Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1910-06-21
MAKING TOO MUCH
OF THINGS MATERIAL

Material things, money and the things
which money can buy, are not unimpor-
tant: but they are not supremely inn
portant.
1t is very easy to estimate their pos
session too highly and to regard the want
of them as a greater evil than it really
is. There are many evidences around us
of this overestimation of wealth and
over-fear of the want of wealth.
To get material things multitudes are
sacrificing things far more precious and
important. Too high a price is paid Tor
them when men sacrifice home-life,
health peace of mind, Or honour to OBJ
tain them, and on every hand today we
see such sacrifices made for them. our
land is cursed with the mania of man.
mon.
But besides the craze for getting money
there are other tokens of this over-esti-
nation of material things which show
the disease eating at the very vitals OF
religious life. Many men, including not
few preachers. seem to thak that the
only gospel which is worth while is the
gospel of material good. According to
theOe teachers the Gospel which proposes
spiritual life as the supreme good is dis
credited and outworn; sociological gos-
pei is the o1Ay gospel worth considering
or obeying 1t is no longer thought that
the chief need of the Prodigal Son is to
return to his fathers heart and home;
he may remain in the far country as long
as he likes provided some one will take to
him a new suit of clothes and money for
better board and lodging. His comfort
must be improved and then his character
will take care of itself. This stomachic
| redemption is supposed to be the most
| practical christianity, and all else the
most barren and Improbable theor1zlng.
Whatever may be It's excellencies, and
however strongly 1t may strike the mod
ern mind, we may as well understand
that this gastric gospel is not the gospel
Of Christ. Jesus did commend feeding
the hungry and clothing the naked and
visiting the sick and imprisoned More
over, he bestowed much of his strength
on relieving the bodily needs OIL men and
| in dispensing material good; but he was
careful to make all who heard him know
that all these things occupied subordi-
nate place in the kingdom of heaven
which he came to found. He fed the
/
disciples would have sent away empty;
but he warned the people whom he fed
against following him for the sake OF
the loaves and fishes, saying unto them,
| ''I.abour not for the meat which perish
eth but for the meat which endureth
unto everlasting life, which the Son Of
man shall give unto you John vi:26,ZD.
| On another occasion, when he was
preaching upon a high theme, his dis
| fpfA al intrusion
of a man who said unto him, Master
speak to my brother that he divide the
inheritance with me-. To the impertinent
intruder he replied sternly, Man, who
made me a judge and divider over
you? Then he turned to his disciples
and said, Take heed and beware of COW
etousness; for a mans life CONSISTENT
not in the abundance of the things which
he possesseth" No incident in the life
of the Master is more instructive than his
dealing with this covetous man who
sought to use the Saviour of the world
as a petty judge and divider to settle
contention about an estate. It's lessons
are especially needed by the men of to-
day.
Jesus was not indifferent to right
dealing between the convending broth
ers. He believed as much as the most
most earnest of modern reformers in
giving every man "a square deal" But
| he saw that even in asserting right it
is easy to fall into wrong. He saw
that man might Glamour for an estate
at the expenses of brotherly love. He
saw that a man might be so concerned
to get hold of property that ne coul1
not give attention TO the consideration
| of heavenly things and so absorbed In
securing goods that he could not find
| in the Saviour of the world any thing
more than a regulator and distributor
of material possessions. To such base
uses he would not allow himself put.
He disdained the office a petty earthly
magistrate.
And today our Lord and his gospel
are put to false uses when they are
employed in such mundane matters as
| reforming the social system settling
the issues between capital and labor
and apportioning the spoils of the COM
mercial world. TO all who would thus
engage the Saviour of mankind his
words of rebuke come now as they
came to the claimant covetousness or
the olden time: who made me a judge
or divider over your That voice we
need to hear.
| Capitalism needs to know that a
mans life CONSISTENT not in the album
dance of the things which he posses
seth" Opulence in the purse and in
digence in the soul is a sorry sight.
Plenty in the barn and poverty in the
heart is the worse sort of wretched-
ness. All this we all declare that we
steadfastly believe, but do we believe
| it? Why, then, do we envy the rich,
who are poor in soul? Why do We not
rather pity them? Why do we bend all
our energies to get money as they do?
Why are we so unhappy when we fail
| to succeed in getting money as they do?
! In short, why do we pretend to believe