The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-05-03
PRESBYTERY IMPRESSED
 BY REV. LITTLE'S SERMON

GA sermon preached for the presoytery of Tuscaloosa on April r, 1907, by the Rev. A. A Little, and published by re- quest of the presbytery)
 Text-Matthew 12th chapter and 18th verse: For the Son of Man is Lord even Of the Sabbath day"
 It is the custom of the presbytery, not only to select speaker to preach a doc trinal sermon at the meeting of presby- tery, but also to prescribe the subject upon which he shall speak. The subject upon which I wish to address you, by the appointment of the presbytery Is "Christ's Attitude Towards the Sabbath" " The claim of our text that the "Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbah day. is one, that we are all willing to allow, whether Christians In name or in fact. We recog- nize that Christ has the right to dictate the law of the Sabbath. He it was, that imprinted upon the heart of man the im- perative desire for a day of rest. He 1t was, that spoke amidst the thunder or Sinai, saying Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy" He it was, that emphasized the law of the Sabbath in his earthly life, both by practice and by teaching. His word is final The sole question for a Christian man or woman is simply What was Christ's teaching. and what his practice?' It is, therefore, not a question of Jewish ceremony, as some suppose, to be flung upon the rub Dish heap of the past-it is Just as pertl- nent to the twentieth century as it was to the first. It is one of the living laws which no time can abrogate, and no changed conditions can destroy Deter mine at once what Christ did and said, and controversy is forever at an end. Obedience Is the only thing left.
 I think there is very much to justify this sermon. Observant man can see a decided drifting away from the scriptural and Christ-like observance of the Sab bath day. I met young man the other day just before the hour Of evening wor- ship. I invited him to church, and he said "I am really too tired. I have had to work hard all day long;' it was the Sabbath day. Our railroad shops are busily at work upon this day. Great freight trains. carrying cotton, iron and lumber are rolling along our great rail- iOdu l4htof lliclis III q ilouSdiu forms, men are compelled to labor upon the Sabbah day. I have a most profound sympathy with the efforts to secure a "Child Labor Law to protect the help less and innocent children, but I cannot help feeling that we need more, law to protect the helpless employees who must make their daily bread by toiling upon ment of their bodily welfare. but some tn of inn a souls.
 There are two distinct tendencies in the drifting away from the proper observance of the Sabbath day One is to make 1t a day of work. The other is to spend 1t fin animal pleasure Like many another good thing, the Sabbah day is in danger of being crucifed between two thieves. Let us then carefully consider, from the teaching and practice of Jesus Christ, what we ought to do, and what we ought not to do on the Sabbah day:
 First. It is agreed that the ordinary vacations of life ought to be laid aside. Deep down in the human system Is an imperative need of rest. No machine can run forever Those who have taken a trip upon the railway of some distance can recall that at certain places the en- zine is detached and another put in it's place. The master mechanics of our great railway systems have learned that even as fine piece of machanism-lifeless as 1t is-as an engine, must needs rest. If this be true, how much more surely does that most delicate piece of machinery called man need to have days of rest
 A little over 100 years ago, when the French nation, a great people as they are. attempted to put God out of religion and philosophy, they abrogated the Sab bath day. They soon found that they could no do without 1t; they established one day in ten as a rest day" They found that would not do, and finally, though rejecting God and Jesus Christ, and the holy scripture, they came to es- tablish one day in seven as absolutely necessary to the material welfare of man.
 What was the custom of Jesus Christ ? We read in Luke, 4-16, And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. and, as His custom was He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day." You will remember that Jesus Christ wa poor, that He made a living for Him. self. His mother and His younger brethren as a village carpenter and yet, however imperative the demands of His business were. on the Sabbath day he laid down his tools and attended the house of God.
 Jesus Christ not only practiced, but fIs taught as prophet the universal vali1 ity of the Ten Commandments. One of these is. Remember the Sabbath day to keep 1t holy" Some work Is necessary to be done on this day, and Christ rec ognized this. In the very passage from which this text is taken, He defends His disciples for preparing necessary food on this day: but the very fact that some work is necessary and innocent upon the Lords day. proves logically, by inference, that some work is unnecessary and there fore wrong. It Is not necessary to buy and sell. to open up business houses of any kind or character, except 1t may be for medicine. It Is not necessary to open our business mail and form our business plans. The most prosperous merchants that I know are men who never see their mail from Saturday night until Mon day morning. It is not necessary to be- gin our business trips on Sunday after noon. With all the means of transporta- ton in every part of our country, we can