Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1909-11-29
PEOPLES
Sermon by
CHARLES T.
RUSSELL,
Pastor Brooklyn
Tabernacle.

Sunday. November 2S.--Pastor Rus
sell Of Brooklyn Tabernacle" preach
ed today from the above text. He said;
There Is a beauty and consistency
in the Bible which many overlook. to
their own confusion Failing TO right
ly divide the Word Of Truth" Oh Tim
othy If. 15D, failing To discriminate
between the consecrated believers and
nominal believers Of the world, which
the Bible everywhere recognizes. has led
10 this confusion. To the logically-mind-
ed thus confused, the Bible IS an unrea-
sonable Book, inconsistent with facts.
These matters are well illustrated in
our text. which was addressed, not to
all mankind. nor to merely nominal
Christians-but to Christians. I'm God
the Father and IN the Lord Jesus
Christ" as the introduction shows.
This word IN means something more
than Is generally appreciated. Note
the Savior's words. "lf man love me
he will keep my words and my Father
Will love him. ard we will come unto
him and make our abode with him"
II am in my Father. and ye in me and
] IN you" (John xiv. 20, 23l. The whole
testimony of the Scriptures Is that
those who attain to this glorious one
ness with the Father and with the Son
are In all but a little flock" and
amongst them are mot many great,
not many wlse not many learned"
IL is to this class alone that the Scrip
lures are addressed-th though to some
extent including a justified class sup
posedly approaching this sanctihed
condition. These may well be inform
ed by the Apostle that they should "in
everything give thanks" when in full
harmony with the Divine will.
But note the confusion of attempting
to apply these words to the world In
general. What has the world TO be
thankful for-from It's own standpoint?
II knows not what Gods future pur-
poses are, which therefore, cannot en-
ter into its consideration. And with
out that knowledge of coming blessings
life is often so little appreciated that
self-destruction Is preferred. Undoubt-
edly the number OF suicides would be
far greater than It is, were 1t not for
n certain fenr or dread that the future
might be more terrible than the present
The average man. heathen and civ
ilized. knows that his coming into the
world was without his consent He
eats and drinks and sleeps and labors,
because these are necessities. He has
headaches aud heartaches, and every
other kind. Altogether his experience
is "of few years and full Of trouble
His chief pleasure is in hoping for and
striving 70 attain pleasure. And when
the cup" of supposed happiness is In
his hand. the gall of bitterness Is found
mingled with IT, and its dregs are
sorrows. Can such a man be thank
full? especially IL he has been taught
the doctrine Of the dark ages re-
specting the future-that when he
shall die he will either be ushered
into a Purgatory of centuries or tor
ture indescrbable. or, worse still. that
his lot will be to suffer endlessly-un-
less he should be one OF the saints,
which he we'll knows he is not. and
which we all know, as the Bible de-
clares, are but few" Surely to call
upon such people for thankfulness to
God would be an absurdity, And II is
10 the credit OF the Scriptures that
they are not thus absurd. and that our
text is addressed, not TO those who
constitute the masses, but TO the lit
tie iock''-the saints.
oroaning Creations Hope.
Before proceeding to apply our text
10 the class to which II Is addressed
(the salntsl, we pause TO consider the
hope of the world In general, as set
forth IN the Scriptures, The knowl'
edge of this hope Is not granted TO the
world, but 90 the saints-that they
might know. might appreciate, the gra-
cious purposes of God toward mankind
IN general; and that they might under
stand also the Divine intention respect
ing their cooperation with God In the
blessings be purposes TO bring Cventu'
ally 10 all the families OF the earth.
The explanation of the sorrows OF
the world Is given In the Bible; which
tells as that sin lies at the door aud
that the mental. moral aud physical
blemishes which cause humanity such
distress are incidental 90 the penalty
pronounced against SIN; namely, death.
"The soul thnt sinneth, II shall die
Because Father Adam when on trial
representauyely for his race sinned
and came under sims penalty, "Dying
thou shalt die" therefore all his chill
dren sharing In his imperfeetions are
likewise Imperfect sinners, as ST. Paul
explains llomans v, l2l, Thus. dur
ing sixty centuries. approximately
twenty thousand millions of Adams
children have been born In sin and
shapen IA lniQuity" and have come
into the world condemned aud dying
mentally. morally ana physically,
Divine sympathy exercised iowar'
this race OF sinners provided Savior
.,who FOR the Joy that was SET before
him. sacrificed his llfe-for the worl1
1ohn nl i0l. Jesus Christ by th'