The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1909-12-22
THE PULPIT.
A SCHOLARLY SUNDAY SERMON BY
DR.. ROBERT RODGERS.
Theme: Consciousness of God.

Brooklyn, N. Y. - The Rev. DR..
Robert Rogers, rector of the Church
of the Good Shepherd, preached Sun
day on 1.-THE Consciousness of God"
The text was from Epheslans ago:
Eye Have Not So Learned Christ
DR.. Rogers said:
The thought with which I am i'm
pressed, and with which I would i'm
press you-is that Christ-the God
man-stands facing the world of men
and women as the greatest and most
important factor in human life. EV-
erything we do should be done in a
consciousness of His presence; every
thing we do will be judged by Him,
and His Judgment will be visited up
on us and be felt by US. This we
have learned of Christ, If we have
heard Him and been taught by, Him.
When I speak of Christ, I mean to ex-
press the thought that comes into our
hearts and minds when we speak OF
God.
This Is the most important mes
sage that can be delivered to a man
if he can be assured Of its truth
and made to live under its inspira-
tions. When I open my Bible, its
first words tell the great story, In
the beginning God created the heav-
ems and the EARTH" and as man has
learned the knowledge of the heav-
ems and earth, Of the mighty force,
the beauty, the bounty in supplying
all that Is needful for the millions OF
mankind, the laws, which are so won
derful, man comes more n more to
enter into this knowledge OF nature,
he speaks of God with alteration and
reverence. The infinite God Of in
finite power, infinite wisdom, infinitf
goodness Is our only explanation.
The greatest power Of the might
est human intellect sinks into insigt
~nificance before the ultimate analyst
Of O. drop of water or a grain of sane
when the scientist intimatest to US wha
Is involved in its creation. I thinl
we can understand the cry of Brown
ing,("O World as God made it." Al
Is beauty or Wordsworth's words II
the Excursion" when the wanderer
full of spirit of worship, says, "The
clouds were touched, and in their 81
lent faces did He read unutterable
iove!." In the same spirit Ruskin
speaks, 1T Is quite certain it Is all
done for us and for u perpetual
pleasure" How near into the pres
ence of the Infinite God these mel
have come who have been able to en-
ter into the wonders and beauties OF
natures. From Job to David, and
from David to the last thoughtful
student in the earth's book, has come
this feeling of nearness to God, and
happiness and comfort in being nes-
tied in the everlasting arms.
The thought that I am trying to
convey Is. not so much that our minds
shall rest on the wonders of nature
but that the mind shall advance
through these things, into the con
seriousness Of God-the supremacy o.
the Infinite, the Fatherhood of God
to be able to say with Ruskin, II an
quite certain it is all done for US and
for our perpetual pleasure"
The poet of Israel, whose soul wa
athirst for the living God, has this
consciousness. Listen, WHITTIER shall
I go then from Thy spirit; or whithet
shall I 80 then from Thy presence?
If I climb up into heaven. Thou are
there; if I go down to hell, Thou art
there also; if I take the wings Of the
morning and remain in the uttermost
parts Of the sea, even there shall Thy
hand lead me and Thy right hand
shall hold me. ~
IF I say peradventure, the dark
ness shall coyer4me; then shall my
night be turned to day. Yea, the
darkness is no darkness with Thee,
the darkness and the light to Thee are
both alike"
There is one test, and one alone,
which will satisfy men Of the charac-
ter of any object. by their fruits
We shall know them" When Robert
Fulton, a century ago, speaks OF
steam navigation, men say, let me see
what you can do. The Clermont
steams on the Hudson, and men were
satisfied of his sanity and wisdom.
For a century men have been speak
ing Of flying in the air, a few have be-
lleved it possible, but with. millions
of doubters have said. we will wait
and see. And now we know it al be
done because we have seen it.
Let us see! What are the effects
Of this new thing? In law, medicine,
science, the same test is required. It
Is also Gods way of judging. Christ
said of trees what He meant to say of
men: A good tree cannot bring forth
corrupt fruit, neither can a corrupt
tree bring forth good fruit. There
fore, "by their fruits We shall know
them" 1t is this universal standard
Of judgment - Gods judgment and
mans judgment - that st. Paul is
using for his appeal in our epistle for
to-day. He is appealing to men who
we're Gentiles or heather, but who
have recently learned of Christ the
Son Of God, and given to Him their
allegiance. New things are expected
from their new discovery, their new
faith. Let US see what your new faith
or religion produces. The whole be-
lieving world. with St. Paul, looks on
anxiously. How much it meant to
that early band OF prosecuted follow
ers, who were condemned and charged
with hideous crimes, with being pestl-
iential fellows, corrupters Of people.
How shall these few new converts
act? And the unbelieving world was
also looking on, ready to find and
magnify the slightest wrong, amazed
to see the slightest improvement. 1t
Is one of the mighty things Of the past
to which we can turn Jul minds and
from which we can draw comfort and
encouragement.
To see and to know that these mel
to whom the apostles are appealing,
formerly heather in their customs,
uron tho urnrld Ia tho ralioinn Of Iacu{