The Semi-weekly leader. (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1905-1941, 1909-03-31
A TIMELY SERMON BY REV. ". E.
PHIFER. PRESBYTERIAN
PASTOR.
Delivered at the Presbyterian Church
in BFOOkhaVen Sunday.
March Is. 1909.

l.
One of the most pressing demands
of our time is for the elevation of
the moral standard in civic life. All
over this country there is clarion
call for Righteousness in the arena of
political activity. and it is sought
to arouse the Christian and moral
manhood of our country to a de.
termination to hold men to high
er level of action. Surely he who
studies needs Of the times, who
sees graft and corruption in high
places, who sees oftimes the lax en-
forcement of laws that are good
and salutary, will realize the ne
cessity that every man who is true
to his God and loyal to his country
and her laws will do what he can to
remedy evils that are apparent.
The Scriptures are not the foe but
the friend of civil government,
and so we read here in the 18th
chapter of Romans: ''Let every
soul be subject unto the higher
powers, for there is no power but
of God. The powers that be are
ordained of God."
In the first seven verses of this
chapter the apostle discusses the
subject of the duty which Christians
owe to civil government. The de-
sign of the apostle here is evident
ly to reconcile Christians to SUBJ
mission to the government. 1t is
appointed to protect the good
against the evil; to restrain oppres.
sion, injustice and fraud; to bring
offenders to justice, and thus pro-
mote the peace and harmony of the
community. It is designed to pro-
mote order and happiness, and so
long as this is obtained, it should
receive the countenance and sup
port of Christians; but if it departs
from this principle and becomes
the protector of the evil, and the
oppressor Of the good, the case is
reversed, and the obligation to it's
support must cease. =..zszlA.
There are in all in the United
States about twenty million church
members of all the different
protestant denominations. 1t is
through these, primarily, that true
loyalty to God, and the government
is to be hoped for. These indeed
are the leaven which is to leaven
the whole heap, and make for good
citizenship and good government.
Let US state just here however our
conviction that religious and civil
society are profoundly distinct, and
that the church and politics should
never be united. The arm of the
State is force. The arm of the
church is the Word. We must not
tie the church to the chariot
wheels of Caesar. Says Jesus:
Render to Caesar the things that
are Caesars, and to God the things
that are Gods" He had no au-
thority to urge the claims of Cae-
sar. He came to urge the claims
of God and he meant to keep his
promise. If they wanted to know
anything about the word and will
of God, he was ready to explain
and teach. Just here lies the pow
er of the Christian ministry; it is
not in attacking particular evils,
but in deepening the love of God
and of purity in the hearts Of the
people, SO that they will, sustain
those things which are pure and
lovely and of good report. In our
time, earnest effort is being made
to obliterate the distinction be-
tween the secular and the sacred.
The distinction is real and abiding.
Our Lord has set his own seal upon
it. They may run in harmony, but
they run, and must always run,
along distinct lines But while
this distinction is in evidence, the
Bible everywhere urges submission
to the rightful laws of the country,
and so here the apostle says: "Let
every soul be subject to the higher
powers. " Every good church
member should make good citi-
zen, and so from the standpoint Of
Christian citizenship, it is a COM
mendable thing that men band to-
gether in the fear of God to seek
for the enforcement Of the right
eous laws of the land.
We speak of our country as the
land of liberty, and to be sure it is.
one of the crowning blessings
vouchsafed to a human soul; but
liberty has its limitations, and
there is no liberty apart from law
and obedience. Self-restrai,nt is
liberty and self-indulgenrce iis slav-
cry. He who enjoys liberty Alright,
is he who stoops to wear the yoke
of law. All else is license, servi-
tude, death. Paul, in this chapter.
lnculcates submission to temporal
rulers and to temporal laws. We
see all about us the fragrant viola
tion of laws, both human and d.
vine. In all ranks and conditions
of socIety there is widespread vio-
lation Of law. There is d growing
inpatience of all restraint, both
human and divine. Lawlessness is
in evidence not, perhaps. more So
in our own State than III Others
but 50 much 50 that some Of the
best citizenship have banded o-
gether and formed a law and order
league. It betokens a fearful state
Of affairs when the laws uf any peOsl