The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1908-07-24
THE PULPIT.
4 SCHOLARLY SUNDAY SERMON eY
Or. CURTIS LEE LAWS.
Subject: Christianity and Business.


Thou shalt remember the Lord thy
God. for il is He that giveth thee
| power 10 get wealth" DR.. Laws said:
When a man becomes a Christian
| he does not sever his relations 10 the
/ world in which he lives. He is given
10 Christ by the Father as a personal
and perpetual possession. but instead
| of translating him, Christ sends him
/ back into the very world from which
he has been saved. Christ said 10
| the Father: LAS Thou hast sent Me
/ into the world, even so have | also
! sent them into the world" But when
] Christ sends the saved man back into
| the world, He sends him back as a
! new man. "They are not of the world.
| even as | am not of the world" The
! Christian is in the world, but in the
world with a new motive, a new pur-
! pose and a new power. Our Master
well knew that IL would be difficult
! for His disciples TO be in the world
| without being Of the world, and so He
| prayed: "I pray not that Thou
/ shouldst take them out of the world,
but that Thou shouldst keep them
| from evil" From the beginning,
| therefore. the relation OF the Chris
tian TO the affairs of life has been n
|
study. In the early times there were
! fanatics who felt that il was below
! the dignity OF a Christian TO enter the
secular pursuits in which they had
! formerly been engaged. They gave
up their business and brought dis
credit upon their profession by the
vagaries Of their other worldism. The
Apostle Paul tried TO correct this
abuse in his second letter to the Thes-
salonians In his first epistle, in view
OF the second coming Of Christ, he
had urged the people TO separate
! themselves from the world. Misinter-
! preting his purpose, they had given
up their regular employments, and
! had gotten into mischief In the Sec
pnd epistle the apostle says: For we
hear that there are some which walk
among you disorderly, working not at
all but spending their time as busy
bodies. Now, them that are such we
command and exhort by our Lord
Jesus Christ, that with quietness they
work and earn their own bread"
The greatest problem for the Chris
tian man is to adjust himself TO the
! callings and pursuits Of this life, that
| he may best serve God, his fellow men
and the highest interests of his own
soul. Instead of translating us to
! glory at our conversion, God leaves
us here that we may perfect personal
! holiness, working out our own saliva
| tion with fear and trembling, and
! that we may win the world TO our
new-found King. These are the two
! functions of the Christian. 1t is the
will OF God for His people to engage
! in the ordinary vocations of this
| -nV11 Int thnty ,nrt
! living and at the same time show
| forth to the world the saving and
! keeping power OF Jesus Christ.
| Though it is the will of God for His
! people to engage in the business of
] this world, it can be readily seen that
there are certain limitations which
arise from our relations TO God.
But, again, the Christian man can
engage in no business which will
| harm his fellow men, whom he has
/ been sent TO win to Christ. If you
/ are in a business which is honest and
( legitimate, others will share with you
/ the benefit OF that business. t. your
! gain means loss to others, then your
/ business is not the business in which
Christian man can engage. If you
! cannot conduct this business your
/ self, you cannot own stock in il and
| share in the profits Of il without bar
| tering your soul for gold. If you
/ can't conduct the business yourself,
| you cannot rent your property for the
! conduct of such a business without
adding hypocrisy to your other sins.
| May God have mercy on the hypo-
critics who will not soil their hands by
engaging in a wicked business, but
who will stuff their pockets full OF the
| dirty money received as dividends or
/ rent from the conduct of this same
| wicked business.
] Note now some Of the incentives TO
! business activity. Thou shalt re-
member the Lord thy God, for He has
! given thee power to get wealth" The
! money-making gift is from God. The
apostle urges us 10 be diligent in bust
ness. fervent in spirit, serving the
! Lord. God las no patience with in
! dolence and sloth. All through the
| Bible the stamp of Gods approval is
! put upon industry, while His curse
| ever rests upon idleness. II is Cod
| like TO work Our Lord said, "The
| Father worketh hitherto and work.
! There is no place in Gods economy
for the idler He cumbers the
| ground.
Business activity brings wealth,
| and this is an incentive which ought
/ tsappeal 10 the generation in which
we are living. Wealth ought 20 be
| desired by every man, because wealth
| is a mighty factor in the world in
/ which we live.
Think OF what wealth can do for
| the individual. II can give oppor-
tunity TO acquire high and noble
! tastes II can give leisure for study
| and research. These in turn will
/ cause the mind 20 grow stronger and
/ the character to grow nobler Wealth
| can purchase length Of days, and IL
/ can secure 10 us the atmosphere In
/ which human love can blossom and
/ bear fruit 20 perfection.
Think OF what wealth can do for
| the family. II can surround our
( loved ones with books and paintings
/ and statuary. II can provide the
highest culture for our children. IL
| can enable US 20 dispense a generous