Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1912-01-11

In Use For O
.-... THE orsrAua COMPANY. IT NJ
pointed hour regardless of the size OF
the crowd.
There is nothing SO good for the
blues as singing and if anyone here has
the least touch Of the blues he or she
can best be rid of them by Joining in
the song service The service was
featured by duet by Prof and Mrs
Scheduled who sang sWill There Be
Any Stars in my Crown"
PauIs Conversion.
Evangelist McConnell's text was TAX
en- from the Acts Of the Apostles Read.
ing a part of the 18th and 18th verses
of the 22nd chapter, he told of the con-
version of the Apostle Paul. The
theme foreshadowed the excellent talk
that was to follow, and the lessons
drawn from the conversion of the great
preacher were made to sink into the
minds and hearts of the hearers.
He painted a word picture OF the
trip Of Saul of Tarsus to Damascus;
!
light, above the sun in it's great bright
ness, and the hearing Of the voice OF
God announcing to the learned Jew the
truths regarding the son OF God. His
subsequent return of physical vision
and enlarged spiritual vision were all
gone into by me speaker in a way to
influence the2lives Of his hearers es-
pecially if they too were without the
light OF faith.
! He told the story Of Lord Lytton
and Gilbert West, men eminent in let
ters in England, but at the time Of the
story, scoffers at the revealed truths
OF religion. Their agreement to write
book on some subject vital among
Christians and thereby to expose what
they considered the fallacy of the
teachings of religion was related. The
one was said to have taken the subject
of the resurrection of Christ the other
the conversion of Saul Of Tarsus. The
subsequent avowal was made by GIL.
bert West that the more he studied the
conversion of Paul, the more con.
WINGED was he that his former belief
was wrong. The speaker then described
the meeting of these two men and how
Lord Lytton told Gilbert West that he
too experienced the same feelings as
did the latter in the effort to belittle
the truths OF religion and both wrote
a pamphlet in support Of the truth.
Paul a Learned Man.
The literary qualifications of Paul,
his education and fine intellect; the
culture of the learned Jew and his su-
premacy in education over all of the
followers of Christ at that time were
emphasized by the speaker and were
so brought out to show that the voice
of Gcd that smote Saurs ear and fired
his soul when he was about to at
tempt the destruction of Christs
church then in infancy, should appeal
to the learned unbeliever who will
not give ear to the voice Of God as it
calls upon men. 1--WE do not need"
said Mr. Mcconnell, ito expect God
to do the same for us literally as he
did for Saul. Why all he really did
for Saul was to show him that Jesus
was the son of Cod
The speaker stated that there can
be no progress outside of the will OF
God. He said that science is merely
nan thinking Gods thoughts after
him. He stated that nature was
merely the working Of Gods will and
that men did not always understand
the will of God. Giving an illustra.
ton Of the working Of the will of God
through man. elements and all man.
ner Of creatures, the speaker told OF
the laws Of cohesion, adhesion and
the affinity of the elements; how the
architect and builder through the
knowledge of these things can place
roof over an empty space and be
certain that it will remain In place
although there is nothing above it to
hold it suspended and from the nature
CT things should not thus stay sus-
pended. 1T is not man that does these
things" said he, "but Gods will work
ing ir man. Man does not do these
things of himself but through the will
of God working in him. The will of
God and nature are the same thing.
Saul knew a great deal of the will Of
God; he was not an ignoramus, but
an educated Jew whose fidelity to his
religion led him to secure authority to
start out with the view to crush the
religion of Christ. Saul did not know
the will OF God in the highest sense,
nor does the educated unbeliever. The
educated person who does not be-
lieve cannot see Gods will and work
ings in things if he continually will
not see them. You may follow Edi-
sons inventions, but you never see
Edison in them. BY the same token
you will never know God by digging
in the dirt or by reading the history
of man, but you can by revelation.
You may meet Edison get acquainted
with him, remember the color Of his
hair and eyes, but unless he reveals
himself to you in some manner, you do
not or canrot know him.
Paul's Regret. |
1.-The Gcd Of thy fathers has appear
ed to you Saul, that you might know |
the truths. The most glorious fact |
in the gospels Is that God is willing |
that all should know him. Paul re-
GREETED that he came to Jerusalem too
late to see Jesus in the flesh, but my |
friends Jesus loves every man as |