Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1912-06-11

time in nothing else but either to tell or to hear
some new thing" (Acts xvii21.) They became ut
tery shallow and frivolous by their mania for the
novel; the true ceased to command their interest
In like manner many in our day feel interest
in matter unless it approaches them with the
aspect of a novelty; they chidishly call for new
toy every day.
This spirit is at its worst when it intrudes into
the sphere of religion 1t then assumes to doubt all
that serious men have ever believed, and to accept
all that sober minds have doubted; it is espe-
ciay disposed to believe anything that is not IN the
Bible or that is inconsistent with fair inter2reta-
ton of the Bible
Lately certain men of this spirit have undertaken
change the very object of the church's Godgiven
commission and to insist upon the church accepting
a new objective" whatever that may mean. 1t is
not quite clear what they intend this new objective
to be; for their language is conveniently vague. But
it seems that they mean for the church to conoen-
trate it's energies on what is called social service
and abdicate the commission given to it by its
ascending Lord when he said that repentance and
remission of sins should be preached in his name
among all nations" duke xxiv:47). If they Intend
what they say, they that the church shall
give it's chief attention to the relief of physical des
titution and bodily suffering, and incidentally de-
velop more or less piety as 'by-product" Now all
this sounds very we'll the tongue of glib taker,
and 1t is greedy accepted by certain type Of mind
which thinks that pain and want are the worst, If
not the only real ills to which mankind is subject
but is in the teeth of all the teachings of the New
Testament and opposed to the entire plan of redemp
ton whch-Jesus proposes for the salvation of the
world.
Our Lord declared in unmistakable terms his
own supreme objective" when he said 'The Son
70 hof xUhip h
is lost" And he did not reckon that any were lost
by reason of mere poverty or PAIN he counted only
sinful souls as souls Lazarus at the rich mans
gate filed with sores and subssting crumbs, was
not lost man in the esteem Of Jesus; but Dives,
clad in fine linen and farng sumptuously every day.
he regarded utterly lost notwithstanding the rich
mans comfortable condition. The program of the
men with the new objective" would have been to
count Lazarus lost and appoint the rich man. at
whose gate the poor saint lay and died. chairman of
social service committee to devise ways and means
to feed and cure lost beggars.
Now the relief of the poor and suffering is
christian duty, and truly saved man will turn
away in heartess indifference the cry of the needy
That is searching and decisive question which st.
John puts when he says Whose hath this worlds
goods and seeh his brother have need and shutteth
I'D his bowels Of compassion from him, how dwelleth
the love of God in HIM? Ct John iii:17). No man
truly loves God whom he has not seen If he love not
the human brother whom he hath seen. But human
tariansm is one of the fruits of pety, and may not
be substituted for piety. 1t lacks great deal of
being the whole of religion, the chief part
of religion.
The poor need something more and better than
mere improved physical comforts of food, raiment,
and housing. They need, as do all men, first and
foremost salvation from sin through Jesus Christ
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God is to bring this salvation nigh to every man.
He who goes to the poor with concern for any
need above their physical wants, approaches them as
mere animals and dishonours them by such an ap-
proach Let him feed the hungry, clothe the naked,
and by all means relieve the sick and aictedS but
let him never forget that the poor have souls, and
should be respected being endowed with immortal
spirits.
The church will not succeed in relieving the
bodily wants of the poor, if it makes such relief
work its main objective" Jesus has done more to
relieve human pain than all the rest of the worlds
teachers and when he walked in the flesh he lived
in an age and land of extreme poverty. The ancient
world was a poor world, and the oppressed people
of Palestine were among the poorest Yet the chief
concern of the Christ was their spiritual salvation,
rather than their social betterment He fed hungry
multitude of peasants by the miracle of the multi
piled loaves and fishes; but when he saw that they
wanted interest IN ne
saying Verify verify, 1 say unto you, Ye seek me,
not because We saw the mircaes but because We did
eat of the loaves and filled Labour not for
that perisheh, but for that meat which en-
dureth unto eternal life" (John vi: 26, and I'D.
Perhaps the men who propose new objective for
the church." would have said to Jesus had they been
present, you making a mistake. You can
not save hungry man until you feed him; you can
not fill his soul with spiritual life until fill his
stomach with pure food, guaranteed under the pure
food act and entirely free from injurious microbes
But Christ was not mistaken. The men who would
substitute social service for spiritual salvation
mistaken and they moving towards a great dis
appointment. They will find in the end that their
shallow and sentimental efforts have generated more
discomfort and distress than they have relieved
Moreover the church his a mission to the rich
we'll as to the poor and they must be included in its
objective" And it's mission to the opulent is more
difficult to fulfill successfully than is its ministry to