The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1910-11-10
SHELTERINC
MAN NHOOD
By REV. W. d. BRADFlELD
Pastor Trinity Methodist Episcopal
Church. Dallas. Texas

II
righteousness and princes rule In judg-
ment. And man shall be a hiding place
from the wind, covert from the tenn
pest; as rivers OF water In a dry place:
as the shadow OF a great rock In weary
land.-Isaiah 32:i. 2.
The text Is Isaiah's dream OF just
government. "A king shall reign in
righteousness and princes rule in
| judgment" 1t is remarkable that Isa-
iah's loftiest conception of the Mes
sianic reign is just government. A
king his Messiah should be who reigns
in righteousness. Isalah's dream is
the dream of the ages. History is lit
| tie more than record of strug.
gle for just government. A govern
ment allowing equal opportunities for
all, giving every man a square deal,
has been the desire of all peoples.
Men want justice here and now More
than benevolence or charity men de-
mand simple justice.
1t is too late now to seek to COM
pensate men for injustice here by the
promise of justice after they are dead.
Shelterless people here are no long
er comforted by the promise of man
sions in the skies. Hungry people are
no longer compensated for hunger
here by the promise of eating bread
\ In the kingdom of God. Men demand
Justice here, and the dream of mil
lions of hearts is for the just govern
ment which Isaiah foresaw
The text gives us Isaiahs concep-
ton of the fountain force of society:
"A man shall be as hiding place from
the wind"-a man. Society is COM
posed of an aggregation of individuals
and no scheme for social betterment
is worth while which has a goal 9th.
er than the Improvement of the char.
acter of individual men. The fountain
force of government and society is the
Individual "A man shall be as an
hiding place from the wind"-a man.
The word masses" was not In the vo-
cabulary of the Christ. He did not seek
to reach men en- masse. He aimed
at the personal character of individ
ual men and women.
His ministry was much to individ
uals, now to a ruined woman weary of
her sin, now to confused seeker by
night The sum total of his three
years work was the training of half
dozen or more individual men. The
fountain force of society is the indt
- vidual man or woman. Disseminate
learning, distribute wealth, do what
you will, but you have done nothing
permanent for society until you have
reached the bettered, the personal
character of individual men and WON.
! en-. Exactly this is the fountain
, force of society as Isaiah saw it. "A
man shall be"--a man.
The text is lsaiah's portrait Of q
, sheltering manhood.
"A man shall be as a hiding place
: from the wind, cover from the TEN
/ pest; as rivers of water in dry place
} as the shadow of great rock in {
weary land" Isaiah looked east o.
, Palestine and beheld running nortt
: and south great cliffs of rock. Eas
A of these cliffs he beheld the drifting
sands OF the Arabian desert. Tn,
J.. great cliffs he had seen rise In thei
majesty and say 20 the burning, drift
ing sand: Thus far and no farther.
, The drift was arrested and to the lee
ward OF the great rocks he behel'
GASES blossom as the, rose. Here h
had seen focks and herds roam. Thel
In his vision he said: THE time 4
!. coming--the good time is coming
L when man shall repeat the ministr,
: OF the rocks. Under his shelterini
u manhood the weak shall be protecte,
and the fainting inspired. A man shal
be as a hiding place from the VIM
as a shadow of great rock II
weary land"
1t is admitted by all that Isaiah
words are a luminous description o
the inspiring and sheltering ministr
of Jesus Christ. But they are NOR
l. than that. They are Isaiah's ideal O
9 what every life may be. "A man
any man, every man-may repeat tn
u ministry of the sheltering rocks.
:. Life, 1t has been said, has aspect
= very desert-like. II is swept by drifts
now of cruel government, now of Sc
cial impurity, now of commercial dis
honesty. The arresting force has a
v ways been a man. The drift OF Pc
- sian cruelty and social corruptio
: was arrested by Militiades at Mar;
u thon. The drift of Mohammedan 81
4 perstition was arrested by Charlie
s. Martel at Tours. The drift OF med
y aeval ecclesiasticism was arrested b
. Martin Luther at the Diet of Worms
. Great outstanding characters VIII
have repeated the ministry OF tn
le rocks which Isaiah saw have made hi
'r tory. The achievements of histor
sr are at bottom of the work of thes
" men.
~ What Jesus Christ did and what th
- great outstanding characters OF hi
= tory have done you and | are calle
~ upon In GUS lesser spheres to d
The manhood OF each is to be SHE
- tering manhood. The weak are to
protected, the fainting by the shade
OF our lives. Only this spirit ca
solve our problems. Souls must
given to our great corporations ar
nv under the shelter OF their benevolens