Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1906-01-13

he lifted up his hands and waved them
toward the countless shrines and wick
ed deities of Athens Then he uttered
the memorable words OF my text. And
the times OF this Ignorance God winked
at. but now commandeth all men
everywhere To- repent" AS God bore
with the ignorance OF the Greeks OF
old God has been bearing with our ig.
norance. but now our eyes are opened
as were those OF the AthenIans Now
u Is time for US TO repent Of our past
sins and surrender our hearts TO Jesus
Christ. Could we have a better time
TO do this than on this first Lords day
OF the new year? As the year 1905 has
slipped into the year 1905 we seem
TO be in almost as dramatic position
as were the Athenians when listening
TO the preaching OF the mighty Paul.
God in the first place has borne with
our ignorance theological. He has been
dealing with our creeds great deal as
he has been dealing with the shrines
Of the Athenian worshipers. To use
homely figure. he has been shutting
his eyes 10 our superstitions as moth.
er sometimes pretcnds not TO see the
wrongioings of her little child. because
she does not think II best to correct the
boy now. Man In the past has been
holding the Baptist creed and the Epis.
copal creed and the Methodist creed
and the Presbyterian creed and the
Lutheran creed and the Catholic creed
sometimes with as little intelligence as
did the Athenians worshiping at the
affairs Of a Mercury. an Apollo Ju.
piter. Juno and Hephaestus. but
now men are beginning to realize that
while IL Is important to adhere faith
fully to the creeds OF their respective
churches the supreme necessity Is that
they give their loyal worship TO the
Holy Trinity. Of whom God y the Fa-
tner and Jesus Christ the elder brother
and the holy spirit is the paraclete.
And yet. my friends. there was time
when Christian people built their Sec
tartan fences so high that they could
not see any good In any church unless
that church belonged to their own
household of faith.
No sooner did John Wesley come into
touch with the Moravians and get a
broader conception of Christ than had
the Episcopalians than ut once the
chancel of the Church of England was
closed against him. To the Episco-
palian he became a spiritual outcast.
No sooner did John Bunyan attempt TO
start forth as nonconformist preach.
err than at once lie had 10 surrender his
pulpit for Bedford Jail. No sooner did
Albert Burnes. like ST. John. get a
broader vision OF heaven than had his
ministerial brethren than he was de.
prived Of his Presbyterian orders. and
the greatest Bible teacher and com.
mcntator of his generation had to sit in
the pew OF the First Presbyterian
church OF Philadelphia as u worshlpet
instead OF standing In the pulpit as u
preacher All the prosecutions OF the
dark ages were due to the worship of
sectarian creed. All the horrors Of u
st. Bartholomew massacre and the
murderings OF the COvenanters among
Scottish hills and the fiendish works
OF Bloody Mackenzie and of n
Bloody Mary" were due To the wor.
ship at II UNCONVENTIONAL altar instead
Of the cross of Jesus Christ. oh. re-
ligion, religion, what awful crimes
have been committed In thy name! The
demons OF the darkest caverns and the
most bestial of sins have drenched
their garments with human gore be-
cause under the helmets OF sectarian-
ism they have been prompted TO I'M
sheath the sword of bigotry But now
all things are being changed. Paul re
revealed the unknown God" to the
Athenians. Jesus Christ has revealed
God 10 us Now our religious teachers
have become so broad that they are
ready to join all Protestant churches In
one great federation for Christian work
as long as the one cardinal doctrine OF
those churches Ii Jesus Christ the Saw.
Jour. who has come to save man,
sinner"
Christian Federation.
And. mark you. this revelation OF
| Christ has not been gladly acclaimed
by the churches during the past centu'
ries. but only within the last few years.
You must think OF this church fellow
ship as child of our youth and not
as Il blessing Of bygone generations. II
was as late as the life of Patrick Hen
~. who died In 1899. that the BAPTIST
ministers OF old Virginia were called
upon To defend themselves in the Grim
final dock because they were charged
with preaching the gospel of the son
OF God" You who are students OF his
tory recall how the same eloquence
which fired the American colonists for
"liberty or death" reused the hearts OF
his Jurors when Patrick Henry pleaded
for the freedom of the Indicted Baptist
ministers. My God" he cried. 'can II
be that any man should be charged as
a criminal for preaching the love OF
Jesus Christi" Then. again and again
he waved the indictment above him as
he said. "For preaching the love OF
Jesus Christ" But now. thank God. all
such criminal trials are past. God has
revealed himself TO us theologically.