The Monmouth inquirer. [volume] (Freehold, N.J.) 1865-1933, 1907-03-07

less each one of their messages had
been painted by the hand of masterf
Do you believe that Bunyan's allegory
would be read by the hundreds Of thou
sands and the millions unless, like
Christ's parallels, it was the wonder
of all literary critics? Do you believe
that Philip Phillips and P. P. Bliss
and Thomas Hastings and an Ira d.
Sankey would have charmed the thou
sands for Christ unless their voices
came from sweet singing throats7 Do
| you suppose that the sermons Of Guth
| rie, Chalmers, Parker, Beecher or Rob
ertson would today be in every minis
| ter's library unless those sermons, like
the orations of Edmund Burke, were
| adorned with chaste and beautiful Ian
/ guage? These men were not crude
men. They took the precious jewels Of
their minds and cut them and polished
them and gave them in service to Jesus
| Christ The more those mental jewels
sparkled the more service they were
| able to perform for their Divine Mas
ter. The very best possibilities you
have in your mind you should reach
for and grasp and then harness fol-
your larger developed intellect in the
Masters work
Developing Talents.
But" you say, what does that
mean? Are you asserting that only In
tellectual geniuses are fitted for gospel
work? Do you affirm that the iIliterate
and uneducated can do but little or no
good for the Master?" No, no.
am not asserting that. But I am as
sorting that there is at least one door
of your intellect like the fir tree doors
of the inner sanctuary of the Solomonic
temple which is capable of the most
| wonderful carvings. That one door
leads into a music room, or into a
teachers room, or into an art gallery,
/ or into writer's study, do not know
what that one talent Of your mind is,
but know that you have one great
talent. Develop it for Jesus Christ.
Develop it to the very best of your
ability Make it's sounds the sweet
est. Make its colors the brightest
Make its parallels the most convincing
Make it's orations the most powerful
Say, "By the help of God l will take
this talent of mine and develop 1t In
tellectualy that l may truly serve my
Master in an aesthetic as well as in
spiritual way"
When | was student our honored
theological professor, DR.. Thomas 8.
Hastings, was lecturing to the boys
! and giving us long list of books
which he wanted us to study. These
books, if l remember Alright, covered
all the fields of literature, poetic, sci
entific, historical, as well as Biblical.
He was not only telling US how to
study the Bible by commentaries, but
also how to enrich our sermons by
gathering our illustrations from all
sources. You ali know what it means
in plain English. If you would serve
God Alright, serve him with the best
developed brain that you can produce.
Go to the best of music schools and
train your songs for Christ. Go to the
best of all colleges and train your
brain for Christ Gather for Jesus all
the best products of the scientific as
well as the artistic and the historical
and political life. Make your intellect
the fir tree doors of the inner sane
tuary carved with cherubim and palm
trees and flowers in blossom. The best
that we have or can have in the intel
lectual life should all be consecrated
to the Masters service.
If it is important for us as indiyidu-
ais to develop our intellects along the
lines Of the beautiful, how much more
important is it for us to have homes
every door of which is engraved with
cherubim and palm trees and blossom
ing flowers! If it Is important to
adorn our own individual lives, how
much more important is it by the di
rect or indirect examples in the home
to adorn those lives which are living
close to us!
A Staggering Thought.
1t is staggering thought to me that
/ individually can do just about what
l like with each one of my children for
nearly twenty years, or for nearly one
half or one-third of their lives. can
tell them what time they are to go to
bed and what time they are to get up.
1 can tell them what kind of food they
are to eat and what they are not to eat.
I can pick out all their clothes and
limit them in the books they are to
study and to read. / can tell them
what pictures they are to look at and
what they are to do in my house. In
other words, for fifteen or sixteen
years of my children's lives can abb
solutely do as I will in forming their
characters when they are living within
the four walls of my house. OF course
mean l can do as l please If their
mother agrees. On the other hand, I
sometimes think the wife can do as
she pleases with the children, whether
the husband agrees or no. Now, my
friends, if we as parents have such a
marvellous influence upon the lives OF
our children do you not feel that we
should do everything in our power to
develop their minds in an intellectual
way for Jesus CHI st? Do you not be-
Iiava that avarvl aoor of 0I1r homes