Los Angeles herald., 1907-05-20
COMPARES SAUL
TO DEPOSED BOSS
RUFF is CALLED PERVERSl0N
OF POWER
William Horace Day Finds Striking
Illustration of .Self-Centered Life
in CRATER Brought to
Justice

At the First Congregational church
yesterday morning William Horace
Day, D. D., preached on Saul, the
Perversion of Power" taking for the
text Jehovah's words, HE is turned
back from following me-" He used
Mr.. Browning's Interpretation of tEe
strength and the failure of King Saul
to supplement the biography in SAM
uel. He said:
IF ever a man had a great chance
to make the world his debtor 1t was
Saul. Israel, whom God had destined
to serve as the channel through which
moral redemption should come, was
ready to become conscious of national
life Saul's modesty, his merciful
spirit added to his great valor, united
the nation and Israel rejoiced great
ly." All the princely qualities seemed
his; "All brought to blaze on the head
of one creature-King Saul" Saul was
a failure not because he lacked power
but because he perverted power.
self-centering of Saul
"The transformation of the modest,
mighty, merciful prince of Jabesh into
the dishonorab ble rash, avaricious hyp-
ocrite mad with jealousy and covering
in superStitious terror in Witch's hut,
LOOK Ildlly yGdlS, puI IL bC6IIl NAtS
minute Jehovah could say He is
turned back from following me- Saul
the disobedient was no longer \God-
centered; the moral machinery began
to pound itself to pieces because it
was out of adjustment. At first it
seems insignificant, but 1t grows into
perverted power divorced from the
diviner ends. AT last he is Saul the
mistake. Saul the failure This abject
N tho Of his mad
ness or wild with homicidal mania.
He is Saul ye remember in glory.
ere error had bent the broad brow from
the daily communion
1.-The divine discipline of this self
centered soul perverting it's power is
wonderful. Jehovah used Samuel to
caution the new king to fear God with
his whole heart and again to condemn
sacrilege, disobedience and hypocrisy;
this old man who loved Saul and
mourned for him till the day of his
death. The almighty heart uses not
only the old man with warning. and
condemnation but the young man, at
tractive and strong. David plays the
harp to refresh Saul in his melancholy
I believe Mr.. Browning has touched
the spirit of David when he pictures
the singer as musing:
" 'Ay, to save and redeem and restore
him, maintain at the height this
Interpose at the difficult minute;
snatch Saul the mistake i
and bid him awake
Clear and safe in new light and new
lifea new harmony yet
"All the way God draws us back
from the self-centering which wastes
power. He warns, disciplines, woos
with song, or chastens with tears.
The process of deterioration is de-
scending stair turning on landings
from which the soul must needs glance
back and see whence it has come
and remember that it may turn back
and climb if it will-but Saul would
not.
Abe Ruef Modern Perversion
mo more stirring illustration of the |
self -centered life and it's perversion |
of great power could be realized than |
the scene last Wednesday in Judge |
Dunnes court room at San Francisco. |
Abraham Ruef, the boss of the north, |
confessed. He is not like some of the |
men of great native ability who have |
never had opportunity to know any |
thing but the brutal side of life. We |
need not be so surprised that Butler, |
the man whom Folk overthrew in ST. |
Louis, makes terrible abuse of power |
but Ruef has the blood of Gods COW
enant people in his veins. A graduate
of the University of California, with
qualities like Saul. He was
popular among his classmates, over
flowed with wit, possessed an exceed
ingly keen mind, and if we may trust
his own words, went into political life
with high ideals, but the self-centered
life forgot the God of his fathers and
the law of righteousness; avarice puts
forth it's blossom, hypocrisy, malice
and finally cowardice flourish. A man
of splendid powers he might have
helped the progress of his people to
whom God has committed a work for
the worlds redemption, but today he
is the mistake, the failure, because he
is turned back from following after
Jehovah.
Strong men and talented women
allow the wheel of life to get away
from the center and become an eccen-
tric. They excuse the little selfish
nesses- which grow. Beware how you
surrender the daily communion by
which you keep true to God. The null
titude of blessings are a snare to us
unless we follow hard after him. He
sends his Samuels to warn us, his
Davids to WOO us back, his chastise-
ments and disciplines, all that we may
turn unto him.
"'Only fear Jehovah and serve him
in truth with all your heart; for con-
slider how great things he hath done
for you"