The Semi-weekly leader. (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1905-1941, 1909-04-03
CIVIC RIGHTEOUSNESS.
A TIMELY SERMON BY REV. ". E.
PHIFER. PRESBYTERIAN
PASTOR.
Delivered at the Presbyterian Church
in BrOokhaven Sunday.
March 2S, 1909.
Continued from Wednesdays Issue. J

(Contl1ueQ from w wednesdays 1SSue.)
8. A third reason that contrib
utes to a growing state of lawless-
ness and unrest is the revolt against
the established principals of theolo-
gy and faith. The New York
Tribune recently published the fol-
lowing: ''The Rev. Frank w.
Gunaulus stated that he would re.
main pastor of the congregational
church on the condition that the
church broaden its creed from theo-
logical to ethical standards, and
make the door large enough to ad-
NIT man as religiously great as
Abraham Lincoln, however small
he might be theologically." LIN
coin did not belong to any church,
but it is often said of him that he
tried to please God. This is vague
and uncertain. The standard Of
morals, the rule of life is the
Divine word. We should not accept
the moralizings of Marcus Aurelius,
or OF Epictetus or any man, how
ever great, save as those agree with
the great principles of faith as laid
down in the Scriptures. When
men do this they live in an atmos-
phere of reason and not one of faith
in the infalIible word. The ethical
standards of no man may be taken
in preference to the doctrines of
the word of God. The growing
tendency in many quarters is to
exalt reason above revelation, and
to make man law unto himself.
The true standard for sinful man is
not his reason. but the Scriptures,
the only infallible rule of faith and
practice. The drift in many places
today is towards a liberal ethics
which esteems the Bible as mere
literature, regards its doctrines as
figures of speech, and believes just
what it pleases. Destructive criti-
cism and some of it within the pale
of the church is doing much in this
age to shake the faith of men in
the absolute inspiration of the
Scriptures as a Divine revelation
from God to man. | received re.
Gently a volume Of sermons from
the pastor of one Of the most infu-
entiaI churches in New York City,
John D. RockefeIler's church, and
in two of those sermons there are
direct attacks made upon the in
spiration of Genesis. The first
sentence is one of them begins,
"No student of science is able to
believe that such a flood as that
recorded in the early chapters OF
Genesis ever took place in the his
tory of the human race. That view
is no longer held by persons of or
dinary education. :" In another in
regard to Moses and the serpent we
have this statement: Eve need
not stay to consider what fact, il
any, lies behind this incident"
A Unitarian minister in New Or.
leans delivered series of lectures
the other week on Liberalism ir
| Religion, in one of which occurs
this statement, which is little less
than bIasphemous: 'Take the doc
trine of the atonement, which j:
certainly immoral, and no wonder
the whole cult that surrounds it l:
discredited. The teaching thai
morality outside of faith or grace
is useless or evil is an offense
against the decent principles of life
that smells to heaven. When sal
walton is a gift instead Of an
achievement it has no ethica
basis.
Why, the doctrine of the vica
rious atonement of the Son of Goo
. is the heart and center of the gos
!. pei, and is believed by all the
church, both Catholic anC
) Protestant, and is denied only b,
the RationaIists and the Unitarians
Without this the whole magnificent
and only plan of salvation is thrown
overheard. What is the Bible gooC
! for from Genesis to Revelation
: without showing us the fullness 0.
the God head bodily in the persor
) OF Emmanuel. God with us? Wha
is earth without a Christmas in it
the hallowed story of the babe borl
i, in the manger and the angels song
of Glory to God in the highest
and on earth peace, good vii
. toward men?" What is Heaver
2 without Christ in it, and the Re
demptive song sung by voices from
all nations? CELSIUS, who lived il
$50 A. D. was a pagan and one o
the bitterest opponents Christianit,
ever had: a man who by his owl
writings, instigated the blood,
prosecutions against the Christians
: He says that Jesus was the natura
son of-Mary and the son of Got
!, only in the sense in which all mel
!. are the children OF God; that it i
ridiculous to believe in miracles
such as the changing of water int,
wine, ETC.; that it is wrong to be
lieve in the Divinity of Christ, ant
folly to believe in an atonement b,
his death upon the cross; or in th
resurrection. To assume suprem
being and to strive after perfec
tion, this is the only rational re
lligion, according to this writer.
!. Thus that which today is parade,
as the greatest ethical and religion
progress Of the twentieth century
!. lis but the warmed-over paganisn
i of man who lived and taught hi
E Iinhdel views few decades afte
the death Of the Apostles.
Such, then, are some of the con
Il sks .s.l.