The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1909-07-02
Mr.. GABREVs FIRST SERMON

Rev. H. E. Gabbey, who comes to
Ocala from Cadiz, KY, preached his
first sermon at the First Baptist
church Sunday morning to a large con-
gregation.
After the voluntary by the choir,
Mrs. z. H. Mote rendered a beautiful
solo. She possesses a rich, clear
voice, and she never sang to better adj
vantage than she did last Sunday
morning.
After the collection was taken up
| Deacon John L. Edwards made the
church announcements, and in doing
so took occasion to introduce the new
preacher, and said that he hoped that
his work in Ocala would not only re-
dound to the good of the Baptist
church but to the city at large, and
that the members of the church would
show their appreciation by having ev-
cry pew occupied however hot or dis
agreeable the weather might become.
Mr. Gabbey took for his theme The
Indwelling of Christ" His text was
the seventeenth verse of PauTs Third
Letter to the Ephesians, which reads
as follows: THAT Christ may dwell in
your hearts by faith"
He began his sermon by telling of
the holy trinity and said that the of
flee of Christ was to dwell in human
hearts, and through his death we have
the holy comforter. That the gift of
Christ was Gods choicest blessing
upon the world, and that it is through
him we have eternal life.
He said that Christ was a real per
sonage and still abided with us
through the Holy Spirit Phillip
Brooks once told an anxious inquirer
that Christ was as real as the streets
we trod and the persons who trod
them. When some visitor asked the
poet, Tennyson, what he thought OF
Christ, the great poet plucked a flow
er and said that Christ was to him
what the sun was to that flower The
sun was the very life of the flower
and Christ is the spiritual life of the
world.
To deny Christ at this age of the
world, when he has been made mani
fest by such an array of testimony,
biblical and otherwise, is to be 4 rep
rebate.
Christ was given to the world be-
cause of Gods infinite love for it, and
love is the great cardinal idea run
ming through the holy scriptures, and
if we have Christ love will follow as
a natural sequence. He said that if
we have the love of God in our hearts
We can have nothing else, as two
things cannot occupy the same space
at the same time. Moody once pick
ed up a tumbler and asked how would
you proceed to empty it of the air
that filled it, and poured it full of wa
ter and said that was the easiest and
most satisfactory way-so if you
would fill your hearts with the love of
God it would root out everything else
and there would be no room for sin
to find lodging place.
A Kentucky judge said that the
world is growing worse because the
people are losing their consciousness
of God. If his text were followed the
world would come very close to God. |
If he could make God manifest in
the hearts of the people of Ocala he
would ask for no greater blessing. and |
that his central purpose would be to
preach Christ and make him dwell in |
the hearts of the people of this city |
by faith.
His sermon was an earnest plea for |
the spirit of Christ and he used a |
number of SMILES to illustrate his |
ideas
After the sermon, the clerk, Mr.. |
William T. Gary, read a letter from |
the pastor of the Baptist church at
Cadiz, KY, saying that Brother and |
Sister Gabbey had severed their con
nection with the church at Cadjz 10 |
connect themselves with the church |
at Ocala, Florida, and Mr.. Gary NOV
ed that they be received into the
church by the usual sign. raising the
right hand, which was done, and then
Judge Bullock was requested to ex-
tend them the welcome of the church,
which he did, and in doing so was Wis
IDLY affected.
On motion of Deacon Isaac Stevens
the right hand of fellowship was then
extended to them, and the services
came to a close.
1t is believed that the new preacher