The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1912-01-27

The two are connected in very SIM
pie fashion, for the Bible IL revealed
Z to Us. net In any abstract fotm, puI
In concrete experiences OF men like
you and me, sic oty working tileii
way through this life from one cor
rected error to another corrected err
ror. Gradually, steadily. they have
struggled 10 square themselves to the
line Of the Scriptures, not to any
creed but to the immortal examples.
The New Testament alone and the
example Of the Lord Christ suddenly
4 revealed would have lost largely of
their efficacy. but Jesus came in the
fuIness Of fiFne. not nnheralded, for
the world had been struggling toward
him and looking for him. He stepped
out, the deiiyerer whom men looked
forward to In all the dim history OF
the past. The Old Testament is q
manual Of life and needs the light OF
the New Testament to be thrown
upon II to bring out its wonderful
teachings. The Old Testament is tho
exemplification of life. 1t is to the
New Testament that men must loo
for doctrine and for creed.
The Old Testaments Messages.
The Old Testament contains no
eulogies of men and no sorhisticatfons
OF theories. Men are shown as men.
with all their errors and all their
heroic trfumpiis. In this way men
struggled toward the light. In the
Old Testament we learn of the men
whom we find In the catalogue OF
saints in the New Testament. list OF
men as sinful as you and !, men who
climbed to saintliness with tears OF
repentance and modification for
tranegressions. Tho Old Testament
u 4 narrative OF such men as you
and / have known. We can consort
with that kind of saints we find In
the Old Testament, but with the ideal
saints / would feel Gerry much out OF
place. The men in the Old Tesla
ment are the kind know. who slewly
approximate to that yet impossible
example revealed In the Lord Jesus.
The sources OF life are spiritual
and the essences are from ths soul.
Only the immortal parts OF man con-
tain the elements of life. And ! have
reason TO believe. yea, to fear. that
the bad In men Ia as immortal as the
good, at least as far as mortal life
In concerned. And when these bad
influences get a hold upon you, YOU
can drag down whole generations
into the pit. The pages OF the Old
Testament thunder the Immortality OF
evil. at least on earth. IT shows life
as q grand tragedy. the struggle be-
tween the Influences OF good ana
bad.
Nor Ii the. Bible alone in this drama
Of the spiritual. The Greek drama
thrills with 1t. We derive too little
OF the benefit to be obtained In the
great lessons OF the Greek tragedies.
They lose much In translation as to
their forcefniness, but not RS to their
truth. They are the pictures Of the
inevitable consequences or moral
choices. In them gin produces it's
progeny Of ugisness. and virtue pro-
tiuces its children Of light In the
urtraveing If their sksin there is
revelation OF truth. In their stories
none escapes the consequences OF his
actfru, none IA let of. None ought
10 he let of from the consequences
OF his actions.
\ I recall that when was associated
with the work OF the university there
Yves that silly tendency OF the heart
to excuse this d upon whom would fail
the effects Of their breaking OF the
college rules often ! have begged
them off before the faculty, and
have never found that those have
come forward with that showing Of
appreciation which might reasonably
have been expected. Better II !s that
a man shall lie in the bed he has
made. Only be sure that he has made
the bed Students have come 10 me
and begged that the rules shall not
be enforced upon them, pleading that
we would break a mothers heart Bur
/ have as often called 10 their at
tention that the thing which viii
break the mothers heart Is that the
. boy should have done such a thing
49, L. -bss
her heart
The Mind Docs Not Govern.
Sooner or later there comes back
upsn saeH The 4Hep HE consequences
OF their own doings Life is a dra-
matte contest between the bad and
the good. do not subscribe 10 that
teaching which has been rather conn
mon. that II is mind which has full
control Of the affairs OF men. OFTEN
have seen the mind reign. hut never
have ! seen It govern. What man
really follows lis his passions. The
hest we can hope to accom- piish, in
individual or In political life. is to
keep the handsome passions In the
majority. Men make their revolu-
lions and accomplish their reforms
not by the intellectual reasoning and
mental control. but by going straight
al the evils of WATCH they complain
and sweeping tffem away ,ls.,s NJ $4,000
Wonderful Ia the effect OF concert
I'D action between the handsome pas
stons. They operate In the open and
ii Ii easy to anticipate the next move
they will make. The ugly passions.
on tho other hand, are difficult to
come at. for they operate under cover
and their purposes are not easy to
discern. 1t II q common thing for US
sto cloak our purposes when they are