Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1910-04-27
CHRISTIAN MINISTRY.
Paper Prepared by Miss stalna-
ker and Recently Read Be-
fore White Town Sum
day School.

fore the White Town Sunday school
By Miss Matte Stalnaker, assistant
teacher of White Town school, her
subject being "The Call to the
Ministry" the paper being sent to
The Advertiser for publication by
Mr.. G. w. Hamilton:
A. revival of legal preaching is
the need of the hour, not the per-
fume of flowers, not fattery of
speech, but the Gospel truth, wheth-
er desired or not. a few John the
Baptists" calling men to repentance
would be worth more in this senti-
meRtal age, thalL>a host of the SO
called latest style preachers who han
die their hearers, as it were, on the
finger tips of kid gloved hands. Not
change in the gospel, nor more Of
it do we need, but men, rugged men,
who believe the truth, and will
stand up for it; not favoring men
who are afraid of their shadow, not
camp-.mis.rs of the truth, not ex-'
'ponents of science, art and litera-
ture but men who believe the woru
of God, and preach it; men who
know Christ the Father and fear
lessly declare it. These we must
have, or We perish. We heartily
agree with Rev. Sam Jones when he
says tha, preaching the law is not
so popular, as we much prefer the
mild soothing messages of the Cos
pei. We applaud sermon on the
love and mercy Of God, and declare
the preacher grand man, so long
as he breaches in our favor, but on
the other hand let him deliver a
truthful sermon on the justice of
God, his hatred of sin and the life
we ara living, we are ever ready to
crlticise, condemn him and ask for
a removal if he is Methodist, or pre-
cipitate conditions which will force
his resignation if he belongs to an
other denomination. Men do not
want to be told of their sins and
wickedness nor reminded of judg-
ment and justice. We shudder at
the thought of some day, being
Judged as we have judged, and jus:
tice being meted OUT 10 us for the
evil deeds We haye done here on
this earth. cry naturally such.d BEL
trine is unpopular in orr day aud
tin,o ia at inn-M
Lot are moved to repentance by
the preaching Of sloge and mercy,
they must first be aroused, awaken
ed and made to see their moral
weakness and realize their lost and
ruined condition, and until this
much has been accomplished it is
usrIes, to tell them Of the love and
mercy of Sod. We know that few.
are preaching legal gospel to-day,
and to this fact, is due, in a large
measure the conditi0n in society
and the church. This pastor is peril
ously near the condition of the man
who could not see b. woods for the
trees. In his intense attention to the
higher dasies of the ministry, he
lupsss sight of the possibilities di-
reutly spiritual but no less impor-
tau, mission of the church, for
blessed is he, who looking back on
the day, the week, the year, can say,
| have fought good fight, ] have
my pursuit of Christ, ]
have held fast to my loyalty, to love
and to God. but it is not our pur-
po,e here TO discuss the serious,
even sacred responsibilities resting
upon each and eve y one of us to
strive after the larger fitness in our
separate calling. Of this response
bility we need only to say by this
way alone comes to the individual
real success in his calling and by
this way alone, can he avoid be-
coming partial fail'ire within him
self and in greer or less degree,
an obstacle in the lives of others.
We do wish, however, to set some
one to thinking about the sacred
ness of the obligation under which
each of us rests of realizing and
striving to develop his or her ca
pacity which may be turned our
potential powers OF indefinite growth
What if By the eye of the mind and
soul could be Seen in contrast the
real and the potential L. What u
shtiveling of seeming pretentious,
That an aggregation Of real de-
furmities would we present to our
selves, and to all others. Possibly
the greatest miracle of human ex-
pefience is the transformation Of Il
sou! turned Godward and Christ
ward, and forgetting the things
which are behind and reaching forth
into the things which are before,
let us press earnestly toward th: