The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1909-01-05
IN THE RELIGIOUS WORLD
What the Church Folk Are Thinking About and
Doing. Religious News From
Elsewhere
SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSON. CHILDREN'S TOPIC

The coming Of the Somebody whom
Jesus sent was at once the baptism.
confirmation and ordination of the
disciples This was the seal of real
succession to the apOStOlate. Not all
the hands of bishops or presbyters can
make a man a minister of the Gospel
who has not shared in the Pentecostal
enduement. He who came on that
great day, riding a chariot Of wind, has
never left the Church. Beneath my
hand lies a book. The Future Lead
ership Of the Church" which IS
greatly concerned Yer the dearth OF
candidates for the ministry That IS
not the real problem: the future cad
ership of the Church. On which alone
her work depends. is the accepted
leadership Of thai Somebody who has
been her leadc since ever Jesus as
cended. The peril of modern organ
lied Christendom is that this supreme
truth will be overlooked. ana depend7
ence placed upon theological seminar
les and scientific learning for the Gre
alto Of a ministry. Except that Breath
which filled the Upper Room in Jeru-
salem on the Day Of Pentecost breathe
npon a mans spirit. not all the wis
dom of man can make him an ap-
pointed successor to the apostolate.
Everybody knows how empty are
words without pOWer-"SOunding
brass and tinkling cymbals,' the
apostle happily calls them. SO is the
message of christianity without the
help of the Somebody who came At
PentecoSt. The historical facts and
moral teachings of our religion wOuld
have no moral influence upon the
herats of men than the story Of the
Roman Empire or the philosophers OF
Plato. were it not for this supernatural
reinforcement. haNes seen nun
dredS of men, yellow aHd brown, VINO
have been lighted out of an old life
that was heathen. and made to shine
With the virtues that are Christian
! and all this without temporal advan-
tage to themselves, but real suffering
because of the power of the Gospel
which this Spirit makes live. That is
as much of a miracle as the speaking
with other languages which amazed
the many-ton2ued multitude at Pen
tecoSt.
The Great Day, and Today.
The backward look upon the great
dav of Pentecost is profitable; but
only for the sake of today. All truth
is worth considering only in relation
to present life. 1t means much that
the Somebody who came in Jesus
stead entered in sovereignty the
Church in Jerusalem; it means more
that he abideS in the Church and In
the world today. All the beauty OF
saintliness. all h power of preached
word. all the beneficence Of Christian
service, are due only to his might.
Whether he speaks through tongues
suddenly and supernaturally given. or
whether ne speaks through the hun
dreds Of native languages into which
the Plbfe has been translated. whether
by the voice of Peter On PcntecoSt, or
by the stumbling speech Of the mis-
I sion worker. it is the same Spirit do
ing the same work Of the same Jesus.
The Profound present meaning OF
this great P~entecostal lesson is that
! tho Sni,it who laCnanda2 a ftnr laCiIS
had assembled appears to be moving
upon the life OF the nations today with
unusual power. There are WOndrous
monitionS coming from all quarters
of the Church. The mind of Jesus
seems to be leavening the world. The
apostolic conception of q gospel to be
preached to all men is once more grip
ping the will of Christendom. The
spirit of unity which marked Pente-
cost is again being shown forth pX
believers. And the hungry spirit OF
mankind is waiting, cropping, praying
for a visitation of vital, powerful re-
ligiOn which can come only in the
presence and person of the Paraclete,
ChriSt'S Other Self.