous action. True enough, but
soulless man in the real import of the
words, means a great deal more than
that. To be soulless is to be dead at
the vital centre Of life. It is to be cor
rupt and degenerate at that point in
character from which the divine and
immortal springs into power. Soul
lessness is spiritual degeneracy. 1t
is what Paul calls Dead in trespasses
and sins, without hope and without
God in the world"
Is it worth while, then, paying any
price if we can start within ourselves
this growth Of an immortal soul? "We
can each grow a SOUL" said the writer,
eff we are willing to pay the price.
Assuredly it is worth it. for this is
the one and the only victorious life"
More than that-thiS is the heart OF
all true religion. If our religion is not
developing spiritual life within us our
religion is vain. That is the great
thought Of Christ's teaching, and in
that He has emphasized the deepest
thought of all the great teachers OF
the world. You may remember, for in
stance, the words of Socrates in his
I Defense, addressed to his accusers,
when in describing the greatest work
| man could do he said, "For do moth
| ing but go about amongst you, persuad-
| ing you all alike, young and old, not to
take thought of your persons or your
| properties, but to care about the great
est improvement of your soul" Than
that statement Of the great Greek
teacher the Gospel of Christ can add
| no stronger emphasis to the tremen-
/ \ q ,{o1, hN1a RI
growth of a soul.
! And yet it is just at this point that,
| for most of us, the real tragedy OF
| spiritual experience unveils itself.
| What is it that most troubles you in
| your religious life, If at any moment
| your give yourself to honest self-exam-
! nation? What is the real discourage
| ment that haunts us even in our keen
est prayers and most fervent suppilca-
/! tions? Is 1t not just this-our utter
| poverty in soul growth, the dreadfui
lack of any real evidence of progress III
i spiritual things? Judged by the or
i dinary standards of life our souls do
not grow. At the very best they sim
ply stand still, so that spiritually, even
the best Of us. are pretty mitch as we
were fifteen or twenty years ago, with
Il
same temptations present. with others
of us it is worse than that. In spite
Of our PRAYERS and aspirations we are
conscious. when we are brave enough
to face the fact, that spiritually we
grow more stunted and dwarfed as the
years pass on. Our faith becomes less
feryid. the spirit Of prayer dWlndles'
the sense of God evaporates IN the
| sitting atmosphere of ,selfishness and
worl]liness that wraps itself like sea
fog around us. That, repeat, is the
spiritual tragedy that plays itself Out
/ in the secret places Of our lives; splr-
itually we do not grow as we ought
our souls lack that touch of life which
reveals itself in ever deepening
strength and power. .----