Los Angeles herald., 1907-07-15
SAYS OLD IDEA
OF DEVIL HAS PASSED
NO LONGER FEAR A BURNING
HE'LL
Right Thinking Men Nowadays More
Concerned In Improving Earthly
Conditions Than In Thoughts
of the Future

Rev. C. C. Pierce preached at the
Memorial Baptist church last night on
aThe Tools of Our Grandfathers," taking
for his text the words Of Christ, mo man
nuttetb new wine into old bottles" He
said in part:
Everybody with any powers of observa-
tion whatever beholds on every hand evil
dences that we are living in an age OF
marvellous material progress. TAKE prleL
excursion through the city or town OF
modern times and you will pass examples
of this at almost every step.
'In place of the Indians old birch park
canoe we have the great ocean liner. In
place of the pack train. the locomotive and
its train of cars; in place of the weary
seamstress, the sewing machine; IN place
of the suuaw's rude mortar and depression
in the rock, the modern milling plant; in
place of the sickle, the modern harvester
in place of the primitive saws OF our
grandfathers, the modern sawmill Win Its
marvellous machinery.
mo one thinks of going back and MAX
ing permanent use of these tools OF our
srandfathers, for we have something bet
ter The tools our ancestors used were
all right for them, for they were the pest
they had They did good work with them
and achieved good results. but we nave
found d better way. In the use OF THESE
rude tools they were seeking the same
thing that we are seeking when we aVall
ourselves of more modern methods
Now the change that has been going
on in the material only family illustrates
what has been going on in the intellectual
and spiritual realm of man.
World Has Changed
"If we live in different world from that
known to our grandfathers, materially
considered and make use of different TOOLS
for the accomplishment of certain Things
so do we live in different world intel
lectually, and l might almost say spirit
ually. Some of the conceptions that our
fathers used with a good deal OF erect
because they were the best they had have
been laid away because we have found
better and a truer way. Some OF the con-
ceptions which in their hands had
powerful effect in molding character and
assisting man to get out of his low IDEAS
up TO something better have had to De
given up because those very conceptions
have led on to something batter and more
effective.
1--WE who preach today are seeking to do
precisely what our fathers sought to do:
We have precisely the same material to
work upon. The great fundamental laws
and truths of our being have not been
but we are finding that some OF
the things that we seek to do can no
longer be achieved with tools and con- |
ceptions of other days. We are living IN
a different realm Intellectually and physlc-
ally. Things that were said with marvel
Gus effect to our grandfathers fall on our
ears and produce no effect whatever.
Now no one would hold that we have
discovered or evolved any new way of
getting into heaven The fact is the |
earnest men of the age in which we do
all they can to make this earth little
more like heaven. Many men are seri-
earnest men of the age in which we live do
destroy some of the hells which we see all
around us.
Certain conceptions of God, of the
Bible, of hell, of the devil, many of which
arose in days of limited knowledge and |
great superstition, are having to give way
for new conceptions which have their
basis in great facts of existence and !
destiny and which will appeal and are |
appealing to a growing class of people.
THE growing intelligence of the age de-
mands not only a new nomenclature for
the adequate expression of the great
truths of religion, but equally a new set
Of conceptions, which will harmonic with
the growing enlightened consciousness OF
the race Many of the old ideas which in
the days of our grandfathers were held
up before men with greater power and
which held almost irresistible sway over
the lives of men are now found to be in
Whether this is right or not. whether
this presents us with a fact that is to be
deplored or not. am not here to say, but
l am simply pointing out the fact and as
an intelligent man seeking to find the
thing that will do the best work in assist
M NIL TO oil
ties for time and for eternity"