The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-09
l ASK MISS RAY? l ' oRPHEUM THEATRE THIS WEEK Matinee Friday Afternoon for Ladies Only
 Capital City Coal O., Phone l35> coeanor. Empire and Nu. Coal MEYER Mu
Descent cf The Holy Spirit,
 Religion's Great Mystery

rentecost, because they are outside fha
 pare or sheir experience Similarly a
 traveller recently wrote a pIaIr cara
 tul narrative of extraordinary sntrffuaa
 maniiestations which he had witnessed
 tn Andla. Other eye witnesses. like Dr.
 Charles Cuthbert Hall. had testified fo
 acy tne same proceedings; but the
 editor of a religious paper ci,ailensea
 the whole report. because, forsooth he
 nad never seen 1t in this wise him.
 seil', The self-assured coFnplacancv
 with which we ignore or dfscressIf
 everything outside of our own fssasrss
 experience Is a sign of inherent snall-
 ness and previnctalism; there are more
 things In. heaven and earth than any
 man has ever dreamed or It is no evidence Of intell. ctual superiority. but
 rather Of intolerance. to fan to accent
 accredited witness o; even improbable
 phenomena. What ts the skeptio to
 say concerning. the recent revival in
 Wales. or the presel.! reviyala in
 India. Korea and Manchur.a, with ex-
 pressions rivaIing those of Pentecost7 2
 sosaebedy Ut the Eteha.
 The simple truth ls that Cha stianitv
 itself with this Somebody left out ls
 more Of an incredible miracle than tho
 most wonderful acts that have eyer
 been aseribed to the Spirit of Jesgsas,
 There Is no other explanation possihle Tor the rise and power of the relixion or Christ except the irresistible power or an omniscient ofnnipresent. super natural Spirit.
 Jesus sent was af once the baptism confirmation and ordination of the dis cipies. This was the seal of real sue cession to the apostolate.s Not all the hands of bishops or presbyters eau make a man minister of the Gospel who has not shared In the Penecost enduement. He who came on that great day. riding chariot of wind, has never left the Church. Beneath my hand Hes a book. 4The Future Leadership of the Church. which is greatly concerned over the dearth of candidates for the ministry. That is not the real problem; the future Ieaier- ship of the Church, on which alone her work depends, Is the accepted leadership of that Somebody who has been her leader since ever Jesus ascended. The peril of modern organ ized Christendom is that this supreme truth will be overlooked. and depend- ence placed upon theological semi naries and scientific learning for the creation of a ministry. Except that Breath which filled the Upper Room in Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecoss breathe upon mans spirit, not all ihS OL man Cdn make nm an
 Everybody knows how empty are words without power-"soundfnE brass and tinkling cymbals," the apostle hap oily calls them. So is the message Of Christianity without tho help of the Somebody who came at Pentecost. The historical facts and moral teachings of our religion would have no more in- upon the hearts Of men than the story of the Roman Empire or Sfhe hfaG nf lat fs .xkH HNSsaa this supernatural re-cnforcement. II have seen hundreds of men. yellow ana brown. who have been lighted out of an old life that was heathen, and made to shine w;ch the virtues that are Christian-and all this without tenn poral advantage to theThselves. hut real suffering-hecause of the power of the gospel which this Spirit makes alive That is IS much of q miracle as the speaking with other languages which amazed the meny- -tongued multitude at Ptnttcost,
 Th" Great Day And Today.
 The bGc kwa-l look upon the great day of l'cnt, cost :s profitable; but only for the sak qf today. All truth is worth considering only In relation to present life. IL means much that the Somebody who came in Jesus stead entered in sovereignty the Church in Jerusalem; 1t means more, that he abides in the Church and in the world today. All the beauty of saIntliness. all the power of preached word, all the beneficence of Christian sarvioc. are due only to his might. Whether he speaks through tongues suddenly and supernaturally given. or whether he speaks through the hundreds Of native languages into which the Bible has been translated, whether by the voice of Peter on Pentecost, or by the speech of the mission work CT. 1t is the same Spirit doing the same work of the same Jesus.
 The profound present meaning of this great Pentecostal lesson is that the Spirit who descended after Jesus had lscended appears to be moving upon the fife of the nations today with unusual power. There are wondrous monitions coming from all quarters of the Church. The mind of Jesus seems to be leavening the world The apostolic of a gospel to be preached .o all men is once more gripping the will of christendom. The spirit of unity which marked Penteeost is agair being shown forth by believers And he hungry spirit of mankin& s wait ng, groping. praying for -a visitation of vital powerful religion which can some only in the presence and person of the Paraclete. Christ's Other Self.