Los Angeles herald., 1906-11-26
INCARNATION IS
MARVELLOUS FACT
EXCEEDS EVERYTHING IN
HUMAN EXPERIENCE
Spiritual Nature Results from Spirit
uaI Birth, Says Rev. A. c. Smlther
at the First Christian
Church

At the First Christian church yes
terday morning Rev. A. C. Smither
preached on Christ Formed in U.s."
He said in part:
1.-THE most marvellous fact in human
experience is the incarnation. The
incoming of God into human flesh in
the person of Jesus Christ is the
matchless story in the whole realm of
human history. How we marvel at
the story of the nativity. God came
into human flesh through the birth and
development of the Son of God. 1t was
birth apart from and above the Or
dinary processes of human generation.
1t was in accord with the high char
acter, the miraculous powers Of God.
What are Gods methods of working
in and through Christ are miracles to
us? They are in perfect accord with
his nature, though beyond our usual
experiences. God was incarnate in
Christ. Christ is inoarnate in us.
"As God came into human flesh
| through birth and growth SO Christ
comes into the, nature of the human
heart by birth, a birth of the water
and the Spirit. The Holy Spirit begets
new life in us through and by means
of the word of God. The birth is COM
pleted in Christian baptism, the mode
of which is beautifully symbolized in
birth, which also symboliZes the
changed relationship brought about by
this ordinance of the church. Jesus de-
clares, Except man be born of water
and the Spirit he can not enter into
the kingdom of God
Resulting from this spiritual birth
comes a spiritual nature. The child
shares the nature of the parent So
the Christian, as a result of this birth
becomes a partaker of the divine ma
ture. having escaped the corruption
there is in the world through lust
The Christian bears upon him the ma
ture of the Christ forming in him. His
ideas are formed by divine ideals. The
whole tenor of his life is based upon
divine standards. He has the infinite
filling and thrilling him. His heart is
attuned to the music of the eternal.
This informing of Christ Is pro-
duced by growth and development
even as Jesus grew in wisdom and
stature. The processes of spiritual de-
velopment must accord with it's value
and permanency. 1t is not wrought
out and perfected in an hour that 1t
may perish in a day 1t grows by
feeding upon the everlasting truths
of the divine kingdom, by activities in
the spiritual realm, by fellowship with
other kindred spirits and with the AL
mighty Jesus must ever remain the
ideal and the incentive in such growth.
This forming of Christ in us must
be done with an. adequate comprehen-
sion of the character of Christ He was
the perfect manifestation of the AL
mighty. In him was found no flaw. No
stain was upon his character He was
the perfect eXemplification of the
divine character. No man can grow
into the full likeness of Christ who
does not see in him the perfect image
and likeness to the Father. His life
must be surrendered, completely i'm.
aged after his Father.
The Christian must catch the great
underlying purposes of the Christ life.
His mission was to seek and to save
the lost, was not to be ministered unto
but to serve and give his life as a
ransom for the sins of the world.
This great work Is committed to the
hands Of his church. His followers are
to share these sublime purposes and
execute them among men. Surely to
save this world from the evils of sin
is task sufficiently great for his fol-
lowers, No man Is a true disciple OF
the Lord who does not share In his
work and bear on his heart a
part Of the burden of the Christ,
Christ formed in Christians brings
them to the largest and fullest life
possible to man. Under the loving
touch of Christ man is brought into
harmony with God, is properly related
to his fellow men and has his own
powers harmonized and thus ne enters
into the largest liberty the supremest
Joy of living. The man who would
attain to the highest Joy of living must
follow In the footsteps of the Master.
must be fashioned after the likeness OF
Christ"