Milford chronicle., 1909-05-07
Sermon by
CHARLES T.
RUSSELL
Pastor Brooklyn
Tabernacle.

Tabernacle today, taking as his text the
words, Il will pay my vows unto the
Lord now In the presence Of all bis
people. / will take the cup Of saliva
tiOn, and call upon the name Of the
Lord" Psalm cxvi, IA, 13). He said:
No less than ten times does the
Prophet David refer to his VOWS to the
Lord; the propriety Of so doing and
his appreciation Of the responsibilities
thus incurred and his determination to
fulfill his vows. The word Vow Is
rarely used today except in respect to
clerical vows, bapusmal vows, mar
riage vows. The word UOi0 has to
considerable extent been superseded
by the word promise and other words
which signify an obligation to the
Lord a covenant or agreement, as, for
instance, we speak Of our covenants
with the Lord, meaning our vows or
obligations. The word conservation Is
frequently used to express this thought
Of avowed obedience and sacrifice TO
the Lord and his cause. Thus when
St Paul writes, Il beseech you there
FORE brethren. by the mercies Of God,
that We present your bodies a living
sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God,
which Is your reasonable service" he
IS exhorting us to consecratiOn-to an
avowal Of fidelity to the Lord, to the
extent Of death Much is said in the
Scriptures respecting the making Of
such conservation vows to the Lord.
The Scriptures contain severe warn
g,
the Lord carelessly, assuring us that II
would be better to make no vow at all
than to vow and to fail to perform to
the extent of our ability. 1t is I'm har-
mony with this, that our Lord fore
warns us to sit down first and count
the cost Of discipleship, so that there
may be no falling back or even looking
back subsequently. He declares, Hethat
puts his hand to the plow and then looks
back, regretting his covenant or vow Of
sacrifice, viii not be accounted worthy
Of a share in the Kingdom. The Scrip /
lures abound with exhOrtatiOns that |
we take heed to promise the Lord |
nothing that we win not fulfill to the |
best Of our ability. Permit me to
MW0AE IOu 0OAAE VI AuEoE III AnEAalNEos ]
when thou shalt vow a vow unto
the Lord, thy God. thou shalt not |
nlack to pay IT, for the Lord thy God |
will surely require It Of thee Ut will |
be sin in thee to ignore it, That
which is gone out of thy lips thou shalt
keep and perform, even a freeloiH Of
feriHO unto the Lord thy God" Deu-
teronomy xiii 21-23).
when thou vowest a vow unto God,
defer not to pay 1t; for he hath no
pleasure in fools: pay that which thou
hast vowed. Better is 1t that thou
shouldst not vow. than that thou
shouldst vow and not pay 1.-THE vowl"
Y. 4. 81.
Praise waiteth for thee, o God. In
Sion: and unto thee shall the vow be
performed. o thou that heareth pray
er, unto thee shall all flesh come"
Psalm lxv. l. p.
''Vow. and pay unto the Lord your
God: let all that be round about him
bring presents unto him that ought to
be feared" psalm lxxvi. IL.
my praise shall be Of thee in the
Teat congregation: l win pay my vows
before them that fear him" psalm
xii, 22-20.
"Offer unto God thanksgiving: and
Jay thy VOWS unto the Most High: and {
-thenl call upon me In the day Of
rouble: / will deliver thee, and thou !
halt glorify me. But unto the wicked
covenant breakers. vow breakersl
fOd saith What has thou to do to de- {
lare my statutes, or that thou shouldst {
axe my covenant into thy mouth? t
seeing that thou hatest instruction. t
nd easiest my words behind thee c
Psalm /. 14-10. t
''Thy vows are upon me, o God. o
vii render praises unto thee. For I
hou hast delivered my soul from 8
cath; wilt thou not deliver my feet a
rom falling?' psalm lvi. y, 49,
Il will abide in thy tabernacle for u
yer; / will trust IN the covert Of thy 8
rings. For thou, o God hast heard C
~ VOWS: thou hast given me the her b
age Of those that fear thy name. q" h
o win sing praise unto thy name b
'rever. that may daily perform my v
ows" psalm Xxi, 49,. Il
II win pay thee my VOWS, which my c.
ps have uttered, and my mouth hath &C
ioken, when was in trouble" psalm II
vi, 1914. IN
Proper Vows Valuable. ~ !.
As we have seen from the foregoing u
a UOl0 represents a promise =
covenant with God, respecting some a a
after not strictly called FOR by Divine -
Nv. That is to say, whatever is de- ~
anded Of us by Justice is an obhga-
N, and could not properly be consid- oi
ed a sacrifice or conservation, such -
the word VOW would imply. 1t Is
Z this. reason that specific VOWS are
t outlined aud commanded In the
riptures. The entire decalogue is
love for God and for our
lghbor to the fullest extent is com
nded; but the vow is merely sug-
ted as a possibility to those desirous
making an Offering or sacrifice to
. Lord. Similarly the Divine Law.
Iich commands that the human ma
e be restrained from sin and be
sdient to every law Of righteousness,