Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1911-04-04
Can the Church of God Afford
To Seek or Accept Patronage ?
BY BISHOP WARREN A. GAMBLER

TO thlnk that chf1Stian1ty ana the cnuTCn
OF God may seek and receive patronage
at the hands of men as do other enter
prises. They are inclined to lecture
the church at times for it's supposed lack
of popularity and to instruct it con-
corning the best methods for increas-
ing its power in the world.
Sometimes they tell us that "the
church has lost the labouring classes,
that it has not felt sympathy for the
worxingmen, and that it must proceed
with all haste TO do more for them in
material way, if it is to retain its
hold upon them spiritually In the fu-
ture.
Again, they warn us of "the loss of
| the educated classes the men of
scholarship, the "men of thought, the
men of science. Then they proceed in
the name of these classes to belabour
the christian ministry for lack of In
telligence, for intellectual narrowness,
for mental inhospitality", and for 9TH
er like offenses
Now, in all these rebukes of the
church and the preachers there may be
some justice. There is not enough be-
nevolence in the church, doubtless, al
| though about all the philanthropy among
men has sprung from Christs church
and Christ's gospel. When Jesus rose
from the dead there was not hospital
nor an orphanage nor a house of refuge
in the world, and the labouring man was
| despised as a common and unclean
thing. Doubtless all the preachers are
not as studious as they ought to be, ana
| probably many of them have not quail
| fed themselves for leadership of the
most intelligent men, although it can
not be denied that the map which shows
the area of christianity in the world
comedies with the map which shows the
area of scientific knowledge in the earth.
Beyond christendom and the regions in
Pagan lands where the influence of
christianity has gone then is no science
or knowledge worth mentioning today
But the assumption upon which all
these criticisms of the church and these
lectures to the preachers proceed is
| false. Christianity and the chuch are
not out in the market-place seeking the
patronage of men. On the contrary,
| they have come forth in the world to
demand the submission of mankind to
| the truth as it is in Jesus. They are
ambassadors of the court of heaven, or
they are nothing; and, as such, they can
not be patronized by the world to whom
they are sent, nor can they subservient-
ly ask the patronage of any class what
soever. To occupy the position of an
enterprise seeking popular favour and
patronage is for them to abdicate their
heavenly calling and descend to the lev
ell of hucksters, crying their wares in the
street.
Suppose it were true that the labour-
ing classes had fallen away from the
christian religion, although It is not
true. The church would not be the
chief sufferer IN such a case, but the
working men. If christianity Is true,
| labouring men and all other men must
accept it on pain of prefering falsehood
to truth and running to ruin in pursu~
ing falsehood. The church ought to do
her best to feed the hungry, but If she
should not measure up to her full duty
in this regard, the hungry can not in
resentment of her neglect of them deny
themselves the bread of life.
Moreover, while it is the duty of the
church to concern herself for every
form of humane endeavor, she is not to
do so in order to hire the beneficiaries
of her ministry to accept her message,
but in order that she may do her duty
to the needy among men as her LORD
requires her to do Hospitals for the
poor, food for the hungry, clothes for
the naked, and ministrations to the sick
and imprisoned, are not to be used as
premiums to induce men to accept
Christ and his salvation, they are only
the means by which the followers OF
Christ are to fulfill the mission to
which they are appointed by their Mas
ter Converts made by offers of mate.
rial good are called in China rice
christians. and whether such adher-
ents to christianity are won by the
church in China or in America, they are
always a hireling and insincere lot.
Churches and preachers who advertise
such methods for bringing men TO
Christ proclaim themselves as dema-
gogues and hypoerites.
1t is proper that the representatives
of Christianity should seek to conciliate
a favourable hearing of the gospel by
men, but they can not seek the patron
age of the world without degrading them
selves and dishonouring the message of
God which they profess to have received
from the Most High.
Appeals to class prejudces are also
out of order in the kingdom of heaven.
! Jesus has been called 1.-THE poor mans
philosopher; but it is noticeable that
he never arrayed class against class, nor
sought to make himself the head Of a
faction They have none of His spirit
who follow a contrary course. 1T is bad
enough when politician deseends to the
base work of arousing bitter antagonisms
among the various classes of men, but
1t is positively, uncomfortable when one
calling himself a minister of Christ
adopts such methods.
Turning from the consideration of the
case of ''the masses" to that of the case
of "the classes, suppose 1t were true
that all the preachers were ignorant and
idle and unintelligent, would that justify
men of thought and learning in turning
away from christianity and the church?
Are serious-minded men to go pouting
around town on account of the way the
gospel is preached to them, and refuse
to accept it because it is not brought
to them in a form sufficiently refined and
artistic? will wise man starve himself
because he can not get his food served
on a silver platter and passed to him by
a servant i'm livery? For mature man
to offer such an excuse for his failure
to become follower of Christ is to
show himself a spoiled child and not
man of thought.
1t is quite conceivable that occasions
may arise when the messenger of heaven
must refuse to accommodate his speech
to forms too refined, and must speak with
a plainness which is likely to offend po~
lite ears. At least, we find St Paul
writing to the Corinthians, And I breth-
CLOUDS IN THE