The Greeley tribune., 1907-11-21

Maker? Jesus said TO the 1ndiyidla'
, men and women about him, t. tn
uulsive Peter, TO the woman who
anointed his feet with her tears, "a
the Pharisee and the publican, Re-
pent, repent, follow me. !" But he
also came preaching the kingdom Of
God, which is not only an indiyidua,
matter, but social matter. Ana
the very qualities which are listed
by the great apostle as fruits OF the
spirit are those through which man
touches and influences his fellow
men: what one could be omitted
The gospel of Jesus is gospel to the
individual man, but 1t Is also "a
gospel through the individual man
TO the life OF society. 1t aims not
only at the remaking of the char
acters of individual men, but II aims
at the Christ stianizing of human so.
ciety In every atom of Its being It's
| mission on earth will not be com
plete until not only every mar IN
the whole world has yielded up in.
diyidual!y to his God and Father,
but every human relation, without
one exception, has been filled with
the spirit of Jesus Christ, unit the
will of God is done OH earth as it is
done in heaven.
Let me call your attention briefly
to one or two of the social principle es
which the gospel enumsrates, which
the gospel narratives show us Clearly
were lived out in the community
which was one Of the first results Of
the early preaching. The frs Of
these to which l call attention is
one which instantly Transformed the
relationships of those who came
within the Christian fellowship Ii
is the great principle upon which
the great apostle SO constantly laid
emphasis: There can be neither
Jew nor Greek, there can be neither
bond nor flee, there can be no male
or female; for ye are all one in
Christ Jesus. - Or to quote another
of Faul's strong puttings OF the same
elemental truth There cannot be
Greek OF Jew, circumcision. harbar-
ian, Scythian, bondman, freeman;
but Christ is all and in ALL" If
men are really Christian, Christ is
being formed in them, and therefore
they are essentially the same in
those elements which make up the
real worth Of man, and therefore
class distinctions and race disiinc
tions, and all the barriers which pre-.
vent men from realizing theit essen-
tia, unity, are absolutely meaning.
less. All stand on the same, SsetAl
level because all are one in Clirisi.
Such society is pure democracy
and one can imagine how foolish and
utterly abhorrent such a doctrine
seemed to most of those who heard
it in that aristocratic age, when the
lines OF social caste were strictly
drawn, when the slave was mere
chattel, when even womannood had
no real sacredness. 1t was doc.
trine which must have been laughed
to scorn, yet 1t was at once put into
practice where Christ mastered
human lives. In those first Chris.
tian communities the Jew and the
Greek stood on equal footing, women
worshipped side by side with their
husbands, the slave and tie noble
man bowed together, shared the same
privileges and joys and died topet her
in the same arena. What is true of
the great European cathedral OF TO-
daJ where one can see rich and Door,
educated and uneducated social
leaders and social outcasts men.
women and children of every race
worshipping together, under the
protection of the same oyerarchinp
roof, was true of the emily Christian
church; as the book of the Acts tell
US: IAN that believed we're TO.
gether,' possessing one heart and
one voice; neither was there among
them any that lacked" For nron-
erty as we'll as faith was common
possession and every man was Glad
to help his neighbor in his need
My friends, is this great pripciple
OF the gospel worn out? Has our
century so completely absorbed II and
made 1t part OF its life that NOW II
can be cast away and fo,potten9
Alas, how little yet is Its i'm SIG.
hincance felt in our twentieth cen.
tury life! Witness the extrayaoance
and luxury loving and the conio,l
heartlesssness of SO many of tne ric,,
Dhe snoooery OF wealth and position,
even some times of education ,he
indifference of many who i,e IN
plenty to the bitter cry of bnman
heed, witness too the jealousy and
covetouSness which so oft,,