The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-08-25

The following strong and forcefui l sermon. on the separation Of Church and State was preached by Rev. Bruce Doyle. of the Presbyterian Church at Marion; | things which are Caesars. and unto God the things that are Gods"-Mat- l thew xxii Fl.
 Ny, kiaSdss@ sing ss Ns not of this world"
 The words of the text were spoken byS tfie Lord Jesus Christ and form the | basis of our thought while we speak of the Spirituality of the Church.
 ernment of the church and Jewish na- ton was the same. member Of one, | a law of one; an officer of one Was the the other. cod made covenant with | a people and that people had q state and a church, for both God supplied In those days domestic. social, civil, and ecclesiastical affairs were wrapped in the same bundle. Sucn a condition was. in the wisdom of God. necessary ssey | in its infancy and the human family | was but a youth. Influences therefore were strongly felt. The Amalgamation | of church and state was te-guaru | for the society of the royal race.
 But since Jesus coming the organi- cations of church and state nave Deen' In the wisdom of God, better adminis-
 Jesus said that His Kingdom was not ] of this world that we must draw a line between the management ot Gae, isor | of the gospel. Jesus said that He was was | a king. and 1t was written over HIS head on the cross in three tongues | ed no army, and set up no throne in | His city. Jesus forlaye sins but paid i taxes with Roman coin:
 These He1reW mi %nrId d,d whG% so into Asia at once but could not carry | with them the government of judea ; | They had no time to waste on pohticaI oraticnss or civic tba ieachsng hsryest and the fruit was to be, gathered oy preachers CT | into the church of God and not the body politic of Caanans Lano; atle t1 ', begun at Pentecost but the conquered ones were not to do obeisance 10 the throne of solomon or Hezeklah; Ut It Kingdom not of this world, be enroll ed in the Lambs Book of Life, enlist with the army that fights with the S"Sso "Go ye W into ali the world and preach the gospel to every creature teaching them to observe all things whatsoeVo' commission given to the heralds of the | good news from Calvary's cross and | the empty tomb of the Risen Lord. That is the business of the church to-
 Jesus and His apostles lived and lab l ored under the worst of laws, the darkest of political clouds and vilest or or | civic slumS Yet from the records or their lives there comes to us not one sentence as to how men should vote or what method shuld be followed in pro curing political reform through the civil laws or courts. When the record of the life work of my Lord and Mas l fer is silent on Grecian Festivals, Ro- man gIadiatorial shows. institutions of slavery methodE or VotInss f. nom nomiHar ar intoxicants, why should 1 conclude that political Issues are fit for the sac red desk when l have sinners 6eiote my face the gospel in my hand ana see that hell awaits the enemies Of the
 The church is not to equip dental colleges, maintain law schools schools or eeaen a much right to tell farmer how he shall blow as to tell a suffragette now U" The chuhch has no authority for making laws for the country. Of a | truth members are to have snare Tn maintaining a decent government' and 1 ing in their commonwealth. but this they do as citizens of an earthly eoun' ] try and not as church or Goa whose 1 Kingdom IS not of this world.
 The church. as such. has no more right to make laws for the Legislature than the Legislature has to make laws tW1 work. The church has no more right to say who shall he elected to state l office than the state has to say who shall be made an elder or deacon The tor what he shali preach and your min
 ster has no right to dictate what tick ct you shall vote. If the preacher l ucan elders have no more right to com. plain than Depocrat who sells rum
 The church may make laws to gov
 ern its own internal affairs but has
 ple outside the church. If we, as 6 church, claim the right to make law
 for one unconverted man of the wcrl5
 then we must concede to the inVae
 the privilege of making laws roT vs
 The church as such, has no right 't
 make laws to regulate a saloonkeeper'i
 business and on the same principle VI