Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1908-03-14

from the Dlrln VI JtSuo vi PO'NNA'~
meaning of Isaiah without connecting
Il with the story of the cruci1Xlon'
The Bible declares that when Phlllp
the evangelist climbed into the chariot
of Queen Candaces secretary OF the
treasury he openol his mouth ana be-
gan at the same Scripture and preach
cd unto him Jesus" Thus we nhu
that no matter how far one book OF
the Bible may antedate another, they
ALI revolve about the personality OF
Jesus Christ.
II YOU were to separate the books OF
the Bible from the personality OF Je-
sus they would be as meaningless as
one of the novels of Wilkie Collins
senorated from its central hero or hero
Inc or. as we sometimes say, tine play
of Hamlet with the part of Hamlet
left out" AS DR.. Saphir says: "lf the
Bible were like a collection OF stones
we might select some and put ASIDE
others as less valuable and beautiful,
and although in such selections we
might make great mistakes, we should
still be in possession of something more
or less complete. but the Bible Is ike
plant. and all its parts are not me-
chanlcally or accidentally connected
but organically united, and hence law
of life rules here. He who reyeres lie
will neither add nor take away from
the beautiful plant which the Father
hath planted in and through Christ by
the Spirit. Nobody asserts that man
would be killed If you cut off his nan
| and his nails. but there is a vital union
of all his members. If you cut oil my
little finger | shall survive 1t. but IL
nv little finger you cut of, and II Is
loss. a Disagreement SO with th'
! Bible. 1t is not like piece or ciotL
YOU can clip and cut. 1t is body AM
mated by one spirit" That Is true
Thus. as all the different parts OF th'
| phvsica body find their life action II
the throbbing heart, all the differen
oarts of the Bible find their potenc!
md their life giving force in the per
sonality of Jesus Christ. He Is TN
great hero of this book. He is the cen
fer the circumference, the all in all
the Scriptures. Whenever man read
any chapter Of the Bible without hnd
ing Jesus there he has failed to mt
ont the chief purpose for which ina
chapter was written.
The Origin of Jesus.
Now. who is this Bible hero? Wher
was he born? How was he born
Who wer, his ancestors? These ar
the ouestlons which every author OF
biography or of a novel which Is onl
a fictitious biography answers. Their
the author introduces you to his her
or heroine. He finds the cradle of h
hero in the Indian wigwam of Pow
hatan. as does the biographer OF Poc'
! hontas. or he surrounds yo' with I'll
rivalries and plots Of Queen Anne
tiuae. as does William Makepea'
lrFhh ckeray when he introduces TO yo
II Henry Esmond, or he tells you no
: King James VI. Of Scotland becan
| King James l. of England because
was the direct descendant of Margar
J Tudor sister of Henry VIII. of En-
t land. All books Of biography natura
= " give to us the genealogical hlstol
), of their heroes or heroines. They II
e how they were born and what blood
] flowing in their veins. SO does u
: Rihle in reference to Jesus Chris
e His nativity had divine origin. II
t conception was miraculous. lie WI
j and is omnipotent in power. All u
!; prophecies foretold it. All histo
n A. d. has proved 1t.
/ Oh. that you and l might ma
d vine and an omnipotent Christ IN eve
: part of that old Bible! May we do
J. did John Randolph, the great virgin
: orator One day he was entertalnii
IS q family friend at dinner, and he sd
TO him: II was raised by pious MOI
er-God bless her memory who taug
me- the Christian religion In all IT'S
q ouirements. But alas, | grew up
. . Infdel-if not an infdel completely,
q decided skeptic. But when
r came a man in this as well as III POI
- ical and other matters ! resolved
y examine for myself and never PIN
Il faith to any other mans sleeve %
- bouoht q Bible. | pOred over 1t a
:, examined it carefully. | sought d
n nrocured books for and against 1t, a
A. when nv labors were ended | came
~ This irresistible conclusion: The 81
10 is true. 1t would have been as ea
n for an ignorant rustic to have wrlt'
n Sir Isaac Newtons Principal as
m uninsured men to have written
~ Blble.v So may we study the Blole
70 reference to the divinity or Je'
4 Christ. May we read all the Messi
y ic prophecies. May we read all Chris
20 miracles. May we stand at the era
IN and at the riven tomb of Christ a
be in every chapter of every book II
40 we see divine and Omnipotent Cnl
od os the chief hero of this book. n
vo we find Christ the center, the circt
~. ference. the all in all of the Holy Sc
at lures. "Then Philip opened his mo
on and began at the same Scripture
Of preached unto him Jesus"
as Why Christ Came.
ln- Having asserted the divinity and
as nipotent power of Christ, what n
10 does the Bible do? 1t tells us the CT
ne motives which actuated that diN
Die life. AS the biographer of Simon i
'p- var slowly and irresistibly leads
W. along In the study Of his hero until
or
m last you find the great Venezuelan
orator dedicating his life to the
in dom of his adopted land; as the o
md rapher of Handel tells about the
of umphs. the struggles and the DEF
wy of the grand old musician, clingln
Of his high ideals Of sacred oratorlo
of after the fickle multitudes OF Lon
be- had turned their backs upon him IN
nee rision and scorn; as the biograpner